by Vivien Vale
Truth is, my skin feels a little taut already. But I can’t admit my mistake.
Men like me don’t fucking make mistakes.
My pick digs into the soil, and my muscles contract as I pull it back out.
With the continuous drought, the ground is rock hard. If we were to do this in the rain, it would be a lot easier.
Life, though, isn’t meant to be easy, is it?
Although I have no fucking idea who came up with that saying, and why it is so.
I mean, why isn’t it easy? Would it be so bad for all of us if it were?
What the fuck am I doing now?
I’m no philosopher. No point dwelling on something I can’t work out, anyway.
“Well, if you’re sure,” I hear her say before the shadow on the ground tells me she’s walking away.
She’s probably got patients to see and bones to heal and stuff.
Briefly, I straighten up. I think it’s probably too fucking late to put my shirt back on, so I stay the way I am.
With any luck, I won’t be too burned.
My skin is pretty resilient most of the time. I did get severely sun burnt a long time ago, when I was a little boy. Mom had told me not to take my shirt off, but of course, I hadn’t listened.
Boy, did it fucking hurt.
By the time the afternoon shade comes to give me some welcome reprieve, I know I’m going to pay a high fucking price for my stubbornness.
Is it stubbornness or foolishness?
Deep down, I blame the monkey.
If the fucking monkey hadn’t gotten to my stuff, I would still have sunscreen, and I’d be fine right now.
Of course I can’t be sure, but I recall seeing the empty tube, and the white lotion all over the monkey.
Cheeky fucking critter.
“Wow,” Adelaide’s voice from behind rouses me out of my reverie. “You were right. It’s nearly finished.”
The excitement in her voice instantly eases the pain from my back.
“Just about.” I grumble and look at her. “You’re armed with something strong there, I hope?”
She raises her eyebrows in response, and hands me a mug.
“It’s tea. I’ve made it strong, black, and sweet.” Her smile is enough for me. “Thought you might need a bit of a pick-me-up. A nice cup of strong tea can do wonders for your stamina.”
“I bet,” I mumble, and bring my lips to the edge of the mug.
As I take a sip, I watch her. She’s just so fucking perfect.
My eyes involuntarily drop down to where the last button of her shirt hides the forbidden fruit.
To ease my pain, I let myself imagine what it would feel like for my hands to cup those delicious looking tits, and then suck on each nipple, one at a time.
“Sorry?” I think she must have said something.
“I was wondering if you wanted to have a meal that I’ll be preparing tonight, as opposed to that crap food you’ve brought with you.”
I look at her, taken aback.
“You’re offering to cook for me? Why?”
She shrugs.
“You’ve been slaving your gut out today to help these people, I thought it’s the least I could do as a thank you.”
Was there a catch? Of course not.
What would be the catch, anyway? Dig more fucking trenches, I suppose.
“I guess.” I know I don’t sound as grateful and appreciative as I should, but truth be told, my back is killing me.
“Gee, don’t sound too enthusiastic, or I might think you’re actually going to enjoy yourself.”
She walks off before I can say anything else.
“I’ll see you later,” she calls over her shoulder.
I grunt.
When I’m finally finished, I feel like I’m going to die.
Well, maybe not quite, but fuck, my back is sore. It feels as if it’s on fucking fire.
Even when I slip my shirt on, the pain is excruciating.
Thank fucking god we’re on water rations. At least this way, there’s no fucking risk of needing an excuse to not have a shower.
“Hey,” I spin around, and find myself face to face with Adelaide.
“Hi,” I growl, and move gingerly from the door of her hut to the living area.
“You can sit down.” She smiles at me. “It’s not extra.”
I shake my head.
The problem with sitting down is my back might touch the back of the chair, and that would be a fucking disaster.
For a minute or so, she just stands and looks at me. I do my best to give her the most nonchalant look I can muster.
I mean, it’s not as if I can whine or complain. There are people seriously sick in this village.
I, on the other hand, am only suffering from sunburn, inflicted by my own stupid hand.
“You okay?”
I nod.
She takes a step toward me. My heart starts beating faster.
“You sure you’re okay?”
Suddenly my throat feels terribly dry.
“Yep,” I mumble.
Now she’s only inches away from me. She folds her arms in front of her, and tilts her head to the side.
Gosh, she looks fucking hot. Even in my current state, I’d love to just grab her and wrap my arms around her, although I don’t think I would want her arms around me.
“You’re not fine, are you.” It’s a statement, and not a question. “In fact, I’d say you’re just the opposite.”
I’m so parched now I feel as if I’ve been in the desert without water for forty-five days.
“Turn around.”
I stare at her.
She inches toward me.
“Turn around, and let me look at your back.”
With her eyes blazing and her voice starting to become commanding, I do as I’m told.
“You better go and lie down on the cot so I can apply some soothing lotion to that.”
