Page 3 of The Mountain Man's Flame

“Angel,” I murmur the word right before the darkness claims me.

2

AIDEN

“I’m prettysure I’ll get fired if you’re dead, so just keep breathing.” The words are spoken softly but tinged with a note of panic.

Darkness is all around me but it’s a warm darkness. There’s something soothing in this space and I think it has to do with the melodic quality to the feminine voice.

Scattered fragments from the day tickle at my memory but the moment I reach for them, they disappear altogether.

Something warm and soft is against my face. “You’re a little bit bloody right now and I think maybe we’ll just patch you up. Don’t worry. I have a book for this. Please, don’t die. I don’t have a book for that one.”

I want to reach out. I want to tell the woman with the soothing voice that I’m alright. But my whole body is too heavy, and the darkness is pulling me back under again.

Nova

He’s still breathing,and he doesn’t look dead.I remind myself of this as I apply the butterfly bandage from the first aid kit I found in Mrs. Kay’s desk. It’s a pretty gnarly gash but there’s no way I have the skills to close it.

I glance back at the open book on the floor. It has instructions on exactly how to apply a butterfly bandage, but the diagram only shows a tiny cut. This is definitely not a tiny cut.

“We’ll just do the best we can for now,” I tell my unconscious patient. He’s cute and I recognize him from around town.

Aiden is the newest firefighter in Mount Bliss, a total hunk. He was checking out my ass in the diner last night. Rumor is he’s related to three other mountain men in this town—Crew, Amos, and Owen.

Crew runs the lumber mill while Amos owns the pub. I’m not sure about Owen. I’ve never seen the man. Some of the locals insist he’s a ghost that comes and goes as he pleases.

“You could probably do a better job of patching yourself up than I can,” I admit as I apply the final bandage.

I cleaned and disinfected the wound earlier. He stirred only once, long enough to murmur the word “angel” before falling back into unconsciousness.

“Are you hurt anywhere else?” I ask as I run my fingers through his dark brown hair. I’m checking for a bump on the head which the book says to do.

But I get distracted when I notice how soft and thick his hair is. I’m jealous. My red hair is long and straight with no body or volume. It’s dry and stick-like most days no matter how much product I try adding to it.

“No bumps and great hair, points for both of those,” I mutter.

He groans again and starts trying to move. I put a hand on his arm, not sure if that’s what I’m supposed to do. He has amazing biceps. Full and firm, the kind that could probably hold a curvywoman like me up against the wall as he pounded into me. Shit, that’s not what I should be thinking about right now.

“Try to be careful,” I warn. “You’ve been unconscious for a little bit.”

His eyelids finally flutter open and his deep brown gaze lands on me. “Where am I?” He looks confused, but his pupils are the same size. The book said that was a good sign.

“I need to check something,” I tell him as I shine the mini flashlight in his eyes, like that helps. I’m no doctor. But they both seem to have the same response. Also a good sign, maybe.

“Do you know your name?” I’m not sure what else to do for him at this point. Asking him if he knows who he is seems like a good start.

“You’re you.” A small smile crosses Aiden’s face.

“But do you knowyourname?” I prompt, not sure why the smile on his face is making my heart beat funny.

“I’m me,” he says decisively before closing his eyes again.

I blow out a breath and glance at my first aid book. I’ve run out of things to do for him, so I cross to the window and watch the falling snow. There are already several inches on the ground and it’s coming so fast that getting on the road definitely wouldn’t be safe, even if I could find Aiden’s vehicle. “Well, it looks like we’re bunking here for the night.”

One of myco-workers left a cup of macaroni and cheese in the cabinet. There’s other food in there, but I’m not sure how long we’ll be here so I need to ration it. For now, I heat the mac in the microwave.

The employee lounge might be outdated but it’s actually the nicest part of the library. It received some slight renovationsyears ago and the spacious room features a cozy sitting area with a couch, a small kitchenette with wooden chairs and a table. There’s even an employee’s only bathroom. I know there are definitely worse places I could have been stranded in a snowstorm.

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