Alphas in the Wild (24 page)

“I have a feeling he’ll wait for us.”

She dropped her pack over her shoulders and tightened the straps. “Let’s make sure he doesn’t have to. It’s been a long time since we climbed a peak together. I’m looking forward to it.”

“Me too. You always were my favorite partner. Here.” He handed her the rope and coiled the excess.

She clipped into it and started up Illimani’s steep, exposed ridge. It felt good knowing Craig was behind her at the other end of the rope. In that moment, she knew she’d always trusted him beyond measure. He’d held her life in his hands on every mountain they’d ever tackled. She’d been there for him too. Some people smirked and said roped climbing was a suicide pact. It could be if you picked the wrong partner.

A smile tugged at her mouth. Craig had stood up to three gods for her. She had no doubt he would’ve done battle if it came to that. What a man. She was damned lucky to have a second chance with him.

Tina settled into a rhythm, planting her axes and crampon points again and again. She said a small prayer for Gunter. She’d known he had no chance at all when she first found him, but she’d tried anyway because she didn’t like losing. When she was still in training, she’d sometimes felt she was engaged in a contest with death. It had taken maturity for her to learn death was a kindness when balanced against a life of constant pain and dysfunction.

She was surprised how quickly the steepest part of the climb ended. The only thing separating them from the summit was a long, airy, low angle ridge—and another thousand feet of climbing. She stopped to wait for Craig. “That was a whole lot easier than last time I descended it.”

He grinned at her and pulled her into his arms. “I just bet it was.” His bent his head and covered her mouth with his. He tasted wonderful, like sweet, new-mown hay and wildflowers. She opened her mouth to him. Her nipples hardened where they pressed against his chest. Her breathing, already fast at over twenty thousand feet, quickened some more.

“Hey.” She pulled away, panting lightly. “You’re supposed to wait until after the ceremony to kiss the bride.”

“Just practicing up.”

Tina laughed. She felt light and giddy and happy, lost in the rightness of the moment with the only man she’d ever loved. “Guess we ought to shake a leg here. It’s still an hour if I remember right. This ridge is deceptive. It goes for a long way. We have to go up and over the false summit.”

“Yeah, but there’s not much more climbing. We’ll be fine. I can’t believe how beautiful it is up here.”

“That’s because you’re beautiful, Craig Robson. And because we’re sharing a place that’s sacred to us both. I love you.” She hugged him again and then started uphill.

His footsteps sounded close behind her. “I’ve got the rope. Don’t worry. Terrain’s not bad so I thought I’d get close enough to talk.”

“I like having you right next to me.”

He laughed and patted her ass. “The feeling’s mutual. Does it seem odd to you the weather’s so perfect? There’s not a scrap of wind. It’s not even all that cold. Zero by my watch.”

“Maybe we have divine intervention. The only other time I was here, the wind was hideous.”

“I’ve climbed this mountain half a dozen times. It was always windy on this ridge, usually so much so it was hard to stand upright.”

“I’ll have to remember to thank Illimani. Won’t be hard. There are lots of things I’m grateful for.”

“Can you stay in South America for a while?”

She considered it. “I suppose I could. I didn’t schedule any shifts at the hospital because I didn’t think I’d be back.” Tina thought about the shuttered house with her will sitting atop her roll top desk. She’d left the house to one of her cousins and parceled out the rest of her things in that will. Relief surged. She stopped walking and turned to Craig. “I’m damn grateful I still have a life ahead of me. I was so certain—”

“Ssht.” He pulled her close. “We have lots of living to do. I love you, Tina. God but it feels good to say it.”

“It’s pretty danged good to hear too.” A warm glow started in her belly and spread outward. “Why’d you ask about staying in South America?”

“The twins are at a climber’s pension in La Paz. Told me they’d wait a week. They still want Sajama.”

“I’m game. Hell, we could even bring them back up Illimani. They move fast enough, and we left all that gear in Estancia.”

“I was hoping you’d be agreeable. It’s too risky guiding without a doctor on board. It’s in their contract with me.”

“Come on.” She grasped his hand. “This isn’t about guiding or doctoring. Today is about us. Hurry. I can see the summit cairn.”

