Page 28 of Lucky Charm

He shook his head at his friend, warning him away from any more comment. Doc did not need to worry. He was pretty sure his whole body would turn color before morning.

“We’ve got a few hours before the snow is supposed to let up if the original timetable was right. We’ll need to move,” the man warned. “It’s already lightened in the amount falling. Sunrise is coming at us like a freight train.”

“Understood.” He looked Doog right in the eye, afraid of what he might see there, but not willing to let things get awkward with his best friend. This whole situation was strange enough.

Doog’s return gaze was steady and calm. “We’ll get her out, LT.” The use of his rank helped Hunt pull back emotionally. The respect told him that the men understood the necessity of what they were doing and were feeling the urgency to protect Doc, too.

Doogie and Carter rose and moved away, leaving Hunt as alone with Cait as he was going to get. He leaned to her ear. “Doc, if you must pee, youhave to tell me. I’ll help you get to the back of the cave to go. I don’t want you being miserable and holding it.”

She shook her head, not so much as a blush spreading her cheeks. “I don’t. I’m not sure that part of me is thawed out. But the warm IV may trigger that.” She was hiding behind the clinical, and maybe that’s how she handled talking about it. He could accommodate that.

He wasn’t so hesitant now to touch her bare skin, and he reached for her. He shifted her legs, taking her approach in being clinical about where his dick settled between her thighs. She shivered as her now fully covered breasts settled against his chest, her legs tangling with his as they reached horizontal flat. “God, you’re warm still. I’m so cold.”

He stayed mindful of the IV sitting on a jury-rigged IV stand and wrapped in a shirt that had been heated by the fire. He shifted covers back in place over them. “Sleep, Doc. We’ve only got a few hours before we’re going to have to move.”

Her eyes had already closed, but she gave a faint nod. “I’m trying.”

“I know you are. Let us worry about how and when. You rest.” He moved his hands under the shirt and rubbed the naked skin on her back in a soothing, rhythmic motion.

She gave a heavy sigh and shifted closer to him. Her warm breath brushed against his neck assuring him she’d fallen into a sound sleep. He followed her, ordering his body to rest.

∞∞∞∞∞

Hunt woke moments before Carter dropped at his side. He checked his watch and noted the time. He felt more settled, recharged, and calm. Cait hadn’t moved. She was still on top of him, one hand on his shoulder, the other brushing his side. God, she was an armful.

“Hey, LT,” Carter whispered. “I’m going to take out her IV. Her temperature has stabilized.” He disconnected the tubing from her IV.

“Let’s let her sleep a bit more.”

“Okay, I’ll take the IV port out when she wakes. I’ll get her clothes put near the fire or give them to one of the guys to warm them. First movements are still going to be a bitch.”

“Is that a medical term, Carter?” Hunt gave him a half-smile.

Carter grinned back, then sobered. “No, that’s god-honest truth.”

“We’ll help her. Might need to carry her anyway.”

“Copy that. I still have the muscle relaxants, and I think she should take one.” Carter started to rise, but Hunt stopped him.

“I might need one of those muscle relaxants.”

“Ribs?”

“Yeah, and my back. Took a hard smack against that rock.”

“I have plenty of ibuprofen, and we can wrap your ribs.” He rose silently and moved around the cave, picking up the clothes they’d taken off Docand handing them to a resting Baxter with quiet instructions. The man stuffed them into his jacket.

Doogie dropped at his side. “Hernandez and Tommy headed out on recon. Quaid and K-Rock are on the door. Snow is close to stopping. We’ll know in a few minutes what we’re up against. No contact with Overwatch.”

“Pack in prep,” he ordered quietly. “We can’t let them get up the mountain or we’re going to get stuck in this cave.”

“What about the Doc?”

“She’s better. Temp is a shade below normal. One of us might have to carry her. Carter says her muscles are going to be tight.”

“We going to go the rest of the way up and over this beast or try to pull an end around.”

“We’ll go lateral. Stay at this elevation. Let’s see what the others find out. Don’t want to walk right into another bunch of these motherfuckers.”