Wildfire - Honey Palomino Page 0,23

I thought I had plenty of time to address our future once our mission was over.

I should have known better than to take anything for granted.

It was always like that in life. You keep putting things off, or decide to deal with things later, always assuming that ‘later’ is a sure thing.

But that’s the thing. There are no sure things in life.

Life is fleeting. Time is nothing but the blink of an eye.

The only sure thing is now, this moment you’re in, and if you don’t take full advantage of it, taste it fully, and milk the pleasure from every second you can — it’s a risk that isn’t worth taking.

I took a deep breath and dug in harder, determined to get Jesse and I to safety. I knew his leg was broken. I didn’t know the extent of it, though. He could be bleeding out and we wouldn’t know.

I needed him out from under there now.

A gust of wind burst through the trees like the mountain itself had exhaled, sending the nearby flames inching closer, lashing at the ground with orange and yellow and blue claws.

Heat and smoke rolled around us, blocking out the sun. I bent my head, realizing I was finally close to finishing the cut. When my chainsaw broke through the last bit of bark, I quickly pulled it away.

Jesse looked at me in surprise.

“I did it!” I shouted. “Okay, I’m going to throw a rope around it and pull. Try to wiggle out!”

He nodded, and I noticed he was growing pale. Worry filled my heart, but I pushed it away. I couldn’t feel anything right now.

I just needed to work.

I threw the rope around the tree and secured it quickly, then pulled it with all my strength. It didn’t budge.

“Fuck!” I growled, pulling again. It moved just a fraction but Jesse was ready. With his hands, he pulled his crushed leg, freeing it and falling back on his back.

“Yes!” I cried, dropping the rope and running over to him. I looked at his leg and swallowed hard. It was a bloody, mangled mess. I grabbed the rope and cut off a small section, then tied it around the top of his thigh.

“We gotta move fast, Jesse,” I said.

He nodded and tried to get up.

“Oh, my god, don’t be ridiculous!” I cried, crouching down.

“You can’t carry me, Fiona,” he said, shaking his head.

“Bullshit,” I said, wrinkling my brow. I put one arm under his legs and the other under his back, lifting him up. He was fucking heavy, I won’t lie. I struggled a bit at first to maintain my balance, but I put one foot in front of the other and began making my way down the mountain.

“Put me down, Fiona, it’s too far!” he insisted. “You can’t carry me all the way. It’s three miles at least, if not more.”

His face was near mine and I looked at him in disbelief.

“Do you always bitch at people who are trying to rescue you?”

“I’ve never been rescued before,” he replied, clearly deeply uncomfortable with the situation.

“Yeah, well, I’ve never rescued someone I love before,” I said, stopping short. Shit. I’d meant to keep my mouth shut but now the words were out there and try as I might, I couldn’t stuff them back in.

“Love?” he asked, his eyes softening.

“Just shut up,” I said.

“Fiona.”

“I said, shut up!” I cried, hoping like hell he’d not remember any of this once we made it out. Trauma victims often had amnesia. I just wanted to start this part all over again.

“Fiona!” he shouted my name. I stopped walking, breathless and panting.

“What?” I said.

“I love you, too,” he said, his eyes smiling back at me.

“You’ve probably got a concussion.”

“Maybe,” he laughed. “Probably. But that doesn’t make it any less true.”

“You won’t remember any of this tomorrow,” I said. “You probably won’t even remember last night.”

“A wildfire like you is unforgettable,” he said, softly.

My heart melted at his words, my love for him flowing inside of me uncontrollably. I pressed my lips against his, kissing him deeply. He kissed me back passionately, the desire igniting between us again quickly.

“What the hell!” Max’s voice tore through my brain, causing it to short-circuit from the sudden deadly cocktail of desire and panic and shock, all at once. Jesse and I tore our lips apart and whipped our heads around.

Max and all the other members of our crew were standing several yards down the path, watching as I’d held Jesse in my arms and kissed