Dancing With Danger: Book 8: Dancing Moon Ranch Series by Patricia Watters

Josh said, his voice a blend of curiosity and irritation.
    "I will," Genie replied, "if Annie will get me a packet of sewing needles and a handkerchief or a piece of cloth."
    "I'll get them," Annie said, then disappeared into the house.
    While Annie was fetching the needles, Genie reflected on her last visit to the ranch and the image of Josh bent over the pool table in the multi-purpose lodge and the shot he'd missed when she walked in, and said, "Did you ever learn to shoot pool?"
    "I can shoot pool," Josh replied. "When you walked in you messed up my concentration."
    Genie reached across the table and took a carrot from the tray of vegetables . "Then I assume you can run four balls in a row."
    "Sometimes ," Josh replied. "It depends on the set up."
    "You ever try shooting without aiming?" Genie asked.
    "Not if I want to sink a ball in a pocket," Josh replied.
    "Try it sometime," Genie said. "Let your subconscious mind take over. You might be surprised with what happens."
    "Are you saying you can run four balls without aiming?"
    "Something like that."
    Annie stepped out of the house. "Here you go." She handed a packet of needles to Genie, along with a handkerchief with some uneven crocheting along the edge, like Annie might have tried her hand at it. "And this is for you, honey," she said to Cody. "How about you have your bottle in your playpen so Uncle Josh can have some veggies?"
    She lifted Cody off Josh's lap and put him in a playpen set off to the side, gave him the bottle, and sat at the table across from Genie.
    Genie opened the packet of needles, slipped one out and studied it, then returned the needle and passed the packet to Josh, saying, "Check these out so you know they aren't trick needles, then hand them to Ryan so he can take a look if he wants."
    Josh took the packet and pulled out a needle, eyed it closely, then slipped it back. "They're regular needles," he announced.
    " Then you're all absolutely certain that they're normal everyday sewing needles?" Genie glanced from one to the next. They nodded and mumbled their yes's. She held her hand up in front of Josh, with her thumb sticking out, and said, "Okay, I want you to take a close look at my thumb and make sure there aren't any needle marks in it."
    Josh curved his palm around Genie's hand, and the moment she felt the heat from his palm penetrating her hand, her heart accelerated, her breath quickened, and her face felt as if it were on fire. She also realized Josh was taking an inordinate amount of time to study her thumb. Still, she didn't rush him because… she couldn't explain why, only that she felt something passing between them, and when she looked up and Josh held her gaze, she wondered if he felt it too.
    The magic was broken when Annie cleared her throat to get their attention, and said, "So Josh, do you see needle marks in her thumb?"
    Josh released Genie's hand, and replied, " No needle marks."
    Genie drew in a breath and waited a moment for her quickened heart rate to settle down, then removed several needles from the packet and placed them on the table. Lifting the handkerchief, she slipped it over her thumb. "Okay, watch carefully and we'll see how tough you guys are." Picking up one of the needles, she pressed the tip to the outer edge of her thumb, and ever so slowly, pushed it until it came out the other side.
    Josh sat up and looked on in alarm. "What are you trying to do?" he asked.
    "Show you that women are as tough as men," Genie replied. Taking another needle, she put it close to the other needle and gave it a little jab, letting out a grunt as she did, and pushed it slowly through. With the third needle, she gave another little grunt and bit her bottom lip. But when she picked up the next needle and placed the tip against her thumb, Josh grabbed her wrist and said, "Stop. You got your point across."
    Genie looked at Josh's hand wrapped around her wrist, then at Josh, and said, "A few little needles in a thumb is a whole lot less