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"It’s okay," she said, trying to sound like she believed it "It looks like you were hit by a large branch You’re going to need stitches, but for now I can--"

Before she could finish the thought, she found herself rolled beneath what had to be two hundred pounds of solid th of her pressed ruthlessly hard into the snow, her hands yanked high over her head and pinned by his He wasn’t crushing her, nor was he hurting her, but his hold was shockingly effective In less than one second, he’d iround and his body

"Who the hell are you?" he asked, voice low and rough It would have brought goose bumps to her flesh if she hadn’t already been covered in the to free herself She’d have had better luck trying tohard, eyes dilated, clearly out of hisaround his head like soon of a halo

"You have a head injury," she told hie tone she saved for both the ER and her crazy siblings "You’re hypother a nice red spot on his cheek, which she suspected was courtesy of the phone she’d hurled at him Best not to bother him with the reminder of that "I can help you if you letwhile the storth around them He wasn’t fully conscious, that iness poured off hiuing her options when the next gust hit hard enough to knock his hood back, and with a jolt, she recognized him

Mysterious Cute Guy

At least that’s hoas known around Lucky Harbor He’d slipped into town six le effort to blend in

As a whole, Lucky Harbor wasn’t used to that Residents tended to consider it a God-given right to gossip and nose into people’s business, and no one was exe in a big rental house up on the bluffs

There’d been sightings of hirill--and also at the local gyas station But Mallory had only seen hi in hand Tall and broad shouldered, he’d been facing his car, thehis shirt as he reached into his pocket to retrieve his keys He’d slid his long legs into his car and accelerated out of the lot, as she caught a flash of dark Oakleys, a firrim mouth

A little frisson of female awareness had skittered up her spine that day, and even wet and cold and uncoot another now He felther realize she had no idea how long he’d been out here He was probably concussed, but the head injury would be the least of his probleet you inside," she said, ceasing to struggle beneath hiht calle muscle

"You have to let me up," she said "I can help you if you let me up"

At that, he see off her until he was on his knees, but he didn’t let go of her, stillboth of her wrists in one hand His eyes were shadowed, and it was dark enough that she couldn’t see their color She couldn’t see ht to catch the tension co off of him in waves

His brow furrowed "Are you hurt?"

"It’s you who’s hurt"

"No, I’ and nearly unconscious, but he wasn’t hurt Good to know "You’re bleeding, and we need to get you warible denial, followed by another groan just before his eyes rolled up In aled to grab onto his coat, breaking his fall with her own torso so he didn’t hit his head again But he was so heavy that they both fell

"Ohvoice "That’s a lot of blood"

Mallory squeezed out fro out from between the fallen tree branches and the door frame

"Holy shit," Amy said "Is he okay?"

"He will be" Mallory scooped Grace’s phone from the snow and tossed it to her "I need help I told hiet him inside but my car’s better, I think My phone’s there, and I have reception We can call for help And I can turn on the engine and use the heater to war into his face "Wait" She looked at Mallory "You knoho this is, right? It’s Mysterious Cute Guy He comes into the diner"

"You never told ed "He never says a word Tips good though"

"Who’s Mysterious Cute Guy?" Grace wanted to know

"When you get reception on your phone, pull up Lucky Harbor’s Facebook," As on the wall there, along with the Bingo Night schedule and how et pulled over by Sheriff Hotstuff last weekend Sawyer’s engaged now so it’s not as et pulled over by him anymore, but at least we have Mysterious Cute Guy so it doesn’tto soak in the fact that she’d landed in Mayberry, USA

Or the Twilight Zone

Mallory wrapped her ar his head and shoulders out of the snow and into her lap He didn’t et his feet," she said "Amy, take his ht?" Aed to lift the ed was o for the first Mr All Wrong who landed at your feet And here he is Literally"

"Yes, well, Ion the list," Amy said

"Careful!" Mallory admonished Grace, who’d dropped his feet Too late With the momentum, they all fell to their butts in the snow, Mysterious Cute Guy sprawled out over the top of thehs a ton"

"Solid ood position to know since she had two handfuls of his hindquarters

So into the wind, they made it to Mallory’s car She hadn’t locked it, had in fact left her keys in the ignition, which Grace shook her head about

"It’s Lucky Harbor," Mallory said in her defense

"I don’t care if it’s Never Never Land," Grace told her "You need to lock up your car"

They got Mysterious Cute Guy in the backseat, which wasn’t big enough for his to accoain put his head in her lap "Start the car," she told Aer seat," she said to Grace "Call 9-1-1 Tell thee, unconscious with a head injury and possible hypothermia Give them our location so they can send an a "do" beneath her breath But she started the car and switched the heater to high before turning toward the back again Her dark hair was dusted with snow, ?"