2. Chapter 2
Chapter 2
Finn
T he harsh winter wind battered what little exposed skin it could reach as I bent down to check the last hunting trap. The crisp scent of snow filled my nostrils while the fluffy white flakes fell thick enough to momentarily obscure my vision. Looking up at the sky, I turned to make my way back toward my cabin. I shook my head at the stupidity I entertained by deciding to check my traps in this weather, but a little voice in the back of my mind insisted I make one last round before the traps were buried beneath several feet of snow.
It certainly wasn’t the worst way I’d spent a Saturday night.
Just as my foot sank through several feet of the soft white powder, a metallic crunch followed by the sound of metal groaning filled the air. My head jerked in the direction of the road. Before my mind could make the decision, my feet ran in the direction the noise came from. The frigid air raked against my lungs while I pulled in one deep breath after another. I cleared the top of the ridge, and a small black sedan came into view.
No movement was visible, but I knew anyone inside would freeze to death in a matter of hours if I did nothing. I made my way down the steep embankment. My feet slid out from underneath me, but years of experience moving across rough terrain, and a workout regimen I lived by, prevented me from landing on my ass.
I reached the passenger door and wiped snow from the window to peer inside. A woman sat in the driver’s seat, her eyes closed as her head rested against the door. I banged on the window several times, but she didn’t rouse. After yanking on the passenger side door, it remained firmly jammed shut, forcing me to try again to wake the woman inside.
Blowing out a breath, I accepted I would have to break a window. Moving toward the back passenger door, I grabbed my multi tool from my pocket. Turning my face away from the vehicle, I brought my arm back before slamming it down. The sound of glass shattering rang through the air before I leaned inside and unlocked the car.
Opening the front passenger door, I hefted my large body inside the tiny space. A soft groan filled the tiny vehicle’s cabin when the woman turned her head toward me. Her eyes opened, the utter defeat in her stare knocking the wind from my chest. “Please don’t hurt me,” she pleaded quietly before her eyes fell shut once again. Her head rested on her right shoulder revealing the river of blood running down her cheek and the bruising that spanned across her face.
Shit. My eyes shot to the steering wheel, noting the airbag hadn’t deployed. A head wound certainly explained why she wasn’t waking up. I exited the vehicle, looking around to gauge how far we were from my cabin. Considering the trek ahead of us, and knowing what I needed to do, I bent down and gathered the contents of her purse from the floor before looping the long strap across my body. After checking there was nothing in the back seat, I waded my way through the snow to her side.
The scent of gasoline hit me, and the demons from my past scratched and clawed at the walls I spent the last five years erecting. I shoved them back into the pit they resided in, knowing full well they’d have no trouble finding me later.
I ripped open the door with more force than necessary before bending down and pressing on the seatbelt mechanism to no avail. Realizing the buckle likely jammed during impact, I grabbed my multi tool and sliced through the belt. My eyes caught on her askew beanie. Knowing she would need every ounce of warmth she could keep, I pulled it back down over her head, careful not to jostle her head while the wound continued to ooze.
Taking in the sweatshirt and leggings she was wearing, I swore under my breath while I unzipped my jacket. She’d be hypothermic by the time we got back without it. I gently laid it across her torso before guiding her arms through the sleeves. Luckily, I learned a long time ago to dress in layers, and the trek back to the house would keep me warm enough.
Sliding my arms beneath her legs and back, I moved to lift the curvy brunette from the car. The delicate lashes resting against her cheeks fluttered against her skin. Her full lips parted, and a small whimper escaped. My entire body froze at the indication of pain. Soft mutterings fell from her lips. Unable to make out what she was saying, I bent my head closer to her mouth.
“Coming…after…me,” she mumbled before falling silent.
My head snapped up and whipped around at her words, searching for any threat. Seeing nothing but white and counting on the weather to deter anyone from following her, I refocused on getting us back to my place.
I did my best to shield her face from the elements by pulling her closer to my chest. My cabin wasn’t far, but it didn’t take much in weather like this for frostbite to set in.
Soft murmurings continued to fall from her lips on our trek back, the wind ripping her words away before I could make out what she said.
What the hell was she doing driving around in this weather? I wondered to myself for the dozenth time since I found her. She clearly wasn’t dressed for the storm. I huffed out a breath, creating a temporary white fog in front of my face while I glanced once more at the unconscious female in my arms, something warm stirring in my chest. Her long brown hair flapped in the wind, and I pulled her closer.
The light of my house beckoned in the distance, burning like a beacon through the near-blizzard conditions.
The wood creaked beneath our combined weight when I climbed the front steps. I kicked the toe of my boots against the wall to clear the snow from my legs before opening the door. A blast of warmth enveloped me as I made my way inside, followed by the sound of nails clacking on the hardwood. I walked over to the couch where warm brown eyes and a wagging tail greeted me.
“Hey, boy. You hold down the fort okay while I was gone?”
Luka wagged his tail in my direction before raising his head towards the woman in my arms, his nose twitching in the air while he investigated the stranger in our home.
