Page 92 of Rescuing Dr. Marian
He shook his head andtsk’d. “No submersing those lacerations for several days, Sheriff. But I promise to find other ways to warm you up. Deal?”
“Mpfh.”
He pressed a final kiss to my cheek and stood, moving to my pack to dig around for more clothes.
In the end, I was able to put my original clothes back on, surprisingly warm and dry from being hung near the stove. While I yanked on a clean pair of socks, Tommy fed Chickie pieces of his protein bar.
“She’s going to start begging at the table,” I grumbled. “People food is a bad idea.”
“Maybe if you’d packed some dog food instead of five pairs of socks, we wouldn’t be in this situation.”
The whir of rotors reached us through the drafty door and walls. We finished packing up, leashed Chickie, and made our way out to the scree field in front of the hut.
Monroe and his bird appeared within seconds, hovering a hundred feet above us. His voice came over the radio as he commanded the scene. I could see the excitement on the faces of the students as they worked together to bring down the harnesses and get us and our gear hoisted up.
“Fucking sick, dude!” Cody said, reaching out to fist-bump me.
“Easy with the victim,” Tommy said over the noise of the blades, grabbing my jacket and shoving me down onto a nearby seat. “Strap in.”
Once he fell into the seat next to me, I leaned over. “What happened to going easy on the victim?”
He grinned, his face golden in the morning sunlight. “Who said you were the victim?” He ruffled Chickie’s ears where she was tucked safely between us, scanning the inside of the helicopter with her sniffer working a million miles an hour.
When Sierra finally slid the door closed, the wind stopped stinging the skin on my face.
The ride back to the landing pad at SERA went by quickly. Trace was waiting for us when we landed and tried insisting I head to the medical clinic in town “just in case.”
Tommy shook his head. “He’s fine. Already treated him andassessed him for a head injury. All he needs is a hot shower, a decent meal, and sleep.”
As we started moving toward the main building, a large SUV pulled up, and Marians began pouring out. Ella took a flying leap at Tommy, who stumbled back as she hugged him.
I watched to make sure he was okay, but then I was quickly overtaken by my own Marian entourage. “You look like shit, Muscles,” Tilly said, frowning up at me.
Granny squinted at me. “Scars are sexy. Black eyes… not so much. Tell ’em it was a bear. Makes for a better story.”
Irene just tutted, licking her thumb and reaching for my eyebrow. I ducked out of the way before her germs made contact with my open wound.
Tommy glared at them with an anger that surprised me. “Ladies, let the man go. He’s hurt and tired. Tilly,back off.”
I suddenly remembered what she told me about Tommy’s job offer at the cookout. Had it only been the night before last? How was that possible?
Exhaustion returned with full force, causing me to feel unsteady on my feet. I locked my knees and plastered on a smile. “This is too much for me,” I murmured. And then I turned and walked away.
The rest of the walk to Cabin 8 passed in a blur. I remembered the heat of the shower on my sore muscles, the long gulps of cold water from the sink tap after I brushed my teeth… and then nothing but the soft comfort of my small bed.
I slept for twelve hours. When I woke up, it was dark outside, and there was no sign of Tommy or Chickie. I texted him, half-worried I’d hear the phone ping here in the room,but there wasn’t a noise or vibration. Neither was there a response.
I blew out a breath. I’d managed to go nearly the whole day without thinking about our confessions in the cabin the night before—a dramatic rescue followed by hours of unconsciousness were handy that way—but now that I was alone and feeling human again, Tommy was all I could think about. The shock on his face when I’d confessed that I loved him. The warmth in his eyes as he’d said he loved me, too. The way my whole body trembled with the need to hold him. The fact that I still didn’t know how the fuck we could be together without one of us taking a huge leap and giving up… well, everything.
I made my way to the SERA dining room in search of them, but I only found Jasper sitting and eating a bowl of pasta while reading a dog-eared paperback. Chickie lay quietly at his feet until she saw me.
I squatted and gave her some love before looking up at Jasper. “Hey, man, you seen Tommy?”
Jasper glanced up and gave me a hesitant smile. “Dr. Marian went on a callout with Monroe and Sierra. He asked me to watch Chick.”
“A callout?” I frowned. “For what?”
He shut his book and set it on the table. “From what I could gather, some kids were goofing around while on a trail ride, and one of them got thrown and kicked by the horse. They were pretty deep in the backcountry, so they called for a medevac. SERA’s on the list if they’re the closest team and time is an issue.”
