“I’m happy to help.”
Vicki climbed out and followed Libby through the sliding glass doors.
Chapter 18
Lexi followedthe RN in blue scrubs back to the emergency department.
“He was seriously hypothermic when they brought him in, but he’s doing much better now,” the nurse said. “We’re going to keep him under heated blankets and continue giving him warmed IV fluids and oxygen until his core temperature has normalized completely. He should be ready to go home this evening.”
“Thanks so much.”
The nurse motioned to one of the bays, a blue-and-gray striped curtain drawn across it for privacy. “He’s in there.”
“Thanks.” Lexi nudged the curtain aside. “Austin?”
The head of the bed was raised so that he was sitting up, but he was sound asleep, blankets covering him up to his chin, an oxygen mask on his face, an IV tube disappearing beneath the blankets.
She pressed a kiss to his cheek, tears filling her eyes.
She’d come so close to losing him, so close to never seeing him again.
Needing to feel his touch, she took his right hand from beneath the blankets, held it against her cheek, her gaze moving over his face, studying every dear and precious feature. Those long, dark lashes. His high cheekbones. The line of his nose. The stubble on his jaw. The lips that drove her crazy.
He was safe and alive.
Thank you, God.
His eyes fluttered open, and he smiled, squeezed her hand. “Lexi.”
“Hey, sleepyhead.” She smiled through a new rush of tears. “How do you feel?”
“Like I’ve been hit by a bus.” He took his hand from hers, wiped a tear from her cheek. “Hey, it’s okay.”
She’d told herself that she would keep it together, but she was failing. “I was so afraid, Austin. When they said the fire had burned through your last known location and that no one could reach you, a million terrible things went through my mind. I thought…”
His gaze went soft. “I’m so sorry.”
“It’s not your fault.” She sniffed, smiled. “You were trying to rescue Bear.”
“Bear didn’t need rescuing. He was safe all along.”
Lexi listened while Austin told her about reaching the cabin to find that Bear wasn’t there. He told her how the fire had moved faster than he’d imagined, his description of running for the truck and realizing he wouldn’t make it sending chills down her spine.
“I ran for Azure Lake instead. I knew that if I didn’t make it, I would burn alive. I would never see you or Emily again. Emily would lose her father like you’d lost your mother.”
His words struck a sore spot inside her, the place in her heart that had never healed. “But you made it. You made it.”
“The fire was right behind me. By the time I reached the lake, it was close enough to melt the straps on my backpack. If I had tripped, if the lake had been another ten feet farther away… The heat was unbearable, and the way the trees seemed to shriek…”
Lexi felt almost sick, his descriptions bringing vivid images to her mind. “That’s awful.”
“I’ve always had a lot of respect for firefighters, but after today…” Austin’s body tensed as if he’d just remembered something. “Hawke. Have they found him?”
“Yes. He’s alive, but he’s hurt. He, Brandon Silver, and the others are being flown to the Denver Burn Center.”
“What the hell happened?”
Lexi shared the little she knew. “Eric and the others were heading to search for survivors at Camp Mato Sapa and to find you when they were struck by a drone. It took out the helicopter’s rear rotor. The chopper crashed right in front of the fire. Vicki said they deployed fire shelters, but Eric’s shelter failed. He has second-degree burns all over and third-degree burns on his right leg.”