by A. J. Wynter
She pulled her glove off her hand with her teeth and was able to reach her hand into her jacket pocket. Thankfully her phone hadn’t done the unintentional polar bear plunge with her. She tried to dial 911, but her fingers were so cold the phone wasn’t registering her touch. She did everything she could to warm them up but couldn’t get the phone to work. She punched the button on the side to activate the voice prompt, but the damn phone kept telling her that it didn’t have anyone named Nina Oneone in her contact lists.
Megan screamed and then yelled into her phone, “Dial Charlotte.”
When the phone replied, “Dialing Charlotte,” Megan’s breath heaved, and she choked out a relieved cry.
Charlotte reassured Megan in the way a salesperson assures a nervous buyer, her voice all calm and caramel smooth. If there was anyone who knew how to take care of a situation, it was Charlotte.
Now all Megan had to do was wait and hope that Charlotte would know what to do.
To Megan’s surprise, instead of getting colder, she started to get warmer, the ice started to feel more comfortable than the Posturepedic bed she’d been sleeping on at Charlotte’s house. Megan smiled and laid her face down on the snow and marveled at the way the snow sparkled even at such a close angle.
Then she closed her eyes.
Chapter 28
“Come on. We’ll take my truck,” Josh said and grabbed his keys from the workbench. “Did she say where she walked out onto the ice? Chance Lake name is pretty big and if we get it wrong, we will have to drive all the way around. The ice isn’t thick enough for us to drive over it yet.”
Charlotte hopped into the passenger seat of Josh’s truck and slammed the door. “She walked down the trail at the end of Sugarbush Lane.”
Josh nodded and put the truck into gear. As they sped off from the main street, Josh turned on his CB radio and called in the emergency to search and rescue. The dispatcher said that they would have someone there as soon as possible, but there had been a big pileup on the west side of town, and the whole team, including the helicopter, had been dispatched to the scene.
“Well, dammit. Call off some of the team and dispatch them, this is an emergency. If they don’t need the helicopter, call it to Chance Lake ASAP.”
“10-4 J.J.,” the voice came through the crackling radio.
“Is there someone else we can call?” Charlotte gripped the door handle as Josh drifted the truck around the corners on the snow-covered back road.
“That’s everyone,” Josh said grimly.
“But they will send someone to help, right?”
“Yes, but we’re going to get there first. I’ve got ropes and an intensive first aid kit in the back seat. We are going to have to save her. Did she say how far out she was?”
Charlotte’s voice cracked, “She said she was about a football field away from shore, but every time she tried to move, she heard the ice cracking.”
“She’s smart to stay down on the ice and disperse her weight around. There’s a creek that runs into the lake by that trail, and the ice is never safe there – even in the dead of winter.”
“What was she thinking?” Charlotte muttered underneath her breath. “I should’ve told her to stay put, I should’ve told her that I was going to make everything all better.”
“You stop that right now,” Josh growled. “You’ll drive yourself insane if you keep up the ‘what ifs.’ This isn’t your fault. You didn’t walk her out onto the ice.”
Josh’s stomach was contracted along with every single muscle in his body. He gripped the steering wheel as if the harder he held it, the faster he would be able to get to the lake. He switched the truck into four-wheel drive as they turned onto an unmaintained road. “Hold on,” he said.
Charlotte reached for the handle above the door and braced herself as she was bounced around the cab of the truck. Josh pulled the truck up to the shoreline and he could see Megan’s body lying out on the ice.
Charlotte jumped out, “Megan,” she screamed. Megan didn’t move.
Josh grabbed Charlotte’s arm. “Keep the truck running. Get the blankets out of my first aid bag.”
Charlotte nodded and pulled the duffel bag out of the back seat. Josh grabbed two coiled up ropes and tied a bowline around his waist and attached the other end to the winch on the front of the truck.
“Charlotte. I’m going to go out on the ice and get Megan. I need you to stay here and get ready for when we get to shore. When I give you the signal, you flick this switch.” He pointed to a switch on the dashboard of the truck. “This operates the winch. When I wave to you, all you have to do is flick that switch. Okay?”
