AllFreeNovel
Share Us
As Dino talked to the search-and-rescue team, giving GPS co-ordinates, she was thinking about how worried Harry’s mother would be.
‘They’re going to scramble a helicopter.’ Dino rocked back on his heels, frowning as the tent flapped against his back. ‘I think he needs a faster trip to hospital than we can give him on a stretcher.’
‘The wind is too high for the helicopter.’
‘It’s dropped slightly. They’re going to give it a try, although of course it won’t be easy given that we’re in a gully.’ He gave a humourless smile. ‘Let’s hope the winchman likes a challenge. Is Rambo all right with noisy helicopters?’
‘Of course. He’s flown in them more times than you.’ Meg was looking at Harry, worried about his pallor. ‘Dino—’
‘I know. I see. I agree with you that we need to get him to hospital and do a CT scan. I’ve rung the department.’
‘Who is on duty this evening?’
‘Sean Nicholson. And the helicopter crew picked up Daniel Buchannan when they received our call.’
In the confines of the tent, their faces were close. She could see the thickness of his eyelashes and the beginnings of stubble on his jaw. It was a face so handsome that no woman passed him without taking a long, covetous look. Except her. Resolutely, she looked the other way. The day she started noticing that he was handsome was the day she was in trouble. So he had sexy eyes. So what? ‘So you’re not going in the helicopter?’
‘No. I’m staying with you, wolf-girl.’ Suddenly those sexy eyes were deadly serious. ‘What were you doing up here, Meg? Hardly the weather for an evening stroll. Blizzard, drifting snow, wind chill…’
‘Perfect evening for a walk.’ Meg didn’t bother telling him that was how she liked the weather. Wild and crazy. She’d given up explaining herself to people years before. ‘Anyway, you should be thanking me. If I hadn’t decided to walk, I wouldn’t have found Harry. I didn’t plan to come up this far but Rambo picked up the scent.’
‘You should be at home, baking cookies or painting your nails.’
Even though she knew he was intentionally trying to wind her up she was still shocked by the emotion that rushed through her body. Why did comments like that still bother her so much? Reminding herself that it had been nothing more than a flippant remark on his part, Meg pulled a face. ‘I’d rather be blown off a ridge in a force-nine gale than paint my nails. Not that I expect you to understand that. The women you date can’t walk and blink at the same time. The one today—could she talk and eat her lunch?’
‘Jealous, amore?’
‘No. I’d rather poke myself in the eye with a fork than have a romantic lunch with you.’
‘Is that so? You have strange aspirations, Meg Miller.’ Humour in his eyes, Dino watched her for a moment and then turned back to Harry, checking his temperature and other vital signs again. ‘His GCS is dropping.’
‘Perhaps we should—’ Meg broke off as Dino put a hand on her arm.
‘Listen. No wind. Must be the eye of the storm.’
All she could hear was the throb of blood in her ears. She told herself it had absolutely nothing to do with the touch of his hand on her arm and the fact that they couldn’t move without brushing past each other. Forcing herself to focus, she realised that the tent was no longer flapping so violently. ‘I can hear the helicopter.’ She stuck her head out of the opening and saw lights approaching high above them. ‘They’ll have to hover above the gully.’
‘I’ll make sure everything is strapped down.’ Dino crawled out of the tent to help the helicopter crew and Meg’s gaze lingered on his shoulders. She was an athlete, she told herself. It was natural that she’d admire honed muscle and a powerful physique.
He stood on the narrow, snow-covered path, ready to assist the winchman. As the helicopter hovered above the narrow gully, the downdraft caused the sides of the tent to flap and whip up the new snow. Given the potential hazards, there was no wasted time. The winchman was lowered out of the helicopter and together the three of them strapped Harry securely to the stretcher, protecting his back and his neck. As he was winched back up into the helicopter, Dino held the guide rope to help prevent the potentially lethal swing of the winch rope into the sides of the gully. Once Harry was safely inside the helicopter, the crew released the guide rope and disappeared into the darkness.
Meg felt the adrenaline drain away and relief take its place. It was almost weakness, this response after the event, and she slid back inside the tent and sat for a moment, breathing slowly, trying not to think of all the alternative scenarios that tried to destabilise her sense of calm.
What if she hadn’t found him?
What if Dino hadn’t come?
She covered her face with her hands, dimly aware that Dino had gathered up the guide rope and was now back in the tent with her. ‘I’ve known Harry since he was born. My mum knows his mum. I used to go round and help bath him when I was a kid.’
‘Lucky Harry.’ Dino stowed the guide rope in his backpack and then gently removed her hands from her face. ‘You did well, wolf-girl. You probably saved his life.’
‘Well, I don’t paint my nails or bake cookies, but I have some skills.’ But maybe her skills weren’t enough in this case. What if he had a depressed skull fracture? What if they didn’t get him to hospital fast enough? Now that the immediate crisis was over, the fear that had been pressing against her threatened to overwhelm her. Suddenly she wanted to lean against that broad chest and just sob. She didn’t care that he was a notorious heart-breaker and that she’d been resisting his advances for months. She just wanted to feel those strong arms close around her. ‘Dino—’
‘It’s a good job I am here, no? A weak, feeble girl like you is going to need a big strong guy like me to help you out of this mess.’
Her traitorous desire to lean on him vanished instantly. ‘Do you honestly think I need your help?’ Anger stoked the fire inside her that had burned down to no more than a few glowing embers. ‘I don’t need any help from you.’
‘Sì, of course you need my help.’ He started piling the equipment back inside his bag. ‘You are too small and delicate to walk down this mountain without assistance. The wind has dropped, but not for long. You wouldn’t be fit enough to walk as fast as you’d need to. We will stay the night here, and I will protect you.’ His mouth curved into a slow, sexy smile. ‘It’s just you, me and this little private room. This isn’t quite how I pictured our first night together, but I can be flexible. Do you have any mistletoe?’
