Page 60 of Ride the Sky

“Yes. Yes, I’m fucking sure.” White-knuckling her walker, she lifts its four rubber-tipped feet then steps forward with it like she’s practiced. “Fuck,” she swears, stopping to gasp. “Fuck.”

I take a step toward her.

“Wyatt,” Fallon says icily. “I will kill you if you come any closer.”

I ignore her, moving a chair out of her path. I don’t give a shit if she bites my head off. I’m fucking worried about her.

“I’m fine,” she gasps, inching forward with her walker. “This is all fucking fine.”

She doesn’t look fine. She looks terrible. She’s pale, dark bruises beneath her eyes. She’s lost weight, her long, muscledbody swallowed by the hospital gown, and all I want to do is get her out of this goddamn hospital.

“I feel like a zoo animal,” she mutters. “All of you standing around watching me.” Face red, she lifts her head, lifts her walker to look at Dr. Joy, who stands with Davis in a corner of the room. “When can I be done with this bullshit?”

“The best that you can hope for after all of this is to have a limp.”

Fallon recoils. “That’s not going to be me.”

Davis and the doctor speak in low tones as Fallon finishes her exercises.

Face pale, she manages to fling herself back on the bed. She crosses her arms, putting a barrier between us. She tips her head back, her drug-hazed eyes trying to focus. “That fucking sucked,” she gasps.

There’s the crack of the door as Dr. Joy exits.

Dakota rubs Fallon’s arm with exaggerated enthusiasm. “You did so good.”

“Is Pappy still here?” Fallon asks.

“No, honey, he’s not,” Davis says. “He and Tripp both went back to Resurrection.”

I scowl. “What do you want with him?”

“None of your business.”

I see what she wants. Hope. That her entire world hasn’t been completely dismantled. It’s a real prick move that Pappy didn’t stick around to see Fallon. Although, it’s not likely I’d let him.

“How can I do this?” Anger creeps into her voice. She eyes her walker with disdain. “I can’t do a goddamn thing.”

Davis’s eyes move to Dakota’s. “Which is what we need to talk about.”

“You don’t have to do it alone,” Dakota says. “You’ll come home with us. Stay at the ranch.”

I suck in a breath, pissed I’ve been left out of a conversation that damn sure should have included me.

Fallon balks. “No. I don’t want to go there.” Her panicked eyes flash to mine. “I don’t want to go back to Resurrection. I don’t want to go home.”

Dakota flinches, and Davis rests a hand on her shoulder. In a low voice, he says to Fallon, “You can’t stay here by yourself, honey.”

Fallon’s lower lip pushes out.

Dakota drops her head and sighs. “You can’t be alone, Fallon. What if you fall? Or something happens?”

A tear slips down Fallon’s cheek. A fucking tear. Goddamn, she’s crying.

“She’ll come home with me,” I blurt, desperate to do anything to make her happy. “I’ll take care of Fallon.”

Davis sighs, staring between me and Fallon in skepticism. “That’s not a good idea.”

Concern tightening Dakota’s pretty features, she says, “You live in an Airstream, Wyatt, how can you possibly take care of her?”

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