“I-I-I-I’m okay,” she said, her teeth rattling so violently she could hardly talk.
Luke let go of her hand and grabbed the tinfoil-like cover from his chest. “Take the blanket.”
She shook her head. “I’m not the one in shock.”
He lifted a questioning brow. “Taylin, you may not be injured, but we just survived a tornado. I guarantee you’re in shock too.”
“Please,” he said when she still hesitated.
Her hands shook as she accepted the blanket. “Okay, but if you start shivering, I’m giving it back.”
“Okay,” he said, feeling his own muscles start to tremble. He knew the reaction wasn’t just from the cold, but more from the traumatic event they’d just experienced.
Taylin wrapped the thin covering around her shoulders. “I will never take a warm, fuzzy blanket for granted again.”
Luke smiled. “Give it a few minutes, and it should at least take the edge off.”
The inside of the makeshift shelter grew lighter, as if someone had just turned up the dimmer switch on a light bulb.
“Hey, I think the sun just came out.”
Taylin tipped her head back. “I think you’re right. And it sounds like the rain has stopped.”
She rose up on her knees and reached for the corner of the blanket closest to Luke’s head. She jiggled it loose, and Luke sucked in a quick breath when a few drops of water hit his face.
“Sorry about that,” Taylin said. She got up on her knees and pushed the blanket back to avoid dripping any more rain water on Luke.
She quickly removed the rest of the covering and the two of them stared at the destruction surrounding them.
“Oh wow.” Taylin’s voice was barely a whisper. “I… how did we not die?”
Luke fought through the pain in his leg and sat upright. “I honestly don’t know.”
He clutched his tender shoulder with his other hand and scanned the demolished area. Branches, leaves and even whole trees that had been completely uprooted surrounded them. The entire forest was eerily quiet.
“How are we ever going to get out of here?” Taylin asked.
Luke had no idea. Navigating the wreckage would be difficult by itself. His injuries would make it impossible for him to get out on his own.
“I’m not sure,” he said, sensing Taylin’s rising panic. He was battling his own feelings of claustrophobia. “But I’m sure Harmony Springs will send someone out to look for us.”
“I don’t even see the trail.” Taylin stood up and searched all around. “There’s nothing but trees and branches. It will take them weeks to clear a path.”
“Hey,” he said, hoping to keep her calm. “My brother was part of the search and rescue team for my hometown. Those guys are trained for everything and will have helicopters at their disposal.” Truthfully, it was going to take several bulldozers to clear the debris.
Taylin turned and met his gaze. “Maybe I should try to hike back to the spa to get help.”
“Not a good idea,” Luke said. “We need to stay in one place and let them find us.”
At first, she looked like she might bolt on him. If she did, Luke wouldn’t be able to run after her. Something was seriously wrong with his left leg. At last, she closed her eyes for a few seconds and took several slow, deep breaths. When she opened her eyes again, Luke noted a look of determination had replaced her earlier panic.
“Okay. I’m done freaking out.” She tucked a strand of her tangled hair behind her ear and knelt back down in front of him. “First we need to figure out what injuries you have.” She pointed to his right side. “How’s your arm?”
Luke tested out his shoulder. It was sore, but didn’t seem to have been seriously damaged.
“Well?” Taylin asked.
“I’m good.” He touched his lower ribcage and winced. “My ribs are tender, though.”
She pursed her lips together. “Bruised or broken?”
“Probably bruised,” Luke said, trying to think positively.
“Okay, what about your head?”
“It hurts, but I’ll live.”
“I’m sorry.” A look of distress crossed her features. “I wish we had at least one of the first aid kits in the saddlebags so I could give you some Tylenol.”
“Oh man,” Luke said as the realization hit him they were left without any of the emergency supplies the horses had carried. “My phone was in there.”
“Mine was in my back pocket.” She reached over and grabbed her backpack, pulling out her phone. “The screen shattered when I hit the ground.”
