almost
impossible.
He moved, putting a few feet
between them “We didn’t talk.”
It was too hot to get much closer
to the flames. The day was going to be a scorcher too. The thermometer had read
75 when they’d taken off.Once
again, however, he angled himself until he blocked her access to the flames.
Standing between her and the fire was definitely not part of the deal. She
hooked a boot around his ankles and tugged until he was sprawled on his ass.
Only then did she step back into position. “Careless of you, Donovan.”
“I said: Sex changes nothing,
right? You. Agreed.” She punctuated each word with a stab of her finger.
“I was busy. You distracted me,” he
accused.
“Why does it matter?” The sex in
her truck had been fantastic. She couldn’t have asked for better. Hell. She was
fairly certain he’d set the bar so high that she’d be disappointed the next
time she picked a lover. She’d been pleasantly sore afterward, deep inside her
body, a primal reminder of where he’d been and what they’d done together. She
liked it, which probably said all sorts of things about her.
He swung around and stared at her
in frustration. “We had sex.”
“I was there,” she reminded him.
“And it was fairly unforgettable.”
“Fairly?” He growled the word and
she bit back a grin.
She wasn’t grinning a moment later
when the ground gave way beneath her, sending her backwards down the hill.
Chapter Six
Gia pinwheeled, jamming her fingers
into loose rock to halt her downward plunge.She cursed like a trucker and his heart
took up residence in his throat as time did the slow-down-speed-up thing. Rio
didn’t know what he’d do if he lost her, but it wasn’t an option. Since she’d
joined the jump team, he’d been pussy-footing around his feelings for her. He
still didn’t know what they were—only that desire definitely had a
starring role on the list—but he wasn’t losing her. Not to the fire, not
to an accident. Not ever and particularly not now when he was finally ready to
find out what this thing between them was.
He jammed his Pulaski into the
loose shale and descended after her.
Twenty long seconds later, he
reached her. She was sitting up. That was a good sign. She wasn’t standing though, and that said it all.
“Talk to me,” he said. If she could
talk, she hadn’t cracked a rib or punctured a lung.
“I jammed my ankle.” Tight with
pain and frustration, her voice made it plenty clear that Gia did not appreciate
her current situation. “Goddamn it. I didn’t see that coming.”
“That’s why it’s called an accident ,” he pointed out. “As opposed
to an on purpose or suicide .”
“Try stupid ,” she groused.
Dropping to the ground beside her, he
ran his hands down her arms and sides. She didn’t shrug away, but he could
sense her impatience. A check-out after a slide like the one she’d just taken
was standard operating procedure. She was dirty as hell, wearing half the
hillside, but all in all the damage seemed to be limited to her right ankle.
He probed her ankle carefully and
she hissed. “Bedside manner, Donovan.”
“Rio,” he said and pressed lightly.
“Can you bend it?”
“Maybe.” She tried and succeeded. Except she bit her lip, her gloved hands flexing on her thighs, the
whole time. He needed a medical pickup.
“Yes,” she said, her eyes on his
hands. “I can move it.”
She sounded relieved. Apparently
she’d had her own doubts.
“Not broken,” he said, not trying
to hide his own relief. A broken ankle out here would be a challenge.
“I should buy a lottery ticket,”
she muttered.
She was probably right. She’d slid
a good thirty feet.
Overhead, the column of smoke no
longer punched straight up. Instead, it bent slightly at the top, as if a
southwest wind had joined the party. Mack had guesstimated the wind speeds in
the area at maybe twenty-five miles per hour. If that wind
impossible.
He moved, putting a few feet
between them “We didn’t talk.”
It was too hot to get much closer
to the flames. The day was going to be a scorcher too. The thermometer had read
75 when they’d taken off.Once
again, however, he angled himself until he blocked her access to the flames.
Standing between her and the fire was definitely not part of the deal. She
hooked a boot around his ankles and tugged until he was sprawled on his ass.
Only then did she step back into position. “Careless of you, Donovan.”
“I said: Sex changes nothing,
right? You. Agreed.” She punctuated each word with a stab of her finger.
“I was busy. You distracted me,” he
accused.
“Why does it matter?” The sex in
her truck had been fantastic. She couldn’t have asked for better. Hell. She was
fairly certain he’d set the bar so high that she’d be disappointed the next
time she picked a lover. She’d been pleasantly sore afterward, deep inside her
body, a primal reminder of where he’d been and what they’d done together. She
liked it, which probably said all sorts of things about her.
He swung around and stared at her
in frustration. “We had sex.”
“I was there,” she reminded him.
“And it was fairly unforgettable.”
“Fairly?” He growled the word and
she bit back a grin.
She wasn’t grinning a moment later
when the ground gave way beneath her, sending her backwards down the hill.
Chapter Six
Gia pinwheeled, jamming her fingers
into loose rock to halt her downward plunge.She cursed like a trucker and his heart
took up residence in his throat as time did the slow-down-speed-up thing. Rio
didn’t know what he’d do if he lost her, but it wasn’t an option. Since she’d
joined the jump team, he’d been pussy-footing around his feelings for her. He
still didn’t know what they were—only that desire definitely had a
starring role on the list—but he wasn’t losing her. Not to the fire, not
to an accident. Not ever and particularly not now when he was finally ready to
find out what this thing between them was.
He jammed his Pulaski into the
loose shale and descended after her.
Twenty long seconds later, he
reached her. She was sitting up. That was a good sign. She wasn’t standing though, and that said it all.
“Talk to me,” he said. If she could
talk, she hadn’t cracked a rib or punctured a lung.
“I jammed my ankle.” Tight with
pain and frustration, her voice made it plenty clear that Gia did not appreciate
her current situation. “Goddamn it. I didn’t see that coming.”
“That’s why it’s called an accident ,” he pointed out. “As opposed
to an on purpose or suicide .”
“Try stupid ,” she groused.
Dropping to the ground beside her, he
ran his hands down her arms and sides. She didn’t shrug away, but he could
sense her impatience. A check-out after a slide like the one she’d just taken
was standard operating procedure. She was dirty as hell, wearing half the
hillside, but all in all the damage seemed to be limited to her right ankle.
He probed her ankle carefully and
she hissed. “Bedside manner, Donovan.”
“Rio,” he said and pressed lightly.
“Can you bend it?”
“Maybe.” She tried and succeeded. Except she bit her lip, her gloved hands flexing on her thighs, the
whole time. He needed a medical pickup.
“Yes,” she said, her eyes on his
hands. “I can move it.”
She sounded relieved. Apparently
she’d had her own doubts.
“Not broken,” he said, not trying
to hide his own relief. A broken ankle out here would be a challenge.
“I should buy a lottery ticket,”
she muttered.
She was probably right. She’d slid
a good thirty feet.
Overhead, the column of smoke no
longer punched straight up. Instead, it bent slightly at the top, as if a
southwest wind had joined the party. Mack had guesstimated the wind speeds in
the area at maybe twenty-five miles per hour. If that wind
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