He jiggled his line again, hoping the fish below would not notice that the colorful minnow was fake.
They had been outside the cabin for less than an hour, and already his fingers and toes stung from the cold. They would not be able to stay much longer before having to go back inside and thaw out. He just prayed they would catch fish first.
The rod in his hand bobbed, and he gripped it tighter with both gloved hands. “I do think I have a nibble.”
Emberly’s attention shifted to his pole just as it bent and the line turned taut. Her cheeks and nose were red from the cold, and her eyes filled with sudden excitement. “Hurry, jerk upward.”
He did as she’d shown him that day on the ranch when they’d gone ice fishing. He tugged the rod and could feel the fish digging into the hook, wiggling and trying to break free.
He held on tightly, hunger driving him to be careful and yet strong in his quest to catch the fish. If they were stuck at the cabin for another day, he not only wanted the sustenance for himself but for Emberly and Braun and Winzig. But mostly Emberly.
As he strained to lift the rod, a fish glistened on the end of the line.
“A brook trout.” Emberly grabbed onto his rod too. “And it’s at least sixteen inches!” Her smile was brilliant and beautiful.
For a second, he wanted to stop time and stand there and admire her.
As dire as their situation was becoming, she had maintained good spirits and did not become easily discouraged. She always enjoyed whatever they were doing, whether playing cards, shoveling paths, looking for kindling, or simply sipping coffee. Now, though cold and hungry, she was having fun ice fishing.
Although he was naturally more of a worrier, he was learning from her to take one day at a time, to find the little things to be thankful for, and even to appreciate being at the cabin, where they could focus much on each other without the distractions of real life.
Surprisingly, the days had gone quickly, and the nights had flown by as well. He would not deny that he loved the nights best of all, when he had the chance to be alone with her. They lay on the couch together, kissing and talking and kissing some more. They slept off and on, waking to kiss again. He could never get enough of her, and he was glad that she seemed to feel the same way.
He bent down, touched her lips with his, and stole a quick kiss.
Her smile only widened, and the sunlight turned her eyes amber. She reached up and kissed him back.
Then she began to take the hook out of the fish’s jaw. “This will easily feed all four of us.”
It was big, but he did not have the heart to tell her he could eat the whole thing himself and still have room for more.
As she dropped his line with the hook and bait still intact, she nodded at her pole, which she’d propped up in a drift. “I want to see if I’m able to catch something too, but I have to be honest.I can hardly feel my toes and fingers and should probably head back.”
He frowned as he began to gather their supplies. “Why did you not tell me you were so cold, darling?”
“I’m fine, Max.” She set the fish aside and began to strap on one of her snowshoes. “Numb fingers and toes are worth it now that we have something to eat.”
She’d hardly spoken the words when she froze and spun to face the western edge of the lake.
“What is it?” He scanned the thick woodland, the pine boughs bent under the weight of heavy blankets of snow.
“I hear a chopper.”
Max paused his breathing and strained to listen. In the silence of the high mountain lake, he caught the faint sound of a motor and blades. Relief swelled inside and made him suddenly weak. Help was finally on the way.
She finished strapping on her other snowshoe. “We need to try to flag Kade down. I think he could land on the lake and the ice would hold him.”
Max hurriedly donned his snowshoes and joined her away from the trees and out in the open, where hopefully Kade would be able to see them.
As the helicopter grew louder and then came into sight, Emberly started to wave her arms. “Kade! Here!”
Max joined her in flailing his arms and shouting, although he doubted anyone could hear them above the noise of the helicopter.
The helicopter was too far away during its first pass and did not notice them. As it circled back, he and Emberly began waving again, and this time the helicopter flew closer. It was clear the moment someone spotted them, because the pilot swerved around and made a direct line toward them. As ithovered lower, they could see two figures through the front window: Kade and Tyler.
Emberly was hiking and motioning toward the shore, probably an area that had thicker ice than out where they’d been fishing. Max followed after her. A moment later, Kade seemed to catch on to her silent instructions and directed the helicopter to a smooth stretch of the frozen and snow-covered lake.
Since the snow was so powdery, the power of the blades caused the snow to swirl and fly in every direction, blinding Max and Emberly and forcing them to stop. Thankfully, within minutes, Kade had landed the helicopter in the clearing. As soon as the blades stopped whirring, Emberly was once again racing toward the helicopter as fast as her snowshoes would allow her.
