in my bag.”
“No way.” He looked straight across at Jolene, then reached over and tucked her hair behind her ear, demanding her attention. His vow to keep his distance didn’t apply when it came to protecting her and the baby. “I will ride on past and let that bull drown unless you promise me you’ll stay at a safe distance with the horses.”
“But he’s unpredictable as it is. If he’s hurt, there’s no telling what he’ll do. You’ll need my help.”
“I know what one of those creatures can do to a man. I know how he can tear your body—your whole life apart.” Her knuckles turned white as she grasped the horn. He wanted to touch her again, to apologize for his harsh tone. But this was too serious to muddy his intentions with anything other than his words. “You can drive your truck fast, ride a horse through a hurricane, or hate my guts. But I will not budge on this.”
“But it’s too dangerous. What if we rope him and I tie him off on the saddle—”
“Jolene!” Her mouth snapped shut on a weak sigh. She looked so pale. Her shoulders sagged, and the unguarded moment of defeat revealed her fatigue. When she turned her head away, a shiver cascaded from her shoulders down through her hips and legs, shaking her hard enough to disturb Sonny beneath her. “Jolene?”
How long had she been running on pure bravado and willpower? Screw this. Nate pulled off his cap and plunked it on top of her head in an effort to conserve whatever body heat she had left. He leaned across his saddle, reaching for the blanket she’d tied behind her. “We need to get you home. Get you warm and dry and get some food into you. You and the baby need to rest.”
“No.” She grabbed his wrist to stop his efforts. Her icy fingers held on with surprising strength. “Help Rocky if you can. Please. Not just for Lily, but for his sake. He’s in pain and he’s scared. I’ll stay with the horses. I promise.”
Those blue eyes were damn near impossible to resist. Nate quickly debated the merits of physical health versus mental anguish. But if he worked fast, he could help her with both. He looked deeply into her eyes, verifying her promise. She hadn’t said anything she didn’t mean yet.
But Nate was already breathing deeply, in through his nose, out through his mouth, slowing his pulse, clearing his mind, cinching his courage firmly into place. “You got a pen at your ranch that’ll hold him?” Jolene nodded. “If I can fish him up out of that arroyo, we’ll herd him to your place until this blows over. But once we get there, I’ll take care of whatever needs to be handled. You change your clothes and get straight to bed. And we don’t try to save anything or anybody else until Damon is gone. Understood?”
She nodded. Her fingers eased their grip ever so slightly so she could take his hand and squeeze it tight. “Thank you.”
He raised her hand to his lips and kissed the soft, wet skin. “Don’t thank me yet, angel.”
He had to survive the rescue first.
His knee protested the climb to the ground. Judging by the stiffness, he had some major swelling going on. That knock on the dashboard, the twist in the ditch—as well as fatigue and weather—had definitely exacerbated the injury, which normally didn’t give him such fits. But Nate gritted his teeth and bore the pain the way he did every other day of his life. He handed Checker’s reins over to Jolene, pulled the wire-cutters from the saddlebag and prayed.
Leaving Jolene and the horses a good twenty yards behind him, Nate limped toward the arroyo, speaking softly into the wind. “Easy, boy. I think you should know that I’m smarter than you. And if you work with me, I can help you.”
Rocky spotted him halfway there and made another valiant effort to free himself.
Nate paused, propping his hands on his hips and shaking his head. “Now what did I tell you?” Other than twitching his cream-colored ears and snorting hot, steamy breath through his nostrils, the bull didn’t move.
“You and I don’t have to become friends, but we do need to cooperate.” Nate moved closer, keeping his voice calm. “The little lady seems to think you deserve a hand, and I volunteered. That’s what I do, you know. Volunteer. Help out where I’m needed.” He was almost to the edge