by Marla Monroe
Andrew frowned but sighed and nodded. “Fine. They need to see about that scar on your arm while you’re here anyway. I’ll go back as soon as she wakes up, so I can tell her bye.”
“You sit with her while I go get them to do this thing with my arm now. I don’t want to be thinking about it all night.”
Andrew chuckled. “You didn’t act worried when Rachel sewed you up.”
“Yeah, well, she was sewing me together. The doc plans on pulling a piece off of me. There’s a difference in my book.” Danny sighed and went in search of the doctor.
* * * *
Rachel woke to a dull ache in her shoulder and a pinch in her arm. She slowly opened her eyes and looked around. Nothing looked familiar. She began to panic, until she focused on Andrew sitting in the chair next to her bed. He was holding her hand.
“Hey there, honey. How are you feeling?” he asked. There were frown lines around his mouth.
“Okay, I guess. My shoulder hurts some.” She tried moving in the bed, but Andrew immediately stopped her.
“Don’t mess up your bandage, honey. What do you need?”
“Nothing. I’m just trying to get comfortable. Where is Danny?”
“He’s talking to the doctor. He’ll be back in a few minutes. He’s going to stay with you tonight. I’ll be back tomorrow afternoon and stay with you tomorrow.”
“Why can’t I go home with you?” She began to panic.
Where they leaving her here?
“The doctor wants to watch you for a couple of days since we don’t know anything about this creature. One of us will be with you all the time though, Rachel. Don’t worry.” Andrew smoothed the hair from her eyes.
“She’s awake.” Danny walked in and took a seat on the edge of the bed.
“Careful. Don’t jar her too much. She’s hurting some,” Andrew said.
“Sorry, honey. How are you feeling?”
“Okay. I told Andrew that my shoulder hurts some, but it’s more like an ache.”
Andrew bent down and kissed her. It was a soft, gentle one. He pressed his lips to her eyelids and the corners of her mouth.
“I’ve got to go, honey. I’ll be back tomorrow afternoon. You do what the doctor’s tell you to do, all right?” he asked.
“I will.” She would if it suited her, she amended to herself.
She watched Andrew leave with Danny. He stood at the door and talked low to him.
“Andrew, be careful. Please?” she begged.
“I will, honey.” He turned, and Danny closed the door behind him.
“What’s wrong with your arm?” She could tell he had something under his shirt sleeve.
“The doctor took a biopsy of that scar to see why it puckered like it did.”
“He’s scared there’s something wrong, isn’t he?” She looked down at the covers and picked at them with her fingernails.
“He’s just trying to see what is going on with mine. It doesn’t mean anything, Rachel. Don’t worry, honey.”
“If my shoulder does that, you won’t want to look at me anymore.” She felt the tears begin to well up in her eyes.
“Don’t even think like that. You mean everything to me. I’d always want to look at you. Even when you’re old and wrinkled,” he teased.
“That’s not funny,” she said but couldn’t help the smile that formed despite her aggravation with him.
“You need to get some rest, Rachel. I’m going to be right here. I won’t leave the room.”
“Is Andrew going to be okay out there alone?”
“He’ll be fine, Rachel. Get some rest. You need it to get well. I want you home where we can hold you.”
Rachel sighed and hoped he truly meant that. She wanted them to love her like she loved them, with all her heart.
Chapter Eleven
“What do you mean it’s some kind of mutation?” Andrew asked as Danny stared dumbfounded at the doctor. Twenty-four hours had passed, and the doctor had the results from Danny’s biopsy.
“I’m not a geneticist, but the cells aren’t like any normal cells I’ve ever seen before.” The doctor shook his head. “I’m at a loss as to what it is. There had to have been some sort of venom or saliva or something on his claw to have done that.”
“So you don’t know if the same thing will happen to Rachel or not,” Danny said.