“Okay,” Charlotte nodded and turned up the heat in the truck. “Be careful.”
Josh stepped out onto the ice and began moving toward Megan in a low crawl. He kept his eyes trained on her, his eyes looking for any sign of life, and his ears alert for any signs of the ice giving out from underneath him. As he neared Megan’s lifeless body, he heard the sound that he was dreading, the distinctive cracking of ice under too much load. He dropped down to an army crawl and continued forward.
“Megan,” he shouted and practically screamed for joy when he saw her look up and meet his eyes. She grinned widely and tried to stand up.
“No! Don’t stand up. Stay there and don’t move.”
“It’s so beautiful out here Josh,” she smiled at him and tried to stand up again.
“Meg. You need to look at me,” Josh continued his army crawl and was within ten feet of Megan. “You have hypothermia and I’m going to get you to safety, but you have to do exactly as I say.”
“I love you, Josh.”
Josh had been to plenty of cold exposure rescues and knew that hypothermia caused delirium. He knew that he loved Megan but wasn’t sure if it was her or her hypothermic brain talking to him. Either way, he felt a warmth rise inside of him but kept his focus on Megan.
When he reached her side, he slid the other rope under her body and secured it into a harness. Before he waved to Charlotte to signal her to activate the winch, he leaned in close to her ear and whispered. “I love you too. Now, hold on to this rope. You’re going to get towed to shore, but I need you to stay calm and as still as possible. He waved his arm in the air and saw the rescue rope become taut. He kissed Megan on the cheek, “Hold on, baby.”
Josh kept a fair distance from Megan while army crawling parallel to her. He could see that she was holding on and he knew that she was going to be sore tomorrow from being dragged along the uneven ice and snow. When she reached the shore, Josh crawled to her side and undid the ropes. He picked her up in his arms honeymoon style and rushed her to the truck and put her in the back seat.
“Get in the back seat,” he barked at Charlotte and jumped into the driver’s seat, gunning the engine and heading off to the main road, snow spraying out behind them as he left the shoreline. “She needs to get out of those wet clothes. Get her undressed NOW.”
“Really, can’t I just wrap her in blankets?” Charlotte asked.
“Charlotte, get those clothes off of her right now,” Josh yelled as he maneuvered the truck onto the main road.
Charlotte unbuttoned her friend’s jeans and pulled them from her body, surprised at how heavy and cold they were. She unzipped the down coat and pulled Megan’s long sleeved shirt over her head.
Josh looked in the rear view mirror, “Underwear too.”
Charlotte raised her eyebrows at him but obeyed, sliding Megan’s soaking wet panties from her body. “Meg, honey, can you reach your bra?” she asked. Meg nodded and unclipped her pink bra. Charlotte pulled it off her arms.
“Now wrap her in every blanket you’ve got.”
Charlotte fully mummified her naked friend. Megan was laughing, “Charlotte, I never knew that you wanted to get me undressed. Is this why you’re single?”
“You wish,” Charlotte replied, trying to keep the atmosphere light, knowing that her friend wasn’t out of the woods yet.
“There are some hot pockets in there, crack them open and put them in her armpits, but not directly against her skin. Charlotte complied and noticed that Megan was starting to shiver.
“She’s shivering!”
“That’s good,” Josh said. “That means she’s warming up.”
Josh pulled up in front of his cabin.
“Where are we?” Charlotte asked.
“This is Josh’s cabin,” Megan said, her voice slurry.
Josh ripped open the truck door and pulled Megan’s cocooned body out of the truck and carried her inside.
“What are we doing here?” Charlotte asked, following him into his cabin.
“We need to get her warm. This is the closest place to do it. Get some more blankets out of that cupboard,” Josh ordered, pointing at a glass front cabinet full of quilts.
Megan complied, pulling out a stack of handmade quilts. “Shouldn’t we take her to the hospital?”
