Maybe, With Conditions

by Mariella Starr

  The horses were screaming in distress.

  Matty was screaming.

  Nicole was screaming for Matty.

  "Quiet!' Dalton commanded. He leaned over to the backseat. "Matty, are you hurt?" He searched the boy for any visible injuries and didn't see any. However, the boy was screaming, trying to fight his way out of the safety seat.

  "Nicole, are you all right?" Dalton demanded.

  "Get Matty out," Nicole yelled, but there was pain evident in her voice.

  Dalton leaned over the seat and unhooked the safety latches. Meanwhile, someone in a pickup truck barely pulled off the edge of the road, threw on his emergency lights, and came sliding down to them. The stranger pulled open the smaller second door to the crew cab.

  "Get the boy out," Dalton ordered and the man nodded.

  Dalton turned his attention to Nicole. She was jammed against the passenger door where the side of the truck had crashed into the only good-sized tree within sight. There was a red mark on her cheek and a lump forming on her forehead. Because of the angle of the truck, he was having a hard time getting to her without falling onto her.

  "Come on, I'll help you out."

  "Is Matty hurt?" she demanded.

  "Not that I could see, only scared," Dalton said. "Let's get you out."

  "I can't get my leg out," Nicole cried. "It's stuck. I can't move it." She grimaced in pain and struggled to pull herself free. Her leg was caught in the crushed metal of the door. Maneuvering his large body around, Dalton managed to release the door lock and with all the strength in his legs, he pushed against the inside of the door panel. It gave a bit, enough to free her. The leg of her jeans was soaked in blood.

  He made sure she was clear before dragging and pushing her over him, handing her off to the man who was helping. While Dalton extricated himself from the cab, the helpful stranger carried Nicole to Matty where he sat on the embankment. The boy was still strapped into his safety seat and had rolled it over. He was screaming at the top of his lungs, fighting to get loose.

  Nicole didn't care about her injuries. She released Matty from the seat and inspected him from head to toe. She pulled at his clothing checking his skin for cuts or injuries. She attempted to calm her son although she was nearly hysterical herself.

  "Hey! You folks okay?"

  They looked up as a sheriff's deputy slid down the embankment toward them. "Do you need an ambulance?"

  "I don't know yet," Dalton answered going to Nicole to examine her. He gave a cursory look at the side of her face and the lump on her forehead where it had hit the window. He focused his attention on her leg.

  He squatted down beside Nicole. "I need to get your jeans off to see how much damage is done to your leg."

  Nicole nodded agreement and unsnapped the top of her jeans.

  The motorist who had stopped ran to his truck and returned with blankets and a towel. The deputy went to get his first aid kit.

  Dalton spread out one of the blankets, shifted Nicole onto it, and pulled down her jeans. The stranger took another blanket, turned his back, and held the blanket spread out behind him to shield the woman from himself, the deputy, and any rubbernecking travelers.

  "Thanks," Dalton said barely looking up. When he saw she was wearing a skimpy G-string pair of panties, he looked up to verify neither of the men could see her.

  Nicole's knee was already swelling and there was a small gash below her kneecap. Dalton swabbed the blood away and put a pressure bandage on the cut.

  "Nicole, this isn't good, but I don't believe anything is broken or life-threatening. I think the deputy should call an ambulance or take you to the hospital himself. Mount Grant General is only about thirty miles from here. He can get you and Matty there faster than I can. I'll follow."

  "What about the horses? What if they're injured?" she asked. "You can't leave without checking them."

  Dalton glanced over his shoulder at the trailer where he could still hear the horses whinnying in fear, but he hesitated.

  "I'm not hurt badly and Matty doesn't seem to be hurt at all, only frightened. Take care of the animals, please. I don't want them to suffer," Nicole pleaded. "You can come to the hospital as soon as you are through with them." She attempted a weak smile. "If it's like most emergency rooms, I'll still be in the waiting room when you get there."

  Dalton nodded. "I'll stay behind until someone from the ranch gets here to pull out the truck and get the horses squared away. Then, I'll come straight there."

