Page 45 of The Wedding Twist

Heart pounding in his chest, he ran down to the riverbank. He could see the man, still caught in the current and struggling to right himself. At this point, his waders would be so full of water that it would be all but impossible.

Jack kept his eyes on a semi-shallow area with a fallen tree he could use to hang on to.

About one hundred meters away, he watched the man try to stand up again, then get knocked over by the force of the rushing river. The rocks were slippery, and unless you had tremendous lower-body strength, it would be all but impossible to save yourself, especially when you threw fear into the mix. Knocking your head against a rock was no small threat either.

Holding on to the tree for support, Jack waded in, trying to calculate the best place to stand based on the currents he could see rippling through the water. The branch only extended so far, so he said a silent prayer that he’d be strong enough to continue.

Without his waders, the cold water shot daggers of ice through his skin, and his Blundstones were weighed down like anchors as he tried to move toward the path he predicted the man would take.

Jack approached the spot when all of a sudden, the tree branch gave way and disappeared through the current with the strength of the water. He stumbled into the river, catching his fall against a sharp rock. Blood started to flow from the palm of his hand down his wrist.

He had about ten seconds to intercept the fisher. There was no way he was letting the man get washed by; it was certain death.

In a semi-crouched position, he engaged every muscle in his lower body and continued taking small steps forward, keeping his eye on the moving target rushing toward him.

For a moment, it looked like he wasn’t going to make it in time, but a larger boulder ahead allowed him to raise himself up to the surface water, reach out, and grab the collar of the man’s shirt.

“Hang on,” he said, passing the man his other hand. “I need you to try to stand up.”

The man’s eyes were filled with fear, but after a few seconds and with Jack’s assistance, he managed to get himself upright again.

“Now put your arm around my shoulder. We’re going to walk back together.”

Jack and the man moved slowly as a pair back to land, where Forrest and the other two men were standing. Forrest waded in as soon as they were almost back to shore. “All good!” he called, as though he hadn’t almost just seen a client washed away under his idiocy.

The man’s friends helped him onto the riverbank, and Jack took a few steps away from the group to catch his breath.

Forrest joined him immediately. “Thanks, man,” he said. “That was some quick thinking.”

Jack glared at him. “You know you almost killed him, right?” he said in a hushed voice. “What were you doing, taking them into such a fast spot?”

“I’ve taken plenty of groups there,” Forrest said. His expression had changed from panicked to defensive.

“Well, you must have a horseshoe up your ass or something. I can’t believe this hasn’t happened yet.”

Forrest glanced over at his group, then back at him. “Thanks for your help,” he said. “I’d better get back to them.”

“Don’t do anything stupid like that again,” Jack said. “Gives all of us a bad name. Even those of us who know what they’re doing.”

Without waiting for a response, he made his way up to the path lining the river’s edge that would lead him back to his truck, wet boots squelching on the gravel.

He shook his head as he slammed the door to his truck, then turned on the ignition.

The only bright side to being soaked head to toe with a bleeding hand was knowing that idiot was about to get his first one-star review.

*

“I’ve got Janicecoming at eight tomorrow morning. She’s our best,” Celeste said, smiling at the husband and wife who’d come to the front desk to book a massage appointment for the wife the next morning. “Is there anything I can arrange for you, sir?”

“Just another delivery of those cinnamon buns!” he said, patting his stomach. “I’ll be happy to sit back with one of those and my coffee while she has her massage.”

“Excellent. Well, if there’s anything else you need, you know where to find me.”

The couple made their way to the staircase to their second-floor suite, and Celeste moved back to the office and checked her phone. She warmed when she saw a message from Jack, asking if he could come by to drop off some materials for their pamphlet display, goose bumps forming at the thought of being near him again.

Just as she was about to reply, her phone started to vibrate in her hand with a call coming through. When she saw the name of the screen, her heart skipped a beat. She took a deep breath in. “Hello?”

A deep voice came through the phone. “Celeste, this is Stephan Jolliet calling from the Keystone Ridge Resort.”

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