High Seduction (10 page)

Erin nodded, her eyes darkening as she remembered. “And I was completely naked . . . I seem to be naked most of the times we've fooled around.”

“You do naked very well.”

Then he stopped the conversation before she could twist things, or head down paths he didn't want to discuss yet. Shadowy places in their relationship that they would need to discuss, but not here or now.

Instead, he kissed her. One hand cupping the back of her head, the other resting gently on her hip. Space between them now, only their mouths touching. Tender and passionate, as if he were giving her a piece of his soul to care for until the next time they'd be together.

The idea wasn't that far off reality.

She matched his intensity, accepting his gentleness. When he pulled away after the final caress of their lips, her eyes were filled with stars.

He walked her to the door. Slipped on his shoes while she got her boots on. Held her hand in the elevator when she snuck her fingers into his.

Walked her to the front doors, and he was already tired of that, but it was right. She wasn't ready for more yet. Maybe neither was he.

But soon.

CHAPTER
10

January

Five
A.M.
looked rotten no matter which side of the clock you came at it from. Tim rolled from his bed and shuffled his clothes on, the emergency call-out having shattered yet another incredible dream.

He was more pissed off about
that
than the fact it was five in the bloody morning.

One solid month he'd worked with Lifeline now. He'd trained with the team and worked with them, relaxed and played. The job was going great, and he was far more invested in the lot of the team than he'd actually expected.

Erin?

Was driving him absolutely batshit crazy.

They fooled around at least a couple times a week. He'd been doing everything he could to give her space. To allow time for her to figure out that what they had right now, while hot and satisfying on one level, wasn't the end goal.

One moment he would consider ceasing being patient. Just make his demands, and let her discover for herself what he already knew. Then the years they'd been apart would register, and his lingering uncertainty about why she'd left in such a panic would return, and he'd be tossed right back to square one.

Following her agenda, which was unforgettable red-hot sex. Like he should complain.

But . . .

He shook off his frustration and concentrated on the job waiting for him. Early morning or not, a call-out in January was probably going to involve freezing his ass off at some point in the next couple of hours.

Tim pulled into the parking lot at HQ surprised to see that the chopper wasn't being prepped. Instead, a small plane waited on the airstrip.

Something different. Something big was going down.

Marcus met the team in the prep room. “Coastal call-out. There's a tourist excursion gone down in the Pacific Rim Mountains, and the weather is making it impossible to approach the crash site. We'll use the plane to get you out there, then as soon as there's a break in the weather you'll move in. Erin, you'll have a bird waiting at the base out of Comox. Pack ropes and climbing gear, and extra winter equipment in case.”

“Coastal should mean less snow, right?” Devon asked as he grabbed bags off the shelves and unzipped them in prep for loading.

“Probably,” Marcus slipped back to the radio station. “But you'll cross over glacier territory, so pack for anything. I'll work on getting more details.”

The flurry of motion around them moved in waves. Gear being loaded, clothing shoved into packs. Tim pulled aside his prepacked case of supplies from the medical stash, double-checking he had extra of everything. He took the bag along with one from the gear lined up by the hangar door and carried it to the transport.

Erin was already on the plane, chatting with the pilot. She waved briefly, then ignored him. He did the same until the entire team was settled in the transport seats. The engine revved higher as they buckled in.

Dawn hadn't gotten farther than backlighting the eastern mountains before they were off. Mount Rundle grew smaller as the pilot raced the plane forward into darkness and away from the rising sun, following the TransCanada highway through the Rocky Mountains toward the coast.

A soft touch on his arm pulled him from staring out the window.

Once she'd gotten his attention, Erin leaned back in her seat, her voice over the speakers to his ears. “I need to sleep for a while. Wake me when Marcus has more information.”

Tim nodded. Erin turned off her headset and closed her eyes, her breathing slowing as she settled farther into the seat. He snuck her fingers into his, then looked out the window to avoid meeting the gaze of anyone on the team.