  Nicole nodded because her knee and leg were beginning to throb.

  "If you can handle the transport for the animals and get the vehicles pulled out, I'll take her to Mount Grant," the deputy agreed.

  "I can handle this end," Dalton agreed. He wrapped Nicole in a blanket and carried her to the backseat of the deputy's car. The helpful stranger brought Matty, still crying and upset, and put him in the seat beside his mother.

  Dalton was on his cell before the deputy even pulled onto the highway. He called his grandparents who said they would head straight to the hospital. His grandfather said he would send a crew to transport the horses and bring the vehicles to the ranch.

  "Hold on, Granddad," Dalton asked. He turned to the man who had stopped to help. "I don't even know your name, but are you going to Hawthorne? Could you give me a lift?"

  The man held out his hand. "Jimmy Morse, and yeah, I'm going to Hawthorne. I'll give you a lift. I guess you're pretty anxious about your family. I would be."

  "Thanks," Dalton said shaking Jimmy Morse's hand with one hand while holding the cell phone with the other to talk to his grandfather. "Has Rawley finished replacing the engine in the blue F-150, yet? Good, I'll pick it up from his garage and use it to get us home if Mount Grant decides to keep her overnight. I'll leave here as soon as the ranch crew arrives. No, there's no reason to send another truck, I have a ride."

  Since the ranch was only twenty miles away as the crow flies, the way ranch folk measured distance, the crew was there in record time. Shortcutting through ranch roads and desert meant they could meet up at the scene of the accident much faster than traveling on paved roads or highways. By the time the large tow truck and horse transport arrived, Dalton and Jimmy Morse had removed the horses from the carrier and checked them over carefully. They were spooked, but it looked as if only one of them might have minor swelling in a knee. As soon as the ranch crew arrived, Dalton had a few words with the foreman of the Double C, who assured him they would take good care of the horses. Then, he and Jimmy Morse roared down the highway at eighty miles per hour toward Hawthorne.

  "Are you part of the outfit that came out?" Jimmy Morse asked. "I've heard good things about the Double C. They're supposed to be a fair outfit to work for."

  Dalton nodded. "They try."

  "Are they hiring?" Jimmy asked. "I'm heading for Hawthorne because I'm looking for a job. I was laid off four weeks ago and there's no work in Warm Springs. I've tried everywhere."

  "What do you do?" Dalton asked.

  "You name it and I've probably done it," Jimmy laughed. "I can handle the big machines, and operate anything from mud cats and cranes to backhoes. I've spent a lot of time making ‘em run, too. I don't have any mechanic certifications, but it never stopped me from fixing anything. I've spent my share of time wrangling, too. I spent two years working for a farrier and am pretty good at it. I'm also a fair hand at carpentry. I guess you could say I'm an all-around jack-of-all-trades. Never was no good at paperwork, but put a tool in my hand and show me how to use it, and I'll give a fair day's work."

  "You sound like a man handy to have around. Do you know where you will be staying in Hawthorne?" Dalton asked.

  Jimmy grinned. "Right here in this old truck. I gave my wife every penny I could spare to take care of her and my boys while I was gone. I've got two of them, sweetest little fellers you've ever seen. I left them behind staying with her folks until I can find a job. Something's got to break soon. I need a job to get my family back together." />
  Dalton looked around the cab of the truck. He noticed a crate holding a large jar of peanut butter and a partial loaf of bread, generic soda, and a plastic bag half-full of apples. Jimmy Morse pulled the truck in front of the wide double glass doors of the hospital. "Do you want me to wait around in case you need a ride somewhere?"

  Dalton smiled in gratitude. "No, my grandparents should be here." He reached into his back pocket to pull out his wallet. "What I want you to do is take this cash. Get yourself a good meal, and fill up your gas tank. Then, I want you to drive out to the Double C and tell Wayne Cummings, the foreman, I said to give you a bunkroom for the night. Tomorrow, we will find out if you are a good match to work at the ranch."

  The man looked stunned for a second. Then he grinned. "What's your name, mister?"

