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LEVI

My office phone had been ringing off the hook.

It had been an otherwise calm day on the ranch, with the sky mostly clear and the weather less cold than before. Most of the calls had been potential clients returning my initial contact, wanting me to explain how things worked at Big Sky, wondering if I could guarantee their safety. It was a lot of work talking people off an invisible ledge, but I knew it’d be worth it, in the end. Nothing mattered more than building a reliable client list?—

Shit.

My phone was ringing again.

“Big Sky Rescue, how can I help you?—”

“Help! I need help!” A stranger cried on the other end of the line. “I was climbing, and I fell. I think—I think I broke my leg!”

“Where are you?”

“I’m out near the pass. There’s a river… the sky’s getting darker… I think it might rain soon…”

“Just hold on. I’m coming to get you.” I spared a look outside my office window, the sky still seeming calm. “I’m coming. Just stay where you are. Don’t try to move.”

I quickly hung up the phone, my mind already racing. If this stranger really did break their leg, I was going to need help moving them. I could move them myself, but it was always safer with two people, like most things when it came to an injured person rescue. I thought about calling Shane but remembered that he was way on the other side of town, dealing with business of his own. And Cole was hosting some out-of-town investors, their obnoxious luxury cars taking up space on the ranch.

“Sorry to just barge in. I just wanted to ask if you wanted to get some lunch or—” Cameron now stood in front of my desk, a light smile on his face. His expression swiftly changed once he saw the look in my eye. “Oh, shit. What’s wrong?”

“There’s a climber. They’re injured out by the pass. They think their leg is broken.”

“Shit. Okay.” Cameron’s eyes went wide. “What do we do? What do you need me to do?”

“You don’t need to do anything, Cam?—”

“Seriously, Levi? Let me help.” He scoffed. “What? You think I can’t handle it or something?”

“I just don’t want you getting hurt?—”

“If you tell me what to do and how to do it, then I won’t get hurt,” he shot back. “It’s like I told you. I’m pretty good at a lot of things when I have the right teacher.”

“Fine, yeah, okay.” I fought past my initial hesitation. I needed someone else for this rescue or else it could go sideways. Even though Cameron wasn’t trained, as long as he could follow directions, it might be all right. “But you’re going to do exactly what I say. Do you understand?”

“Sir, yes, sir.” Cameron saluted me before he nodded towards the door. “Now, come on! Let’s go. We have someone who needs rescuing.”

* * *

The closer we got to the pass, the darker they sky became.

By the time we reached it, the sky had opened up completely, raindrops falling all around us. It didn’t help that the terrain was rough and rugged, with jagged rocks and unmarked paths in all directions. Cameron managed to keep up with me, though, even though this hike was meant for more advanced outdoor types. He followed my every step to the letter, only stopping when I stopped, only turning when I turned.

“Do you see him yet?” Cameron asked, as we hiked further into the pass.

“Not yet,” I replied, keeping an eye out for any sign of movement. “Keep an ear out for him too. It might be hard to hear in this weather, but we might get lucky?—”

“Help! Help!” The stranger’s cries reached us. “Please! I need help!”

I followed the sound of his voice, and soon enough, we came across him. He was leaning against the side of a rock, one of his legs stretched out, the other twisted at an unnatural angle. I motioned for Cameron to move onto the other side of him, standing near his upper thighs. I counted to three, and grabbed underneath the hiker, picking up one side of him as Cameron picked up the other. The hiker screamed out in pain, before settling down, the scream evaporating amongst the weather.

“We’ve got you, we’ve got you,” I tried to reassure him. “We just need to get you in the truck, then we’ll get you to the nearest hospital, okay?”

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have come out here alone. I don’t know what I was thinking…”

“You don’t need to apologize for anything. You didn’t do anything wrong,” I continued. “Sometimes, nature just gets the best of us. It happens.”

Cameron and I carried the hiker back to the truck, carefully placing him in the back. It was a quick drive to the hospital after that, even though it felt like forever. The hiker may have been safe and sound, but I was worried about internal injuries, things we weren’t able to see. I knew that time was of the essence, but I also knew that it wouldn’t help anything if I showed too much concern on my face. Instead, I went into ice mode, concentrating on the road ahead and not much else.

By the time we arrived at the hospital, there was already a stretcher waiting to transport the hiker. Thankfully, Cameron had called them on the way over. As I watched the emergency paramedics hastily roll the hiker into the building, I absentmindedly leaned against the truck. It wasn’t until I felt something cold being placed in my hand that I snapped back to the world around me.

When I looked over, I saw Cameron, with a light smile. “I got you a water out of the vending machine.”

“Thanks.” I gripped onto the water bottle, now noticing that the air was dry around us. “It stopped raining.”

“Only a few minutes ago.” Cameron sighed. “Shit. That was kind of scary, huh? Do you think he’s going to be okay?”

“You can’t internalize it.”

“What?”

“We did our part. Making sure he got here safe,” I replied. “But if you think too much about it, you can drive yourself crazy.”

“Is that why you turned into a robot? During the ride over?”

“It’s just part of the job.” I shrugged. “If I want to help people, I can’t really dwell on… helping people.”

“That’s probably why you were so amazing at it.” He chuckled, a little under his breath. “No hesitation. Just jumping right in, doing what you needed to do, trying to comfort him about it.” Cameron paused for a moment, his expression shifting. “It must be nice, doing something that matters, something that really makes a difference.”

“You should know what that’s like, then.” I offered him a warm smile. “You made a big difference today, Cam. Thanks for helping me with everything.”

“Whenever you need me, I’ll be there.” Cameron beamed, before he gently knocked his water bottle against mine in a toast. “Cheers.”

We stood there in silence as we finished our waters. We watched the hospital doors, as if we were waiting on something or someone to come out, an unspoken, shared nervousness between us.

A bond only understood by two.

* * *

I couldn’t sleep that night.

And I couldn’t figure out why. This wasn’t my first time rescuing someone who’d sustained injuries and had to go to the hospital. Hell, I’d even rescued someone before who’d been unconscious by the time I got there, requiring a quick pulse check and CPR. And yet, I’d been pacing up and down my cabin, getting up for something to drink, mindlessly rearranging things on the couch.

I was absolutely restless. I settled down at the edge of my bed, desperately willing sleep to come, when my thoughts turned back towards Cameron. He’d been the perfect partner for the rescue mission, taking instructions to heart, doing what was required of him without throwing a fit about it. It was like we were able to communicate without communicating, speaking as much in looks and body language as we did with words. His energy matched mine perfectly, and I could easily imagine doing hundreds of rescues with him, just like that, in flawless sync?—

But there wouldn’t be hundreds of rescues with Cameron.

I fell back against my mattress and stared up at my ceiling.

It didn’t matter how natural things felt with Cameron, how easy it was with him. He was just passing through, a temporary feature not a permanent installation. And despite the fact that the more time we spent together, the more it seemed like he’d always belonged on the ranch, I knew it didn’t matter.

Fuck.

Why was I thinking about Cameron, anyway?

Maybe because I hadn’t bothered letting anyone into my world like that in a very long time.

Maybe because I hadn’t bothered trusting anyone like that in a very long time, either.

I let out a deep sigh as I finally closed my eyes.

I needed to go to sleep. And I needed to stop thinking about Cameron Miller…

Even though he’d probably be running through my mind all night.