I look up at him.
“He was curled forward in the water, knees pulled up toward his chest, arms tight against his body. He was in the HELPposition—Heat Escape Lessening Posture. It’s what we train people to do in cold water to slow the loss of body heat”.
He glances at Aiden.
“He knew exactly what he was doing.”
My chest swells painfully.
“He controlled his breathing too. Didn’t panic. Kept himself afloat and breathing.”
Tears continue to slip down my cheeks.
Finn reaches across and brushes some away with his thumb.
“Once we had him secured, we hoisted him back up into the helicopter. Got the wet clothes off him, wrapped him in thermal blankets, started heated IV fluids, and got oxygen on him right away.”
I nod, absorbing every word.
“He survived because his instincts took over. He did everything right.”
He pauses, his gaze resting on Aiden.
“Aiden survived because he’s a fighter.”
A breath leaves him.
“And for that, I’ll always admire the man.”
Chapter 43
We sit beside Aiden’s bed while the machines keep their steady rhythm, each quiet beep a reminder that he’s still fighting his way back to me.
I have one hand wrapped around his while the other rests in Finn’s. His fingers close around mine in quiet support, steady and reassuring in a way I did not expect. I hadn’t expected him to stay this long, and I certainly hadn’t expected him to open up the way he has.
Somewhere in the long stretch of waiting, he began telling me how he and Aiden first met.
He had only just been assigned to the Depoe Bay base a few years back, arriving with strong recommendations and some of the best swimmer scores in his class. He already had a name people expected him to live up to, and one of the firstassignments he was given after arriving was helping train the new marine response team.
Aiden had been part of that group.
Finn tells it with a small shake of his head and a smile that carries equal parts amusement and resignation.
“It didn’t take the man long to start breaking a few of the swim times I’d worked years to build,” he says, glancing toward the bed. “Hurt my ego a bit, I won’t lie.”
I listen intently, a quiet smirk tugging at my lips as he continues.
“And what made it worse,” he adds, “was that I couldn’t escape him after that. Everywhere I turned, there he was.”
He gestures toward Aiden.
“And then there’s the flower business.”
I can’t help the small smile that pulls at my lips.
“The flower business?”
Finn shakes his head, still sounding half exasperated.
