Then he stepped into the shower, still holding her in his arms, and let the warm water wash over them both. Under the cascading warmth, Ellie’s skin went from pale to pink, and she stretched happily in his arms.
“Oh, this feels good,” she murmured.
Hal gritted his teeth, not enjoying it nearly as much. The water burned and stung as his skin prickled back to life. He’d been numb from cold before, but now everything hurt: the cuts on his face, the deep bruises on his chest, the wounds in his side, and the soles of his feet. Especially his feet. They hurt so much, he could hardly stand up.
They could sit down under the water, but he was afraid that once he took the weight off his feet, he wouldn’t be able to get up again. So he held his mate in his arms, feeling like he was balancing on razor blades, until he was sure that she was as warm as the water could get her.
She blinked up at him, looking more awake. “You’re bleeding.”
“I couldn’t see very well. A bunch of branches hit me in the face.”
“Put me down. I’ll patch you up.” She squirmed to get down, but Hal tightened his grip.
“It’s nothing. You need to get under some warm blankets, and drink some hot tea.”
“So do you,” Ellie retorted. “You carried me here, didn’t you? Naked through the snow.”
Hal shrugged. “Well, yeah, but—”
“Is there a first aid kit here?”
“Yeah.”
“Then bring it to the bed. With hot tea for both of us.”
“You’re bossy,” he remarked.
“So are you.”
They grinned at each other, amused rather than annoyed.
Hal turned off the shower and dried Ellie off first, then himself. Then he carried her to the bed, piled blankets over her, and went to the kitchen to make tea. While it was brewing, he got one of the disposable phones he kept in the cabin and called Rafa.
“Hal!” Rafa’s yell made Hal pull the phone a little away from his ear. “What the hell is going on? Three of Nagle’s hit men are dead in your garage. Are you all right?”
“I’m fine. And Ellie’s fine. But I could use some help. I think Detective Kramer’s working for Nagle.” Hal filled Rafa in on what had happened, including his suspicion that Kramer had hidden a tracker in Ellie’s purse.
“Shall we set up a sting?” Rafa asked.
“My thought exactly,” Hal replied. “Give Nagle a few days to think we’re dead and relax. Then call Kramer and tell him I contacted you. Tell him Ellie and I are in a safe house, and give him an address. Bug the hell out of it, and take the team to stake it out. See who shows up to kill me, and record whatever they say. Hopefully we’ll get enough evidence to implicate Kramer and get Nagle held without bail.”
“Will do. I’ll call the team now. We were all worried about you, Hal.”
A day or so, Hal would have brushed that off, uncomfortable with the idea of his team feeling protective of him. Now, he said, “Thanks, Rafa. Tell everyone I’m fine, and I appreciate it. And that I know they’ll do a great job.”
He hung up the phone, poured out the tea, and stirred lots of honey into it. By the time he returned to the bedroom with the tea and the first aid kit, his feet hurt so much that he couldn’t stop himself from limping. It was a tremendous relief to crawl into bed, press his body up against hers, and drink the hot tea.
Ellie’s sharp gaze clearly didn’t miss a thing, but she didn’t comment until she’d finished her tea. Then she said, “I know we haven’t really talked about the future. And I know it’s ridiculously soon. But I feel like we do have one.”
“We do. Shifters mate for life.” They were both sitting up, leaning back against the headboard. Hal put his arm around her shoulders. “The moment I saw you, I knew you were my mate. You’ve got me for as long as you want me. I hope that’s forever.”
Ellie leaned her head against his. “I’ll always want you, Hal. You walked naked and barefoot through the snow for me! And then you brought me tea in bed. Forever it is.”
They kissed, and then she said, “So if we’re going to be together for good, there’s something you’d better get used to. If you get hurt and it’s something I can handle, I patch you up. No suffering in silence because you’re too tough and strong to need anyone!”
Hal thought about that. It had been so automatic, trying not to let her see him limping until he could finish taking care of her. But some types of protection ended up hurting in the long run. He’d never forget the shock, pain, and anger in Ellie’s eyes as she’d realized that he’d been bleeding for hours without letting her know he was hurt.
Over-protective bodyguard bear shifter meets crazy-brave paramedic, Hal thought. We really do need each other.