Ellie’s heart was still pounding out a ragged beat and she quelled the urge to place her hand in her hair to tuck imaginary strands back into the low chignon she wore at the base of her neck. Shaken, she took a few steps away, when the boot of her heel caught on a piece of timber, turning her ankle and twisting her knee. She hissed, reached down and gingerly rubbed her knee. Immediately he was there, next to her, grabbing her beneath the elbow to steady her. “Are you okay?” Shilah asked, his warm hand cupped beneath her elbow. Ellie bit back a curse. Of all the times for her to lose her balance—this was the one time she would give anything for it not to happen. She shook her head, dismissing her clumsiness, hiding her grimace as well as her embarrassment. “I’m fine…just clumsy,” she said. “And I should have known better than to try and be cute by wearing these boots,” she finished in self-mockery, laughing lightly and glancing up at him. As she looked into his handsome face, old ghosts reared and Ellie inwardly cringed, expecting to see sympathy in his dark eyes.
