To Trap A Temptress (Southern Sanctuary - Book 2) by Jane Cousins

checked his heart rate and breathing, all normal, well better than
normal, he was an elite warrior after all.  Letting out a slow breath she
bought a hand up cupping his granite jaw, liking the feel of his smooth warm
skin under her touch.  “Now what am I going to do with you?”
    *                     
*         
            *
    Drum
woke, his back aching, the floor was hard.  He tried to swallow, failed,
then tried again. 
    “There’s
water next to you.  Don’t try and move just yet.”  Nell’s voice
drifted from across the room. 
    Managing
to lift his head slightly off the pillow that had been placed under it he spied
the bottle.  Limbs moving like they weighed thousands of pounds he grabbed
for the water, somehow managing to snag it and lift it to his mouth. 
Draining half its contents in one go.  Tired from the effort he let his
head slump back.  “Thanks for the pillow.”
    “You’re
welcome.”
    “How
long was I out?”  He turned his head, Nell was curled up on a sofa
directly across the coffee table from him, bare feet tucked under her, sipping
champagne and reading a magazine by candlelight. 
    She
shrugged and turned her attention back to her reading material.  “A
while.”
    “What
happened?”  He tried to recall who had laid him out.  Had there been
an intruder? Nell looked fine.
    “You
don’t remember?”
    “We
were talking...”
    “We
were arguing.”  She corrected.  “Over what an over protective dumb
lug you were being.”
    “I
was not...”
    “I
told you I could look after myself.  You dared me to prove it.  So I
did…”
    “Did
what?”  He finished the bottle, letting it roll away.
    “Prove
it.”
    “Yeah
right.”  He practically snorted in derision. 
    “You
don’t believe me?”  She had a beguiling smile on her face as she closed
the magazine and picked up her glass. 
    Maat
she looked gorgeous sitting there in that orange sarong, cool and serene, the
flickering candlelight bringing out the gold in her hair.  With a groan he
pushed the pillow away, managing to drag himself upright and sideways to settle
his back against the nearest sofa. 
    “Did
I slip on something?”  He bought a hand up to the back of his head feeling
for lumps.  There was a sore spot but nothing much to speak of. 
Confused he bought his hand forward to rub his face, get the blood moving,
maybe persuade his groggy brain to work.  Except… he stopped and held out
his hand.  Then looked at his other hand.  “You painted my
fingernails?”
    Nell
laughed.  “And toes.  It was between pink passion and oil
slick.  I went with the black… you can thank me later.”
    “Thank
you…?”
    “You
think many people get their nails done by a highly trained Doctor?  Now
that my He-man warrior friend is bedside manner.”
    “What.
Did. You. Do. To. Me?”  He eased out each word between gritted teeth as
pins and needles hit his legs and feet.
    “I
told you from the very beginning that I could take care of myself.  But
would you believe me?  Of course not.  ‘Me big behemoth warrior, me
know everything.’  I got tired of talking to a brick wall so I decided it
was time for a little show and tell.”
    “I
do not talk like that.”
    Nell
tilted her head to the side studying him.  “You kind of do when you’re in
warrior protect mode.”
    “Did
you use some kind of magic on me?”  Absently he rubbed his chest.  He
distinctly remembered she’d been poking him there just before the lights had
gone out in his head.
    “A
little bit, hardly takes any juice at all if I find the right pressure point.”
    “Seriously…
you took me out with a simple touch?”
    “You
have a manicure and a pedicure to prove it.”
    “And
a lump on the back on my head.”
    “Your
head is incredibly hard… you’ll be fine.”
    “So
much for bedside manner.  You didn’t think about cushioning my fall before
I hit the ground?”
    “Please,
would