Andrew ran a hand through his hair. This was not what he wanted to hear about the only woman he’d ever loved. He realized just how much he loved her on the way to the doctor with her the night before. Now he was sick with worry.
“No, I don’t know. The fact is we don’t know anything at all about this creature, so we don’t know what to expect the ramifications to be.”
“What about possibilities?” Danny asked, crossing his arms.
“I can’t even imagine,” the doctor said with a tired frown. “I’ve looked through every medical journal I have, and there is nothing that can help. Face it. We’re on a strange planet we know next to nothing about. There is no end to the possibilities.”
“You’re not making me feel any better,” Andrew said with a growl.
“I don’t feel good about it. I can’t imagine how you feel.”
“What do we do?” Danny asked.
“I want to keep her one more night just to watch how it does, and then you can take her home. I want her back in six days to take the stitches out. Then all we can do is monitor how it reacts.”
“You’re acting like it’s alive or something.” Andrew frowned.
“I just don’t know, guys. I wish I did.”
“Come on, Danny. You need to say good-bye and get back before it gets much later,” Andrew said.
“What are we going to tell Rachel? She’s going to start asking questions,” Danny said, stopping him outside her door.
“For right now, we don’t bring it up. Maybe by then we can think of something that will placate her for the time being. I don’t want her upset,” Andrew said.
They walked into the room to find Rachel sitting up on the side of the bed.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Danny demanded.
“Sitting up. My back is sore from lying in the bed. I’m not hurting anything. The nurse took the IV out, so I’m not hooked up to anything anymore,” she said with a smile.
“I know you’re happy about that,” Andrew said.
“Rachel, I’ve got to go now. I wanted to say bye.” Danny pulled her into his arms. “I’ll see you tomorrow. We can take you home then if you’re a good girl.”
She rolled her eyes at him. “I’m going home even if I’m a bad girl. Get used to it.”
Andrew smiled. He liked seeing the smile back on her face. She’d been in pain when he’d last seen her, and then worried about what was going on. Rachel playful made him smile.
She waved bye to Danny and made him promise to be careful.
“I will, honey. I’ll see you tomorrow afternoon. I’ll bring you some clothes to wear home,” he said.
Andrew waited until Danny had left before he sat on the bed next to Rachel. He made sure to get on her good side.
“Want to sit in the chair for a few minutes? That way you can rest your back if you need to.” Andrew watched her face light up.
“Yes. That would be great. I’m tired of this bed.”
“That’s how I felt about the bed at home when I was sick,” Andrew reminded her.
He helped her get settled in the chair and took the bed. He loved seeing her sitting up after she’d been so pale and lifeless before. He knew she was going to be fine. But there was the question of if there had been something on the thing’s claws that might affect her later.
Not knowing what to expect was a bitch.
“You look really worried, Andrew. Is there something you’re not telling me?” Rachel asked.
“I’m just worried about what to do about the creature. It’s dangerous, but we don’t have a clue how to get rid of it other than shooting it. So far, we have
n’t been able to do that.”
“You need to teach me how to shoot so if I’m alone again, I’ll have a gun with me and can nail its hide to the wall.”
He chuckled despite the worry. “Sounds like you’re turning into a bloodthirsty little she-devil, to me.”
“Where that thing is concerned, you bet. I have to be able to work in the garden, and if it’s going to come out in broad daylight now, we’ve all got to be prepared.”
“I’m glad you’re feeling better, Rachel. You really had us worried.”
“Well, I guess I was in shock earlier. I hadn’t expected it out in the daytime. It had only been out at night before,” she said.
“Well, it’s going to be a while before you can shoot anything, with your shoulder like it is. Once you’re healed, we’ll discuss teaching you how to shoot. I’m not particularly fond of the idea of you being pissed at me and knowing how to shoot a gun.” He tried to make a joke out of it to soften the blow.
Andrew really didn’t want to teach her how to shoot for fear she would go after it instead of getting to safety and staying. She wasn’t one to sit quietly behind the safety of the door while the thing was running loose.
