How I Found You (now published so sample only)

Chapter 5 - How to find one's actions surprising

Chapter 5 - How to find one's actions surprising

"Where are you taking me?" Aria asked, when he continued to walk past his house.

"You're covered in muck, so you're not coming into my house." Flynn's abrupt answer had her grumbling.

Aria gritted her teeth and tried not to say anything else as she thudded against his shoulder with every step. She was trying to figure out how he could smell so appealing to distract her anger when he took care to place her on her feet

"Dammit, that hurts." Aria lifted her painful foot.

"Sit here." He eased her back to sit on a bale of hay.

"Stupid, fucking ducks." She exclaimed.

"You sure have a mouth on you." He turned her way with that stupid eyebrow in the air again.

"So sorry that I'm not a lady."

"You were much nicer in my dreams," he muttered and she was sure she heard him wrong. "Let me start the shower."

"You have a shower in your shed." She asked in a dry tone.

"I'm a veterinarian. I'm often treating animals, so yes I have a shower in my shed," he answered with a grumble, before disappearing into another room. "Come in here and you can get rid of the mud. I'll find you spare clothes."

"Okay," she limped towards the door, until he noticed. He picked her up with a grunt and placed her in the clean bathroom. "Thanks." She told him, but he stormed away.

She leaned against the sink and eased off her clothing. Mud covered everything, so she used the inside of her grubby clothes to help clean off the gunk. Aria placed her only clean garments, her underwear, away from the grubby clothes. She had to struggle to keep them clean upon removal, but she refused to get them dirty under any circumstance.

She hobbled to the shower where the warm water thundered. Having to remove the mud without using the available soap seemed difficult. Swishing the soap over her body while trying not to think about Flynn using the same soap left her wincing. She rinsed out her hair as best she could before turning off the water.

"Here's a towel." Flynn's voice had her shrieking and trying to cover up, but all she saw was an arm coming through the door.

"Okay." She replied in a shaky voice, as she made her way over to him.

"I brought you another in case you need it for your hair."

"How did you know?"

"My sister had long hair for most of her life and she found a second towel necessary." He replied as he passed the other towel.

"You have a sister?"

"Yes, she thinks that I've been an arsehole to you." He told her and she poked her head out of the door.

"You told her about me?"

"Just this morning."

"I see."

Aria went quiet and focused on trying to dry herself. She wasn't sure how to take him talking about her to someone close to him. Then again, hadn't she babbled to Lara about him?

"How's your ankle doing?" he asked, and she wondered what to answer.

The bruising on her ankle stood out and the swelling was increasing. Aria couldn't put any pressure on it, but was sure she hadn't broken the bone. Continuing to lean against the sink with many awkward motions, she dried her now clean skin.