Chapter 2
CHAPTER TWO
BEAU
It’s raining so hard, the wind so loud that I can’t even hear the sound of my footsteps on the muddy trail.
Thunder cracks above me, and I hear a loud crash less than twenty feet behind me.
I turn, squinting through the sleeting rain, and see a large branch lying across the trail.
Fucking hell, it’s dangerous out here. Freezing, too.
I pick up my already punishing pace. I need to get to her. I barely feel the rain pelting my face, barely feel the cold, damp air around me. Adrenaline flooded my veins the moment Hailey radioed for help, and it hasn’t let up since. It’s keeping me going, pushing me forward.
I have to save her, and not just because she’s my best friend’s daughter. No, what I feel for Hailey goes far deeper than that.
Far, far deeper.
But I shove it away, just like I always do, because no matter what I feel, what I want is an absolute impossibility.
I pull my InReach out of my pocket to re-check the coordinates, making sure I’m still on the fastest route to her.
The mud slides beneath my boots as I start moving again, as fast as I dare, my large emergency pack jostling against my back.
I need to get to her. She’s been out in this storm for far too long.
I don’t let myself think about the what ifs, focusing on the trail and keeping my legs moving.
The wind gusts through the forest, and I squint against the onslaught of rain. The coordinates from the InReach lead me off the main trail, deeper into the woods. The trees are dense here, branches snarled together, roots protruding from the ground.
I push forward, scanning all around me for any signs of Hailey. I’d shout, but I doubt she’d hear me over the wind and rain. Panic flares inside me, tightening my chest as I reach the exact coordinates but don’t see her…
There. The thicket of pines up ahead. I catch a flash of her light blue hiking jacket and set off towards the trees.
My heart beats frantically in my chest as I close in on her, and I can see her huddled form, slumped against the trunk of one of the pines.
Her arms are wrapped around her knees, her pants torn, likely from a fall.
Her head is buried in her arms, and she’s not moving.
Fuck.
She looks tiny curled up against the massive tree. Tiny and vulnerable and alone and the wave of protectiveness that surges through me steals my breath, it’s so intense.
“Hailey,” I call out, my voice rough, like it’s been ripped from me.
Slowly, she lifts her head, and my heart plummets into my stomach.
She’s pale, her lips blue, her eyelids heavy.
I crash into the dense copse of trees, needing to get to her.
I don’t even hesitate. I just lift her into my arms, cradling her to my chest.
I do my best to ignore the feeling that this is exactly where she belongs, because while it might feel right, it isn’t. It’s not.
It’s not.
“Beau,” she says softly, curling into me like a kitten. “You came.”
“Of course I did, sweet girl,” I say, knowing I need to stop calling her that. When this is over, when life goes back to normal, I’ll go back to calling her Hails. I will. “I’ve got you. You’re safe now. I promise.”
“I’m s-so c-cold,” she chatters as I start maneuvering down the treacherous path. I hold her tighter, doing my best not to jostle her. “And I h-hurt my ankle,” she says quietly, and I can feel her shaking against me, trembling with cold and fear and pain.
“I’ve got you know, sweet girl. It’s going to be okay. I’m going to get you somewhere warm and safe.”
“S-stay w-with me,” she chatters, bone white fingers curling into my jacket. “D-don’t leave m-me. I n-need you.”
Her words twist my insides into knots, because I know she doesn’t mean them the way I want her to. The way I wish she did.
So instead, I just hold her tighter, her shivering body tucked against mine as I trudge through the storm.
I’m not going to carry her all the way back to my Jeep.
Not when I know there’s a cabin tucked into the woods not far ahead.
It’s probably empty this time of year, but even if it’s not, it’s our best shot at shelter.
The wind howls around us, battering us with rain and gusts of freezing air.
I’m soaked through and freezing, and I can’t even imagine how cold Hailey must be right now.
Emotions surge through me as I glance down at her, her wet eyelashes fanning out over her cheeks.
Anger that she put herself in this situation.
Relief that she’s in my arms now. Longing for what I can’t have.
Determination to keep her safe. And that same protectiveness is still humming in my veins, spurring me onward.
“I’m g-glad it w-was you on the r-radio,” she chatters. “E-even if I d-didn’t want t-to talk t-to you.”
I frown at that, sure I must’ve heard her wrong. Why would Hailey not want to talk to me? That doesn’t make any sense. But she doesn’t elaborate, just curls into me tighter.
