Page 25 of Forever My Lass

“Nothing.”

“God, spare me the male ego, and the asinine refusal to accept help,” she muttered and blew out a harsh puff of air at his stubbornness. “Will you let me try something to ease the pain?”

“I have nae need for drugs. If I remain still, it will go away on its own.”

“From the look of pain on your face, I’m betting you’re going to be down for the count for some time if you don’t have something.”

“Grace will be here shortly with a poultice.” The quiet reply made Madeline eye him in puzzlement for a moment, before she realized he must have asked his daughter to make something for him. Still, he looked as if he were in so much pain, she refused not to try to alleviate his discomfort.

“I know a technique that might help ease your pain. Would you let me try?”

At her question, Iain opened one eye and squinted as he looked up at Madeline. She didn’t give him a chance to reject her offer. With a nod of encouragement, she circled his chair to lean over the back and gently pressed her forefinger against the spot in between his eyebrows.

Iain murmured something, but she failed to make it out. Instead, she slowly counted to sixty, then changed the position of her fingers until they pressed into the side of his temples close to his eyebrows. Madeline repeated her counting then moved around the chair to sit down on a small ottoman in front of him and took his hand in hers.

Instantly, a small shock pulsed from his strong hand into hers and set off a tingling in her fingers. The electrical charge streaked up her arm and spread its way throughout the rest of her body. It was a startling sensation that caused her to drag in a sharp breath of surprise. Iain’s eyes fluttered, and she quickly dropped her head rather than being forced to stare into that piercing blue gaze of his.

If there was one thing she’d already learned about Iain Fraser, Baron of Glenburnie, it was how the man had a way of knocking her for a loop. Not in a bad way, but the man definitely left her breathless. Madeline forced herself to focus on the powerful hand turned palm up in hers. Remembering what she was supposed to be doing, she examined the inside of his wrist, then applied pressure to the appropriate place. When she’d finished, she looked up to see him watching her with bewildered astonishment. She smiled.

“I take it you’re feeling better?”

“Aye. I dinnae ken what you did, lass, but thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

At her reply, their gazes locked, and it was as if she’d suddenly been swept out to sea. The dark blue of his eyes resembled the stormy hue of thunderclouds, and her heart slammed into her chest. Suddenly aware that she was still holding his hand, Madeline jerked away from him as if she’d been burned. It wasn’t far from the truth. Drawing in a breath to replenish the air that had left her lungs, Madeline forced herself to look away from his hypnotic gaze.

“We have still nae resolved the matter of what tae do with you.”

The quiet words held no hint of innuendo, but the first thought that flashed through her mind had little to do with her current situation. Rather she imagined more than one thing she would enjoy him doing to her. Tension flooded her senses, and she quickly averted her gaze praying she’d not revealed her thoughts.

Madeline struggled to breathe evenly and forced herself to focus on her current predicament. She had no idea if there was a way back to her time, but for the moment she was stuck here. Homeless and without money, she was dead in the water. The irony of the cliché might have struck her as funny at any other time, but right now, she was in real trouble.

“I suppose I’ll have to find a job.”

Although she knew her nursing skills and knowledge were exceptional, she had a feeling she’d find it hard to find employment. Just the fact that Iain had asked if she had a male family member to look after her emphasized she was in an era where women had few, if any rights. He frowned in concentration as he studied her for a moment.

“What work have ye done in the past, or have ye even had tae work?”

The suggestion that she’d been reliant on a man to provide for her made Madeline shake her head with a snort of sarcasm.

“If you’re suggesting I’m a helpless female who needs someone to look after her, think again. I have—had a job.”

“Had?”

Suspicion threaded its way through his single word question. His reaction made Madeline uneasy at his sudden distrust. It probably wasn’t a good idea to speak of her life in the future in the past tense, unless she told him the truth. Instinctively, she knew telling him she was from the future was a bad idea. No, it was a really bad idea. She had no doubt he’d deem her a candidate for long-term commitment to a psych ward and would more than likely send for someone to come take her away. It wasn’t a pleasant thought.

People still had trouble talking about mental health in her own time. It was a certainty conditions would be much worse here in 1896. Then there was the possibility of changing something in the future. Madeline frowned as she debated just how much she could tell him.

Although she’d never been a big fan of science fiction, she had a vague recollection of a theory that said the future could be easily altered if someone revealed too much. Unwilling to test the idea, she decided she would keep her explanations simple and honest without being too specific.

“At home, I’m a hospice nurse.”

“Hospice?”

“Yes, I care for people who are dying.”

“An admirable occupation.” Approval glittered in his dark eyes, but his distrust remained, albeit significantly diminished. “However, I’m unaware of any positions that call for a skill such as that. Perhaps ye might serve as a companion to an elderly lady?”