  Dalton smiled at the man, "Dalton Calloway of the Double C."

  Jimmy shook his head. "I'll be damned. If you're doing this on account of my stopping to help, that's not the right reason to hire a man."

  "I disagree," Dalton said. "When we went off the road, four other vehicles went by without stopping. You stopped, which shows integrity and character. I can't promise you a job, but if you can do what you claim, we'll probably be able to find a spot for you. I'm especially interested if you have farrier skills. I run a vet clinic on the ranch. However, our foreman makes the hiring decisions for the ranch, not me. I only hire for my clinic. If we have a position available and Wayne thinks you fit it, the job will be yours."

  "Well, I won't turn down an opportunity," Jimmy said still grinning. "I hope to see you at the Double C tomorrow. I hope your wife and little boy are okay, too."

  "Thank you," Dalton held out his hand and they shook on it.

  Dalton hurried inside Mount Grant Hospital where he found his grandparents sitting in the small waiting room with Matty sound asleep sprawled across his great-grandmother's lap.

  "Where's Nicole?"

  "They took her for an x-ray," Roy Mac Calloway, his grandfather, reported.

  "This one took to us right way," Helen Calloway whispered gently patting Matty on his back. "We didn't get much of an introduction to Nicole before they took her away. She was more concerned about getting this one checked over. He doesn't have a bruise or scratch on him."

  "That little gal is a firebrand," Roy Mac chuckled. "Told them flat out they weren't taking her anywhere until they examined her boy from top to bottom and she knew he was all right. The little fellow didn't care much for being examined."

  Dalton identified himself to a hospital volunteer who escorted him to the x-ray area where she told him to wait in a chair outside in the hall.

  Mount Grant Hospital was a far cry from an urban hospital. It was more of a walk-in clinic, but it did have the capability of taking x-rays and doing minor surgeries. Anything more complicated required a trip to Carson City. There were only eleven beds available for overnight occupancy.

  They finally wheeled Nicole out of the x-ray room. The side of her face was bruised, as was her forehead. Her leg was in a blue padded brace. She was arguing loudly with the attendant pushing her chair. Seeing Dalton, she turned to him.

  "Tell them I'm okay. I don't need to stay the night!" Nicole ordered.

  "It's not up to me," Dalton said. "The doctor on duty makes that call."

  "I don't want to stay," Nicole complained. She was still complaining a few minutes later when the staff took her into a room and put her into a hospital bed.

  "Why aren't you helping me," Nicole demanded in exasperation.

  "I am helping," Dalton said with a grin, as he took her bag of clothing from the nurse, walked out of the room with it, and came back a minute later empty handed.

  "What did you do with my clothes?"

  "Never mind, I'm making sure you do as you're told. For tonight, you'll look real sexy in a cotton gown open clear down the back."

  "Damn it, Dalton, get me out of here! Matty needs me," Nicole complained. "He's probably scared to death!"

  "Matty is sound asleep. He's already met his great-grandparents and he will be okay. They're taking him home with them," Dalton said in a gentle voice. "It's more important for you to be monitored. You hit the side window hard. I know you have a hard head, but the doctors want to make sure nothing got rattled in there."

  "You are so funny," Nicole snarled. "Help me get out of here!"

  "No," Dalton said firmly. "You're staying put, Nicole, and you don't have any say in it. I'll be with you tonight. If the doctors say you can leave tomorrow, I'll take you home."

  "But…"

  "You can't talk yourself out of this one, Nic, so stop trying. Trust me, Matty will be treated like a little prince." Dalton reassured.

  Nicole gave a tired sigh. "Go with him. At least, he knows you. Roy Mac and Helen are strangers."

  "He'll be fine," Dalton promised.

  * * *

  Nicole prepared for her grand entrance as they drove up the long lane to the ranch. The house was huge, looking more like a rustic lodge made of log and stone than a single-family home. She knew Dalton's family would be waiting and probably anxious about the woman involved with their grandson. Dalton had spent much of the last evening telling her about his upbringing, his parents, and his grandparents. She knew if his grandparents lived up to his descriptions, she would like them. The question was would they like her? How angry would they be because she had kept Matty a secret?

