A consequence of necessity rather than personal interest, her level of familiarity with wound care is nevertheless more intimate than that of the layman. Her dressing was decent enough to speak to that, but his suggests something beyond her experience as a repeat patient — it suggests practice. Paired with his recommendation of where best to cut to avoid excessive bleeding, Sam suspects a medical background. That's valuable in this town, and she should care enough to confirm that suspicion, but her priorities, if they were ever in the right place, have surely shifted now.

Her self-control is reserved for bloodier circumstances than this. Instead of pulling away, she drags her gaze up along his chest to meet his eyes. "That's one of your problems solved. As for the other one, you can keep riding it out — or, if you want to, you can stick around a little longer. Up to you."