Baby Included. Mary Lyons
He would always have a special place in her heart, of course,. But now she felt confident of being able to take that flight home to America tomorrow—quite safe in the knowledge that she was now ready to start a new life.
All the same...just make sure that in future you stay well away from any tall, dark and ruthlessly attractive Englishmen! she warned herself grimly, before turning to swim slowly back to the shore.
‘That’s odd...’ Ace muttered, frowning as he glanced down at his wristwatch. It was the first time, during the past four days, when the weirdly dressed woman had not kept to her rigid timetable.
Not that it was anything to do with him, of course. Absolutely not! In fact, it was definitely about time he learnt to mind his own business.
However, some ten minutes later he was still feeling slightly uneasy. He didn’t want to make a nuisance of himself, of course. But perhaps it might be a good idea to take a stroll along the beach? Just to make sure that the woman really was all right... ?
Rising from his seat behind the desk, he walked slowly down to the water’s edge. And then, just as he was taking himself to task for being a fool, and about to return to his own casita, he heard a faint cry in the distance.
‘Are you all right?’ he called out some moments later as he ran swiftly towards the crumpled figure sitting hunched on the sand beside the ocean.
‘No...I guess I’ve got myself into some...some sort of mess,’ the woman replied, her American-accented voice sounding muffled beneath the hat and the voluminous gauzy outfit. She appeared to be concentrating on gripping hold of her foot with both hands.
It was only as he approached her and bent down that Ace was able to see blood seeping from between the fingers of the hands clasped so tightly about her ankle.
‘Good Lord! What’s happened?’
‘I don’t know how I could have been such an idiot.’ The woman’s voice was stronger now, and heavy with self-disgust. ‘I didn’t look where I was going. And I forgot just how sharp the coral can be.’ She nodded towards the ocean, where the line of her footsteps, intermingled with some spots of blood, was clearly visible on the white sand.
‘I think...well, I’ve got a horrid feeling that I may have cut into a vein, or something,’ she continued with a slight wobble in her voice. ‘Because, however hard I try, I can’t seem to stop it bleeding.’
‘There’s no need to panic. Just try and stay calm,’ Ace told her, swiftly assessing the situation. ‘However, it’s important to maintain pressure on the wound. So, keep holding on while I fix some bandages to tie around your ankle. OK?’
‘OK.’ She nodded. And then, as he quickly seized hold of some of the thin material swathed about her body, and began tearing it into strips, she cried, ‘Hey—don’t do that! I’ve got to keep out of the sun. Otherwise I’ll burn to a crisp.’
‘God preserve me from damn stupid women!’ he muttered grimly. ‘Do you want to get slightly burnt—or do you want to bleed to death?’ he added, taking no notice of her protests as he carefully removed her fingers before binding the gauze ‘bandages’ tightly about her ankle.
‘OK—OK...’ she sighed. ‘I guess I’ve been a bit of a fool. And I really ought to thank you for coming so promptly to my rescue.’
‘That might not be a bad idea,’ he agreed, with a sharp bark of sardonic laughter.
‘I’m sure I’ll be all right now,’ she said as he rose to his feet, frowning anxiously down at his amateur handiwork, not at all sure how long it would hold the wound together.
‘No. I think you’re very far from “all right”,’ he told her firmly. ‘You’re going to need some professional help—and as soon as possible. Have you got a first aid kit in your bungalow?’
‘I...I don’t think so,’ she muttered, burying her face in her bloodstained hands for a moment.
Ace’s mouth tightened grimly. It was difficult to see anything under that damned hat. But, from what little he could see of her face, it was obvious that the woman’s cheeks were deathly pale. Clearly there was no time to be lost in getting her some serious medical attention.
‘Well, there’s no point in hanging around here,’ he told her firmly, before quickly bending down and scooping her up into his arms.
‘Hey—what do you think you’re doing?’ she shrieked in a much stronger voice, the heavy voluminous garments hampering her movements as she tried to wriggle out of his grip. ‘Put me down at once!’
Ignoring the frantic twisting and turning of the lightweight figure in his arms, Ace began striding rapidly back up the beach.
‘I take it that you’re not entirely stupid? So, don’t you think it’s time you started using your brain?’ he demanded curtly.
When her only reply was a short, startled intake of breath, he continued grimly, ‘That’s only a temporary bandage which I’ve placed around your ankle. I don’t expect it will hold the bleeding for very long. And especially not if you try to walk back up the beach to your bungalow. Got the message?’
‘Oh, sure, I’ve got the message—you bully!’ she retorted with a shaky laugh, before muttering something else under her breath.
‘I’m sorry...I didn’t quite catch what you said.’
‘You weren’t meant to!’ she retorted. ‘But if you must know I was reminding myself that I’d vowed to stay well away from tall, dark-haired Englishmen. And especially ones who are clearly hard, tough and very bossy!’
He glanced down at the girl in his arms. Somewhere along the line, possibly due to her frantic struggling, she seemed to have lost her wide-brimmed hat. However, it wasn’t possible to tell the colour of her hair, since it was totally covered by a thick black scarf, knotted at the back of her head. Her face didn’t look particularly appetising either—her bloodstained fingers having left ugly-looking russet-brown streaks across her pale cheeks and forehead.
Only the wide blue eyes, heavily fringed by dark lashes, which appeared to be glinting with some emotion—although he wasn’t quite sure whether it was anger or laughter—gave any hint that there might be a lot more to this woman than appeared obvious at the moment.
‘Well, if it’s any consolation,’ Ace drawled as he mounted the steps to her veranda, ‘I’m normally a very polite man. In fact, I wouldn’t dream of being either “hard” or “bossy”. Unless, of course, I find myself rescuing a grumpy American lady—who’s clearly determined not to listen to any of my good advice!’ he added with a dry bark of sardonic laughter.
Striding swiftly into the cool, dim interior of the cottage, whose lay-out was similar to that of his own, he entered the bedroom and laid her gently down on the large four-poster bed.
‘Oops! I guess that’s put me well and truly in my place...huh?’ She gave a heavy, almost theatrical sigh as she leaned back against the pillows. ‘It must be really, really great to know that whatever happens in the big, bad world—you are always right.’
Staring grimly down at her, Ace had no problem in thinking of several crushing remarks which would put this irritating female very firmly in her place. And then, as he viewed the pale face, and slightly trembling hands, he realised that he’d been far too rough on this poor girl, who was now looking a lot younger than he’d at first supposed.
‘I’m sorry. I should apologise for being so rude,’ he said quietly. ‘It’s just that I was worried about the wound to your ankle. Believe me, you really must have it seen to by a doctor—and as soon as possible.’
‘Yes, well...I guess it’s my turn to apologise. I’ve obviously been a real pain in the neck,’ she admitted, gazing up in some bewilderment at the deeply tanned, hawk-like features of the tall, dark and remarkably handsome