Bent over, I gently lay the woman on the leather couch before removing the snow-covered jacket from her torso and replacing it with a blanket from the back of the couch.
Luka joined us, a low whine emitting from his furry body before I rubbed his head. “I know, boy. We don’t get many new people up here, do we? But we have to look after her until the storm clears, alright?” Luka’s fluffy tail thumped on the hardwood before he curled up on the floor next to her.
Striding toward the fireplace, my joints ached from the cold. Flipping the switch to light it, I stared at the flash of the fire as it ignited. Despite their dangerous potential, the hiss and crackle of the flames soothed what remained of my soul.
I turned to study the woman. She was tall, with the kind of curves women spent their lives dieting away and features women paid thousands trying to replicate with plastic surgery. Plush, pillowy lips sat beneath strong cheekbones and what I assumed would be an aristocratic nose once the swelling subsided. I stared at her far longer than I would ever admit. Even now with the bruising beneath her eyes marring her otherwise perfect skin, I knew without a doubt she was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen.
I didn’t know women like her existed in real life.
Her shivers intensified when I finished my perusal. I looked at the beanie, noting the dark spot soaked in blood grew on our trek back to the house. Removing the snow-covered hat, I observed the gash on her forehead. While it still bled, it wasn’t flowing at a level that implied she was in imminent danger of bleeding out. Knowing the wound would need to be closed sooner rather than later, I headed to my bedroom before returning with my military issued thermal wear and trauma kit. Pulling back the blanket, I did my best to dress her in the additional clothing, making sure to avoid her head wound before replacing the blanket across her body. Deciding the stiches should wait until her shivers ceased, I covered the wound in gauze and headed to the kitchen.
My mother started stocking my freezer with homemade meals when I returned from the military. It wasn’t like I couldn’t cook for myself, but she seemed to be convinced I would eventually starve to death during one of the storms that left me regularly snowed in up here on the mountain for days at a time. Regardless, I could think of worse things than warming up with some of her homemade soup on a day like this.
With the soup set to heat, I headed toward my bedroom and stripped down. Noting the dark patches of red peppering my clothes, I tossed them in the hamper. It wasn’t the first time I had to get blood out of my clothes, and it was unlikely to be the last.
I changed into a fresh Henley and flannel pajama bottoms before heading back to the living room to check on my unexpected house guest.
Luka’s head popped up from where he was curled up on the floor. The tension in my shoulders eased slightly when I realized she was no longer shivering.
Bending over, I placed my hand against her skin. She was still cool, but she was warming up on her own.
She burrowed her fists underneath her chin, unconsciously tucking herself further into the blanket. Her features remained soft and peaceful while she slept. Shaking myself out of the trance this woman kept managing to pull me under, I dragged the coffee table next to the couch before grabbing my trauma kit. Luka huffed after being kicked out of his spot to allow me access to her head wound before relocating next to the fire.
I chuckled at his disapproval of being displaced before tugging on gloves and getting to work. I gently peeled back the gauze from her forehead and assessed the full extent of her injuries. My fingers pressed along the edge of the wound while blood continued to seep from the gash in her otherwise flawless skin. Her eyelashes fluttered but remained closed during my exam. I briefly shone my pen light in both eyes, my muscles relaxing upon finding no signs of a skull fracture or brain bleed, and I set to work cleaning her up. Between the saline-soaked gauze and the antiseptic wipes, I removed most of the blood from her face before applying a numbing agent. Unfortunately, the matted blood in her hair would have to wait until she woke and could take a shower.
You don’t know she’ll wake up, a small voice in the back of my head taunted. People have a tendency of dying when they’re around you.
Grinding my molars together, I closed my eyes and willed the images not to come. Explosions and gunfire echoed in the recess of my mind as dry dirt pelted my skin from above. My breathing kicked up, the smell of blood and burning skin filling my nostrils.
Wrenching myself away from the beautiful stranger, I walked over to the window and stared at the churning snow beyond the glass. “This is not like before,” I muttered to myself over and over.
After several long minutes, my pulse returned to normal, and I forced myself to focus on closing up her head wound. For the next ten minutes, I kept the demons at bay and placed the most precise stiches of my life, knowing full well a wound this deep would leave a scar regardless of my efforts.
I snipped the final stitch before placing a bandage over the wound and cleaning up my supplies. After moving the coffee table back to its spot, I took one more look at the stranger before me, worry she still hadn’t woken winding its way through me. Vicious whispers beat at the recess of my mind, reminding me that if her injuries were more severe than the head wound she sustained and the concussion likely accompanying it, there was little to be done until the snow cleared.
I rubbed at the spot in my chest that started aching the moment I found her. I couldn’t explain it, but something about her presence soothed a part of me I thought died years ago. Forcing myself to look away, I shook my head before putting my trauma kit away.
I lost any chance of being worthy of someone like her a long time ago, and I needed to remember she was not now, nor would she ever be, meant for someone as damaged as me —for both our sakes.