Southern Spice (Southern Desires Series Book 1) Read Online Free Page A

couch but found it difficult, and she started to limp to keep the weight off her leg.
    “Are you okay?” she heard Derrick ask, his tone almost sounding concerned.
    The next step she took hurt even more than the first ones.
    There were only a few more feet to go before she reached her destination, but she feared she wouldn’t make it. As her knee began to buckle, she prepared herself for an inevitable drop to the floor. Yet, for the second time that night, Derrick’s timing was perfect. She found herself swooped up and safely cradled in his strong arms. He carried her the rest of the way to the couch and sat her ever so gently down as though she was fragile. If only your words were as kind as your actions.
    No matter how good it felt at that moment, her brief experience with him said once there was any distance between them, it was going to be over. Her training had taught her never to trust feelings right after a close call with death, as she just experienced. Every sense was heightened. That must be the explanation for her strong physical attraction to him. Of course being drop-dead gorgeous with the look of danger in his eyes wasn’t helping any.
    Her cheeks were flushed for many reasons, but she brushed them away. “I’m okay. Really I am.” That wasn’t true. She knew something was wrong with her knee. Maybe it was the adrenaline from earlier that caused her not to notice how bad it was before. Whatever it was, it had worn off, and her knee felt like it was on fire and standing on it was no longer an option. Thank God it didn’t happen while I was in the shower. That would have been awkward, to say the least.
    “No, you’re not. Take off your pants. I want to see your leg.” This was demanded not asked.
    And this is also awkward. There was no way she was removing any of her clothes in front of him. She had made that clear once, and that hadn’t changed any. “I said I’m okay. It will be fine in the morning. I just need to rest it.” With a lot of ice.
    Derrick wasn’t hearing it. He reached down unrolled her cuffed jeans and grabbed the hem of the pants with both hands, gripped it and tore it wide open to her thigh. Casey gasped in shock. She moved quickly to pull away and the pain shot through her.
    “Ah . . .” Casey couldn’t hold back crying out.
    “Damn it! Look at your knee.” Derrick’s voice sounded shocked. “Why the hell didn’t you tell me you were hurt?”
    You never asked. Casey didn’t need to look at her knee. She could tell it was bad by the pain and lack of flexibility. “I’ll ice it. It will be okay.” It was a slim chance, but it was a good place to start. Once in town, she’d get proper care for it, but she had to keep this injury on the down-low. Only me. Only I could have gotten lost and rolled off a road. If it wasn’t for the fact I was driving my personal vehicle instead of a company car, I would have to add it to the list of “I can’t believe she did that.” I’m not sure, but this one might beat the time I was trapped in the ladies’ room at a gas station for three hours because the doorknob fell out and I had to wait until someone walked by. If it wasn’t all on the job, she might find it humorous. But to Casey, it seemed like another reason not to be taken seriously. It was standing in the way of what she wanted. I deserve a promotion if shit like this keeps happening.
    The pain shot through her knee again. No way am I taking any time off for an injury. JT would just love that. The man was intent to ruin her. But what she couldn’t figure out was why.
    “I have some horse liniment in the barn. I’ll get it and wrap it. That will hold you till we can get the doctor out here to look at it.”
    He probably means a vet. “I’m not using stuff you put on a horse.”
    “I have some of the best horses in the US on this ranch. What I use on them is better medicine than most doctors use on people.”
    Before she could question him further, he was at the