An hour later, Andrew insisted that Rachel get back in bed.
“You’ve got circles under your eyes, and you look worn out. You can sit up again later on if you want to. Right now, it’s time for bed anyway.”
“Only if you get in bed with me. I’m tired of sleeping alone,” she said with a whine in her voice.
“I’m scared I’ll hurt your shoulder, honey.” He helped her settle down in the bed then drew the blanket up to her neck.
“You won’t, Andrew. I promise. If you do, I’ll sock you one.” She smiled a tremulous smile up at him.
“I’ll sit on the edge of the bed and talk until you fall asleep,” he promised her.
They talked for nearly an hour before she stopped making sense when he said something to her. He grinned and asked dumb questions just to see what she would say.
“Are you happy, Rachel?” he finally asked.
“Sometimes. But sometimes I want you to marry me, like everyone else.”
“Huh?”
She let out a dainty little snore and didn’t answer him again.
* * * *
“Well, it looks good so far. Come back in six days for me to look at it again and pull the stitches out,” the doctor said. “Until then, no lifting, pulling, or stretching the area. You also can’t get it wet.”
Rachel frowned at him. “I can take a bath, so that’s not a problem, but what am I supposed to do if I can’t do any of the other things? I need to work in the garden and finish clearing it out.”
“You’re not worrying with that garden while you’re healing up, Rachel, and that’s all there is to it.” Danny shook his finger at her. “We’ll clear out the rest. There isn’t that much left to do anyway.”
“You’ve got your hands full with the herd.”
“We’re moving them closer to the house anyway. The weather is supposed to start getting bad in the next week or so. It will be easier to keep track of them.” Andrew bent over and kissed her cheek.
Rachel sighed and shook her head. There was no getting around them. They had an answer for everything. No doubt they had practiced before today, knowing she would be fussing about what she couldn’t do.
“Okay, you can take her home now. I’ll look for you on Friday.” The doctor handed them a bottle of antibiotics she was supposed to take every day twice a day until they were all gone.
“Get me out of here. No offense, Doctor, but I’m sick of this room.”
The man chuckled and shook his head. “None taken.”
The men bundled her up since it had turned cold overnight and carried her to the transport. Andrew settled her in the front seat and fastened her harness after putting a pillow between her and the seat for her shoulder. Then he climbed in next to her. It would be a long ride back for Rachel. She was sore, and the trip would be rough on her despite the pillow at her back.
Two hours later, they pulled up outside the house. Rachel couldn’t wait to get on the couch and stretch out. Her back ached from sitting in one place for so long. Her shoulder wasn’t nearly as sore and bothersome as she had worried it would be. That was a good thing.
“How do you feel, honey? Want to go upstairs and take a nap?” Danny asked as he took her from Andrew and headed for the house.
“No. I want to lie on the couch for a while. I’m not really sleepy, just tired of riding.”
“Then we’ll get you settled on the couch.” He carried her inside to the living room and eased her on the couch.
She watched as he fussed with the fireplace, setting the gas logs to warm the room.
“Can I get you anything?” Danny asked.
“Can you sit with me for a little while? I know you guys have things you need to do, but I want you to hold me. It feels like forever since you’ve held me,” Rachel confessed in a near whisper.
“Aw, honey. We don’t want to hurt your shoulder.”
“It won’t hurt me just to sit next to me with your arm around me. I miss sleeping with you guys. It feels like you don’t want me.” She pouted.
“Rachel, we do so want you. Where did you get that idea? We’ve been right by your side through all of this. We aren’t leaving you alone to have to deal with the wound. We just don’t want to make it worse.”
“Please, Danny. Just for a little while.” She batted her eyelashes at him.
He chuckled and shook his head in defeat. “Fine. I’ll sit with you for a few minutes. Scoot over a little bit.”
