Lizzie
I’msoakedtothe bone and frozen to my core. I feel like I’ve been numb since falling down that slope. Now, wrapped in Caleb’s arms, a tentative warmth creeps into my chest. My fingers are becoming tingly, and my toes are painful with cold. Caleb holds me so tight that I can barely tell if I’m breathing or not, but I know the warmth that’s bringing feeling back to my limbs. I know what it means.
It means that David was right.
That I was right.
That Caleb is not only the man I love but the only person able to make that big old house I’ve bought a true home. The only one I want with me. Ever.
And, for a moment there, I really thought I’d lost him. That I was losing out on the life I wanted and the home I had been trying to build. He’d avoided me, never giving me the chance to confess the truth. And I’d let him. I’d given him the space and time I thought we both might need, thinking it temporary.
And here we are now, almost missing out on each other altogether and permanently.
If Caleb hadn’t shown up when he did…
I’m too cold to even shiver.
I don’t realize I’m crying until the thick, hollow noise of boots on steps has me blinking over Caleb’s shoulder. Beneath us are the porch steps of the cabin and a moment later we’re engulfed in the warmth of home.
The door bangs shut and Caleb doesn’t even pause. He carries me straight upstairs, starts up a hot shower, and takes us both under the water, fully clothed.
There’s nothing sexual about the way Caleb’s holding me. It’s not even about getting clean. The soap is left on the side and neither of us breaks the embrace long enough to wipe at the dirt on our skin. This is solely about warmth. For our bodies and for our hearts.
I cling to Caleb, my face still in his neck, my arms and legs around his body, as the heat of the steam and the hot water begin to soak through fabric and skin.
We say nothing. Just hold each other in the mist, Caleb’s hands supporting my weight and rubbing up and down my back. Neither of us want to let go.
Only when our teeth have stopped chattering, and the feeling has returned to our fingers, does Caleb step us back out again. He lets me go only long enough to bundle us each in a vast and fluffy towel, then he’s lifting me into his arms again and heading back downstairs.
I’ve never thought of myself as the damsel in distress type, but right now I’m not complaining. There’s something about the way Caleb carries me that doesn’t make me feel weak, doesn’t make me feel like I need protection. Instead, it’s like he’s seeking reassurance. Like he wants to be sure I’m there. He carries me as if it’s something he needs.
He takes me to his favorite armchair and gently sets me down.
Well, well… Isn’t this de-ja-vu?
And, just like the first day we’d met, Caleb crouches before me and begins tending to my foot. I watch as a drop of water runs from the ends of his hair, along his cheek, and over the very angry line of his jaw.
“You’re annoyed,” I say.
“I’m not.”
But I can read the tension in his body, see the stiffness in his shoulders and neck. He’s wound tight.
“How did you find me?”
He closes his eyes, like the thought of finding me in the woods is too traumatic to relive.
“I heard you yelling.”
The rain is still pouring outside, but the noise drumming through the wooden beams isn’t frightening. It’s guttural and thick. Now that we’re out of danger, the noise is almost… homey. Like a curtain of privacy.
“Is that why you’re angry?” I suggest, trying to make him smile. Even just a little. “Because I yelled and scared the wildlife, again?”
“Forget the damn wildlife!” Caleb suddenly yells, throwing aside the tube of antiseptic he’d brought down with us.
“I’m angry at myself!” he cries. I’m not frightened. All I can see is a towering shield of strength. One who just risked everything to save my life. “I’m angry at that damn storm! How cruel does fate have to be to make its point? How cruel do you,” he stabs a finger at me, “have to be to go out into the woods in this?” He holds up his arms at the sound of thunder outside. “Forget scaring the damn animals, you scared me to death! I’m angry at you!”
“At me?”