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Heart still not recovered from seeing her wipeout, Rubble pushed up his black hat and shook his head. “Dammit, woman, how can you talk about skiing again after diving headfirst into a snowbank? Do you have any idea what could be wrong with you? You could have a broken neck for Christ’s sake!”
Her bright grin drooped, and genuine tears welled her eyes.
“Shit, baby, I’m sorry. This isn’t your fault. It’s mine.” He leaned closer and wiped away the hot tears rolling down her cheeks. “I shouldn’t have rushed you. This is my fault.”
“I was trying to avoid the lady and her daughter. You couldn’t very well move them for me.” That cute smile made its way back to her face and he cursed himself for the half-wit idea of skiing in the first place.
“Brother, what happened?”
Hearing Doc’s voice made him focus on the situation. “Hang tight.” As badly as he wanted to kiss her, he refrained.
Standing, he met Doc’s concerned eyes. “She hit the drift pretty hard after tumbling. Didn’t wanna move her in case her neck was injured.”
Doc nodded and stooped to Jupiter’s level. “How’re you feeling?”
“Kind of cold, but otherwise okay.”
“Can you feel your legs?”
“Yeah.”
“Okay, good.” Doc waved at the paramedics he’d brought with him. “We’ll get you out and have you back on the slopes in no time.”
Rubble bit his tongue. His idea of a lively afternoon nearly killed her. There was no way in hell he’d let her on skis again. The two paramedics brought over a snow stretcher and the trio got to work digging Jupiter out. Rubble tried to help twice, but his hands shook so severely, he had to step away. He’d seen his fair share of gore and disfigured bodies thanks to years in the military and in MMA, but this was different. This was someone he cared about more.
Five minutes later, Jupiter was safely onboard the rescue sled and headed toward the lodge. The crowd cheered then dispersed as quickly as it formed. Rubble could barely move. His legs were heavy, chest laboring with each step he took in the snow.
“She’ll be all right.”
Rubble glanced at Doc, who was walking in step with him. “I did this.”
“No, some tourists did.” He shrugged. “You can’t keep Jupiter in a bubble. Shit will happen to her whether you’re around or not.”
Rubble clenched his hands to fists. “That’s what I’m afraid of.”
Doc playfully backhanded Rubble’s arm. “Come on. I convinced the paramedics to take her to the lodge instead of the hospital. Her neck is fine and I’m pretty sure the rest of her too, but they’ll check her just in case.”
They reached the lodge, the paramedics carefully shuttling the stretcher through the doors. Rubble couldn’t cross the threshold. Even if she was perfectly healthy, his reaction to her accident wasn’t.
“Is this what it feels like?”
Doc paused at the doors. “What?”
“Loving someone.”
The former paramedic smiled faintly. “Yeah.”
“Damn.” Rubble leaned his back against the lodge. “She laughed.”
“What?”
“Jupiter was laughing when I found her.” He crossed his arms over his broad chest. “Fucking laughing. Not worried if she was hurt but wondering how crazy she looked in the damn snowdrift.”
Doc chuckled. “Well, she did look pretty nuts. Like one of those cartoons where they stick straight out. Gotta admit, it was funny. Should’ve gotten a picture for Isa.”
Rubble glared at him and Doc held up his hands. “All right, all right. I’ll go check on your lady. Try not to hunt down the poor tourist who caused the accident, all right?”
“Can’t make any promises.”
