Montana Cowboy Daddy (Wyatt Brothers of Montana #3) - Jane Porter Page 0,34

throat. Seeing Billy on the ground sent panic through her.

Beck needed his dad.

She needed Beck’s dad.

Billy had to be okay.

Tommy was out there in the arena now, too, and Tommy and one of the medics assisted Billy to his feet, but Billy couldn’t straighten. He stood hunched, his torso bent, left arm hanging limply. He lifted his right hand to the crowd in an attempt to wave, as if reassuring the fans he was fine, but he would have fallen if it weren’t for Tommy holding him up.

Billy was half carried, half dragged from the ring, disappearing behind the tall gates that shut behind him, blocking the view.

The crowd was still quiet and the announcers in the high box began their cheerful chatter again, smoothing over the frightening scene, talking about what a cowboy Billy Wyatt was, that all of the Wyatts were true cowboys, and that the announcer had had the privilege of knowing Billy’s father, JC Wyatt, a legend in his time.

Erika tuned out the announcer and tried to think what she should do. Beck made a little peeping sound and she nodded. Beck was right. Find Billy. That was what she needed to do. With trembling hands, she gathered their things, shifted Beck to the other arm, and made her way through the stands, past the snack and food stands, to the pens where livestock waited. She knew now where the cowboys warmed up, and she went there, slipping between cowboys, heading toward an open ambulance that had someone on the gurney in back. She spotted Tommy then, standing near the ambulance talking to someone in a blue chambray shirt with a stethoscope around his neck. Tommy looked grim, nodding once, and then his head turned and his gaze met hers. He said something to the man and then walked toward her.

“He’s going to be okay,” Tommy said, without preamble. “They’re taking him to the hospital in town, and it’s serious, but doc doesn’t think it’s life-threatening. They’re leaving now, though, and they’ll call me later with updates.”

She looked up into his face, trying to read his expression. “You’re not going?”

“No.”

“What are you going to do?”

“Compete.”

She didn’t understand. The brothers were close, almost inseparable. “You’re still going to ride, even with Billy hurt?”

“He’s going to be in surgery. It will be hours. There’s nothing I can do until later.” Tommy must have seen her confusion, because he added, “This is our agreement. This is what we do. If it’s life-threatening, the other goes. If it’s just some broken bones, punctured lung—”

“Punctured lung?”

“We carry on. It’s the only way competing makes sense. Otherwise, we’d never get any wins, or money, under our belt.”

“Should I go to the hospital?”

Tommy glanced from her down to Beck, who was chewing his hand. “And do what?” he asked, tone kind. “You’re going to sit around all day, in a germ-filled waiting room. It will be hours before Billy’s out of surgery. Then he’d be in recovery, and they’ll be monitoring him as he wakes up. Might as well stay here, in the sunshine, soaking up vitamin D, and then when I’m done, I’ll drive you over. We’ll go together. I promise that that’s what Billy would want, too.”

It made sense, in a horrible sort of way. “Does this happen often?” she asked, heartsick, because to be honest, it hadn’t crossed her mind that they’d get hurt very often. They were both so successful that it seemed as if they had a pretty good handle on how competition worked.

“Often enough we have the drill down. Going to the hospital is never cheap, either. No one likes to get hurt. That’s not why we ride and rope. We’re trying to earn money, not spend it.”

“Are you sure I shouldn’t—”

He nodded. “I’m sure. And I promise we will go straight away when I’m done. I’ll be finished long before Billy is out of recovery.”

Erika returned to the stands but her heart wasn’t in it anymore. The afternoon passed slowly, and what had been so exciting earlier, now filled her with dread. It didn’t help that all she could think about was Billy, and wondering about his surgery and how he was doing.

It was late when Tommy found her in the stands. “Ready?” he asked.

She nodded, more than ready. Tommy took Beck from her and they walked out of the rodeo grounds together. “Should we take your car since it has the car seat already in it?”

“Sure.”

“I’ll drive, though,” he said. “I know Boise probably better