“I’ll always come for you, Hails. No matter what. You can trust me to always be there for you.”
She lets out a choked little sound, somewhere between a laugh and sob. I don’t know what to make of that, either.
The cabin finally comes into view, a dark but welcome silhouette against the stormy forest around us. I quicken my pace, my heart pounding in my chest. Hailey’s soaked through, her breaths shallow, her eyes fluttering closed as if she’s struggling to keep them open.
Please be unlocked. Please be empty.
I step onto the small porch, the boards creaking beneath my weight, and I shift Hailey carefully in my arms. I reach out to twist the doorknob, heaving out a relieved sigh when it turns easily.
The door creaks open, revealing a small, rustic interior.
The air inside is close, and dust hangs in the air.
No one’s been here for weeks. Maybe longer.
Thank fuck.
I carry my precious cargo inside, kicking the door shut behind me. The cabin is cold, but it’s shelter from the storm. I set Hailey down on the couch in the small living room, her body trembling, teeth chattering. She’s pale, her lips tinged blue, the tips of her fingers white. Shit.
I find blankets in a chest by the couch, and I wrap her up tightly in them. She murmurs something incoherent, her eyes barely open. I brush her wet hair back from her face, my hand lingering on her cheek. Fucking hell, she’s ice cold.
“Hailey, sweet girl, I need you to stay with me,” I say, my voice firm but gentle. I rub her arms, her legs, trying to generate some heat. She shivers, her eyes closing again. Fuck.
We need a fire. Now.
I wrap her in another blanket and then send up a silent prayer of thanks that there’s a stack of dry wood beside the fireplace. I quickly and efficiently stack several pieces and get a fire going in record time, the glow permeating the cabin.
I return to Hailey. She’s shivering in the blankets, wet hair plastered to her. She looks so small, so young, so vulnerable.
Mine to protect.
The thought sears through me, scorching a path through my brain, and as much as I know I should push it away, I don’t. I like it too much.
I’ve spent over a decade working with the mountain rescue service.
It’s my job to help people out of dangerous situations.
It’s my job to rescue hapless hikers and injured tourists.
But this, with Hailey, it feels different.
This is a hell of a lot more than just me doing my job.
And it’s a hell of a lot more than me coming to her rescue as her father’s best friend.
I crouch down in front of her, pulling my pack closer and taking out my emergency kit.
I quickly take her temperature using a digital forehead thermometer, cursing under my breath when it flashes blue and shows a body temperature of thirty-three degrees Celsius.
That, combined with her shivering, her pale skin tinged blue, her obvious fatigue and growing incoherence all point to hypothermia.
I need to get her out of these wet clothes.
“Hailey, I need to take your clothes off.”
She blinks slowly at me and then tilts her head. “My clothes?” she asks, the words slightly slurred.
I nod. “We need to get you warm, and that’s not going to happen in those wet clothes.” I clear my throat and meet her eyes. Fuck, she’s so pretty, even right now. Always the prettiest girl. “We need to strip and huddle together for warmth.”
I see her throat bob as she swallows, and then she nods sleepily. “Okay, Daddy.”
The word hits me like a punch to the gut, making blood rush to my cock even as I know she doesn’t mean it like that. She’s cold and confused. There’s nothing more to it than that.
My dick doesn’t get the memo though, and it thickens against my thigh. Fucker.
Ignoring my body’s response, I kneel in front of Hailey, pull the blankets away and unzip her jacket, peeling it off her.
Her shirt is plastered against her, clinging to her curves, and I swallow roughly as I take in the sight of her.
I carefully peel her soaking wet shirt off her, too, pulling it over her head.
I’m going to hell, because even though I should be focused on looking after her, I zero in on her perky tits, covered in a simple black bra.
Jesus fucking Christ, she’s so lovely it hurts to look at her. Her beauty is like a physical ache in my chest.
Mine. The word beats through me fast and true, like a heartbeat. It sticks to my skin like a tattoo.
I shake my head, trying to shove the thought away.
No. Hailey is lots of things—beautiful, smart, hilariously funny, sweet, kind—but mine can never be one of them.
It doesn’t matter that I feel for her two years ago, the realization striking me up the head on Christmas Eve, when it struck me what an amazing woman she’d become.
It doesn’t matter how many times I’ve stroked my cock to thoughts of her.
It. Can’t. Happen.