“We will, but first we need to get her body temperature up. The ride to the hospital is too far and without a chopper, we would be risking her life attempting to get there – especially with the storm coming in. Now get those blankets on her.” Josh lit a fire and within minutes it was raging, lighting up the cabin with its yellow glow and crackling as the bark burnt. “There are some hot water bottles in the bathroom and there is water in the kettle.” Josh pointed to the kitchen and Charlotte ran to light the propane stove to heat the water.
“Is she going to be okay?” Charlotte asked as she clicked on the burner.
“I think so,” he whispered. “As long as her body temperature keeps climbing, she’s going to come through this with only some bumps and bruises. When she gets warm enough to transport, we can take her to the hospital to get a once-over, but I think that she’s going to be okay.”
“Thank you, Josh.” Charlotte pulled Josh in for a bear hug. “I hope that you two can work everything out.”
Josh didn’t mention the I love yous that had been exchanged out on the ice. He chalked them up to a very intense moment. They could easily be taken back. He looked over at Megan, wrapped up in the comforters, one of his mom’s hand-knit stocking caps on her head, and realized that he didn’t want to take them back. He loved Megan.
“I hope so too.” Josh squeezed Charlotte back. “You were very calm under pressure today. I couldn’t have done this without you.”
“Same,” Charlotte smiled and then jumped as the kettle started to whistle. She pulled it off and filled up the hot water bottles.
“I’ll take over,” Josh said and took the bottles from her hands. Charlotte yawned. “Why don’t you go and get some rest? I’ll take care of Meg.”
“I know you will,” Charlotte replied and patted Josh on his sturdy shoulder. She climbed the ladder into the loft and Josh could hear the bed creak as she laid down.
He knelt on the floor in front of the couch and removed the now cold packs from Megan’s underarms and replaced them with the warm hot water bottles. Megan was murmuring incoherently, and Josh leaned closer to try to decipher what she was saying. He pushed her hair from her face and tucked it behind her ears. He kissed her on her forehead and held his face next to hers. It was still cold but felt like skin again, not a hard-frozen surface.
“Josh, I’m cold,” she whispered.
“I know, Meg.”
He reached his arms around her to hold her and then noticed that her teeth were chattering. The hot water bottles weren’t going to cut it. He thought back to his first aid training and knew that skin to skin contact was one of the best ways to warm someone up.
“Megan,” he whispered.
He breathed a sigh of relief when she opened her eyes and they focused on him. “I need to get in the blankets with you to keep you warm. Is that okay?”
Megan nodded.
“Megan. I need to get in without my clothes on.”
She grinned, and he noticed the sparkle coming back to her blue eyes. “I thought you’d never ask.”
“It’s not like that Meg,” he smiled. It was a good sign that she was getting her sense of humor back and that she seemed to be fully coherent.
“Too bad,” she murmured. “Take off your clothes and warm me up mister.”
Josh didn’t need any further permission. He stood up and glanced over his shoulder, hoping that Charlotte wasn’t looking over the loft railing. He dropped his pants and pulled off his thermal shirt. He peeled off his boxer shorts and then pulled the quilts back and slid in behind Megan. Her body felt like meat that had been taken out of the fridge, cold, but not frozen. Megan turned to face Josh with her rock-hard nipples pressing against his chest. She nuzzled her head into his neck and he pulled the blankets tightly around their bodies, forming a tight double mummy wrap. He pressed his hands into her back, effectively holding her body tightly against his. He could feel her cold nose against his neck and her warm breath rasping at the hair on his neck.
He breathed her in deeply. She felt like a puzzle piece that had been missing for years, and now she was here, fitting perfectly into his life. He could feel his arousal stirring but knew that getting Megan warm trumped how excited his body was feeling.
He fought sleep by listening to Megan’s inhalations and exhalations and the cute little murmurs she made every time she shifted in his arms. He knew that he would do whatever it took to keep her safe. He wasn’t ever going to let her go. Even if it scared him to death.
Chapter 29
Josh felt an unfamiliar hand on his shoulder shaking him awake. His eyes flashed open and he would’ve bolted upright if it wasn’t for Megan’s weight on his arm.
