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“Well, you were warned…”

The next thing I knew, Noah was in front of me. He leaned down, wrapped his arms around my bare legs, and tossed me over his shoulder.

“What the hell, Noah?” I screamed as my butt went up in the air and all too close to his face.

“I tried to ask you nicely.”

“And I refused. Put me down.”

“Only if you come back to the house with me.”

“That’s not going to happen. I just want some space.”

“And you can have all the space you want when you’re not at risk of freezing to death.”

He probably had a point. And if he wasn’t pissing me off so much, perhaps I would have listened. I knew I was being stubborn, but fighting Noah was so much easier than giving in to him. For a moment, it distracted me. It helped me forget about the look in Wes’s eyes when he’d accused me of cheating. When he’d said I wasn’t worth fighting for.

But as I dangled in the air over Noah’s back, I realized this wasn’t a fight I would win. Noah was probably going to carry me the whole way home if that’s what it took. And it didn’t matter how much I bickered with Noah; eventually I was going to have to think about Wes. Maybe I needed to stop being so difficult and do as Noah asked.

“Okay, fine,” I huffed. “I’ll come with you. Just put me down.”

“Finally.” Noah grizzled as he came to a stop and he gently lowered me to the ground. I slid through his arms, and his hands flashed across my bare skin until they came to rest gently on my waist as he made sure I was steady on my feet. I tried to ignore how good it felt. How my whole body still tingled when he touched me.

As soon as I was standing, Noah handed me his hoodie. “Here, put this back on.”

I quickly did as he asked, not uttering a word of protest.

“Let’s go.”

I went to follow him, but my foot slipped on some ice, and suddenly I was sprawling forward. I probably would have fallen straight to the ground, but Noah was there in a second, grasping me tightly once again as he held me upright.

“Careful,” he said. “It’s icy. I—” He choked on his words as my feet slid out from under me again. Noah couldn’t seem to steady me this time, and we tumbled to the ground. Somehow, Noah was able to cage me within his arms as we fell, and my heart plummeted as I heard a resounding crack when I landed on top of him.

The world seemed to go silent, and I scrambled to my knees. “Oh my God, Noah.” He’d taken the brunt of the fall, just like he had in the woods when we first met. But this time, it wasn’t loamy soil we were falling on but hard ice.

His eyes were shut, and he was lying on his back. My heart raced as I looked him over. I reached out a hand to softly touch his face. “Noah, are you okay?”

He didn’t respond.

“Noah…”

He didn’t move an inch. He was so still, like he was sleeping peacefully, which only made me more concerned.

“Noah, wake up.” My voice became more urgent.

I squeezed his shoulders, desperate for a response, but still he lay motionless.

“Noah!” Tears stung my eyes, and emotion broke my voice as I tried to rouse him.

He needed to wake up.

I couldn’t handle it if he didn’t wake up.

“Noah, please.”

My tears were falling now, and I had no idea what to do. I needed to call an ambulance, but I didn’t have my phone on me. Perhaps Noah had one in the car.

I began to push myself up, but a soft wheezing noise made me freeze, and my eyes darted back to him. “Noah?”