Page 44 of Wilder Heart

CHAPTER 17

CASH

The only thing worse than watching Wilder fall was watching him struggle through his pain afterward. When they got back to the house, Mary-Beth and Annalise were waiting outside with the ambulance. It looked starkly out of place in the ranch’s circular drive, lights blinking discordantly. Cash left the horses in the hands of a part-time groom and hauled Wilder off Hexie’s back, whispering apologies and endearments as he hissed in pain at the movement.

“What happened?” Mary-Beth asked, waddling over as quickly as her swollen belly would allow. She was about six months along now, and the twins were beginning to wear on her.

“I don’t know,” Cash said. “The saddle came loose. Blaze and Wilder went down. He was nearly trampled by the herd. He got really lucky.”

“Luckyyouwere there,” Wilder said, leaning on him heavily. “You rerouted the herd with that shot. Had nothing to do with luck.”

Cash shook his head. It hadn’t felt that way at the time. For one wild moment, he’d been certain he was about to watch Wilder die. His brain disconnected from his body, which reacted with zero thought. Everything was a blur until he was in the dirtwith Wilder’s face in his hands. He never wanted to feel panic like that again.

He unclipped the radio from his belt and passed it to Mary-Beth. “Here. I’ll call or text with updates. Tell Lain we made it safe, okay?”

“Of course. If you need anything, please don’t hesitate to call.”

Cash moved to nod, but Wilder interrupted them as the EMTs helped him toward the ambulance, where the stretcher was waiting. “We’re not fucking doing that. She looks fit to pop. She should be laying down with a bag of chips, not stressing over my careless ass.”

Annalise stifled her giggle behind her hand, and Mary-Beth looked reluctantly amused.

“Your leg could be broken,” Cash argued.

“Okay. That’s nothing compared to growing real-life humans.”

“They mostly grow themselves,” she remarked.

Cash reluctantly handed Wilder over to the EMTs, watching warily as they helped him hobble over to the stretcher on the ground behind the ambulance.

To Cash, under her breath, Mary-Beth added, “Seriously, if you needanything…”

“I will let you know,” he promised.

“Do you really think it’s broken?”

He sighed, lifting his hat to card his fingers through his short hair. The EMTs were getting Wilder settled on the stretcher and preparing to lift him up into the back. “I don’t think so, but he can’t bend his knee. He’ll be out of commission for at least a few weeks, probably, and that’s already weighing on him.”

“He’s not a man who likes to be idle. I’ve seen the way he works around here.”

Cash pursed his lips. “He doesn’t think he’s allowed to be.”

Her face slackened with understanding and sympathy. “He can take all the time he needs to heal. Make sure he knows that, okay?”

“I’ll do my best. He’s a stubborn one.”

Her crystal blue eyes studied him intently. “We’ll just have to show him, then.”

Did she suspect the true breadth of his feelings for Wilder? Was he so obvious?

The ambulance driver turned toward him. “We’re taking him in. Are either of you coming along?”

They’d need a way to get back to the ranch when Wilder was released, so Cash said, “I’ll follow behind you in my truck.” He rushed over to the back, where the door was still open. Wilder looked nervous, his brow furrowing when he saw Cash. “I’ll be right behind the ambulance, okay? I’m going to get my truck and meet you there.”

Wilder fidgeted with the strap that went across his lap. “Okay.”

Cash longed to clamber into the ambulance and give him a kiss goodbye, but he wouldn’t do that while Mary-Beth and Annalise were watching. Not yet, at least. Wilder wasn’t ready for them to know about their relationship—and itwasa relationship, as far as he was concerned—so Cash would keep it quiet for now, as promised. He wouldn’t hide forever, no, but it could wait until this crisis had passed.

He stayed on the ambulance’s bumper for the whole drive, with his hazard lights flashing so everyone they passed would know he was with them. The only time he separated from them was when he got to the hospital. He had to find a parking spot while they unloaded Wilder. They were already inside by the time he entered, but the nurse at the desk told him what room they went into.

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