Dominique Burton - The Alaskan Rescue

A Place For Wild Hearts To Heal

Sashi Hansen came to Prince of Wales Island, Alaska, to work herself closer to her dream: her own ballet studio. Instead, a wild bear has landed her in a nightmare. Her leg is broken, and she may never dance again. Her heart is broken with the loss of her best friend. And her mind…well, she’s confused. Her savior, Dr. Cole Stevens, is sending mixed signals. She’s never received such loving care—but it seems the healer needs healing, too, from his own private pain and loss.

Sashi’s ready and willing, but can’t get close. With everything that Alaska throws at him, why can’t this courageous doctor handle his own heart?

Don’t lose your focus, Stevens.

He had to make sure she was hemodynamic for transportation to a hospital. Amazing that she’d survived the night. How many times had they found people out here in the bush who hadn’t survived?

“I need you to tell me where you hurt the most.” Cole began looking in her ears, mouth, nose, and then he pressed on her stomach to check for internal bleeding. She seemed okay. “Where else do you hurt, Sashi? Can you move your fingers for me?”

She looked at him with serious eyes. “What if I can never dance again?”

“Sashi, never stop believing in miracles. You are alive, miracle number one.”

Dear Reader,

Cole’s story is one that I have longed to tell since he appeared into the novella “A Daughter’s Discovery” from A Mother’s Wedding Day (American Romance #1302). I imagined his character as an incredibly sexy doctor with a tortured past he couldn’t seem to outrun.

Writing this story was an amazing adventure. I wanted Cole to find true love, but his path to Sashi Hansen is one full of pain and soul searching. In order for him to help Sashi overcome a horrific attack from a bear, he has to deal with the loss of his brother as he fights for her love.

I hope you enjoy this book. It’s been a personal journey for not just my hero and heroine, but for me as well.

Ciao,

Dominique

The Alaskan Rescue

Dominique Burton

www.millsandboon.co.uk

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

As a young girl with three brothers and a writer for a mother, Dominique Burton lived in the imaginary world of books such as Anne of Green Gables and movies starring Indiana Jones. Much of the time, she would write and act out her own stories with Harrison Ford as the hero. Not too shabby for a seven-year-old! Dominique loves Europe, and at the age of twenty, got the wild notion to buy an around-the-world, one-way plane ticket. For six months, she circled the globe alone, studying Italian, learning about other cultures, scuba diving and having a blast. She graduated from the University of Utah with a bachelor’s degree in history. She now lives in South Jordan, Utah, with her husband, two children and three step-children, all of whom she dearly loves. If she’s not writing or reading, she’s out running. A few years ago, Dominique had the privilege of running the Boston Marathon. To learn more, go to www.dominiqueburton.com.

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The Alaskan Rescue was a challenging book to write. The heroine’s bear attack and the hero’s past guilt of losing a loved one developed into an intricate story line. Internet research alone didn’t have all the answers.

First of all I want to thank my editor, Kathleen Scheibling, for giving me the chance to write a book that explored these topics.

I want to thank Ben Walker, a real ranger of the Tongass National Forest. He helped me to understand black bears, from their size to their natural aptitudes.

My love and appreciation goes to Dr. Stephanie C. Gardner, M.D., a dear old friend who explained the ABCs of Emergency Medicine. (Love you!) My thanks goes out to my buddy, Dr. Ben Curtis, M.D., who took time out of his schedule to explain orthopedic injuries and how physical therapy helps treat them.

One of the main themes of the story is overcoming survivor’s guilt. Plunging into this was more difficult than I had anticipated. This book could never have been as dramatic if Dr. Michael A. Kalm, M.D.—a man who has been one of the greatest influences in my life—hadn’t shared his wisdom.

I know there have been many more people who have influenced this story. I want the reader to know that I take full responsibility for any errors or inconsistencies. My hope is that all who read this book will take away a little of the genius of the above individuals who made such a valuable contribution to my book.

Contents

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Preview

Chapter One

Dr. Cole Stevens looked out the window of his pontoon Cessna, trying to get a better look at Marshall’s Fishing Lodge and Resort. The large upscale property, nestled in a cove on the Inside Passage of southeast Alaska, was set against the emerald rain forest of the gentle hills of Prince of Wales Island.

Because he was a nature lover at heart, Cole did his best never to take the splendor of the world he lived in for granted. As a bush doctor he felt blessed to have a job he loved. He didn’t always know where his day would take him. Sometimes he would be at the hospital. Other times he’d be helping with search-and-rescue out in the middle of nowhere.

On this late August day he was here to find out what type of illness had struck a group of fishermen from Kansas who were staying at Marshall’s. As Cole expertly set his Cessna down on the choppy water and steered it toward the dock, he thought about Frank Marshall and his family’s shabby treatment of employees and the people who lived on the island.

A local, Cole was well aware that the Marshall family had a hard time keeping employees, even though the pay was excellent. It took a tough person to handle the brutal hours and the family’s habit of treating staff like indentured servants. But if you needed the money, he guessed it was worth it.

This got him thinking about the conversation he’d had earlier in the day with his best friend—Jake Powell, the chief ranger of the Tongass National Forest. Jake had been visiting Ketchikan where Cole lived, and had taken him out to lunch, something that rarely happened these days. Normally if Cole wanted to see his buddy, he had to fly from Prince of Wales Island to the small town of Craig, Alaska, to visit him and his family.

“I’ve got about fifteen minutes for lunch,” he told Jake.

“Since when?” Jake took a swallow of beer and scowled at Cole. “Come on. We’ve had this lunch planned for weeks.”

“Nature of my job.” Cole hurriedly ate his sandwich. “I’ve got to fly up to Marshall’s and take care of some sick people.”

“Why don’t you tell Frank Marshall to take a long hike on a short dock?” Jake said. “The Marshalls have ruined the sport of fishing with that new technology, and you know it!”

“Not really. I’m a terrible fisherman.” Cole took a sip of his soda. “And all the technology in the world wouldn’t make me a better one.”