  Dalton pulled alongside the house in a huge parking area and parked beside a bunch of trucks and rugged-looking ranch vehicles. A young woman immediately jumped off the porch and ran to meet them. She was a tall and slim dark-haired dark-eyed beauty, suggesting a Latin heritage. Nicole knew this was Helen Calloway's cousin, several times removed, through a complicated family relationship. The girl, Kay, had been orphaned at an early age when they adopted her into their family as a daughter. Dalton considered her his little sister, not an aunt.

  "Hi, I'm Kay," the girl exclaimed. "Wow, you're young!" She looked quizzically at Dalton, "You didn't say she was so young! She's my age, you pervert."

  "Not exactly," Dalton said with an amused smile.

  Kay opened the door for Nicole. "Oh, wow, crutches. You'll hate using them. I had them last year with a broken foot and it was awful."

  Dalton moved around to the passenger side of the car and moved Kay out of the way. "Nicole, this chatterbox is Kay. Technically, she's my aunt. In reality, she's my bratty little sister. Kay, grab the crutches and the bag in the backseat, please." He easily lifted Nicole out of the car into his arms.

  "Put me down," Nicole demanded. "It's bad enough having to meet your grandparents under these circumstances. I don't want to be carried."

  "Don't be silly. They know you were hurt. They were at the hospital last night. Roy Mac would have my hide if I made you walk on crutches straight out of the hospital."

  His grandparents waited for them on the porch, but Matty ran to his parents and hugged Dalton's leg.

  "Hey, buddy," greeted Dalton. "Let me put Momma down and then I'll give you a big hug."

  Matty backed away and followed him as Dalton carried Nicole inside and deposited her on one of two oversized couches in the great room. Kay set the crutches within Nicole's reach leaning them against an end table.

  "Nic, if you didn't get introduced last night, this is my grandfather, Roy Mackenzie Calloway, everyone calls him Roy Mac and this is my grandmother, Helen. I call her Gran. Folks, this is Nicole Bennett."

  Roy Mac Dalton rolled his wheelchair over to the sofa and took Nicole's hand. "This big lug didn't bother to call us this morning. How're you feeling today, Nicole?"

  Nicole smiled stiffly. "I'm okay."

  "She doesn't have a concussion, but she might have headaches for a couple days," Dalton reported. "The knee isn't damaged too badly, but she has to take it easy for several days until the swelling goes down. Overall, it was primarily bruising and scrapes. The cut below her knee only took a few stitches."

  "Big mouth
," Nicole snipped.

  "I'm only telling them what they need to know."

  Matty came over to the sofa, but Dalton stopped him before he could climb into Nicole's lap. "Momma's a little sore right now, son. You have to be really careful with her."

  "Mommy, are you hurt?" Matty questioned looking up at his mother with worry etched on his little face.

  "Only a little bit," Nicole said moving carefully to give him a kiss as she glared at Dalton.

  He steadily returned her stare, but when Matty turned his head away, Nicole smacked Dalton on the shoulder—hard, and then softly hissed, "Stop scaring him!"

  "I'm not!" he protested in a whisper.

  Roy Mac Calloway laughed at the couple's antics. "Come here, Matty," he offered patting his knee. Matty went to him.

  "Is Matty short for Matthew?"

  The boy nodded his head shyly.

  "Well now, isn't this a coincidence," Roy Mac said looking pointedly at his wife.

  "No such thing, Granddad," Dalton disagreed. "Nicole named Matty after my Dad and you. His full name is Matthew Mackenzie Bennett."

  Roy Mac exchanged another look with his wife before taking Nicole's hand and looking her directly in the eye, "Thank you for honoring my son and me. Matty looks exactly as his father did when he was a little tagalong."

  Nicole smiled and then leaned back in the sofa closing her eyes for a second.

  "That's it," Dalton said. He scooped her into his arms and headed for the stairs. "I'm taking you upstairs to the guest room where you are going back to bed."