Page 25

“It won’t take long if you behave,” Merrick chastised without heat, taking her hand again. “That wrist isn’t stable, darlin’. It needs to be in a cast so it’s supported while it heals. You don’t want a wonky wrist, right?” He flopped his own around in demonstration as he sat again. “It’ll stop hurting as much once it’s secure. Right now, any bump or knock causes you pain.”

Tamsyn slid her eyes to the doctor, watching her every move. She was still hunting through her bag, but surely there wasn’t that much to root through in there; it wasn’t the biggest bag in the world.

When Linnie made her move, Tamsyn was too slow to stop her.

Reaching out with one hand, she snagged the IV line without looking at it. Her other hand came out of the damn bag, a syringe poised in her fingers. Even as Tamsyn squeaked in alarm, the blunt nozzle slotted into the port, and the plunger depressed.

Liquid spurted into the line, heading straight for her vein.

Before she could grab the tube and rip it out again, Linnie’s hand clamped tightly over her elbow where the canula sat. “I haven’t given you enough to knock you out, sweetheart. It’ll calm you down and let me work without stressing you out. You’ll hardly feel a thing. Merrick will be exactly where he is now, okay?”

“What the hell, Linnie?”

“It’s better and safer for everyone,” she fired back.

Tamsyn’s vision blurred slightly at the edges. She blinked, her eyelids barely responding to her commands. Muscles tight with anxiety went lax in the space of a heartbeat, and that heartbeat seemed to take forever. Her fingers uncurled from their death grip on Merrick’s hand.

She whimpered, but the sound came from far away.

Melting into the pillows, she watched through half-open eyes, losing chunks of time. She barely felt the press of Linnie’s thumbs along the break, or the tug of a soft, stretchy sock thing being pushed over her numb hand to hug her wrist.

The room blurred as another layer was rolled quickly around the first, fluffy and white. So very white and fluffy, she thought, trying to reach out and stroke it.

“This is becoming problematic, Merrick. She’s far too dependent on you for this to end well.”

His face faded in and out of focus. “What would you have me do, Linnie? Hand her back to you so you can keep her sedated for days on end? That’s the only way you’ll keep her in that room. Here, she’s calm and comfortable. I’m handling the nightmares when they hit her, but aside from that, she’s resting. Just what the doctor ordered, remember?”

“You’re creating a bond with her. Not just friendship. I know it’s just your way with nervous subs, but she’s not a submissive and you’re cultivating a dynamic with her whether you realize it or not.”

“She needs someone to lean on for a while.”

“There’s leaning and then there’s loving. If she’s been emotionally starved on top of everything else, what you’re giving her is addictive. In three days, you’ve become the center of her universe. Think about that. What happens when you want to scene with someone, when your job requires it? Are you going to make her sit on the sidelines and watch you rail someone else? Leave her isolated here and lie to her about what you’ve been doing all night?”

“I’d never lie to her.”

“Just torture her with what she can’t have, then? Because I guarantee you won’t want to touch her if and when the time comes.”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

“Are you seriously that obtuse?” Linnie dipped strips of material into a bowl of steaming water and began wrapping them around the fluff. “We’ve all been here long enough now that everyone knows everyone else’s business, Merrick. Rumors of your size are no longer rumors, but substantiated. It’s a fact that you won’t fuck anyone, client or not, if they’re on the smaller side or their limit list indicates no pain.”

He grunted in reluctant agreement. “And?”

“Christ Jesus, I’m not spelling it out for you. Think about the conversation we just had with her about sex, and think hard. Maybe you’ll put the pieces together.” When he tried to speak, she held up a damp hand. “No, this is done. It’s quiet time now, and you have a lot to mull over. I need to concentrate, so no more talking.”

Tamsyn floated there for a while, disconnected from active thoughts, enraptured by the process of building the cast. Dip, shake, wrap, smooth. Eventually, the cast covered her from the knuckles halfway down her arm, then Linnie’s fingers rolled the excess padding back over the edge of the damp material.

“All done,” she announced with satisfaction. “That should harden within ten, fifteen minutes so if she comes around before then, don’t let her move it. I’ll do regular checkups, but I shouldn’t need to see her formally until it comes off, if she’s still here. She can use it lightly—nothing strenuous—and it will need covering when she showers. Don’t get it wet, for God’s sake.”

Merrick nodded absently, his thoughts obviously elsewhere. “Mmm-hmm.”

“Figured it out yet?”

Dark, stormy green eyes landed on Tamsyn’s face. He seemed… concerned? Unhappy? Whatever that expression was, it made her want to lift her fingers to stroke his cheek. “She’s a virgin.”

Linnie wiped her hands dry on a towel, then patted his shoulder. “Gold star for you, big guy. Now you understand the predicament.” She started packing away her equipment. “I spoke with Evander before I came here. He’s willing to put her up in one of the guestrooms in the clubhouse and assign her company for the duration of her stay. She won’t be able to leave the room unless she signs the paperwork.”

“She’s lacking basic reading and writing skills.”