“I felt it.” She moved closer, eliminating the last few inches between them. “I’m terrified, but I felt it.”
“Good.” Nick lifted his free hand and let his fingers trace the curve of her jaw. “Because I’m terrified too. And I think maybe that’s how you know it’s real.”
The space between them felt charged. Nick could see Gina’s eyes tracking to his mouth, could feel the way her breathing had changed. It would be so easy to close the distance, to kiss her the way he’d wanted to since that interrupted moment earlier.
He hovered there, close enough to feel her breath on his skin, every instinct screaming to give in.
But he stopped himself. They were surrounded by sleeping people. And Gina needed to be the one to choose this, needed to feel like she had control over what happened next.
Besides, they had time now. George was gone. The storm was passing. They’d make it down the mountain.
“We should try to sleep,” he said, though every instinct screamed to pull her closer. “It’s going to be a long day tomorrow.”
“Yeah.” But Gina didn’t move away. Instead, she settled against his shoulder in a way that felt both natural and momentous. “Nick?”
“Hmm?”
“When we’re not in survival mode anymore...” She tilted her head up to look at him. “I want to go on a real date with you. See if this works when nobody’s trying to kill us.”
Nick felt something warm settle in his chest. “We can do that.”
“I want to see if you’re still the person I think you are when there’s no crisis bringing out your best qualities.”
“What if I’m not?”
“Then we’ll figure that out too.” She settled back against him. “But I don’t think that’s what we’ll find.”
Nick wrapped his arm around her and held her close as her breathing gradually evened out. Around them, the old building settled and creaked, but the sounds were peaceful now instead of threatening.
He pressed a kiss to the top of her head, letting himself believe he’d found the place he was supposed to land.
Chapter 17
Gina
Morning brought clear skies and the kind of brilliant sunshine that made the snow sparkle. Gina stood in the doorway of the hotel, squinting against the glare. A perfect bluebird day. If circumstances were different, she might even enjoy being there.
“Road looks passable to the first set of cabins,” Nick said, returning from his scouting trip with Joe. “A few trees are down, but we should be able to get around them.”
“Did you walk to the cabin?” Gina asked, searching Joe’s face for signs of the altitude sickness that had affected him so badly the previous day.
“About halfway. There’s a high spot where we used the binoculars to scan ahead.”
“What about beyond there?” Brooke asked, shouldering her pack. While the men checked the road to see if it was passable, she told Gina she had decided not to run the Moose Range Run 100. She planned to ask the race director if she could drop to the fifty-two-mile race. She wasn’t sure it would be allowed, but she would ask and see what happened.
Gina agreed it was a good idea. The mental toll the race prep was already having on Brooke was worrisome, and now, with the near-death experience, Brooke needed to give herself some grace.
“Let’s get to those cabins, and then we’ll reevaluate.” Nick brushed snow off his jacket. “The river crossings are going to be the tricky part. Water’s running fast, but my rig should handle it.”
Joe nodded. “We’re going to leave my truck here. I’ll come back for it in a few days.”
“I’ll bring you back,” Nick offered.
“Sounds good,” Joe agreed.
Nick turned toward Gina. “You know how George said his truck broke down about a mile down the road?”
Gina glanced toward the massive tree that still pinned George’s body. Brooke had suggested they notify the authorities about the location when they reached cell service, and everyone had agreed. There was nothing more they could do for him now. “Yes?”
