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“Thank you.”
Carrying her all the way into the living room, I glanced over her body. It wasn’t the time for pleasantries. “Can you get your clothes off, or do you need help?”
“You-you wish,” she stammered.
“Don’t you get cheeky with me, darling,” I warned. “You’re shivering. Take your clothes off and I’ll get you some blankets and clothes that will fit you.”
“I-I can’t,” she hung her head and sniffled. “My-my-my fingers are numb.”
“You’ll get sick if you stay in wet clothing. I promise not to look.” I quickly removed her socks, jeans, leggings, several layers of shirts, plus her bra and panties in what I hoped was a no-nonsense fashion. Why did she have so many layers on? Covering her with two blankets, I led her to the hearth. I’d lit a fire about an hour ago, and it was the perfect place to dry after an ice bath. “I’ll wash and dry your clothes. Just stay near the fire. Be back in a few.”
“Thank you,” she whispered and wiggled herself closer to the fireplace. I wondered what the hell she’d been thinking, but I’d ask her about it later.
Taking a minute to get dry clothes on myself, I gathered the wet belongings. Once that was handled, I called the hospital. Hopefully Elias wasn’t too busy.
A pleasant-sounding woman answered. “Dr. Bowen’s office. He’s currently in surgery. May I take a message?”
“Hey, it’s Luke. I’ve got an emergency.”
“Okay. Hold on a second, Luke. I’ll get you through to the OR.”
“Thanks so much.”
I was probably the only person who could call Elias out of surgery without a fuss.
“What’s wrong?” He answered the phone, his clipped British accent coming through more than usual. His parents were English, having moved to the United States a few years before he was born, so it wasn’t overly strong other than some of their favorite phrases that stuck with him. Sometimes it became more pronounced if he was stressed.
“I need you to come home. I’m fine, but I plucked a woman out of our pond after she stole a pair of skates and fell through the ice.”
“I hope you're kidding.”
“I’m not.”
“I have so many questions.” He blew out a breath. “All right, keep her awake. Give her something warm to drink, along with cool water. If she falls asleep and you can’t rouse her? Call an ambulance. I’ll be home soon.”
“I’m sorry for pulling you out of surgery.”
“Don’t worry about it. I’ll see you in a little while.”
“Thanks, Lee.”
He ended the call without a goodbye. My cocky surgeon. His intelligence, combined with his stunning looks, worked against him when it came to women. Many of his exes had agendas–seeking his money or wanting to show him off as arm candy. Lee deserved more than some floozy with bad intentions. Someone to take care of him in ways he’d never imagined.
Circling back to the living room, I observed my little trespasser curled up where I’d left her.
“Here’s a change of clothes, darling.” I set down a pair of Lee’s lounge pants, a thick pair of my socks, and one of his tee-shirts. He was less stocky than me, but the garments would still hang off her body. She was curvy in all the right places, but petite. Most people were small compared to my towering six-foot-five frame.
“Thank you.”
I turned away, allowing her privacy. “Want to tell me where you found those ice skates?”
“I-I wasn’t going to steal them. I just wanted to twirl once on the ice.”
“If I hadn’t been home when you fell through the ice, you could have died.”
“Not that it would have mattered to anyone.”
Forgetting that I had given her privacy, I turned around and dropped to my knees. Taking her chin in my hand, I suddenly remembered we were complete strangers. I knew nothing about this girl, and yet I wanted to pledge my promise to take care of her. She swallowed hard, her huge gray eyes brimming with tears.
