Page 18 of Unexpected Danger (Mountain Justice #2)

Just as he had the night of the prom, Brodie twirled her around.

This time, she wasn’t wearing some frilly purple dress, but jeans and a pink t-shirt.

This time, her hair wasn’t fixed all fancy by a hairstylist at a salon, but was pulled into a ponytail.

She wasn’t wearing some uncomfortable-looking pointy-toed girlie shoes, but her regular tennis shoes—the ones she wore when they playfully raced to the truck earlier that evening. The race she’d won.

Yet on that night, beneath the stars in the crisp evening, she’d looked more beautiful to him than ever.

Mom, Roarke, and, of course, the jewelry store clerk had known of his plans. But even though he and Londyn had been dating for several months and had been friends for years before that, she seemed taken aback by his declaration and the question that followed.

In the sappy movies he watched with her on occasion, the woman always agreed to the proposal before flinging her arms around the man. He’d lift her off her feet and swing her around. They’d plan their lives together.

But Londyn hadn’t reacted that way.

In the well-lit park, he could see the fear in her eyes.

Fear mixed with something else he couldn’t ascertain.

Not even after years of practice in reading her expressions.

She rejected his marriage proposal and sobbed afterward.

What should have been a happy occasion resulted in a dismal one.

How had he somehow misread her plans for the future—their future?

That night, he was both shattered inside and angry at the same time. He drove her home in an awkward ten minutes of silence with nothing explained and nothing resolved.

Thankfully, the jewelry store offered refunds.

Brodie zipped into the circular ER drop-off at Pronghorn Falls Memorial. He parked, put on his flashers, then removed Londyn from the passenger side and rushed through the automatic doors.

He knew the intake nurse and gave her the details about the car accident, as much as he knew, anyway. “I think she might have a concussion and possibly some internal injuries.”

“We’ll take good care of her, Sheriff. I will need to get some information from you.” Another nurse wheeled Londyn back into the emergency room.

“Date of birth?” the intake nurse asked.

Brodie rattled it off.

“Address?” Brodie wasn't sure how to answer that question. Was Londyn planning to stay in Pronghorn Falls, or would she be moving on? The thought tore at his heart, but he was just thankful that she’d survived the accident.

He pondered his answer and shrugged. He’d just give the ranch address.

If nothing else, it would take Londyn some time to heal before she moved on, and if Londyn was amenable, Mom would enjoy having her stay while she recuperated. He provided Mom’s address.

“Go ahead and have a seat,” the nurse told him after he had given the information. “We’ll let you go back with her in a few minutes.”

Next, Brodie dialed Mom's number.

“Hi, I was just about to get worried. I don't know the last time you were late to dinner, especially when we're having spaghetti.”

Mom knew him well. “Sorry, but there's been an emergency.”

“Are you all right?”

“I'm fine, but it was Londyn.”

“Londyn? She's in town?”

“I’m surprised she didn’t text you. Apparently, she was driving on the highway and lost control of her SUV. She was pulling a trailer and ended up in the borrow pit.”

Mom gasped. “Oh no, is she all right?”

“I think she will be. We've had quite a few accidents this evening with the hail, pounding rain, and strong winds.” He winced when he thought of the fatality. That could have been Londyn.

“We will be praying for her.”

“Thanks, I'm sure she’ll appreciate that. Would it be all right if she stayed with you? I'm not sure for how long because I don't know her plans, but she'll need somewhere for a few days after she's released from the hospital.”

“Absolutely. She knows my door is open anytime.”

“Thanks, Mom.”

“You are welcome. Did you get the call on the radio about the accident?”

“I did. The EMTs were tending to other car accidents, so I took Londyn to the ER.” He regretted the way his voice broke.

“That must have been a shock to see her.”

“Yeah, especially in that condition. She probably has a concussion. I’m hoping they’ll call me back soon and apprise me of her injuries.

” He took a deep breath. “I'm just grateful that guy had called it in and was there to help. The sight of her vehicle and then not knowing whether…” he cleared his throat.

“Anyway, God is good, and she'll be all right, so I will be there as soon as they get her settled.

I'm going to assume they'll keep her overnight.”

“That sounds fine. You get here when you can, and if not, I will save the spaghetti for you for tomorrow.”

“Depending on Londyn’s prognosis, I may just head home or even spend the night in the hospital.”

We'll be praying,” said Mom. “Oh, Roarke would like to say something to you before we hang up.”

“Hey, Bro, I overheard what happened. Do you need me to come to the hospital?”

“No, I think I'm good. The roads are pretty bad, and there's talk of some flash flooding, but thank you for the offer.”

“Anytime. Any idea why she's in town?”

“No idea at all. Her texts have been pretty vague since she left. I was surprised she hadn’t mentioned something to Mom.”

“Maybe the choice was sudden.”

“Could be.”

“Well, let me know if you need me.”

“Thanks, Roarke. Will do.” Brodie disconnected and attempted to distract his myriad of thoughts by watching a game show rerun from the 1980s on the flat-screen TV in front of him.

An hour later, Londyn was moved to a private room. Seeing Kayla Dwyer, one of his deputies’ wives, offered an extra layer of reassurance.