“Shhh.” It was a woman’s voice. He squinted into the early dawn light and was able to make out Charlotte’s silhouette. “It’s stopped snowing and I heard the snow plow go by. We should be able to get Megan to the hospital. Shouldn’t she be covered up?”
Josh looked down and saw that sometime during the night one of them had kicked the quilts off. He didn’t know how much Charlotte could see in the muted light but was quick to pull up the quilt over his extremely stiff morning wood. Did I stay hard all night? He wondered to himself. He tucked the scrappy quilt over Megan’s shoulder, but she was quick to shrug it off.
“Too hot,” she murmured.
That’s when Josh knew that she was going to be just fine. He ran his hands down the sides of her body and felt the familiar warmth of Megan’s body, not the chilled version from the night before.
“Meg, baby, we should get you to the hospital,” he whispered to her.
She opened her eyes and looked into his, “I’m fine right here.”
“I’ll go start the truck,” Charlotte said pulling her coat off the hook by the door.
“I’m fine,” Megan repeated.
“I know you are. Thank God. You scared me, Meg. I thought that I lost you.” Josh slipped his hand behind Megan’s neck and pulled her lips toward his. Josh couldn’t help it, once Megan’s soft lips met his, the floodgates he’d built up over the years finally cracked and tears started to stream down his face.
He heard the door open and quickly wiped the tears off his face with the back of his hand.
Charlotte stomped the snow off her boots and shut the door behind her. “How are you feeling, Meg?”
“I’m fine, Char. I don’t need to go to the hospital.”
“Yes. You do.” Charlotte put her hands on her hips. “Josh?”
All Josh wanted to do was hold Megan in his arms and never let her go, but he knew that she needed to get the medical all-clear. “She’s right, Meg. We all know that you’re fine, but we’re not doctors.”
Megan looked from her friend to her lover. “You two aren’t going to let this go, are you?”
“Nope,” Charlotte said. “I’ll go wait in the truck so you two can get decent.”
“It’s hypothermia protocol!” Josh shouted as Charlotte stepped out of the cabin.
“Hypothermia protocol?” Megan giggled.
“It really is. Skin to skin heat.” Josh replied wrapping his arms around her.
Megan kissed his neck and then sat upright like she’d been shocked.
“What time is it?” she tossed off the blankets. “Where are my clothes?”
“Whoa, take it easy, Meg.” Josh stood up, his erection tenting out his boxer shorts. He pulled Megan’s clothes from the drying rack beside the fire and handed them to her.
“Thanks.” She grabbed the pile of clothes from his hands. Josh pulled a pair of sweat pants on, thankful for the forgiving fabric. “I’ve got to get to the café. The grand opening is this weekend and we’ve got so much to do.”
“Stop, Meg. The first stop is the hospital. Then I can go to the café and help you with whatever you need to get done today. That is as long as the doctor says you’re okay and clears you to go to work.”
Megan paused, her eyes traveled down Josh’s body pausing at the fabric just below the elastic waistband of his pants. “Okay. I’ll agree to that on one condition.”
“And what’s that?”
“That we come back here tonight, and you let me take care of you. And that,” she grinned and pointed at the front of pants then wrapped her arms around his waist, pulling him toward her by his ass.
He wanted to pick her up and bury himself inside of her but held back. And, like the condition in his boxers, it was one of the hardest things he’d ever had to do in his life.
“Deal.”
Chapter 30
Josh walked Megan to the café in the darkness at 5 a.m. The two of them shared the first coffees of the grand opening together as they watched the sun rise over the buildings of downtown Chance Rapids.
“I’m so proud of you,” he smiled at Megan and held her hands across the table. “Are you ready for today?”
“You know what? I actually think that I am. I’m nervous as hell, but I think that it’s the good kind of nervous.
They heard the back door open and the staff start to file in.
Megan stood behind the counter and as the cappuccino machine squealed out its first official latte, she felt her heart swell with pride. She had been so nervous unlocking the door that morning, but she couldn’t let the staff see her butterflies. The smell of fresh bread and grinding coffee beans welcomed the Chance Rapids residents as they walked into the Sugar Peaks Café.