Page 10 of Her Rugged Lumberjack

Declan’s shout is the last thing I hear before I plunge downward into the freezing water. Every nerve screams at me, the cold wrapping itself around my lungs, squeezing tight. The muffled roar of water fills my ears, and there’s nothing but inky blackness as I sink like a stone, down, down, down…

6

DECLAN

Adrenaline floods through me,panic tearing through my chest as I watch Margot plummet downward, icy shards cracking around her like a smashed mirror.

“MARGOT!” I shout, her name ripping out of me as I skate like lightning toward the black hole in the ice. There’s no time to think. I need to get to her. I need to save her.

Tearing off my coat, I lower myself feet-first into the water, my hand scrabbling desperately for Margot as I sink beneath the ice. There’s nothing but darkness. I let myself drop farther, the cold water slapping against me as I grab wildly at nothing. Terror squeezes my gut.

Fuck! Margot, where are you?!

Something collides with me. In the blackness, a hand grips my arm, and I spring to life, holding tight and swimming upward until I can see the fading sunlight just above us. With a gasp of breath, I break through the surface and pull Margot up with me until we’re both lying beside the icy hole, shivering. I drag her away from it, pulling her toward the snowy bank.

“It’s okay,” I tell her, my heart slamming against my ribcage. She’s soaking, trembling, her skin as white as the snow beneath us. I kick off my skates and grab her shoes, not bothering to puton my own—there’s no time. Bending down, I hoist her over my shoulder and run as fast as I can toward the bridge that crosses the lake. My cabin is just the other side. I need to get Margot out of these wet clothes and into the warm.

“Everything’s okay,” I tell her, wincing at the way her teeth chatter. “We’re almost there. I got you.”

I shoulder open the door to my cabin and set Margot down in my armchair by the fireplace. With trembling hands, I get a fire started, stoking it until the flames are roaring.

“I’ll be right back,” I assure her, racing to my bedroom and grabbing a thick sweater and several blankets.

“I-I’m sorry,” Margot says as I reenter the living room. Her voice is weak and trembling with cold, but it’s a relief to hear her speak. “You t-told me not t-to get too c-close to the edge.”

“This is my fault,” I tell her firmly. “You did nothing wrong, Margot. I should have kept you safe on the ice.” Shame sinks in my chest, heavy as a stone, but right now, I need to focus on getting her warm. “We need to get you out of those clothes.”

Her eyes flicker away from my face, down to the sweater in my hands. “I-I can do it.”

She takes the sweater from me and stands up. I turn around, listening as her clothes fall to the floor. Knowing this angel is stripping off just behind me would be driving me crazy right now if I hadn’t almost let her drown a few minutes ago. The thought makes me feel sick. Something tells me that Margot disappearing through the ice is going to haunt my nightmares for a long time. I’ve never felt that kind of terror before, and my whole body is still shook up from it.

“You can turn around now.”

My sweater swamps Margot, hanging down to her knees. She’s fashioned the blanket into a kind of sarong, and it’s tied off around her waist.

“Am I ready for the catwalk?” she asks, smiling slightly.

I smile back at her, relief swelling inside me when I see the color in her cheeks. Her shivers have subsided, and she stays close to the fire, looking adorable as hell in my sweater. Now that I know she’s okay, I head for my bedroom and pull on some dry clothes myself, the chill in my bones melting slightly from the warmth of the cabin.

“Let me make you some hot chocolate,” I say once I’m back in the living room. “You need any extra blankets?”

Margot shakes her head. “I feel a lot warmer already. Thank you.”

In the kitchen, I grab a mug from the cupboard, frowning to myself. Now that Margot is feeling better, my fear is dissipating, leaving nothing but anger. I’m fucking furious with myself. She almost drowned on my watch, and I can’t believe I let this angel get hurt. A fierce protectiveness is stirring inside me, and as I carry the hot chocolate through to the living room and hand it to Margot, I’m determined not to let her out of my sight.

She thanks me as she takes the mug, sipping her cocoa before she looks at me. “Thanks for saving my life, by the way. I probably should have said that earlier.”

“I’m the reason it needed saving.”

Margot shakes her head. “I shouldn’t have skated off like that. It was dumb. I was just embarrassed after what I said…” She tapers off, avoiding my gaze as she takes another sip.

I was so distracted by Margot’s fall that I didn’t have time to process any of what she told me earlier, but I think back to it now. She mentioned her parents’ divorce and her best friend moving out; her struggle to pay rent, and how she feels she should have these things all figured out by now. It’s the most Margot has ever told me about herself, and all I want to do is wrap her up in my arms and tell her everything will be okay.

“I’m sorry about your parents,” I say, sitting in the chair closest to hers. “It can’t be easy for you.”

She sighs. “I’m glad they’re getting divorced. They make each other miserable, and I think they’ll be much happier this way. I just wish they wouldn’t drag me into all the petty crap, like who gets to keep the darn coffee table.” She rolls her eyes. “Anyway, you don’t want to hear about all that.”

“Of course I do.”

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