Page 79 of Surprised By Love

“Kay,” Amelia says. “I found Tiger, Momma. She was cold, so I had to come and get her.” She looks around. “I’m not in trouble, am I, Momma?”

“No, baby. You’re not in trouble. We’re going to come get you,” Sam says and I can see she’s trying hard to hold in her emotions.

I turn to see Ethan, Lucas and two other firefighters heading towards us along with Sandy, the Firefighter Paramedic. It’s a good thing she’s here in case the ice breaks. Dave and Sloan are right behind them.

“Okay, so if we tie the rope to the back of the sled, we can get someone on it and he can make his way to Amelia. She’s only about seventeen feet in, so she shouldn’t be too hard to get to. Once he gets her and the cat on the sled, we can pull them back to land.” I look around.

“I’ll do it.” Lucas volunteers.

I look at him with a raised brow. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah, of course. I’m the lightest one on the squad and I want to help.”

Ethan nods. “Sounds good. Gavin and Bobby, we’ll need you guys to keep hold of the ropes. If the ice cracks, we’re going to need to pull them back fast. But fingers crossed, that won’t happen.”

“Yeah, fingers crossed,” Lucas chuckles.

“We’re good with that?” I look around at the men. They all nod.

“What do you need from me?” Sloan asks.

Josh takes a blanket out of the backpack and passes it over to Sloan. “You’re going to wrap Amelia up in this and give her those big bear hugs you do so well and get her warmed up. It’s pretty chilly out here tonight.”

“You got it!” Sloan takes the blanket and unfolds it.

I holler over to Amelia. “Amelia. My brother Lucas is going to come get you. Okay?”

“Kay,” she says, petting the top of the cat’s head.

“Amelia. We’re going to play a game of freeze tag. You need to stay nice and still until Lucas gets to you, okay?”

She nods, holding the cat closer.

With the ropes secured to the sled, Lucas gets on and lays down on his stomach and slowly uses his hands to push his way to Amelia. The sled glides along the ice with little resistance. The ice below creaks.

“You alright there Lucas?” I shout.

Without turning to look back, he yells. “Yeah, I’m good. Just a little creaking. I don’t see any cracks.”

Once he reaches Amelia, he holds out his hand. “Hey Munchkin, can you take one step towards me?”

She nods. “Can I bring Tiger too?”

Knowing there was no way she was ever going to let the cat go, Lucas nods. “You hold on tight to Tiger, okay?”

Amelia holds the cat close to her chest with both hands and takes a step forward. Lucas grabs her and lifts her up and sits her in front of him on the sled, Tiger safe in her arms.

“Okay, we’re ready,” Lucas shouts.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Sam

I’mstandingbackinthe clearing with Sloan, both of my hands up covering my mouth. He puts his arm around my shoulder and pulls me close, like a big brother.

“You can breathe. They’re going to get her.”

I look up at Sloan, tears in my eyes, “I know, but…” I mumble.

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