The eastern skyline was lightening when they reached the top. Tina checked her watch. Six on the money. “We made excellent time. Thirty-five hundred feet in four hours at this altitude should qualify us for a gold medal.”

“All I want it to qualify me for is a life with you next to me, sharing each day as it happens.” He unbuckled his pack, set it in the snow, and sat on it. He patted his lap. “Come sit. Illimani should be along soon.”

She’d just gotten her pack off when the air brightened. Craig scrambled to his feet and stood by her side with an arm draped about her.

The god became more visible. “Stand there.” He pointed to a spot a few feet away. “It is auspicious. Are you both certain of this?”

Craig gripped her gloved hand in his. “Yes.”

“I am too,” Tina said.

“Good. This is not like a human wedding. Once I join you, your souls will belong to one another through this life and all lives to come. If you are not firm in your commitment, one to the other, you must speak now.”

The same electric warmth she’d felt from the god when she was standing next to Gunter began at the crown of her head and moved to her feet. She smiled. “If you were going to check, why bother to ask?”

He didn’t answer. “Do you, human woman, take this man as your consort from now through all lives to come?”

“I do.”

“Do you promise to be faithful to him in all things? To love him with every fiber of your being? To support him through good times and bad? To care for him if he falls ill? To sit by his grave and mourn for him if he should die before you?”

“I do.”

Illimani turned to Craig. “Do you, human man, take this woman as your consort from now through all lives to come?”

“I do.” Craig’s baritone thrummed with emotion. His grip on her hand tightened almost to the point of pain.

“Do you promise to be faithful...”

All too soon the ceremony was over. “Stand very still and receive my blessings,” Illimani intoned.

The air danced with multicolored light. Tina blinked, but it didn’t go away. A comforting tide swept over her. She leaned into Craig, wondering if he sensed the same thing.

“Thank you for blessing my mountaintop with your love.” Illimani smiled at them.

“Thank you for everything you’ve done for us.” Craig put out a hand and then drew it back. “Sorry, human custom.”

Illimani laughed. “You would not like it if I touched you. My skin is very warm, warm enough to dissolve yours. I wish you both well. If you were to climb to my summit again, I would visit with you.”

“We’ll be back,” Tina said. “This is one of the most beautiful mountains I’ve ever climbed. Thank you for the clear weather.”

“You are most welcome. It would have been self-defeating for me to allow the God of Air to blow you off my ridge this day. Besides Mururata is otherwise occupied just now. Until we meet again, human friends.”

This time she was ready for the flash of light and shielded her eyes. She dropped her gloved hands. Tina felt changed, complete in a way she hadn’t been before. She melted into Craig’s arms.

“Do you feel...different?” he asked.

She nodded against his chest. “The world shifted. I don’t know if it makes sense, but I feel whole, perfect. Like something was missing before, but it’s been made right. What about you?”

“You did better putting words to it than I could have. But yes, something is definitely different and much better for the change.” He crushed her to him.

She reveled in the feel of his body against hers and his arms holding her. There wasn’t anywhere in the world she’d rather be. “Funny, but I hated this mountain. Now it’s our special place. I was telling the truth when I told Illimani how stunning the summit is. It’s like a crown with five uniquely crafted points.”

“Yes,” he murmured. “Illimani has a beauty all its own. Maybe we could climb it every year on our anniversary.” He pushed back so he could meet her gaze. “I want to hold you in my arms forever, love, but we should start down. It will take a while to pay our final respects to Gunter’s body. He’s too close to high camp, we have to move him.”

She tilted her face up. “One more kiss and then we’ll get moving. I can’t believe you’ll be here to kiss and touch and hold whenever I want.”

“I’m still getting used to the idea myself.” He laughed, dipped his head, and kissed her. She wrapped her arms around him and clasped the back of his jacket. His cock swelled where it was sandwiched between their bodies. Her nipples pebbled into points of desire and sent lust arcing through her. Moisture flooded her nether regions. Tina couldn’t help herself. She moved a hand and closed it around his erection.

He broke their kiss and grinned. “That, you shameless hussy, is for later.”

“Not much later I hope.”

“Since we’re married, I guess I can’t say no anymore.”

She grinned back. “Nope, you can’t.”