Again, I don’t offer resistance.
“Okay, boss,” I mumble, and do as I’m told.
The cool gel on my burning skin is a big relief.
Her fingers rubbing it in, pure fucking torture.
“Why didn’t you say something?”
Her question throws me.
“About what?”
“Your sunburn,” she says softly.
The way her fingers are running along my back, spreading the gel is playing havoc with my brain. All my thoughts have turned to mush. I can’t string together one proper thought.
I’m spared an answer by her continued speech.
“Do you remember the time you and Sten went on a rabbit hunt?”
“Yep,” I groan, and hope she doesn’t hear the torture in my voice.
“And Sten fell out of the tree?”
“It was you who splinted his arm until you got back home.”
She laughs, and it’s music to my soul.
Up and down she moves, side to side, then back again.
Any second and my brain is going to take a leave of absence and leave my dick in charge of thinking.
“Those times were great,” she says, her hands still on my back. “The way we used to hang out.” She pauses. “Actually, you and Stan hung out, and I just tagged along.”
“You seemed to belong there,” I reply, still struggling to string proper sentences together.
My fucking cock is throbbing, and I thank my lucky stars I’m lying face down—because it’s definitely ready for action.
I’d hate to scare her off.
The more she’s talking about the past, the harder it is for me.
“I used to have such a crush on you,” she’s giggling now. “And you barely even noticed me.”
Her hands are now at my waistband, and I can feel my insides melt. The tips of her fingers push just a bit below my shorts, nearly touching my ass.
Do it, do it, I urge her on mentally, and feel my muscles contract in anticipation.
But then, just like that, she st
ops.
I wait to see if she’ll resume what she’s been doing, but she doesn’t.
It takes a while for the flames of passion to die down.
“That should make you feel better.”
You have no fucking idea.
Hearing what she just told me was worth getting my fucking back burnt for.
15
Adelaide
Care for a pick-me-up?”
I open my eyes and take a minute to get my bearings.
Ford is standing next to my bed with a mug in his hand. He’s smiling.
When he said ‘pick me up’, I thought…well, never mind what I thought.
He shouldn’t know anything about my dream.
Quickly, I look down to make sure the thin cotton sheet is covering me. I’d hate for him to see more than he should.
We might have broken down some barriers last night, but that was all. It’s not as if we’re suddenly going to jump into bed together.
“Strong black tea with a bit of sugar.” He’s grinning at me. “I’m told it’s a really good pick-me-up, or something like that.”
Something’s different about him.
I can’t pick up on it just yet.
But I think even his grunting is a little clearer this morning.
I take the mug and hope my hands are not shaking too much. When the tips of my fingers brush against his, millions of tiny electric sparks ignite within me.
My eyes find his.
Is he happy?
As strange as it sounds, it certainly seems so.
Where was the efficient bodyguard? The cool, calm, and collected non-smiling man I’ve gotten used to over the last few days?
“Thank you,” I mumble and take a sip. “How’s the back this morning?”
“Thanks to the wonders of one young amazing doctor I know, very good.”
He’s still smiling, and it’s unnerving me.
My insides are practically melting at his compliments. They make me smile.
“Well,” I start, but don’t quite know what else to say.
For a while, we simply sip our tea.
Something’s changed, but I can’t work out what it is—at least not yet.
“I thought I’d come with you this morning when you do your house visits,” he announces, and I’m taken aback.
“Why?”
It’s not as if I don’t want him to.
Holy shit, I want him alright, but I’m not sure about having him follow me like a lost puppy all morning.
“To protect you,” he replies and smiles. “Have you already forgotten why I’m here?”
I sigh.
“How could I?”
He grins.
“But I think I’ll be fine on my own, thank you.”
I watch him throw a hand to his forehead, as if mortally wounded by my words. “You sure know how to hurt a guy, you know that?”
I laugh. “Here’s some more wounding, Ford. Can you please wait outside while I get dressed?”
Now his eyes lighten up. “You sure I can’t help you with that?”
His words turn my knees to jelly.
Luckily I’m still lying down, otherwise I might have collapsed right now.
“I’m sure.”
When I emerge fully dressed and ready for rounds, I see Ford waiting outside.
For the briefest of seconds, I hesitate.
Should I say something? He looks so keen, eager, and so darn handsome.
“Let’s go.” Purposefully, I stride away from my hut toward my first patient.
As much as I can, I try to ignore the flame of desire flickering inside me.
The way my heart beats faster when he looks at me, and the way the palms of my hands feel sweaty whenever he’s within arm’s reach.
At this rate, this is going to be a long day.
My first visit is a quick one. I need to dress the wound of one of the village elders who was bitten by a donkey.
The wound is infected and taking longer to heal than I would like.
“Need me to do something?”
I shake my head. The retort ‘leave’ remains at the tip of my tongue.
It’s not that I don’t want him here. It’s the opposite.