He wasn't going to let them stop him from doing this much at least. She was going to know that he was there for her.

Only by the time the headphones rumbled, the noise pulled him from the light slumber he'd fallen into as well. It took a moment to become alert, especially as Erin lifted her head from his shoulder. Her warmth had blanketed him during the time they'd rested. The lingering heat was nice, and made him want to keep her close at all times.

Only now they needed to concentrate.

Anders waved from across the seating area. “Time to wake up, everyone. We've got fifteen more minutes to the airport. Erin, they have a chopper warming up for you. You can finish getting her ready while we transfer supplies.”

“This is the one that I used last summer?”

“Yes. Fueled, cleared, and ready to roll.”

She gave him a thumbs-up.

“What's Marcus got for us?” Tripp asked.

“They've spotted the crash site, but it's taking a long time to get the local SAR into position going overland. Winds were too high earlier to access the range, and while the conditions have improved a little, they're worried about exposure if the rescue is put off much longer.”

“Tricky flying situation?” Erin grinned harder when Anders responded in the affirmative. “Lovely.”

Alisha joined them over the microphone system. “Your idea of a good time needs work, my friend.”

“Right,” Erin drawled. “As if you're not itching to be tossed from the transport hold into a spinning descent at the end of a rope. You're as much a freak as I am.”

The women grinned at each other before focusing back on Anders.

Tim took mental notes as they planned their next steps. The plane set down and taxied rapidly toward where the helicopter waited.

Confidence. Camaraderie. Even, yes, a sense of excitement at the rush of the unknown. Tim had always enjoyed his job, and taking chances, but something was different now.

It wasn't him going it alone this time. It was there in the team, and Tim was growing to crave the sensation of being a part of the whole. Wanted to be in a position to gain the admiration of them all.

That in itself was strange. He wasn't usually the one to go looking for pats on the back.

* * *

The first part of the approach was straightforward as far as she was concerned. Once they had crossed the Strait of Georgia and started down Bute Inlet, the sharp edges of glacial-topped peaks faced them like a row of massive sentinels, guarding the wilderness interior. Dark green pines broke to dusted white on the front row, the warmer air off the ocean keeping the snow from settling over the entire face. But beyond that, as elevations soared, winter held the landscape in a tight-fisted clutch, beautiful and deadly.

Flying into them was like facing an ancient power—one to be respected and feared at the same time. Friend or foe? From the safety of her chopper, she was a more powerful supplicant than the people they were headed to rescue, yet it could all turn on a breath.

While Alisha and the others strapped themselves into harnesses, Erin brought the chopper closer to the mountain face. Below them the torn carcass of the missing plane desecrated two sections of the steep, rocky crags, the transport torn in two uneven pieces. Broken debris scattered between the main sections clung precariously to the precipice. One person waved, arms moving rapidly as they stood over the still form of another.

Erin eyed the rescue location where she'd have to hover. Of course, they were right at the narrowest section, with two long valleys leading off in different directions. The ultimate worst situation in terms of crosswinds and back eddies off the steep ridges.

It was one of those situations she both loved and hated. The challenge of keeping the chopper in the right spot, of guiding the massive machine over the varying terrain and dealing with shifting wind patterns was something Erin never got enough of.

The fact that they were there because people were suffering wasn't as thrilling. She was glad her skills helped save lives, but the reality of why the team was needed was horrid.

On the more intimate side of the equation, knowing there was someone at the end of the winch line whom she cared about changed the situation all over again. It lent an extra edge of fear and adrenaline that made it more exciting in some twisted way.

Erin listened carefully as Anders called out instructions, guiding Alisha down. The instrument panel gave feedback as well, but Erin's attention remained on her forward focal point. Nothing to distract her. Nothing but the rescue and the victims below her who were waiting to be brought to safety and taken for needed medical attention.

Which reminded her that Tim was there as well, and for one second the whole idea of sleeping with a team member became a terrible, horrible idea.

