Page 12 of Mountain Man's Forgiveness
The wind shifts, hot and violent. Not a good sign. I grab Eva’s hand, forcing her to meet my eyes. “Grab Julia’s hand. We move together. Now.”
I anchor my prosthetic against a rock and pull them up the slope and out of the ravine. Ash drifts like the start of a light snowfall, dusting our shoulders as we head in the direction I came from.
Hustling, I spot a massive fallen log partially blocking the trail. I don’t even remember climbing over it. “Step onto my knee and hoist yourself over, then grab Julia’s hand.” My command leaves no room for questions.
Smoke stinging our eyes, muscles screaming, Eva crouches at the top of the log to pull up her research assistant, steady and precise like the scientist she is.
“Nice teamwork,” I grunt, sweat stinging my eyes. An ember lands on her sleeve, and I slap it away instinctively. “You good?”
“Yeah,” she says, breath ragged. “You?”
As I check in with Julia, a sudden gust shifts the fire uphill. Smoke swirls around us, so I grab my compass pendant from my pocket and tuck it into her hand. “Hold this. Keep your bearings.”
Her fingers close over mine, grasping the metal between us. “I’m not leaving you.”
I smirk through the cough. “Good. Because I won’t let you.”
Julia snickers despite our tricky situation, and I suspect she knows about us.
Eventually, we reach a small clearing, the kind I recognize from my smokejumper days, giving me a second to gather my bearings.
“See the trail marker?” Eva’s voice is confident as a siren roars in the distance. “We’re close to the university main trail.”
She leads us with careful confidence, taking the exact route my training says is right. In the middle of this hell, I know without a doubt that I trust Eva, fully and completely.
The company meets us at the trailhead in full gear, their mission clear. I nod to the lieutenant and give him a quick update.
“Welcome to the team, Blackshear. The captain’s at the command post.”
I glance back at Eva, ash in her hair and determination in her eyes. For the first time since the accident, I know exactly where I belong.
Anywhere she is.
Epilogue
Eva
I lean against the doorway of Aiden’s cabin, my breath catching as I take in his soot-streaked face and the way his gray eyes catch in the light. Smoke still clings to him, threaded through his shirt and hair, and somehow, he’s never looked more devastatingly handsome.
“Eva. I could have lost you back there.” His voice cracks, rough and unguarded. “What were you doing out in the woods without me?” The raw fear in his eyes breaks my heart wide open.
“Being stubborn,” I choke out in hiccuping gasps, tears spilling hot and fast at the guilt consuming me. “I—didn’t—want—to—bother—you.”
My rugged mountain man growls and gathers me in his arms. “You are never a bother, Eva. Not one fucking moment.” The solid warmth of his chest is comforting and safe, like he’s the only solid thing in a world that just tried to swallow me whole.
“I was so wrong, Aiden.” My words tumble out desperate and unfiltered. “You are amazing and strong and trustworthy. That’swhat I want in a partner, in the father of my child. It doesn’t matter where we live because wherever that is, I know you’ll take care of us.”
He cups my face, his rough palms warm against my skin, his thumbs grazing my cheekbones with hunger and devotion and something fierce that I can’t name.
He whispers softly against my ear, his words tender and reverent. “You just said we.” Then he pulls back, swiping tears off my cheeks with his palms, his own eyes red. “And don’t discount your feelings, Trouble. You were fucking right. I have been hiding out here on the mountain. I love my cabin and a piece of me will always want to be out here, but not if it costs me everything that matters.”
I shake my head vigorously. “It won’t. You don’t have to choose.”
His hand slides to the nape of my neck, firm and possessive, his fingers threading through my hair. “I’m choosing what’s best for me and my son and what I hope will be my family.”
At this I cry even harder. I think the pregnancy hormones are in full effect.
“Sweetheart, I’m officially a firefighter for Cobalt County. Station 8.”
