"Let me help with that," she said, already knocking his hands away and working the knot loose; between the cry and the ashy tint to his face, this wasn't the time for relaxing and sharing responsibilities. The ooze of blood got a little more active once the tourniquet was off, so she didn't hesitate to get to work on getting his jeans out of the way.

"Almost done with the hard part, okay?" She had no idea if that was true, but someone ought to say something.