I want him. Man, I want him now more than I did before.
My insides are tingling.
“Have you been taking these?” I hold up the bottle of antibiotics, and notice how the old man won’t look at me.
I have to force myself to focus.
My eyes tend to drift to Ford who’s standing close to me—too close.
He’s so close that if I move just a little to the left, my shoulder will be touching his leg.
As if sensing my thoughts, he shifts his position and brushes against me.
Millions of electric sparks ignite within me, and I give an involuntary shiver.
“Look,” I lean forward. Focus, I remind myself. You’ve got patients to look after. “You need to take them to get better.”
The man gives me a toothless grin and I leave. Ford is hot on my heels.
“How about morning tea?”
I laugh. “I don’t know what hours you keep, but we’ve only just started.”
When I finally finish my house calls, Ford orders me to take a break.
“Let me treat you to a picnic.”
It might be the heat, or the residual feeling from the night before, but I don’t offer any resistance.
Ford leads me to a Flamboyant tree.
“Wait here,” he commands, and I smile as I watch him scoot away.
I’m not sure what to make of this new Ford.
The other question, of course, is, will it last?
Is this new Ford here to stay, or is it a passing phase, like the moon?
The Flamboyant tree is aptly named, with its massive umbrella-shaped span. It provides ample shade during hot days. Of course, it does nothing to reduce the dust, but you can’t have everything.
Shade is important.
“Voila, madam.” Ford reappears and plops down next to me.
He’s so massive I feel the earth shudder a bit as he sits down.
“The snack is served.”
His attempt at a French accent is adorable.
Where was the reserved, cool and distant Ford?
Had the bad spirits come overnight and whisked him away?
Probably not, since it would have to be the good spirits that did the whisking, not the bad ones.
“And what, my good sir, do you have to offer?” I decide to humor him and play along, although I don’t do the French accent.
“Ah, I’m pleased you ask.” He takes a little bow, and waves his hand from left to right, like one of those sales people on television. “We have dried biscuit, dried fruit, and if you’re after something extra special, we have dried biscuit.”
I burst out laughing.
Ford reels back and does his best attempt to look wounded.
“You laugh at my delicacies?”
With a shake of my head, I put my hand on his arm.
Instantly, the temperature turns up a few degrees, from fifty to a hundred.
His eyes are serious, and he stares at me with such intensity that I think he’s looking directly into my soul.
Suddenly, it is as if we’re all alone in this universe.
We’re two ships sailing in a vast ocean; whereas before, we were sailing in opposite directions, our course has changed, and we have joined forces.
We are travelling as one.
A commotion at the village perimeter goes unnoticed by Ford. He keeps his eyes on me.
He leans toward me, and I mirror his movement.
We’re inches apart. I can feel his warm breath on my cheek.
The breeze tugs at my hair, and Ford’s hand reaches forward to tuck the stray bits behind my ear again.
The gesture is so gentle, I’m surprised his big hands are capable of such a tender movement.
In anticipation of the kiss we�
��re bound to share, I pucker my lips.
Thud.
I reel back. My heart beats a million miles an hour in my chest.
Holy shit! What was that?
I look around, half-expecting injured bodies strewn on the ground all over me. But there’s nothing.
My eyes look for Ford.
He’s in exactly the same position he was in a few seconds ago.
Except now, he’s holding a well worn ball in his hands. And then I hear the village kids running to get their toy back.
Ford laughs.
He stands up and spends a few minutes kicking the ball with the kids.
I shake my head. My breathing is back under control, as is my heart.
For a second, I’d thought Ford’s prediction of an attack had come true.
“Look at them.” He laughs when he comes back.
This really is a new Ford.
“What?” he asks.
I shake my head.
“Thanks for the break, but I better get back to it.” I smile at him, and quickly finish my tea and biscuit.
If I don’t get back to work now, I might start something I’ll regret later.
I mean, I told him last night how I felt about him during our school days.
He, on the other hand, made no such admission.
It might have brought us closer and led him to relax a little—but the fact that he doesn’t feel for me what I feel for him remains.
16
Ford
Fuck, that woman gets to me.
It’s fun to tease her, but it’s damn frustrating when she keeps giving mixed signals. One moment, I can tell she’s all hot and bothered, the next she’s pulling away from me as if she doesn’t recognize me.
I take a deep breath in an attempt to calm my frustration while I pace.
I don’t know what’s really going on between the two of us. I know I want her, but at the same time, she’s my fucking charge.
If there’s one rule I stick to, it’s that I don’t get involved with the people I’m protecting. It’s a recipe for disaster, and I hate that shit.
As the battle inside my head rages on, a ruckus outside becomes louder and louder.
What the hell is going on out there?
I stop, then listen for signs of any possible danger.
The woman may have me confused and all tied up in knots, but I have a job to do, and I’m not about to neglect it.