Danny sat in the middle of the couch and laid her legs over his lap. He massaged her calves while he held them.
“So what do you want to talk about?” he asked.
“When are you going to let me at least cook? I know you don’t want to go back to your own cooking,” she teased.
“Low blow, Rachel.”
“Well? I can’t sit here all day and do nothing. I’ll go crazy. If I’m really careful, I should be able to make sandwiches at least, right?”
“What is she trying to talk you into or out of, Danny?” Andrew walked inside and closed the door behind him.
“I was hoping it would be out of my clothes. But she seems more interested in cooking than sex.”
“Grrr, you two. I want off the couch. Can I at least walk around some during the day? I’m going to go crazy sitting here all day long.”
“We’ll talk about it tomorrow. Right now, you’re confined to either the couch or the bed all the way upstairs in the bedroom. Take your pick.” Andrew settled his hands on his hips, attempting a stern expression.
“Oh hell, fine. I’ll sit here.” She started to cross her arms, but the pain stopped her. She winced and frowned.
“See, you can’t do much with that shoulder like it is. You’re just going to have to live with it for a few weeks,” Andrew pointed out.
“A few weeks!” She started to reply to that, but at a very tight squeeze on her leg from Danny, she thought better of it and shut her mouth.
All she needed was to have Andrew mad at her right now. She was basically at the men’s mercy. She thought it through and decided to take advantage of it instead. She might not get to get up and do what she wanted to do, but she could make them her slaves for a few weeks and get more personal time with them.
“Can I have something to drink?” She batted her eyelashes at Andrew. She already had Danny where she wanted him for now.
* * * *
“You do realize she has us waiting on her hand and foot,” Andrew told Danny several days later.
“Yeah, but I don’t mind. I like taking care of her. I just wish she wasn’t hurt.”
“Except that we don’t have the time, really. One of us has to take care of the chores while the other one is taking care of her.” Andrew wiped his face with one hand. He was ready for bed and still needed a shower.
�
�I know. She doesn’t really expect us to do this all the time. She’s just getting back at us in her own way. She knows she can’t do anything, but it’s driving her up the wall. This is keeping her mind off of it.” Danny fixed her a glass of tea to take upstairs to her.
“I love her, Danny,” Andrew said.
He had wanted to tell the other man that for several days but hadn’t been able to say the words out loud. Now that he had said them, he felt better able to say them again. Maybe even to Rachel one day soon.
“I love her, too, Andrew. She’s everything to me, man.”
“Have you told her?” Andrew asked.
“No. Have you?”
“No, I haven’t been able to come up with a way to say it. Seems like we ought to tell her someway special, but I don’t know how,” Andrew confessed.
“It will come to us. Maybe when she’s able to do things again we can come up with a way to tell her then,” Danny suggested.
“We take her to get her stitches out in another two days. I guess we’ll see what the doctor says about what she’s allowed to do after that.”
“I’m going to go help her with her bath. Don’t get in the shower until you look at her shoulder and back. I’m really worried about the way her wounds look,” Danny said.
“I’ll be right up.” Andrew watched Danny carry Rachel’s glass of tea out of the kitchen.
He leaned back against the counter and sighed. Danny was right. They should have been treating her a lot differently than they had been. Sure, they all had their jobs to do, but she was a woman having two men to take care of. She deserved to be cuddled more and treated like the queen that she was.
He couldn’t get what she’d said out of his head back when they had still been at the doctor’s house, and she was so weak. It had been something about marrying her. What did she mean by that? She had said that she was happy sometimes but not all the time. That worried him. He wanted her to always be happy. What could he do to make her always happy?
He needed to talk to Danny about what she had said and see if he knew what to make of it. Then it hit him as he turned to walk out of the kitchen. They had never done the ceremony. They’d gotten too busy once they had gotten her home with them. He ran his hand over his face and shook his head. No wonder she got that lost look on her face at times. She probably thought they didn’t want to be tied to her.
