credit for.
“Isn’t it about time for you to get into the truck?” he asked.
“Huh?” She stopped staring at his stern profile and pulled a sling from the kit.
Nate took the sling from her and urged her to move. “You’ve done a fine job so far. But the rain’s picking up.”
Fortunately she was still graceful enough to stand up on her own. “It’ll go faster if we work together, won’t it?”
With a reluctant nod, Nate turned his attention to the broken arm. Though she lacked the shoulders to form as effective a barrier as he had, Jolene situated herself behind him and blocked the rain as much as possible.
“This is just a temporary splint on your arm,” Nate told Deacon. “We’ll hold off until we can get some X rays before wrapping you up in something more permanent.”
The sure efficiency of Nate’s strong hands was an amazing thing to watch, Jolene conceded. He had Deacon cinched up and her imagination thinking about back-rubs and foot massages in no time.
“Anything else hurt, sir?” Nate asked.
Deacon set his hat in place and shook his head, rising to his feet. “It’s Deacon, son. I gotta get back and check on Buck, make sure he’s in one piece. Oughta check on Miz Browning and the boys, too.”
“That’s where we’re headed. Give you a lift?”
“Looks like you’re full-up already.”
Cindy knocked on the window before rolling it down. “I can sit on Wes’s lap,” she offered.
“Who’s the Ken and Barbie?” Deacon asked.
“We’re collecting strays,” Jolene explained, backing out of Nate’s way as he repacked the med-kit. “C’mon. We’ll find room. We need to get a move on, though. Lily’s in labor.”
“Well, hell’s bells, girl, why didn’t you say so? I suppose, since you’re comin’ to us, there’s no way to get her to the hospital.”
“Hurricane Damon turned south and is heading right for us. I’m afraid the town already has more evacuees than it can handle, especially without Doc Holland around.” She nodded toward Nate. “So Dad sent the cavalry to help out.”
“Then what are we sittin’ around yappin’ about it for?” Fired up with a new purpose, Deacon followed Nate to the bed of the truck and climbed in while the tailgate was down. “That doggone bull can find his own way home through the storm, if he’s a mind to. Let’s go.”
Jolene slipped in behind the wheel and restarted the engine.
Across the barrier of blankets and newlyweds separating them, Nate got in and didn’t say a word about the number of stray puppies she was collecting today.
And the rain poured down.
A CRY OF BONE-DEEP PAIN echoed throughout the two-story house, momentarily drowning out the rhythmic drumbeat of the rain slapping against the windows now that the wind had picked up. Lily Browning’s sob ripped right to the heart of Nate’s soul.
Nate splashed cold water on his face and tried to feel anything but halfway useless and way too late.
The twenty-minute trip from Turning Point had taken over two hours. Now, two more hours since their arrival, Lily Browning had dilated to ten centimeters and was burning with the need to push. Cindy Mathis had turned out to be a primo baby-sitter for Lily’s three sons, while her new husband, Wes, had willingly gone outside to supply the muscle Deacon needed to secure the barn and nail plywood scraps over the first floor windows of the two-story ranch house.
Jolene had been a rock of support for her friend, holding Lily’s hand and breathing with her to help her endure the pain, explaining in succinct detail every step Nate had taken to monitor the baby’s progress and prep Lily for delivery.
But something was wrong.
Something was very wrong, and there was no doctor or ambulance to call. There was only Nate. But instead of taking charge and sticking to the rescue routine that had been instilled in him from day one of his paramedic training, Nate felt paralyzed, the image of a dead baby on the side of a California highway frozen in his mind. His ears heard nothing but the sound of an injured mother’s distressed cries as she screamed her child’s name. His body had numbed to everything but the gut-sick feeling of knowing he hadn’t been quick enough, skilled enough, gifted enough to save that baby’s life.
Knowing he was no good to Lily or her baby until he could get his head screwed on right, Nate had excused himself and gone into the bathroom for a few minutes, leaving Lily in Jolene’s surprisingly capable hands.