Billionaire Undaunted:The Billionaire's Obsession ~ Zane(3)

He put the cup to her lips, tipping it up slowly. Her eyes flickered,  but didn't open, and he hoped to hell she still had a swallow reflex.  The last thing he wanted was for her to aspirate.

"Swallow for me, Ellie. Come on!" He watched her as he dribbled the  water slowly into her mouth, relieved when he saw the muscles in her  neck move weakly to down the liquid.

She needed food, but he continued to try to hydrate her first before  finally going into the kitchen to try to find something-anything-that  she might be able to get down her throat. Before he started rummaging  through the cupboards, he remembered that he had protein drinks and some  beverages in his SUV that would help her replace electrolytes she was  missing.         

     



 

"Fluids are better," he said absently to himself as he came back into  the cabin with the supplies and tools he needed, then started his  mission to get some more hydration and nutrition into Ellie.

He had to go slow, which irritated the hell out of him. He wanted to  give her everything she hadn't had, and he wanted her nearly lifeless  form to spring back to life.

He wanted Ellie back, and no matter what it took, he'd see her smiling and whole again if it killed him.

I won't quit. I never quit.

It took him a while to get her free from her bonds of steel with the  tools he had in his car, and he continued to curse violently as he freed  her.

If James wasn't already dead, Zane would have murdered the bastard without an ounce of remorse.

After he'd given Ellie everything he dared give her at one time, he  scooped her up from the cold floor. Christ! She was so light that it  scared the hell out of him. Ducking around the corner, he went into the  bathroom, hoping the hot water worked. He turned the knobs on the  shower, relieved when warm water eventually emerged.

Setting her gently on the floor, he quickly stripped off his own  clothing and hefted her back up and into the shower with him. The cabin  had some heat, but it was still damn cold. Ellie had no meat on her  bones to protect her from lying on a cold floor. He needed to start off  easy and gentle, increasing the warmth to her body carefully.

He used a bottle of liquid soap he'd found in the shower, scrubbing her  body and hair until she was clean again. A small, weak moan escaped her  lips, and it gave him even more hope that she'd come around eventually.  She shivered in his arms, another good sign. His slow warming of her  body was starting to bring up her core temperature.

Frustrated, Zane knew there was no way he was getting her to a medical  facility because of the blizzard roaring outside the cabin walls. If  something happened on the way back out of the remote wilderness, she'd  never survive. He was a doctor. Granted, he was in research, but it  wasn't like he hadn't gone to med school. Since he was academically  gifted, he'd sped right through his degrees and then focused on  biotechnology. But he knew what he had to do, what she needed right now.  Unfortunately, he had very few resources or equipment to help her as  much as she needed.

He turned off the water and dried them both the best he could with the  threadbare towels in the bathroom, and then carried Ellie to the only  bed in the house, the one that had been denied to her because of her  confinement. Pulling back the bedspread, he was relieved that the  bedcovers looked fairly clean, and he tucked her beneath the blanket and  the sheets. Sitting beside her, he attempted to comb her long hair with  his fingers. Ellie had beautiful, light-blonde hair, and he was  starting to see the fair locks again now that it was clean. Pushing the  hair away from her face, he was practically ready to go ballistic over  the healing bruises and cuts on her skin.

He'd looked her over while he was washing her, and he hadn't seen  anything life-threatening as far as injuries, but it fucking pissed him  off that James had even touched Ellie.

Zane rose and went to work cleaning up the mess in the corner, washing  down the floor and disposing of the metal bindings and the portable  potty. When he was done, he wrapped a blanket around his nude body, put  on his boots, and sprinted back out to his SUV, grabbing the overnight  bag that he always had in the cargo space.

He dressed in the spare clothing he had, wishing he had something more  he could put on Ellie except one of his flannel shirts that was tucked  away inside the bag.