Luke narrowed his eyes. “You were thrown from your horse and you weren’t hurt?” He kind of felt like a wimp for being knocked out.
“Yes, but the horse didn’t roll over on top of me, either.”
She had a point. Still, Luke was a Montana boy and should be tougher. Hoping his leg was okay, he attempted to get to his feet. A stab of hot pain shot through his limb and stopped him. He ground his teeth together, biting back a curse word as he clutched his left leg.
“What is it?” she asked, placing her hand on top of his. “Do you think your leg is broken?”
As some of the pain receded, Luke pinpointed the origin. “It feels like my knee.” His jeans had ripped at the knee, and Luke pulled the fabric apart to get a better look at the injury.
“Oh, Luke,” Taylin said, as they both stared at the obvious dislocated kneecap. “That has to hurt.”
It did. Now that he could see the injury, it was like his pain receptors were on high alert. He ground his teeth together to keep from groaning out loud. He knew from experience the kneecap needed to be pushed back into place before the swelling became too great to even splint his leg straight. His bull riding days hadn’t always affected his shoulder. He’d also sustained several knee injuries before, including a dislocated kneecap. So he knew what needed to be done.
“I need to try and reduce the kneecap back into place.”
Her eyes widened. “Without pain medication?”
It wasn’t his first choice and made him think about the many women who refused his services at the hospital during childbirth. “Trust me, I’d take the epidural if it were available,” he said, truly wishing he had that option. “But it looks like I’m going natural.”
Taylin shook her head. “I’d laugh it if weren’t the truth.”
He shifted slightly, and a sharp pain made his breath catch. He closed his eyes and concentrated on his breathing. He had a completely new respect for women who labored without meds. After a few seconds, he met Taylin’s worried gaze. “I’ll need your help.”
She licked her lips and nodded her head. “Okay, but you’ll have to tell me what to do.”
Luke explained what her role would be, and Taylin moved to his foot, ready to pull on his ankle when he was ready. He took several slow, deep breaths in through his nose and out through his mouth.
“Pull slowly when I say go.” His hands shook as they neared his knee. “Now,” he said through clenched teeth as he laterally shifted the kneecap back into place while Taylin simultaneously tugged his ankle to straighten his leg. His breath quickened as he stifled a guttural moan and felt the kneecap pop back into place.
“Okay,” he said, panting. “Just hold my leg straight for a second.” He worked hard to slow his breathing down. While the stabbing pain had dissipated quite a bit, his knee felt heavy and thick.
“Sorry,” Taylin said softly.
He offered her a weak smile. “You did great.” He swallowed and ran the back of his hand across his sweat-dampened forehead. “We need to try and immobilize my leg.” He looked around them. “We have plenty of sticks to choose from, we’ll just need to come up with something to wrap around them.”
“Can I let go?”
He nodded. “Yeah, thank you.”
She sat back and lifted up the edge of the rain poncho to expose her white button-up shirt. The fabric was splattered with mud. “I could probably rip a few stri
ps off of the bottom of my shirt, but I don’t think that’ll be enough.”
“Actually, I have a T-shirt on underneath my shirt.” Without moving his leg, Luke removed his rain poncho. “We can use that.”
Taylin watched him peel off his Henley. “You’ve just been dying to show off your tan again, haven’t you?” she teased, holding out her hand for his shirt.
“Don’t make me laugh,” he said, feeling a pinch in his side as he took off the undershirt. “My ribs might be broken after all.”
“Ouch, I think you’re right,” she said, staring at his bare chest.
Luke glanced down and saw the discolored mark on his right side. Whether or not he’d broken anything, he was going to have a nasty bruise.
Taylin came around next to him and lightly ran her fingertips over the area. Her fingers no longer felt like ice, leaving a trail of heat everywhere she touched. “I can’t feel any obvious breaks.” She glanced up and met his gaze. “If you feel short of breath, you need to tell me right away.”
Yeah, he was short of breath, but not due to a possible punctured lung. Attraction was a powerful antidote to pain. “Okay.”