“Come on. The sooner we get back to camp, the sooner I can lick and kiss every inch of your amazing body.”

“Eww. I’m all dirty and sweaty.”

He quirked a brow. “Do you want to wait until we get to a hotel in La Paz?” She shook her head. “Well, I don’t either. We’ll melt some snow for wash water and make do. Let me help you with your pack.”

C
raig was surprised his feet connected to the snow. He felt light enough to fly. Of course they’d have to have some sort of civil ceremony once they returned home, but their spiritual binding atop Illimani was the real deal. Married by a god. He shook his head, still not believing it had truly happened. Sun peeked over the massif of the Cordillera Real, turning the snowcapped peaks a lush shade of pink. Shaded by the Cordillera, Illimani’s west ridge never got sun until eight or nine in the morning. He glanced at his watch. Right on time.

He blew a kiss to the mountain god. “Thanks,” he called out. “For everything.”

When he’d jumped to his feet and confronted the three gods, he had no idea things would turn out so well. He’d been prepared to die if it meant saving Tina from the twisted, headless monster who’d suckered her. Now he’d met him, Craig suspected Mururata had shoved Tina into the crevasse that almost killed her.

“Off belay. I’m down.”

Good. Tina was off the steep part. “Belay off,” he called. Craig drew the rope up and coiled it. He glanced at the fifty degree slope and tested the snow with his crampon points. Still plenty firm, but best to be safe. He threaded in an ice screw, ran the rope through a carabineer and the breaker bar attached to his harness, and turned to face the slope. With a combination of rappelling and his front points, he was by her side in minutes. A sharp tug on the rope and it slithered down, forming a mass of coils at their feet.

“The sun followed you.” Her eyes were wide. “For a minute there you looked like one of the mountain gods.”

“You should’ve seen the ridge in the rising sun. It looked pretty ethereal too.” He bent to the rope, coiling it automatically. Once it was straight, he handed her one end to clip in to just until they were off the glacier. “Come on. Let’s get this next part over with.”

She turned and started off at a lope. The roaring blizzard from a few hours before had cleared the glacier, scouring the top layer of snow off it, and its crevasses were easy to avoid. Her crampons kicked up snow as she went. He raced after her long-legged form, enjoying the easy way her body moved. Tina had a natural grace and athleticism that put most people to shame. She wasn’t even aware what a thing of beauty she was. Poetry in motion, just like the song by...but he couldn’t think who’d written it.

Time passed as they moved down the mountain. The sun rose higher in the sky. A few more minutes and he’d have to deal with Gunter. Craig swallowed hard. Dead bodies weren’t his favorite thing. He’d seen enough of them, but he’d never gotten used to their grim reminder. No matter how much he might try to delude himself that he could beat the odds with solid preparation, the line between life and death in the mountains was thin.

“Craig.” Her voice held a sharp note.

He hurried toward her. “What?”

“Gunter. He’s not here.”

“But that’s impossible.” Craig trotted up beside her. He took in the juxtaposition of the rocks, the bits of charcoal staining the snow black, and their tracks. “I think we’re in the right place. Let me check the GPS.”

“I already did. You handed it to me, just before you told me to get the hell out of here last night. Besides, despite how windy it was when we got here, you can see demarcations in the snow from where we walked to this spot.”

“Do you think Illimani, uh, did something?”

She nodded. “Yes.” She cocked her head to one side. “Maybe he doesn’t like corpses in plain sight, littering his slopes.”

“We’ll never know.” Craig held out his hands. “Come here. We’ll say a prayer for his soul. Christ, Tina. He was only twenty-three.” A surge of guilt left a bitter taste in Craig’s mouth. “This is partially my fault. I knew how young and inexperienced he was, and I still—”

“Stop.” Instead of placing her hands in his, she laid one over his mouth. “He was the same age you were when you started working at Alpine Attack. He knew what he was getting into. The mountains are great levelers. They don’t play favorites.”

He raised a brow. “Oh, so Lady Luck doesn’t really ride on my shoulder?”

“She’d better not. I’m not into threesomes.” Tina tilted her goggles back and then pulled them off. Her blue eyes twinkled. “Let’s each say good-bye and Godspeed in our own way. Then we can start down.”