She had grown used to being responsible for Alisha's life. For the lives of Devon and the rest of the team—used to, yet not complacent. The sense of awe in the trust they showed never left her. It might make no sense, but with Tim, it was different. There was a sense of something—
other
—lingering every time they worked together.

If something happened to Tim, she wasn't sure what she would do. How she would respond.

Then there was no time to worry because Alisha was on the ground, and Erin had to make rapid adjustments to keep them level. Pressing forward with the controls, listening to the response of the chopper with not only her ears, but her body.

“Tim, drop second,” Alisha ordered as she hurried through triage. “Then Devon can bring a stretcher. We have at least one who will need a ride.”

“On my way,” Tim responded.

He'd barely cleared the doors when it happened. A hard gust of wind hit from the north. The change in air pressure shuddered across the chopper, and they dropped a few feet. Erin fought to level them, countering the strong crosswind.

A muffled masculine curse carried over the line.

“Tim, you okay?” Anders demanded.

The pause before Tim answered was painful to wait through. “Fine. Lower me.”

Erin clenched her teeth and focused straight ahead. Eyed the rocky walls ahead of her as they narrowed. Adjusted an inch at a time toward the north wall to bring Tim closer to where Alisha waited to guide him to safety.

The chopper danced with her. The subtle changes in altitude registered not only on the gauges, but under Erin's hands. A rhythm developed as she finessed the massive machine past the narrow rock walls. Easing back, sliding forward. Watching for danger signs and following the steady stream of verbal direction Anders breathed at her as Tim approached the ground.

“I got him,” Alisha shouted. “Clear.”

Erin let out the breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding.

“Take us up for a moment, Erin,” Anders ordered. “I'll get Devon in position.”

The short time of respite was long enough to let her pounding heart settle a little. Then she had to do it all over as Devon was lowered, the spinal board with him. Once again there was that sense of anticipation mixed with dread. Erin had to acknowledge what she'd always known yet had become so much more apparent this time around.

What they did mattered, but what they did was dangerous, and there was no way around that fact. It was their life on the line as well. That her job put her in charge over them was unlike anything she'd experienced elsewhere.

She watched the team hustle below her and soaked in the wonder and the thread of satisfaction that rose at the thought. She was powerful. In control. A lifesaver, and in charge of her own destiny.

That wasn't going to change.

* * *

Tim caught Alisha's wrist and allowed her to drag him to a safe perch on the rock wall. His hips and thighs hurt like a bugger where his harness had jerked around him—no amount of padding could cushion that kind of blow completely—but he was already on to the next thing.

Alisha snapped out a rapid report. “Peter is the ambulatory victim. He stabilized his friend, but Tony needs your attention stat. I'll help Devon, then climb up to find the pilot. Devon and Tripp can load these two for liftout.”

“Stay safe,” Tim acknowledged as he detached his cable harness from the winch. He left Alisha and hurried up the mountain to where the first two victims were located, climbing over the jagged terrain with his medic kit in hand. Temperatures had to be hovering around freezing, with the wind slamming the cold against him like icy daggers.

The sound of the chopper echoed off the nearby peaks as Erin moved into position, and this time Devon was lowered. Then Tim turned away from the others to focus on his patient.

Pain skittered across the victim's face as Tim checked his limbs. Possible broken femur, severe lacerations to his right thigh.

“I had pressure on it to stop the bleeding,” offered Peter, the one who'd been waving earlier. Tim eyed him quickly, but other than dirt and scratches he seemed in okay shape. It was his friend in trouble.

“You did great. I'll just wrap him up a little extra for the trip out,” Tim assured him, working rapidly. He looked into Tony's eyes. “Stay nice and still, and we'll get you out of here in no time.”

“What about the others?” Peter asked. “I couldn't leave Tony, but I haven't seen any sign of the rest of the passengers. When the bouncing stopped, we were the only ones on this section of the mountain.”