Stone Cold Cowboy(18)
“Count on it,” Rory said.
Luna tilted her head in acknowledgment, patted Sadie’s hand, then left, leaving Sadie wondering why her friend believed Rory meant those stern words and didn’t mean to take out his anger on her over what her brother did.
She must have missed something. Right?
“Who’s your friend?” Sadie asked, stalling as long as possible the confrontation about her brother that Rory no doubt wanted to have.
“Kaley,” the girl announced. She turned back to Rory. “Uncle Rory, can I goo on her? She need lots.”
“I don’t know, she’s hurt real bad.”
Sadie couldn’t resist the little girl. “Come here. I need some of your magic medicine.”
Kaley beamed a smile at her. Rory held her close and stood, setting the little girl on the bed. “Be very careful not to bump her leg. She’s got a bad cut,” he warned.
“I see.” Kaley tried to pull down the blanket.
Rory gently pulled her hand away. “No, you stick with the small cuts on her upper arm.”
Kaley pointed to the handcuffs. “Bad guy.”
Sadie sucked in a breath. She opened her mouth to explain, but Rory held her gaze and answered for her. “She’s not a bad guy. Once the cops talk to her, they’ll take them off.” The reassurance was for the little girl, but also for Sadie.
“I can explain.”
“He’s the devil,” Kaley announced, smudging more goo on her arm than needed.
Sadie’s eyes went wide.
“You keep calling me that in your sleep,” Rory explained.
“No I didn’t.”
“Did too.” Kaley singsonged the words.
Heat rushed up her chest, neck, and face. “Rory, I didn’t mean—”
Dane walked in the door and smiled at her. “This is a hell of a way to get some attention, honey.”
“Dane.” The sigh she let out wasn’t enough to emphasize the relief she felt seeing her old friend. She’d known Dane since kindergarten.
Another reprieve from the confrontation Rory wanted. Damn her brother for getting mixed up with the likes of Rory Kendrick. She’d warned him. Since Connor wasn’t here to answer for his misdeeds, it was left to her to answer to the big, forbidding man.
“Does it have to be every blonde in the state?” Rory snapped.
Dane’s gaze shot from her to Rory. The mischievous grin reminded her so much of the boy she knew and the young man who’d loved, and never turned down, a good time, which accounted for his reputation with the ladies.
“What? Just because I’ve seen her naked—”
Yeah, when they were little kids, stripping down and jumping in a swimming hole.
“Excuse me,” a woman in a white doctor’s coat said from the door, glaring at Dane.
“Now, Bell, didn’t you say something about getting pancakes?” Dane tried to weasel his way out of that loaded statement.
“I get to play the pregnancy craving card, not you.”
“Um, so I see you’ve met Sadie.” Dane tried to get things back on track. “Sadie, my wife, Dr. Bell Bowden. Most just call her Bell.”
“Dr. Bowden, so nice to meet you. I heard this one got married.” She turned to Dane. “You look so happy.”
His smile kicked up another notch. “I am. I see you’ve met our little girl.”
Kaley planted her hand on Sadie’s thigh, jumped up on the bed, and ran for her dad. “Ancakes,” she shouted.
Sadie tried to squelch the yelp of pain, barely. Her eyes rolled back and she pressed her hand to her throbbing leg.
Dane’s hand settled on her calf. “Sadie, I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay.” She hissed the words out, wishing the pain away.
Rory took a step toward Dane, glaring at him like he wanted to kill him. Sadie didn’t know what was going on here, but she wanted to go home. She needed to find her brother. If the devil dude did this to her, no telling what he’d do to her brother if Connor didn’t deliver on whatever drug deal they had going. She needed to stop Connor and get him to turn himself in before it was too late.
“How did I get here?”
“Rory brought you in last night,” Dr. Bowden said, pulling her chart from the end of the bed and reading over it.
Sadie turned to Rory. “It wasn’t a dream.”
Rory scrunched up one side of his mouth and shook his head. Weariness filled his eyes and the sigh he released from his wide chest. He’d been through a lot to save her.
Dane shook his head and pulled his wife into a hug. “I’ll let you finish here, then we’re going to breakfast. You need to eat.” He kissed her on the forehead, then glanced at Rory. “It’s not what you think.” Dane released his wife and walked to the edge of the bed and laid his hand over her handcuffed one. “Did Connor steal those cattle?”