Page 58 of A Photo Finish
He points jerkily down at the high-tech looking appendage and reiterates, “It’s my leg.”
I nod once, mind racing for how I could have missed this. We lived together for a month, and I never noticed that he’s an amputee? What the fuck is wrong with me? And how hard has he been trying to hide it? That had to be damn near impossible. “Okay, so how do we fix it?”
He snorts dismissively. “We don’t. It’s probably something in the pin lock. I felt it go.”
I don’t know what that means, but I assume that someone closer to him will. “Okay... want me to call Vaughn?”
“No,” he almost shouts. “He doesn’t know.”
I widen my eyes as I look back down at the prosthetic.His own brother doesn’t know?“Who knows?”
“My mom. But there’s no reception up here.” He looks away from me, avoiding my eyes as he shakes his head. The pain in his body right now—the shame—it almost kills me.
I rest my hand on his broad back, feeling his muscles ripple and tense beneath my palm as I rub small circles there. “Tell me what you need me to do.”
He grinds his teeth, making his jaw pop as he looks ahead, avoiding my gaze. “You’ll have to hike back down and get my spare from the house.”
I glance around at the fading light over the peak. “But it’ll be dark by the time I get back.”
He just grunts and bends his knee, making the prosthetic fall onto the packed dirt with a hollow thud. “That’s fine. You can come back for me in the morning.”
“What? I’m not leaving you here overnight.”
“I’ve done fine without your help so far. Don’t need you to get all sentimental now. It won’t be my first time sleeping outside, and Sasquatch Mountain is a hell of a lot safer than Iraq.”
He has to be kidding. No way am I going back down there without him. I wouldn’t sleep knowing I left him up on a mountain alone. “I know you can take care of yourself. I’m not worried about that. I wouldn’t leaveanyoneI care about behind. I’ll hike down in the morning and bring you the spare myself.”
“No.” He looks at me fiercely, but he doesn’t scare me.
A lot of my missing puzzle pieces concerning Cole Harding fall into place. Plus, I already promised myself I’d stick around for him.
“Well, that’s just too bad for you,” I say, pushing to stand and dusting my hands off while looking around the densely forested path, “because I’m sleeping over with you.”
“Violet.”
There he goes with that again. I know I’m pissing him off, but frankly, I don’t care. Maybe getting angry would be good for him. That blow-your-top-off type of explosion that consumes you, but also leaves you with some startling clarity. Yes, that’s what Cole Harding needs. Some clarity.
“Let’s go.” I reach my hand down to him. “I’m a farm girl, remember? It won’t be my first time sleeping outside.”
* * *
After helpingCole off the path, he sits on a log and tells me how to build a lean-to shelter. I know how to build one, but I feel like letting him dictate how I put one together will give him some semblance of control in this situation. Something I don’t mind ceding, considering he still won’t look at me.
I search for branches, pine boughs, everything I can find to build us a safe spot for the night. Yeah, the day was warm, but it’s still May in Canada. It’s going to be cold tonight. Something Cole obviously knows based on the way he’s had me cover up so much of the space and leave only a small opening for us to get in through.
I stand back, hands on my hips as I blow a loose piece of hair off my face, and admire my masterpiece. Twilight is setting in now, and it’s cooling off. I shiver at the prospect of how cold I’ll probably be tonight.
“Okay, I think that’s as good as it’s going to get,” I say, slanting Cole a curious glance. He’s still brooding on the log, the lighter version of him nowhere to be found. It’s clear he didn’t want me—or anyone else for that matter—to find out about his leg. Like I would care.That’s because you’re more interested in what’s between his legs.
“Why are you blushing?”
Motherfucker.
I rub my cheeks. “I’m not.”
He pins me with a glare that I assume means he’s not buying my denial.
“Okay. Well, I’m heading intoCasa del Violet. You know where to find me when you’re ready.”
