Page 2 of Rugged Mountain Man
Relief and wariness flood me all at once. “N-no,” I stammer, ignoring the bite in his tone. “I… I got lost.”
“Clearly.” His gaze sharpens, scanning the area around us before settling back on me. “Lucky for you, I check my traps every day. Otherwise, you’d be spending the night out here, which doesn’t seem like something you would survive.”
Heat rises to my cheeks, anger pushing through the pain. “Thanks for the vote of confidence. Are you going to help me or just stand there criticizing?”
He grunts—a low, unimpressed sound—and crouches beside me. “Hold still,” he mutters, pulling a tool from his belt. His movements are deliberate, practiced, like he’s done this a hundred times before.
“How often do people step in your traps, anyway?” I ask, trying to distract myself from the throbbing in my leg.
“Never.” He glances at me, his mouth twitching like he might laugh. “You’re a first.”
“Great. Glad I could make your day more exciting,” I mutter, biting back a wince as he works the trap open.
“Hold still,” he says, not unkindly.
I brace myself, biting back a whimper as he works the trap open. It snaps free, and I cry out as blood rushes back into my leg.
“Hurts, doesn’t it?” he mutters.
“No kidding,” I snap, glaring at him through the rain. “What gave it away? The screaming?”
He stands, towering over me, and offers a hand. His palm is wide, solid. Reluctantly, I take it, and he pulls me to my feet like I weigh nothing. Pain shoots through my ankle, and I stumble against him.
His arm comes around me, steadying. “You can’t walk on that.”
“I’m fine,” I insist, though my body disagrees.
He doesn’t respond. Instead, he bends down, sweeping me into his arms like it’s the most natural thing in the world.
“Hey!” I squirm, ignoring the way my pulse quickens at the heat of him. “Put me down!”
“Stop arguing,” he says flatly. “You’ll hurt yourself worse.”
I open my mouth to protest, but the words die as I look up at him. His face is stern, his eyes unreadable, but there’s something about the way he holds me—like he won’t let anything happen to me tonight.
“You stepped in a rusty trap,” he mutters. “I need to check your leg. I have a cabin up ahead.”
“I’m fine,” I say, though even I don’t believe it. My ankle throbs like it’s on fire, and I’m certain there’s dried blood caked into my leggings.
“Finedoesn’t look like that.” His gaze flicks to my leg briefly before returning to the trail ahead. “You’ll probably need a tetanus shot.”
“A tetanus shot?” I grimace. “I haven’t had one of those since, like… high school.”
“Figures,” he grumbles under his breath. “Lucky for you, I’ve got one.”
“You have a tetanus shot?” I blink at him, incredulous. “What, you moonlight as a doctor?”
His lips twitch, fighting a smirk. “No. But when you live this far out, you learn to be prepared. Injuries like this aren’t exactly rare.”
“Oh,” I grumble. I guess of all the people who could have found me trapped and wounded, I’m glad it’s the big bear man who seems prepared for anything, including a city girl getting lost on an easy trail.
He shifts me slightly in his arms, his grip impossibly steady. “Stop fidgeting. I’ll get you patched up and warmed up, then you can complain all you want.”
“Who are you?” I ask finally, my voice small.
“Cole,” he says simply. “And you’re coming with me.”
“I’m Sadie.”
