possible. Her skin, soft as silk, still felt cool to his touch and he kept rubbing it, trying to make friction.
Holding her so close, he inhaled her scent into his lungs, savoring her essence. Pulling her into him, his lips grazed her ear, then her cheek, making him lose all track of time. Holding her within his arms he wanted to heal her, infuse his strength into her, and shield her from any more harm. Never before had he felt so protective of another being.
“Come on, baby, wake up. Wake up, please,” he whispered into her ear. “Please.” Closing his eyes, he pulled her closer to him, holding her, never wanting to let go.
How had it happened that this person on the other end of a phone line two thousand miles away had slowly crept into the important list of people in his mind and in his heart? Meeting her in person had only cemented his feelings.
Initially he’d been drawn to her kind, nurturing spirit which she’d proven without a doubt today. After their first telephone conversation, the calls became increasingly frequent and he’d looked forward to their talks as a way of making up for not being there in person for Uncle Jacob. But with some guilt, he’d realized that his eagerness to talk with Jamie was not only for updates on his uncle.
Jamie seemed to ground him as to what was important in life. Their long talks had wandered into politics, world events, religion, morals, values, and ethics — the types of subjects that never arose at social events. It was the important stuff in life that no one seemed to want to talk about anymore. Most people today were more interested in sports, reality shows, or celebrity gossip. It was refreshing to converse with someone about topics that had real substance, subjects that affected life and gave insight into the person you were communicating with. It didn’t matter if you disagreed, it just mattered that you were having the conversation.
A noise brought him back to reality. Jamie stirred. Reluctantly he released her from his tight embrace and exited the covers. Putting his sweatshirt back on, he knelt low beside her. Blinking, she looked straight up, then darted her eyes around as if confused.
“Jamie! Doc! She’s waking up!” Kevin shot up on his knees. He held Jamie’s hand and talked to her.
Eyes large, she started to shiver.
“It’s okay, Jamie. You’re going to be all right.”
“What happened? Why am I here?” She tried to sit up.
“No, stay where you are. Stay under the covers. Doc?” Kevin called again, afraid to let Jamie move.
Doc came running over.
“Jamie, it’s Doc. You took a cold swim and passed out from hypothermia. You’re warming up nicely now and you’re going to be fine. I want you to stay under the covers for a while though. Hey, Mike,” Doc yelled, “can we get something warm for her to drink?
Jamie raised her head. Suddenly her eyes widened and her face registered frantic fear. She sat up and yelled, “Tommy!” She looked at Kevin, near tears. “Where’s Tommy? Is he okay?”
“Yes, yes, he’s fine, thanks to you,” Kevin answered but Jamie looked confused. Kevin recounted her jumping in after Tommy and Kevin’s retrieval of Tommy from her. As if on cue, Tommy came running over with Rick and Ben following behind.
“Jamie! Jamie!” Tommy ran to her, dropped to the ground and wrapped his arms around her, burying his face in her neck.
“I thought you were dead!” he sobbed into her neck.
The force of his grip almost toppled her over. She winced as he hugged her but fiercely hugged him back, not letting go. Tommy and Jamie each thought they had lost each other. Four days ago they were strangers but they’d forged a tight friendship during the trip. The bond they shared now was ironclad and this was evident by the intensity of their hold on each other.
Tommy cried and Jamie tried to soothe him.
“It’s okay, Tom. It’s all right,” she whispered to him, stroking his head. “It’s okay. I thought I
Holding her so close, he inhaled her scent into his lungs, savoring her essence. Pulling her into him, his lips grazed her ear, then her cheek, making him lose all track of time. Holding her within his arms he wanted to heal her, infuse his strength into her, and shield her from any more harm. Never before had he felt so protective of another being.
“Come on, baby, wake up. Wake up, please,” he whispered into her ear. “Please.” Closing his eyes, he pulled her closer to him, holding her, never wanting to let go.
How had it happened that this person on the other end of a phone line two thousand miles away had slowly crept into the important list of people in his mind and in his heart? Meeting her in person had only cemented his feelings.
Initially he’d been drawn to her kind, nurturing spirit which she’d proven without a doubt today. After their first telephone conversation, the calls became increasingly frequent and he’d looked forward to their talks as a way of making up for not being there in person for Uncle Jacob. But with some guilt, he’d realized that his eagerness to talk with Jamie was not only for updates on his uncle.
Jamie seemed to ground him as to what was important in life. Their long talks had wandered into politics, world events, religion, morals, values, and ethics — the types of subjects that never arose at social events. It was the important stuff in life that no one seemed to want to talk about anymore. Most people today were more interested in sports, reality shows, or celebrity gossip. It was refreshing to converse with someone about topics that had real substance, subjects that affected life and gave insight into the person you were communicating with. It didn’t matter if you disagreed, it just mattered that you were having the conversation.
A noise brought him back to reality. Jamie stirred. Reluctantly he released her from his tight embrace and exited the covers. Putting his sweatshirt back on, he knelt low beside her. Blinking, she looked straight up, then darted her eyes around as if confused.
“Jamie! Doc! She’s waking up!” Kevin shot up on his knees. He held Jamie’s hand and talked to her.
Eyes large, she started to shiver.
“It’s okay, Jamie. You’re going to be all right.”
“What happened? Why am I here?” She tried to sit up.
“No, stay where you are. Stay under the covers. Doc?” Kevin called again, afraid to let Jamie move.
Doc came running over.
“Jamie, it’s Doc. You took a cold swim and passed out from hypothermia. You’re warming up nicely now and you’re going to be fine. I want you to stay under the covers for a while though. Hey, Mike,” Doc yelled, “can we get something warm for her to drink?
Jamie raised her head. Suddenly her eyes widened and her face registered frantic fear. She sat up and yelled, “Tommy!” She looked at Kevin, near tears. “Where’s Tommy? Is he okay?”
“Yes, yes, he’s fine, thanks to you,” Kevin answered but Jamie looked confused. Kevin recounted her jumping in after Tommy and Kevin’s retrieval of Tommy from her. As if on cue, Tommy came running over with Rick and Ben following behind.
“Jamie! Jamie!” Tommy ran to her, dropped to the ground and wrapped his arms around her, burying his face in her neck.
“I thought you were dead!” he sobbed into her neck.
The force of his grip almost toppled her over. She winced as he hugged her but fiercely hugged him back, not letting go. Tommy and Jamie each thought they had lost each other. Four days ago they were strangers but they’d forged a tight friendship during the trip. The bond they shared now was ironclad and this was evident by the intensity of their hold on each other.
Tommy cried and Jamie tried to soothe him.
“It’s okay, Tom. It’s all right,” she whispered to him, stroking his head. “It’s okay. I thought I
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