Page 13 of For Cowgirls and Kings

“What’s your deal?” I hiss, stepping toward her again. Her eyes glitter back at me, full of an emotion I cannot identify. Panic? Exhaustion? Rage?

But why?

She surprises me, moving closer to me in challenge. “If you sayanythingto get her in trouble, I’ll never forgive you.”

I wouldn’t, and I think deep down she knows that. But she’s running on erratic, feverish emotions, the biggest and brightest being fear. I can understand where she’s coming from, even if it does hurt.

So instead of pressing into her, daring her to trust me enough to release those pent up emotions and explode on me, to show me the extent of her darkness, I concede. I step back nodding once to confirm I’ve heard her. As I do it, the fight melts from her face, quickly replaced with panic.

“Are they okay?” I ask.

“I don’t know,” she admits, her teeth biting into her bottom lip. “No one here will tell me anything, even though I’m the one who came in with them.”

I could easily get answers—god knows I want to. Right or wrong, I’m a powerful man and I rarely find a person unwilling to give me what I want. But I refuse to lose Dale’s fragile trust by flaunting around my power.

“What can I do?”

Her eyes turn round, and I see tears gathering along theedges. I want to crush her head into my chest, hold her tight enough to show her she can break and I won’t drop the pieces. But instead I ball my fists tighter, and grind my teeth.

“Can, can you ask them? I have to know what’s going on, even if that means I have to suffer your ego for it.” She shoots me a watery, teasing smile, and I almost fall to my knees at the sight.

She’s so tired, so fragile, and it hurts worse than any wound my mortal body could suffer.

“Go to the bathroom and wash up, I’ll see what I can find out.”

Her lip quivers and she looks down at her blackened hands. A single tear skitters across her cheek, and it takes every single drop of willpower I possess and will ever possess, to not grab her and pull her to me. She nods, but her eyes never lift from her hands, as if seeing them for the first time.

“They were so hurt Mateo. Gus was out of his mind, and Stetson—” Her voice cracks at her name. “I don’t know if he was too late. What if he was too late?”

Unable to fight off the urge any longer, I reach out a hand and rest it on her shoulder. She doesn’t shy away so I bravely pull her to me, and within seconds she folds her body to mine, her arms pressed between us as I hug her.

I rest my chin on her head, and I wish with everything in me I could lessen her pain. “They’ll be okay.”

I bite my tongue as she quickly pulls away, my words either enough to reassure her, or enough to push her close enough to some invisible edge she refuses to fall over in company. Without a backwards glance, Dale walks to the bathroom at the end of the hallway.

As the door clicks shut I prowl to the counter where the nurses are busy tapping away at a keyboard. With both hands on the counter, I suck in a ragged breath. “Excuse me?” It takesseveral seconds before an elderly woman with dull brown hair piled in a bun, lifts her face to mine. Her eyes widen and she quickly stands up.

“Yes sir, how can I help you?”

“The couple that came in from the barn fire, how are they?”

Her face flushes, and I instantly know she’s uncomfortable. Tomorrow I’ll feel bad about harassing someone who’s just trying to do right by their job. But not tonight.

Tonight I’ll rip every door off its hinge to get the answer’s Dale wants, if only to stop her heart from aching so heavily for a single moment.

“Uhm, are you family?”

I shake my head, and then point towards the bathroom Dale disappeared into. “No, but she is. Maybe not by blood, but in every other way that matters. And if she sheds another tear because she doesn’t know what’s going on, and no one will give her any information, I’ll make every single person wish they’d taken today off.” She blinks, and I know my words are as menacing as they are bitter.

I hate throwing around my power. But what good is it if I can’t protect the one person who deserves it most?

She sags.Yep, I'm definitely going to feel bad tomorrow.

“The man suffered minor injuries consistent with third degree burns. The smoke inhalation will be his biggest struggle to overcome, but last I heard he was already out of his bed, and causing trouble, threatening things far worse than anything you’ve said.” She eyes me, and I have to fight off a smile—that would be entirely inappropriate,but if I know anything about Gus, it's that he would kill someone who stood between him and Stetson.

“And the girl?” I urge.

“And the girl suffered some severe second degree burns, mainly on her arms and exposed skin—face, neck, hands. Thesmoke inhalation was bad enough she’s currently on oxygen, but is expected to make a full recovery. She also had severe injuries related to an assault, but you’ll have to talk to the police to get any more than that.” She glares at me as she finishes, and I attempt a small smile. It only makes her eyes narrow more, and I shrug.