Stars Over Alaska (Wild River #4) - Jennifer Snow Page 0,118

the shirt. She frowned. Her sister hated tattoos.

Whatever had attracted Jade to him at all?

“Something wrong?” he asked, catching her stare.

No doubt he was reading her reaction wrong. She loved tattoos—was the proud owner of several herself—but not Jade. She nodded toward the scar. She couldn’t help herself. Scars fascinated her. “How’d you get the scar?”

“It was actually during an emergency response mission. I volunteer on the Wild River Search and Rescue,” he said as he baited his own line.

Her mouth gaped, and she was relieved he wasn’t looking at her. Her sister had never mentioned that detail. Maddie had considered becoming a volunteer member over the years, but after a bear had been put down because of an attack on hikers who’d wandered into an off-limits area several years before, Maddie had realized she was too anti dumb people not to deliver lectures instead of rescuing the lost. “What happened?” she asked.

“It was late November, and four hikers had gotten lost on Snowcrest Peak. One of them got a call through to 911 and dispatch was able to get a location on them. They’d stumbled into an avalanche high danger area so the situation was upgraded to an emergency.”

Maddie’s eyes were wide as she waited for him to continue. Having grown up on the mountains, she understood the importance of staying clear of those areas and the severity of what the team must have faced that day. Snowcrest Peak in winter wasn’t for the beginner hiker, and the weather conditions on that mountain could change from a sunny, cloudless day to a blinding snowstorm of sleet and ice in minutes.

“We located the missing hikers with the cell in less than twenty minutes, but then the worst-case scenario happened and the mountain gave way. Three team members and their rescues were able to get clear of the danger, but...well, my rescue was a little older and heavier...and we were trapped.”

Maddie held her breath as he paused.

“As the snow enveloped us, I wrapped a leather strap around our wrists, not wanting to be separated from him as we were tossed down the side of the mountain. It worked, but the leather tore into my flesh...leaving the scar.”

“And the rescue?”

“It was a success by most measures. The other team members found us within an hour. We got lucky...just suffered some minor frostbite.” He shrugged as his gaze met hers.

She tried and failed to conceal her awe. Her sister’s ex was turning out to be nothing like she’d expected. In fact, he was the most fascinating, attractive and off-limits man she’d met in a long time.

* * *

IT HAD BEEN a while since a woman had looked at him the way Maddie was right now. Often when he told the rescue story there was the look of admiration that followed. Heck, he’d admit it had even gotten him laid a time or two, but not once had he seen the complete and utter respect and intrigue he saw in her emerald eyes. Resisting the urge to brush her blond hair away from her face and place a trail of kisses on her pink flushed cheeks and hypnotizing eyes took every ounce of his strength. “So, what do you do?” he asked, forcing his gaze away.

“I’m an educator at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center.”

His expression was one of surprise as he turned to look at her.

“What?”

He shook his head quickly. “Nothing... I guess I just hadn’t expected that.” Jade was so anti outdoors, anti animals, anti everything Mike considered fun and interesting, it was hard to believe her sister could be the complete opposite. But he was quickly realizing the two were nothing alike.

“Just because Jade isn’t exactly outdoorsy?”

He shrugged. “I shouldn’t have assumed.”

“It’s okay. Jade and I are so different it’s sometimes hard for me to believe we’re related.”

It wasn’t so hard from an outside perspective—they both shared the same blond hair and green eyes, but Maddie’s were darker, more seductive. Her overall features were softer. She was curvier and less put together than Jade. No makeup or fake eyelashes. Sitting next to him in jeans, hiking boots and a thick plaid jacket, she looked comfortable in the hut.

He couldn’t picture Jade sitting there.

“So, I take it you enjoy your job?”

“Love it,” she said. “Educating people about the wildlife out here is exciting, especially the kids. They really light up seeing the animals up close. Every day is different and I just love being outside. I couldn’t imagine being cooped up in an