him to help her that much more meaningful. “I get that. But it’s okay to accept a little help sometimes, especially when it’s coming from a good place.”
“I’m beginning to realize that,” she said softly. “Be patient with me, okay?”
She had no idea how patient he could be.
“I’m not going anywhere.”
He brought the soup to the table and then sat down. Rather than digging in like he’d expected, however, she fussed with her napkin.
“You might change your mind about that after I tell you what happened today.”
“I doubt it,” he told her honestly. In fact, the only thing that would stop him from coming around was if she truly wanted him to. Even then, he wouldn’t give up easily. “What happened?”
“My brother stopped by earlier. He knows I’ve been visiting Sanctuary. Needless to say, he’s not happy about it.”
Her tone was light, but concern was evident in her pale eyes.
“And?” he prompted, knowing there was more to the story.
She shrugged and gave him a brief, high-level overview. “He doesn’t know that I’ve been seeing you, only that I’ve been helping with the orchard and having coffee with Kate. He warned me not to go back.”
Doc sat up straight. “He threatened you?”
Tina waved her hand, as if it wasn’t important. “I can handle Rick. I just wanted to make you aware in case you want to rethink things.”
“I don’t,” he said immediately.
“But if you did,” she continued, “I’d understand. He’s going to find out about us sooner or later, and when he does, he could make things difficult. He’s got some powerful friends.”
So did Doc. “Tina, look at me.” Doc reached across the table and wrapped his hand around hers, waiting until her eyes met his. “I’m not afraid of your brother or his friends. As long as you want me around, I’m here. Got it?”
Relief was evident in her face as her eyes softened and her lips curled into a hint of a smile. “Got it.”
She picked up her spoon and dipped it into the soup, moaning softly when she put it into her mouth. “Mmm. Kate has a gift.”
“Things have definitely improved since she moved to Sanctuary. Between Kate’s dinners and Sam’s coffee and muffins, I think we have it pretty good.”
“Sucks for the rest of us though.” She finished her bowl and paused to take a drink of water, looking thoughtful. “I’m glad they’ve found their happiness. It’s a shame not everyone sees it that way.”
“It is,” he agreed.
“Even more so that some people who’ll believe anything just because of whose mouth it came out of. Do you know there are those who liken Sanctuary to a cult? They think you guys are shamelessly using your innate sexiness to lure naive women to your lair to build your own secret society?”
Doc choked on his soup. “What?”
Tina nodded. “It’s true. They say you target women on the fringes, make them feel wanted and desired, and then ply them with sexual favors to do your bidding.”
“You’re joking.”
“Not even a little. But you have to consider the source. Most of that is coming from men who feel threatened by you. The saddest thing is, it’s not even because of anything you’ve done. It’s their own insecurities that are fueling the fire.”
His lips quirked. “Are you sure you studied agriculture and not psychology?”
She laughed. “I might have had a gen ed course or two. But it’s really more about understanding human nature, I think. Those who are talking the loudest are usually the ones who have the most to hide.”
She wasn’t wrong about that. Her brothers were fairly high on the list of loud talkers. Doc thought she knew it, too.
He nodded toward her now-empty bowl. “Want more?”
“No, thanks. It was delicious, but my stomach’s still getting used to having food in it again.” Tina rose, her movements stiff.
“Still feeling achy?” Doc asked.
“Yeah, but not much more than usual.”
“How about a massage?”
Her eyes sparkled with mischief. “Uh-oh. Offering a massage to an achy, needy woman sounds like it could be a gateway to those sexual favors we were just talking about.”
“I guess you’ll just have to take your chances and find out.”
“Challenge accepted.”
“Put some cushions on the floor in front of the couch while I clean up.”
“Bossy,” she mumbled, making him chuckle.
It didn’t take long to clean up and put the rest of the soup in the refrigerator. Doc used the time to mentally prepare himself for what he was about to do. Other than the night before when she’d snuggled up