“Did you just call your legs ‘bitches’?” Derek asked from directly behind her, making her jump. Her upper body tilted forward, but she got herself back under control.

“Yep. Occasional evidence to the contrary, I am in charge of all my body parts.”

“Glad to hear it.”

“Everyone out!” Callum bellowed, levering his body onto the ice with ease. “Exit the water on your front like a seal and then roll away from the edge. Remember, the more you can distribute your weight, the less likely it is you’ll go through the ice.”

Lou flattened her hands on the ice and tried to hoist her body out of the water, but it looked a lot easier when Callum did it. Her legs, damn the rogue bastards, floated forward and up, catching under the ledge. She managed to slam the edge of the ice into her belly, driving out her breath.

“Nice, Lou,” Derek mocked as he slid gracefully onto the solid surface. “You’re like a special seal.”

“Oh, shut up,” she muttered, panting, as she hauled herself out of the water.

This, she could tell, was going to be one hell of a day.

* * *

“Sparks!” Callum bellowed. “You’re up!”

She sighed, relinquishing her spot on the rope where she’d been helping to pull the “victims” and their rescuers out of the water and across the ice. It was like a lopsided game of tug-of-war—all brute strength and teamwork—and she’d actually been getting to like that part of training, despite the hard work. But now that she wasn’t pulling, she noticed her eyelashes had frosted over, and her neck and the top of her chest were clammy from the water that had leaked into the suit after her full-body plunge.

Trudging over to Callum, she lifted her arms so he could wrap the end of the rope around her middle. Although she’d watched three of the guys perform an in-water rescue, she was still nervous. The ice-rescue veterans had made it look easy, but she had a feeling her first time wouldn’t go so smoothly.

Callum handed her the victim’s harness, which looked like a skinny pool noodle. It was attached to her rope with about six feet of line. That way, the victim would be first out of the water, and she’d be behind him, in a position to help lift him onto the ice.

“When you get to the victim, carabiner should be in your right hand,” Callum instructed. “The other end goes in your left. Get control of your suit before trying to save anybody. Approach the victim from the side or back, talk to him, harness him up, signal the guys to start pulling, and lift your knee to help boost him onto the ice with your thigh. Once you get your hands on him, do not let go of your patient. Got it?”

“Yes.” Her voice sounded a little uncertain, so she firmed her jaw and tried again. “Yes.”

Callum’s mouth quirked up on one side. If it had been anyone but Callum, Lou would’ve thought he was holding back a smile.