LITMIR.BIZ

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you looked a little sick on the flight to Fairbanks. I just figured it was motion sickness.” Rick stepped closer.

      “Well, now you know. I’m afraid of heights. Afraid of flying. Not so uncommon.” Shay’s big purplish-blue eyes stared up at him again. He recalled when she’d done that moments before—looked up at him. He’d held her in his arms then....

      Color rose in her cheeks. Was that from the dipping temperatures or something else?

      His emotional wall flew up—he had to guard himself, keep from feeling anything for this woman. Even if he were free to fall for her, which he wasn’t, this sure wasn’t the time.

      But seeing her like this, this small vulnerability in her tough act, hitched a little place in his heart.

      “Yep. Now I know. But you have to realize that if we’re going to survive this, we need to get moving.”

      Shay shrugged, looking resigned to the situation. But that wasn’t good enough for Rick. He was counting on her to make this work—both their lives depended on it.

      “Listen, I’ve got your back, okay? You don’t need to worry about falling.”

      She didn’t appear reassured.

      “Is there something else? Something you’re not telling me?” What was she hiding? What happened when someone was afraid of heights? Did they pass out? Oh, Lord, please, no. Then again, maybe carrying her dead weight would be faster than assisting her down.

      “Shay.” He kept talking because she wouldn’t respond. “You can do this. You’re strong, and you’re tough. We all have our weaknesses, so this is yours. No big. Just don’t look down.”

      “I’m sorry, I’m still trying to wrap my head around this whole thing.” She took in a deep breath. “You’re right. Let’s do it.”

      Good girl. Rick held his hand out again. “I promise I won’t tell anyone about your...um...condition.”

      The corner of her mouth lifted and she smacked him on the arm.

      “Ow.” He grabbed his arm, pretending it hurt.

      Shay moved by him without taking his hand.

      He grabbed her arm. “There’s a slope here and then some boulders and a drop-off. I think it levels off after a while, but let me help you to get your footing, okay?”

      “Once we’re in the trees and can’t see how high we are, I’ll be good.” Still, Shay placed her hand in his and together they maneuvered the incline, which was a little steeper than he’d anticipated.

      Slipping, Shay yelped.

      Rick held tight, his muscles tensing to keep himself steady on his feet along with Shay. “I’ve got you.”

      When they made it to the boulders, Rick stopped. “Let me climb down first to find the best way.”

      Shay nodded.

      “So how did you end up becoming an aviation mechanic?”

      Asking her a few questions might keep her mind off worrying about what lay ahead. His mind, too. He wasn’t scared of heights, but that didn’t mean he felt at ease. No matter how you looked at things, making their way back to the road would be a difficult task. But Rick couldn’t just sit around and wait for a rescue that might not come for days, if that. No one was expecting them back anytime soon.

      “Do you really want to know?” Shay’s soft voice bounced off the boulders as he made his way down.

      “Yes, I do. And I think it’s okay for you to start down. It’s an easy descent—just watch your footing.”

      His breathing was a little harder than he’d have liked. This shouldn’t be anything like a tough workout—he thought he was in better shape than this. Maybe it was the altitude. He glanced up to see Shay making her way down. Fortunately, the trees were thick here and she shouldn’t see anything to set off her fear of heights. He hoped.

      “My father was a mechanic. I watched him work, helped him and learned from him while I was growing up.”

      Rick already knew that answer, of course. He’d heard the other guys talking about her. But he wanted to hear it from her. Get her talking.

      “And you liked it so much that you decided to follow in his footsteps.” Rick climbed across the flat top of a big boulder, beginning to see that he’d made a mistake.

      “Yep. That’s about it.”

      He paused at the edge, confirming the drop would be too much for him to jump. He couldn’t safely hit the rocks below without risking serious injury. Shay definitely couldn’t do this.

      “Okay, hold up right where you are.” He directed his voice in her direction, but he’d lost sight of her.

      A small animal scurried through the underbrush below. The earthy scent of spruce and untainted wilderness enveloped him. They were really in the thick of it now.

      “Rick? Where are you?”

      “I’m just on the other side of these rocks. You’ll see me in a minute. I have to find another way down.”

      “It’s getting colder.”

      Too bad they couldn’t have done this retrieval in the summer.

      “When we get down to the Jeep and get our coats, I’ll make a fire and we’ll rest for a while.”

      Rick hated that they had to start this adventure already in need of rest after two long days of travel. But sometimes you just had to gut it up. He prayed they found their coats. Everything could have fallen out at different places along the Jeep’s tumble. Stuff could be sprawled all over the valley, never to be found again.

      Besides their coats, his main concern was finding his gun.

      He needed that gun. They could face wild animals, but mostly he feared they might face the two-legged kind, and they weren’t turning out to be too friendly in these parts. Rick wished now that he’d used the weapon at that instant when the truck had plowed toward them. He could have taken aim and taken out the driver. Maybe. It had all happened so fast.

      That might not have stopped the vehicle from barreling toward them. In that split second, he’d made a decision to drive the Jeep out of harm’s way. That decision had been a mistake. Too bad he was no stranger to those kinds of mistakes.

      But right now focusing on his failures wouldn’t help Shay. Rick scrambled along the boulders, searching for a better way down. Concentrating on the task at hand instead of trying to make conversation with Shay was probably a good idea, as well.

      He glanced up and spotted her watching him. “I think you’re good to follow me now.” He left out that talking too much had distracted him and led them on the wrong path.

      Shay nodded, seeming content to end their conversation for now. He might ask about her family if they had a chance to rest. And there was her reference about something happening and her father teaching her to shoot. He’d like to know what that was all about, if she was willing to share.

      Rick’s foot slipped on a boulder.

      He grasped at the rock, but he couldn’t get a handhold on the surface.

      Despite his best efforts, his body slid and he fell backward through the air, Shay screaming somewhere in the distance.

      FIVE

      Oh, my. Oh, my gosh....

      Panic wrapped a tight cord around her throat. She gasped for breath, and finally sucking it in, she screamed. “Rick!”

      But he didn’t answer.

      Shay called again. “Rick! Are you okay?”

      Without thinking about her footing, she made her way down the rocks. She had to get to him. “Rick, please

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