“I’ve only used a dental dam once, and yeah, it was kinda weird. It was kinda like…well, it defeated the purpose. But no oral sex? Wow…that’s got to suck.” Then Laura laughed. “Sorry.”

“What? Oral sex? Is that at the top of your list?” Their eyes met and Cassidy felt a jolt in her midsection, imagining oral sex…with Laura.

“We’re not having this discussion. No way.”

Cassidy smiled. “You’re blushing.”

“No doubt.”

Cassidy stood. “Let me get something to bandage this with.”

“It’s probably fine.” Laura lifted the towel. “Oh.” She met Cassidy’s gaze again. “Yes, maybe you should.”

“Does it hurt?”

“Now that I’ve looked at it, yes.”

“Okay. I’ll be right back.”

She hurried into the house, trying to remember where she’d stashed the first aid kit. Her bathroom? The main bathroom downstairs? The kitchen? She paused in her search, her eyes staring at nothing. So Laura liked oral sex. Judging by her blush, she liked it a lot.

Cassidy blinked her eyes several times, then shook her head. Don’t go there, she warned herself. There was just enough attraction between them to be dangerous. And this was Laura. Her friend. Not some blond model type she’d invited to dinner to…to what? To date? To have sex with? She shook her head again. No. This was Laura. Best to get the image of Laura…and oral sex…out of her mind.

“The utility room,” she said out loud, remembering where she’d put the first aid kit.

Laura was still sitting when she came out. “Sorry. I couldn’t remember where I put it. Come up here, let’s wash it.”

Laura grimaced. “That’s going to hurt.”

“I’ll be as gentle as I can.” Laura still tried to jerk her hand away when the water hit the deepest cut. “Sorry.”

“Stings.”

The other cut, slightly below her little finger, wasn’t deep at all and had already stopped bleeding. The cut on her palm, at the heel of her hand, was deeper and nearly an inch long. As soon as the water washed the blood away, more appeared, but it was slowing.

“You might need stitches.”

“Oh, no. No, no, no. Just slap something on it, it’ll be fine.”

Cassidy dried her hand, then put a gauze patch on the wound, pressing down gently, holding it there. Blood seeped through and she discarded it, getting another one. She went through three of them before she was satisfied.

“Hold that there.” She got two bandages out—one for the small cut and a butterfly for her palm—then another piece of gauze and some tape. “Okay, take it off.” She quickly put the butterfly bandage on, then covered it with the gauze before securing it in place with the tape.

“You’re very good at this,” Laura said quietly.