It wasn't my day...

Jeff focuses on loosening Hawk's girth, giving a weary sigh to Rosetta's question. They were back early afternoon instead of this evening, that's what had happened. Letting the buckles fall, he doesn't attempt to lift the saddle himself - he'd wait for her help.

"Had an accident on the trail," he finally explains. Removing Hawk's bridle, his horse gratefully spits out the bit. "Rode up that narrow pass along Diamond River. Bonzai spooked at something. Hunter lost his seat and I don't even know how, but he ended up down the bank and in the river."

Pausing, he puts Hawk's halter on, giving him a loving pat on the cheek. That whole ordeal on the trail still sent fear running down his spine. And in a way... he blamed himself. 

"He went under and didn't come up until a ways down. Katie got to him first and had to give him CPR. I guess his leg got caught on something when he was underwater and he dislocated his knee. Only way back here was the horses though, so... here we are. Eric helped get him to Angel's so she's looking at him now."

That was the short, unemotional version. Concentrating on Hawk, he picks at a knot in his mane for several moments. "I never should have taken a novice on that trail," he mutters. "I shoulda known better."

Finally joined by Katie, Hunter just closes his eyes, letting her hand brush his cheek. Her little teasing brings a small grin to his face and he reaches for her hand to give it a light kiss. "Naw..." 

He looks up at her, giving her a quirky expression. "I just wanted to see if you cared enough to rescue me. Figured drowning was the best way to find out." 

Taking her arm, he pulls her down to him, tilting her chin with his finger. Studying her eyes for a moment, he reaches behind her head so his lips could meet hers in a tender kiss. "Thank you... for saving my life." 

Tucking some hair behind her ear, he offers her a new weary smile. "I guess it wasn't my day to die after all." No... apparently it wasn't. And those words... those words he had heard... they continued to reverberate in his mind. But he was not yet ready to talk about what had really happened below the river's surface. He had a lot of thinking to do first. 

Giving a tired sigh, he finds her hand to give it a squeeze. "Wanna help me to my bunkhouse? Apparently there's a set of crutches around here I need to use."