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‘Liv, you need to hold still.’ The voice was authoritative and calm, and Liv froze, confused. Shouldn’t they be rushing her into a trauma bay?

Cool fingers traced over her head and down her neck, sending goose bumps racing over her skin. Warm muskiness filled her nose and she sighed in relief. Callum. He wouldn’t let any harm come to her.

‘Liv, can you tell me where it hurts?’

Reality crashed back in and the nightmare memories faded under Callum’s soothing touch.

‘My head, a bit.’ Liv went to move but Callum’s hands gently surrounded her face and held her still.

‘Na uh. Not until I’ve done a cervical spine assessment. It looked to me like you cracked your head pretty hard as you went down.’

‘It’s just a bump,’ Liv tried to argue. ‘I’m fine.’

‘And it will only take me a few moments to double-check that.’

‘Gee, it’s almost like you fancy yourself a doctor or something.’

Callum smiled down at her. ‘Sense of humour intact. That’s one thing checked off the list.’

‘You’re seriously going to do a full spinal assessment while I’m lying on a pub floor?’ Liv glared at him, embarrassed by the fuss being made. She hated being the centre of attention, and having what felt like half the village staring at her was making her skin crawl.

‘Just focus on me.’ Callum leaned forward. Still cradling her face, he forced her to meet his eyes and she instantly felt better. Surrounded by Callum’s scent, his warm hands protecting her from moving and risking hurting herself, Liv felt safe and cared for. ‘The sooner you stop complaining and let me start, the sooner I’ll be finished.’

‘All right.’ Liv took a deep breath, already mentally running through the procedure, but her mind went blank as Callum’s fingers traced gently down her neck, pressing against each vertebrae. The sensation sent pleasant tingles racing throughout her body.

‘Is there any pain? Any tingling or numbness?’ Callum’s eyes were filled with concern that seemed more than “just professional”.

‘Nope.’ At least nothing she wanted to share with him.

His hands slipped across her shoulders, scorching her skin through her thin dress.

‘Still OK?’

‘Fine.’

He stroked down her arms to hold her hands in his. ‘Squeeze.’

Liv obeyed, proving there was no weakness in either hand. She had to suppress a gasp as Callum ran his hands down the side of her legs and rested gently on her ankles. She knew it was just part of the procedure, but she could have sworn his hands lingered slightly, and the heat from his palms distracted as he asked her to move her feet, proving there was no nerve damage lower down.

He came back into her field of vision, and rested his hands back on her shoulders. ‘Can you move your head from side to side?’ Carefully, Liv did as he asked. ‘Up and down? No pain?’

‘No pain,’ she confirmed.

‘Do you want to try sitting up? Carefully.’ He held Liv’s hand in his to pull her upright, and wrapped his other arm around her shoulders, supporting her. ‘Feeling all right, still?’

‘Yes.’ Liv nodded. ‘I want to get up.’

‘OK.’ Callum kept a firm hold of her as he helped her to her feet, and tightened his grip as she stumbled against him. ‘What’s wrong?’

‘A little dizzy.’ Liv rested her head against his shoulder while she waited for the room to stop spinning. But as Callum held her against his muscular chest, her head resting in the crook of his neck and breathing him in, she wasn’t sure she ever wanted to move. She felt safe, and warm and protected for the first time in months. For a moment, she let herself wonder how it would feel if she gave in to temptation and nuzzled against him.

The desire became overwhelming as he slid his fingers through her hair and caressed the back of her head.

Liv couldn’t help the quiet moan that escaped her lips.

‘You’ve got quite a bump here.’

Liv felt her cheeks redden with embarrassment, horrified at the mistake she had nearly made. He really was just being professional. She was nothing more than the patient of the moment to him.