AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Griff waited as snow swept into the space where the animals had been only moments before.
“Wow.” Jo’s eyes were wide.
Concern stabbed at him. Her lips were grayish blue.
“Come on.” He half guided, half dragged her up the final slope. His legs were soaked through and the grinding burn in his shoulder throbbed in waves across his entire body. The only thing keeping him moving was his single-minded focus to get Jo to safety.
He visualized the fire he’d start in the wood stove, the crackle of wood as the flames caught. Of stripping out of the wet clothes clinging to his body, leaching him of heat and energy.
The snow at the top of the ridge was crunchy with ice crystals as he stumbled toward the hut. He released Jo and dropped to his knees beside the key safe. He pulled his gloves off with his teeth and, with cold-deadened fingers, retrieved the key. Woody air rushed him as he pushed the door open and his breath puffed perfect clouds. Just as cold inside as it was outside.
“Come on.” He hustled Jo inside and kicked the door shut. The quiet after the noise of the storm was a welcome relief.
He clicked on the flashlight he’d brought from the car, illuminating a small living area. A makeshift couch—a cobbled together wooden frame with ancient mismatched canvas cushions—faced a fireplace of soot blackened sticks.
“Sit.” He pressed Jo into one chair and she sank under his touch with only a low animal moan. Her head sagged forward. He’d get her wet things off soon, but that wasn’t his priority. He pulled off his hat, wiped water from his eyes. Fire. Need to get the fire going.
“I’ll be right back.” He yanked his hat back on and staggered outside, trekking around the hut. At the rear he found what he was looking for, a lean-to stacked with logs, some of which was silver birch and an axe propped at the side.
Fuck. Yes.
He made a mental note to replenish the stack with equal to what they used when they left in the morning, then grabbed as many as he could carry, snorting explosive breaths as his shoulder exploded into white fire.
Back inside, he dumped the logs on the floor next to the fireplace. Jo was silent, slumped in the chair next to him.
“Jo?” He shook her shoulder, gently rousing her.
“Mmm.” She blinked, dazed.
“Talk to me.” He retrieved his fire flint from his pants pocket, then used his knife eased loose bark off the birch logs which he scrunched up to release small particles to ignite. “Jo?” Kneeling, he scraped metal against metal, throwing sparks from his flint onto the birch. Smoke coiled upward as he urged the fire on with a few breaths.
“I’ve never seen a moose.”
He layered splinters of wood around the fledgling fire, feeding the flames and looked over his shoulder at her. “They’re impressive, aren’t they?”
The muddiness in her gaze cleared. “The baby was cute.”
“Yeah.” He left it at that. No need to tell her of the dead moose calves he’d seen savaged by fighting males. Fatherhood at its grim best. Nature was brutal both in the animal and human kingdom.
He pushed back up to standing. “Let’s get you out of these wet things.”
“Okay.” She fumbled ineffectually with the zip at her throat.
“Let me.” He bumped her fingers away and unzipped her jacket. He hung it over the other chair. A quick sweep confirmed her sweater was damp. He pulled it over her head. Stripped to a simple cotton tank, she shivered and ran her hands up and down her arms.
Toned arms. The perfect swell of her breasts. He couldn’t help but drink them all in. He averted his eyes and cleared his throat, fighting his body’s response. She needed his care right now, nothing more.
“Pants off.” He motioned for her to stand.
“Excuse me?” Her eyebrows shot up. ”
“They’resoaked, you need to warm up.”
For a moment, defiance flashed in her eyesand for the longest second he thought she was going to tell him to go to hell. But finally she complied, unbuckled her belt and shucked off her wet pants. She threw them over the chair to dry, her gaze meeting his, bright with challenge.
Orange flames threw shadows across the bare timber walls as he followed suit and got rid of his own sodden clothes.
“Here.” He swathed her with a musty wool hut blanket. She sniffed and recoiled but he snugged it tighter around her shoulders. The blanket was warm. This wasn’t the time for niceties. “Sit by the fire.”
