Page 4 of Recovered By Firefighter Daddy

CHAPTER FOUR

Shane

As beautiful as I had thought she was when I pulled her out of the buried vehicle, seeing her now while she was awake and a little more alive made my heart skip a beat. She was even more beautiful now than she had been when I rescued her, and I had to do everything within my power to hide the concealed boner that had grown in my pants. After all, I was here on professional business, and I didn't want to ruin anything by messing around with the person I had just rescued.

Her long black hair was a bit of a mess as it was sprawled out across the pillow, and she looked tiny and weak, almost like a child, as she stared up at me, a little bit of drool escaping the corner of her mouth as she stared up at me. Part of me wondered if she was as distracted by me as I was by her, but I immediately shook my head, keeping myself focused on the task at hand.

"Protocol after an avalanche rescue is that we always interview the person to figure out why they were there and what exactly happened whenever they got caught in the avalanche," I continued as I pulled up a chair so that it would be easier to conceal my erection. "I just want to know exactly what happened whenever you got buried in the snow and everything leading up to it." She shook her head a little, almost as if she was trying to focus her attention on something else, and lowered her gaze, looking a bit embarrassed as she blushed.

"If I'm truly honest with you, I took the road through Avalanche Gulch because I was running late getting to Nome so that I could catch a flight to the states, "she informed me as she risked a glance up at my face. "My snow chains had just broken, and I needed to hurry to catch my flight, so I decided that I was going to take the shortcut. However, when I was almost out of Avalanche Gulch, I heard the rumble of snow behind me and realized that I was about to get caught in an avalanche. I picked up the speed and almost made it out, but, when I was about to hit the exit, I ended up buried in the snow and immediately called for help once I realized just how far I was buried. " I tried to remain as professional as possible as I nodded my head in acknowledgment every so often in order to show some interest in everything that she was saying while I wrote down notes in my notebook so that I could file the report when I got back to the fire station.

It was the same story for just about anybody who was from around here and actually dared to go through Avalanche Gulch. Everybody knew that it was incredibly dangerous and that avalanches happened no matter how careful they were going through. In fact, we had actually been petitioning to have that place closed off for quite some time in order to prevent any more deaths after a couple died almost three years ago, leaving their eighteen-year-old daughter to fend for herself in this world before she had even graduated high school, but, no matter how hard I tried, Avalanche Gulch remained open to the public.

Now that I thought about it, she did look a lot like the people who had died in the accident a few years ago. She had the same dark unruly hair as the woman I had pulled out of the vehicle, and her eyes were the same deep green as the man. The longer I stared at her, the more I realized that she seemed to be growing uncomfortable at the fact that I was watching her so closely. I immediately lowered my gaze, trying to think of something else to say in order to break the awkward silence that had formed between us.

"Did you have any other warning signs?" I asked as I turned my attention back towards the notebook in my hand. I knew that I had broken professional rules and stared at the woman for as long as I could stand, and I was doing everything within my power to make sure it didn't happen again. "Any rumble of the snow as it started to fall or any snowfall that warned you that it was about to happen?" She immediately shook her head as she became distracted by the television that was playing in the corner.

"Not really," she said, adding that she smiled at the colorful cartoon that was playing, and I couldn't help but wonder if maybe she was a Little as she continued. "I just saw the snow falling behind me and tried to get out as quickly as possible. After that, everything's a bit of a blur." Realizing that was all the information I was going to get at that moment, I rose to my feet and gave a polite smile as I bowed my head to her.

"Well, thank you for your time," I said as I started towards the door. "If we need any more information, we'll follow up later on." Just when I was about to open the door, she stopped me.

"You're the firefighter who ended up recovering my parents when they died a few years ago, aren't you?" she asked as she stared at me with a curious look in her eyes. I froze as I realized that she recognized me.

"Carol and James Hendricks, right?" I asked, hoping that I was wrong. When she nodded her head, I took a deep breath, trying not to let the guilt wash over me. "Yes, I am." Much to my surprise, she smiled as she tilted her head to the side.

"I don't think I ever got to thank you for doing what you could to save them," she told me. "You think I could take you for drinks or something?" My heart soared through the air as I stared at her, unable to determine if she was serious or not.

"I don't see why not," I told her as I pulled out my card and placed it on the tray beside the bed. "My number's on the card. Give me a call when you're feeling better." With that, I left the room, wondering if there was something that could have made this any better.