Page 6 of Wild Rush Of Love
Maybe die a little bit too.
Head down, breath rasping in her ears as a harsh accompaniment to the drumming of her heart, she charged on.
She’d keep going. One foot in front of the other. Shewouldmake it. One step at a time.
She didn’t look up, kept her eyes locked on the hiking boots she’d spent the last six months breaking in, and trudged on, taking those steps one at a time.
The ground leveled off beneath her feet and with her lungs screaming for breath and her legs trembling, she stopped, bent over, and braced her hands on her knees, sucking in air like a damn vacuum cleaner stuck in overdrive.
She just had to catch her breath. Then she’d gloat, revel in the glory of making it to Lake View Lookout.
In a minute.
Maybe.
Oh god.
She really needed to up her game in fitness. Although to give herself some credit, it wasn’t like she’d trekked up a mountain before. This was a first and the reason she’d chosen to holiday in Winter Lake. She liked to walk. Loved getting out and walking along the Baltimore harbor. Enjoyed her local parks as well.
Of course those paths didn’t weave their way up the side of a mountain where snow still lay in patches on the ground.
They also weren’t at twenty-seven hundred feet above sea level.
Maybe she had altitude sickness.
Too out of breath to laugh, Reena choked on the sound before it could form.
Jeez, shereallyneeded to up her fitness game.
This didn’t bode well for the rest of her holiday.
The plan had been to head up to Fire Trail Ridge but that was three times as long and another five hundred feet up.
She’d have to work her way up to it. That’s if she ever managed to make it back to the Lodge. Right now that seemed impossible.
Reasonably sure she’d caught her breath, she eased upright and lost it all over again.
The burst of air that left her lungs sounded like ‘wow’ but that was debatable.
Water and trees and sky and water and trees and more sky stretched as far as the eye could see.
She took a step closer to the beautiful white draped vista. “It’s beautiful. Perfect.”
“Yeah, nothing—”
“Argh!” Spinning around, Reena lost her footing and, arms pinwheeling, she flailed about before strong arms wrapped around her middle.
“Easy. I’ve got you.”
She couldn’t see who had her, not with her face smushed into a hard shoulder, and when she got her heart out of her throat and back in her chest, her lungs breathing normally, and her legs solid beneath her, she’d worry about that.
Right now whoever had her was the only thing holding her upright.
“Here, sit.” He managed to move her a few feet and park her butt on what appeared to be a naturally formed rock bench. He crouched in front of her, holding out a bottle of water. “Take a sip.”
“Thanks.” She sucked in a breath, waved his offer aside. “I have my own.”
Her gloves made it hard to get the small drink bottle out of her pocket and she wasn’t surprised to hear the small huff of exasperation from her would-be rescuer as he brushed her fumbling hands aside and took over.
