Mountains Apart. Carol Ross

Amanda teased.

      “Very funny.”

      “Emily, he was worried about you, obviously. And I was worried, too. And to tell you the truth, it was really a comfort having him here.”

      “Ugh,” Emily bemoaned, “I can’t believe that that man saw me almost naked.”

      “Don’t worry about it. He wasn’t the only one. But hey, between him and that cousin of his—I would let either one of them see me naked.”

      “Cousin? What cousin?”

      “Oh, man, Bering’s cousin is the paramedic that brought you in. And phew, talk about a hottie. I have half a mind to strip down later and fake passing out.” She tapped a finger thoughtfully against her pursed lips and then asked, “How do you fake a heart attack, I wonder? I should probably be wearing something lower-cut, right? Maybe instigate a little wardrobe malfunction?” She tugged down on the collar of her shirt. “Whaddya think? Would that be too much?”

      “Amanda, be serious.” Emily winced. “So, there were actually two men that saw me in my, um, semi-dressed state, then?”

      “No.”

      “Thank goodness.” Emily breathed a sigh of relief and then realized that couldn’t be true. “But wait, you said—”

      “It was more like six or seven if you count the doctor, the nurses, the ambulance driver and the other paramedic guys. The whole crew, they were all men—how weird is that?”

      “Oh, Amanda, what am I going to do?”

      “Quit worrying about it. I’m sure it’s routine for these guys. They see naked people all the time. They probably didn’t even notice, really....”

      * * *

      BERING COULDN’T GET Emily Hollings out of his head. He’d come home, returned several phone calls, attempted to catch up on some paperwork and then decided to take a quick nap before he went out to meet Tag for dinner. It was like the lost-puppy syndrome, he decided, as he stared up at the cedar-planked ceiling in his bedroom and thought it over.

      Granted, it had only been a matter of hours since he’d left the hospital and he was tired and his brain was thoroughly scrambled. But sleep was out of the question—he could see that now—because Emily Hollings looked so much different than a puppy. But it wasn’t her partially clothed state that had him out of sorts, although he didn’t think he could ever get tired of looking at her....

      There was a vulnerability about her that spoke to him. He was drawn in by it, and he couldn’t shake the sense that she needed help. What kind of help, he didn’t know, but for some inexplicable reason, he wanted to be the one to give it to her. He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. He obviously needed to get a grip. He needed a distraction, something to take his mind off her.

      But what was a woman like her doing working for Cam-Field Oil & Mineral anyway? She certainly didn’t seem like the kind of executive they would send to do a job like this. She didn’t seem as if she could handle the kind of intense pressure such a job would entail.

      Although, to be fair, he hadn’t really met her under the best of circumstances. And according to her assistant, she really hadn’t been herself. And now that he thought about it, Amanda had mentioned that several times over the past two days. Now Bering couldn’t help but speculate as to what she meant. What was Emily Hollings really like? And he knew, even as his good sense warned him it was a bad idea, that he was going to find out.

      * * *

      BERING STROLLED INTO the Cozy Caribou an hour later and spotted Tag already sprawled out in a booth at the back of the restaurant. The Cozy Caribou was more than a restaurant; it was a family-oriented establishment and an unofficial gathering spot for the community. There were booths running along both sides of the wide building with tables scattered between. The place was essentially two sections divided in the middle—one part restaurant one part bar. Huge chunks of a spruce tree—cut, sanded and polished smooth, then formed into a U-shape—served as the divide between the restaurant and the bar.

      A wide doorway complete with a set of antique saloon-style swinging doors led into the back, where alcohol was served. Stools carved from the same spruce trees were set into the floor around the bar, one side for diners and the other for drinkers. It was Tess’s rule that drinkers could dine but diners couldn’t drink. She was very strict about this and didn’t even allow drinkers to use the same door as diners.

      “So, you finally came up for air, huh?” Tag asked as Bering slid into the seat across from him.

      “Mmm,” Bering answered vaguely. He took a sip of the water that was already waiting for him.

      “How’s the patient doing?”

      “She’s going to be fine. Or she will be if she starts taking care of herself. But after talking to her assistant, I have my doubts about whether that’s going to happen.”

      “Man, she’s sweet, huh? No wonder you were holed up in that hospital all weekend.”

      He scowled. “Yes, she’s beautiful, but it’s not that. Something’s not right. Emily is—”

      Tag flashed his cousin a quick grin. “I was talking about her assistant. Amanda, right?”

      Bering nodded absently. Funny, he couldn’t really even recall whether Amanda was good-looking or not. And then he remembered that he’d definitely thought so on Friday before he’d met Emily.

      “Do you know if she’s married or anything?” Tag asked.

      “No, Amanda said she was involved with someone fairly recently, though. I got the impression that was part of the reason she was here.”

      The waitress appeared and delivered two heavy frost-covered mugs of root beer. They placed their orders.

      “To see him?” Tag asked.

      “No, to get away from someone or something...” He shook his head. “She wasn’t really clear on that. She seemed a little uncomfortable talking about it.”

      “Do you think she’d go out with me?”

      Bering choked on his swig of root beer. “What? Tag,” he sputtered, “I don’t think that’d be a very good idea. I don’t even know if she’s out of the hospital yet.”

      “Amanda was in the hospital, too? What, was it something contagious?”

      “Funny,” he said with a chuckle, finally realizing what his cousin was up to.

      Tag let out a booming laugh.

      “I don’t know, though, Tag. Something is wrong. I’m worried about her. She’s, um... I want her...”

      Tag’s smile disappeared along with his teasing tone. “You want her?”

      Bering looked annoyed. “I want her to get well, Tag, is what I’m saying. She needs help.”

      “Well, you’re definitely not the one to give it to her, Bering. You know that, right?”

      “I do. I know that, but I can tell she’s having a really difficult time here. If you’d have seen her, and Amanda said—”

      Tag interrupted, “Bering, I did see her, remember? I was the paramedic who treated her. The woman was dehydrated. She was drugged and exhausted. But what does that have to do with you?”

      Bering shrugged and tried to look nonchalant. “Nothing, except that if you’d seen her in the hospital... There’s just something about her that I...”

      “Bering, snap out of it, man. Need I remind you that this woman works for Cam-Field Oil & Mineral? You remember Cam-Field, right? The ‘corporation of environmental corruption,’ I believe I’ve heard you call it on more than one occasion. The fact that this woman is sad is not your fault, is not your responsibility and has nothing whatsoever to do with you.”

      “Uh-huh,”