After he got her into the garment, he gave her a little more fluid, and  then went and rummaged through the small dwelling, trying to find  anything useful. He came across Ellie's purse in one of the cupboards,  but he didn't see any sign of her clothing. Zane put his dirty garments  in the sink and washed them by hand, and then hung them in the bathroom  to dry. He didn't think he'd need them because he planned on getting  Ellie down the mountain soon. It was more his restless energy that  wouldn't let him keep still.

He found some basic supplies, mostly canned goods, but at least there was something.

Since the antiquated heating system was producing very little warmth, he  loaded the old stove with wood that was stacked against the wall and  started a fire that was soon blazing. He shut the metal door, glad that  the old piece of crap actually worked. The cabin was so small that it  should help keep the limited space warmer.

Having rummaged through every cupboard, Zane paced back and forth from  the bedroom to the small window beside the door, wishing it would  fucking stop snowing.

Ellie needs so much more than I can do for her right now. She needs IV fluids and feedings, x-rays, and testing.         

     



 

Hell, he knew she was bad, but he had no idea if her body had more wrong  than what he could see just from looking at her and doing a superficial  exam.

Unfortunately, the blizzard was still raging, and he was frustrated that  there was little he could do except keep giving Ellie everything he  could in intervals that wouldn't overfill her shrunken stomach.

He helped her swallow some nourishment.

Then he paced.

He did it again.

Then he paced.

He kept trying his cell phone, but he was in a dead zone, and he didn't  want to leave Ellie to try to attempt to find an area that could pick up  a signal. More than likely, nothing would be close. He was pretty sure  this whole desolate mountain area was off the grid.

As it started getting dark, he fired up an ancient generator that would  give them some light, and then fed the hungry stove more wood, noticing  that the tiny dwelling was already getting warmer.

As he sat back down on the bed to heft Ellie up to drink some more, he was elated to see that she was swallowing more readily.

"Come on, Ellie. Just a little more," he crooned, trying to cajole her into a few more swallows.

She complied, and he set the cup on a small, rustic bedside table.

"Zane?" The weak voice was barely a whisper.

But he heard it.

His head jerked toward Ellie, his heart racing as he saw her eyelids flicker before she opened them completely.

A look of horror crossed her face for just a moment until she focused in  on him. "Zane?" she asked again uncertainly, her whisper panicked and  scared.

"Yeah. It's me, Ellie. It's Zane." He stroked a gentle hand over her  hair. "You're safe. Don't be afraid." Jesus! He hated seeing that  terrified look on her face.

"James," she rasped.

He put his fingers over her lips. "Don't try to talk. James is dead. He  can never hurt you again. You have to rest, Ellie. I've been trying to  rehydrate you. You're pretty weak, and I need to get you to the  hospital. The weather is shit. Just rest until I can get you out of  here, okay?"

She nodded feebly, as though she understood him, and her eyes fluttered closed.

Zane went to rise from the bed, but Ellie said softly, "Don't go, Zane.  Please. I think I'm hallucinating, but I want it to last."

Kicking off his boots, he pivoted and stretched his body out next to  hers. "You're not dreaming, and me being here is no illusion. James is  dead and he's never coming back. I can't take you down the mountain  right now. We're in a blizzard. But I'll get you to safety as fast as I  can."

He gently wrapped his arms around her and placed her head on his chest, smoothing his hand rhythmically over her now-dry hair.

"I think I'm already safe," she said hesitantly, snuggling into his body.

"Damn right you are. I won't let anything happen to you, Ellie. I promise."

She sighed lightly, and then her breathing became even and deep. Zane  knew that she was sleeping, no longer in an unconscious state.

Relief flowed over him as his body relaxed. He put both arms  protectively around Ellie, rocking her body gently in an effort to  comfort her, but maybe just a little bit for himself, too, because he  was so damn grateful that she was alive.

Finally, with Ellie cuddled safe and warm against him, Zane slept.





Ellie opened her eyes, confused.

Where am I? What happened?

James!

Panic seized her as she looked around, terrified that it was James's  return to the cabin that had woken her. Fear and dread seized her by the  throat, but she noticed her mouth was no longer as dry as the desert.