She Who Dares by Jane O'Reilly Read Free Book Online Page B

water?’
    ‘Absolutely.’
    ‘Why?’
    ‘Because…’ she gritted her teeth and wrapped her damp fingers tightly round the spanner, ‘you filled my forecourt with photographers without giving me any warning. And then you suggested that I let them take my photo while I looked like…’ she pulled on the bolt. It didn’t budge.
    ‘Looked like what?’
    ‘Like a total fricking mess, that’s what!’ She pulled again, harder this time, focussing all her fury, all her shame, all her frustration on that stupid, rusted bolt. Something moved.
    But it wasn’t the bolt. Nic felt herself stumble backwards, straight into a solid wall of hard, wet muscle. The spanner hit the concrete with a clang. Her entire body seemed to stop for a minute — heart, lungs, everything — and then explode back into life. Pain screamed across her palm, her fingers curling over it, but not before she’d seen the two neatly sliced edges of flesh. Then the valley filled with blood, bright red and burning.

Chapter Five
    Someone swore. Nic couldn’t tell if it was her, Sebastian, or both of them together, but the rude little word at least reminded her that he was human, somewhere inside that perfect body.
    Long fingers closed over her wrist as his other arm moved around her waist, holding her against him. She shouldn’t like it, god knows she shouldn’t, but he felt strong and safe, in stark contrast to her own vulnerable, wobbly state. ‘It’s not that bad,’ she protested, wondering why on earth she’d said that when she’d seen for herself that it was bad with a capital B.
    ‘Shut up, Nic.’ He leaned to one side, grabbed his wet t-shirt and held it against her palm. ‘We need to get you out of here. Do you feel faint?’
    Ever since the second you took your shirt off. ‘No.’
    ‘Truth?’
    ‘I’m in no fit state to accept a dare,’ Nic pointed out.
    ‘Hmm.’ His breath warmed the nape of her neck. She might have tingled, if she wasn’t so busy trying to pretend her hand didn’t hurt like there was no tomorrow. ‘Okay. I’m going to sit up on the edge of the pit. Then I’m going to lift you out. Got that?’
    Nic was still processing that instruction when large hands gripped her firmly under the arms and she found herself being hoisted up and out of the pit. A moment later she was nestled firmly between Sebastian’s thighs, her feet dangling close to his ankles. She didn’t even want to think about what her bottom was touching. ‘Right,’ she said. ‘I’ll go get the first aid kit.’
    ‘I don’t think so, princess. You’re going straight to A and E.’
    An hour later Nic found herself sat on a sweaty plastic chair, her hand bandaged in a clean tea towel, her mood thunderous. The woman on reception fiddled with her flowery blouse and glanced their way, giving her a sympathetic smile.
    The only reason she didn’t stick her tongue out in return was because Sebastian was watching her like a hawk. He’d changed into the spare set of overalls that hung on the back of the office door, then driven her to the hospital in the Jaguar before physically picking her up and carrying her into A and E. She’d swear the only reason she’d been waiting so long was because all the nurses had swooned at the sight of him striding in like Sir Lancelot in dodgy overalls.
    She’d never been more embarrassed in her entire life. If her hand didn’t feel like it was about to fall off, she’d tell Sebastian exactly where he could stick his business partnership. But as things stood, she was in a hole deeper than the garage pit he’d pulled her out of.
    Her hands were, quite literally, the tools of her trade. An injured hand meant she couldn’t work. And if she couldn’t work, how was she supposed to keep things going?
    More than that, how was she supposed to fix herself a car in time for Misses and Motors? It was nothing short of an A-grade disaster. At the root of it all was Ella. Ella had dropped her in this situation. But her