She sat back, and he immediately missed her touch. “I think I’ve got some scissors in my backpack we can use to cut up the shirt.” She handed him back his Henley.
“You carry scissors in your backpack?” Luke asked as he gingerly pulled his shirt back on.
Smiling, she picked up the bag. “I like to be prepared.” She pulled out a small zebra striped zippered pouch that was slightly bulging. “I like changing purses, but hate transferring everything whenever I do.” She unzipped the pouch. “This makes it easier.”
She dumped the entire contents out on top of Luke’s rain poncho. He was surprised by the variety of things she had concealed. He’d expected to see an arsenal of makeup, but she only had a few basic things. She put those back inside the pouch, along with her emergency feminine products. He spotted the small foldable scissors among dental floss, safety pins, tweezers, nail clippers, and a hand mirror that might come in handy. Taylin picked up a small tube of medication he’d purchased many times for his ex-wife to help with menstrual cramps.
“Hey, I forgot about this.” She opened the cap and dumped out two of the tablets. “This can’t hurt, right?”
“Right.” He gratefully accepted the medication, along with a small bottle of water Taylin had removed from the backpack. He only drank enough water to get the pills down. Since the horses had taken off with the saddlebags, their water supply was limited to the two water bottles Taylin carried in her bag. “Thank you,” he said, handing her back the bottle.
“Do you think you can cut up the shirt while I hunt for some sticks?”
“Yeah.” He took the scissors and the white tee from her.
By the time Taylin found some branches that would work well as a splint, Luke had cut up the T-shirt into strips about two inches wide. Before splinting the leg, Taylin wrapped one of the strips around his knee to help stabilize it. Then she proceeded to apply the makeshift splint to his leg.
Luke noticed the dark clouds moving in. Severe weather would delay rescue efforts, and he knew it would be a miserable night. When the sun disappeared behind a dark cloud, Taylin looked at him with worried eyes.
“I think another storm is comin’,” she said softly.
“I know.” He involuntarily shivered when a gust of wind rushed over them.
Taylin snatched the emergency blanket before the draft of air carried it away. She handed him the blanket and quickly gathered up the items on the rain poncho, stuffing them back into the zippered pouch.
“Here,” she said, handing him the poncho. “You’d better put this back on.”
“Thanks.” The thin plastic was cold and wet, and he silently cursed himself for storing his denim jacket in the saddlebag.
Another gust of wind rippled across them. The air was heavy with humidity, and he knew they didn’t have long to find some kind of shelter before the rain came again. Knowing his knee would hinder his ability to travel, Luke scanned the immediate area for a possible place to take cover.
He couldn’t see anything promising and was frustrated by his immobility. Taylin surprised him when she pointed out a cluster of downed pines that formed an A-frame.
“I noticed it when I was finding the sticks for your splint and thought it would make a great fort for my nephews.” She tucked a matted strand of hair behind her ear. “What do you think? Can you make it over there?”
Luke figured it was at least four yards away. If he couldn’t get there, at least Taylin would be somewhat protected from the elements. “I’ll do my best.”
With Taylin’s help, Luke navigated the ground by scooting on his backside. Once he made it there, he reached up and jiggled one of the branches to see how stable the shelter was. The trees were wedged tightly, and he guessed they’d be safe enough. Unless another tornado decided to touch down again.
Although it hurt to move, he inched his way inside the opening. The space was tight, and his head touched the branches overhead. He leaned back against the mass of pine boughs and was relieved when they didn’t budge.
Taylin peered inside the opening and bit at her bottom lip. “I’m a little on the claustrophobic side. Maybe I’ll stay out here.”
A clap of thunder rumbled in the distance. “Never mind,” Taylin said as she scrambled inside to sit next to Luke.
“You okay?” he asked once she was settled.
“Yeah.” She glanced up at him. “How long until you think they’ll start lookin’ for us?”
Not any time today. He hesitated answering, since it probably wasn’t what she wanted to hear.
