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He nodded, and we dug in.

“Give me your plate,” Randy said when we finished. “I’ll wash them.”

“Absolutely not,” I protested. “I don’t want dirty water getting into that wound.”

He blinked.

“Actually,” I continued. “We should probably dress it again. Is it hurting at all?”

He shook his head. “It’s fine.”

“Good.” I nodded. “But I still want to put a fresh bandage on it.”

“Ok.” He paused and studied me. “I’ve smelled that before.”

“Hmm?”

A soft smile spread across his face. “It’s your protective scent. I smelled it yesterday.” He paused. “And I think before that.”

I chuckled and rubbed the back of my neck. “Probably the day we met.”

“Huh?”

My cheeks heated. “You were digging in the scrap bin, and several fell back in. I wasn’t facing you, and the sound… well… for some reason, my alpha side thought you may have been hurt.”

“From the scraps?”

I nodded.

Randy burst into laughter. “The worst I could get from them is a splinter.”

I chuckled. “I know. But it didn’t matter.”

His smile returned, and I was entranced by it. “You really got protective from that?”

“The guys at the mill still give me shit about it.”

He chuckled. “That’s sweet, but…”

“Why am I telling you?” I asked.

He nodded.

“I think…” I paused. “It’s small, something most people probably wouldn’t think to mention. But you’re important to me, and I want you to trust that I’ll be open with you.”

“Thank you,” he murmured, tone reflective.

“Come on,” I said, pushing back my chair. “Let’s change that bandage. Do you have supplies in here, or should I get the kit from your workshop?”

“Under the sink,” he replied.

“Ok.” I strode over and retrieved the kit, washed my hands, then wet a paper towel before returning to sit next to Randy. “Let’s see.”

He set his injured arm on the table and allowed me to remove the old bandage.

I used the paper towel to dab away bits of dried blood, then inspected the wound. “It’s looking good.” I touched the edges gently. “It’s not feverish, and doesn’t look like it’s infected.”

“It looked worse than it is,” Randy replied with a chuckle.