Wish Upon a Star by Sarah Morgan Page B

behind made it easier to resist the temptation to slow the pace.
    They walked steadily for two hours in decreasing visibility and deteriorating weather conditions and then heard shouts from up ahead.
    ‘Bingo,’ Jake murmured, as they pushed on through the swirling snow and mist and finally saw torches and bright jackets on the path ahead.
    By now Christy’s cheeks were stinging with cold and her eyelashes were wet and clumped together. But she loved being outdoors in the mountains. The wind had picked up, the weather was wild and unforgiving and it all seemed as far from the rain-washed streets of London as it was possible to be.
    The injured man was sitting propped against a rock, covered in several coats. There was blood on his forehead andhe had a hand on his chest, his face crumpled in pain. Hope lit his eyes as he saw them trudge towards him through the mist and snow.
    Crouching next to him, offering moral support, was one of his fellow walkers, and he stood up as they arrived, his relief plainly visible on his tired features. ‘Boy, am I glad to see you! My first aid isn’t up to the challenge, I’m afraid. He fell about twenty feet,’ he told them, ‘and since then he’s had real trouble with his breathing. It’s really noisy. He was really struggling so I sat him up—I hope I did the right thing. I know you’re not supposed to move an injured person, but—’
    ‘You’ve done well,’ Christy assured him quickly, heaving her rucksack off her back.
    Alessandro was already reaching for the oxygen, his movements as decisive as ever.
    That was one of the things she loved and admired about him, Christy thought to herself. Some doctors were fine as long as they were in a hospital, surrounded by high-tech equipment and a phone to give them access to doctors from different specialities. Alessandro was equally cool and self-assured when he was halfway up a mountain in a blizzard with a potentially seriously injured patient.
    He was a man who thrived on challenge and she’d always found his inner strength and bold self-confidence incredibly seductive. There was no situation that Alessandro wouldn’t be able to handle.
    Ignoring her aching shoulders, she dropped to her knees beside him, trying to ignore the angry howl of the icy wind that threatened to obliterate her vision.
    ‘His name is Simon Duke,’ the friend volunteered, ‘and he’s fifty-two.’
    ‘Did you see what happened?’ She knew that an accountof the accident might give clues as to the injuries they were potentially dealing with.
    ‘We’ve been out since early this morning. We’d just started our descent when Simon slipped.’ He pulled a face. ‘I’ve been climbing and walking in the mountains for most of my life. I never thought I’d be calling on the services of the mountain rescue team. To say that I’m finding this highly embarrassing would be a major understatement.’
    ‘It happens to the best of us,’ Jake said cheerfully, squinting through the blizzard as he heaved the pack off his back and removed the oxygen cylinder he’d been carrying. The snow was now blowing horizontally and their packs had started to freeze. ‘I must say, you chose fabulous weather for your walk.’
    ‘Ignore him, he’s deranged,’ Christy said dryly, then glanced towards Alessandro for guidance. ‘If he fell twenty feet then he should probably be wearing a collar?’
    ‘Definitely. But we also need to get him into a shelter while I check him over.’ Alessandro reached into his rucksack and pulled out the necessary equipment. ‘Jake, get that oxygen going and let’s get him into a bivvy tent so that I can examine him properly. We’re going to have to carry him off because there’s no way they can fly a helicopter in this.’
    Simon gasped and closed his eyes briefly. ‘So sorry to be such a nuisance,’ he panted. ‘Can’t believe I need oxygen.’
    ‘I’m glad you do,’ Jake drawled as he removed his gloves so that he could adjust the