“And be honest,” she said, holding his gaze. “I promise not to freak out.”
Outside their shelter, the wind whistled through the branches and rain started to fall. “Unless this storm blows over quickly, I think it’ll be tomorrow before they can come look for us.”
Chapter 17
Under Luke’s watchful gaze, Taylin did her best to hide her panic at spending the night in the forest. At least she wasn’t alone. “Well, this is a first for me. Our family’s idea of camping is staying in a cabin with running water.”
He smiled. “My brothers and I spent many weekends camping in the woods.”
“Good, that means I’m with an expert.” A drop of water hit her cheek, and they both looked up. It was raining pretty hard outside, and the branches wouldn’t keep them dry much longer.
Pushing aside her anxiety, Taylin dove into action and retrieved the emergency blankets from her backpack. She handed one to Luke and then figured out a way to secure the other one as a makeshift roof using the safety pins from her bag. It was more secure than her earlier attempt to protect them from the elements while Luke was unconscious.
“That’s pretty good,” he said.
“It’ll help keep us a little dry.” She shivered as the cold settled in around her.
Luke handed the other blanket to her. “Just pretend like this is a minky blanket.”
The thin metallic material crinkled as she spread it open. “That’s like tellin’ a severely dehydrated person to pretend a glass of sand is really fresh spring water.” She scooted close to him. “But it’s better than nothing, and I’m not hoggin’ the entire blanket. We’ll share.”
Luke started to protest, but Taylin pressed even closer, feeling a hint of warmth from his body. “It might not be Montana, but it’s gonna get pretty cold tonight and we need to keep each other warm.”
“You’re right. Thanks.” He tucked the corner of the blanket under his arm. Then, with their shoulders touching, Luke found her hand under the blanket and threaded their fingers together. “So, how many forts have you built for your nephews over the years?”
Taylin loved the feel of her hand in his. While the rain continued to come down, she talked all about her large family. She made Luke laugh a few times then had to apologize when he reminded her about
his bruised ribs.
The air grew chillier as the time passed, but they remained fairly warm huddled together. Luke’s stomach growled, and Taylin was once again grateful for something to do. She let go of Luke’s hand to dig inside her backpack.
“We can split the other half of my roast beef sandwich,” she said, pulling it out. “And then share one of the cheesecakes. We’ll save the other one for morning.”
“You sure you were never a girl scout?” Luke teased after thanking her again for bringing food along.
“Afraid not, although I did do a year in 4-H when I was ten.” She tore the sandwich in half and gave one to Luke. “But I think I might look into a medical survival class when we get home. It could be useful if I end up somewhere overseas.”
Luke was about to take a bite of his sandwich, but dropped his hand and stared at her with troubled eyes.
“What did I say wrong?” she asked, unsure why he was upset.
“Nothing. It’s just…” He trailed off and looked away from her.
She waited before nudging him softly with her shoulder. “It’s just… what?”
“Never mind.” Turning back, he met her gaze. “I’m just being selfish.”
The intense look in his eyes sent her pulse galloping like a runaway horse. “This isn’t the time to be cryptic, Luke.” She grinned and pointed to his leg. “Besides, with your bum knee, you’re not going anywhere, so you might as well tell me.”
He started to laugh, but stopped and clutched at his side. “Ow. Would you stop making me laugh?”
“Sorry, but I’m not tryin’ to be funny. I’m serious.”
“Okay, I’ll talk.” Their eyes connected, and all at once, an awareness as tangible as lightning during the thunderstorm crackled between them.
“I know it isn’t fair,” he said in a low voice. “But I don’t want you to leave.”
The underlying message from his words made her mouth go dry. She moistened her lips before asking, “Then what do you want?”
One corner of his mouth edged up. “To be completely honest, right now I want to kiss you until you decide to give me a chance… to give us a chance.”
Just a Kiss in the Moonlight: Georgia Moon Romance Book 2 Page 16
