Bedding Down, A Collection of Winter Erotica by Rachel Krame Bussel Read Free Book Online Page B

wore underneath it was thin, almost a summer shirt. She also wore a thick black belt, with metal rings and tabs and—
    “You’re a climber?”
    She was still pale but her voice was a little stronger. “Yes.”
    He helped her pull off her socks. “Do you need help doing
    this?”
    She shook her head, already working at the buttons of her
    jeans. Fletcher turned his back as she undressed. Having a naked woman in his cabin should have had the natural effect on him,
    but it wasn’t sensual at all. In fact, sex was the last thing on his mind. The only thing he could think about was what damage
    was under her skin, what bruises were there that he couldn’t see, and what he would do if she was really hurt. How could he get her off the mountain?
    When he looked back at her, she was lying under the quilt,
    her eyes closed, still as a stone.
    “Janine?”
    He touched her face. She didn’t flinch. He fought the surge
    of panic as he gently shook her and got no response. Her breath
    S ix W eeks on S unrise M ountain, C olorado 51
    was so shallow he had to press his hand against her mouth to
    feel it. He sank to the floor beside the bed, his hands shaking, his head spinning.
    “Don’t you die on me, you hear? Don’t you do that.”
    Janine, unconscious and oblivious to the world, didn’t move.
    Fletcher stared at her for a while, then went back outside one
    more time, to retrieve the gun he had left in the brush. The road glistened in the moonlight, a million sparkles glinting from the layer of snow and ice, and the beautiful yet deadly blanket was still coming down. They weren’t going anywhere.
    She slept all night and most of the next day.
    Outside the snow had stopped, but not before dropping a
    good three feet over the land around the cabin. Most of it was
    encrusted with ice. The trees were heavy with it. Every now and then a branch would fall or a tree would explode with frozen
    sap, the sound as loud and sudden as a gunshot.
    There was no way to get off the mountain. Snowshoes were
    useless, and he couldn’t carry her while wearing them, regard-
    less. He might be able to use the sled, but the closest hiking
    station was a ten-mile trek through bear country. Even if they
    survived the elements, the big animals could sense a helpless
    human for miles around. Maybe he could make it there and call
    for a chopper, but in this kind of weather, the cavalry didn’t
    come out unless there was absolutely no choice. Fletcher had
    worked so many possibilities through in his head, and they all
    ended up with failure.
    When she woke up in the midafternoon, Fletcher was there
    beside her, holding a bowl of warm water and a few rags. Her
    52
    G wen M asters
    face was bruised and her hands were still shaky, but she had
    more strength than she’d had the night before.
    “Where do you hurt?” he asked. “What can I do for you?”
    She took a wet rag and held it to her face, dabbing at the cut
    on her hairline. One eye was swollen, but the other was clear,
    observant. “My name is Janine.”
    “My name is Fletcher.”
    She nodded and looked around the room. Her sharp gaze
    took in everything, but she was still moving a bit too slowly.
    Was it safe to give her medicine? Would it help her or harm her?
    All he had was aspirin, and he knew aspirin thinned the blood.
    “I have aspirin,” he said, and let her make the decision.
    “Yes. Please.”
    He opened the cabinet in the far corner. The cabin was two
    rooms—a bathroom was hidden away in one corner, but the rest
    of the house was wide open. He could feel her eyes on him as he moved around it, stoking the fire even higher, searching under
    the old porcelain sink for the emergency first-aid kit that he
    was certain had been left under there at some point. He finally found it behind the gun oil and the can of cooking lard. When
    he turned back to her, there was an amused smile on her face.
    “What’s so funny?”
    She nodded toward the mess that was the kitchen. “Men