Read Parker for Free Online Page B

the
hospital.”
    Crouching beside her, he slipped his arms
around Reba’s back and cradled her against his chest. “I’m getting
you some help, dammit, whether you want it or not.” He fussed at
her, hoping she couldn’t hear him. Hell, he didn’t care if she
could hear him.
    “I’m coming with you,” Callie said.
    “Fine. Good.” He’d probably need the help. He
headed for the door, then stopped short and glanced about. “Find
Reba’s purse. She might need her driver’s license, insurance cards…
Hell, I don’t know, a woman always needs her purse.”
    “Okay. Will do. I called 911.”
    “I’ll get us there faster.”
    “Should I call them back?”
    Parker halted again and stared at his sister.
“Get the purse. You can call them back in the truck.” Hell, Callie
was usually levelheaded.
    And so was he. But right now his gut twisted
up in worry. He hoped he could drive.
    Of course he could drive. He would get her
there safely. Faster.
    He shouldn’t have left her this morning. Dammit!
    Kicking through the front door, he rushed to
his truck and then yelled, “Callie!”
    An eternity passed while he waited for her.
Finally, Reba’s heavy pine front door slammed shut and Callie
tripped down the front steps, her phone to her ear.
    “Mike said he’d meet us at the ER.”
    “Great. Open the back door,” he said,
indicating the extended cab. “Slide in on the bench seat, and I’ll
lay her down beside you.”
    “Okay. I got her purse, some ice in a baggy,
and a cold cloth. And a bottle of water. Maybe that will help.”
    “Can’t hurt.”
    He deposited Reba on the seat, swept the hair
out of her face and lingered for a brief moment looking at her
closed eyes and her bruised face. Something jerked inside his chest
and curled into this stomach, and then he glanced away, trying to
rid himself of a nagging feeling of… What was it? Fear?
    Worry. Maybe. Yes.
    Both. He was worried and he was afraid for
Reba.
    He retreated and closed the door. Seconds
later, he was in the cab, had started the engine, and headed down
the lane toward the main road.
    It was an hour’s drive to the hospital.
Probably a long one.
    Eyes on the road, McKenna. Just get her
there.
    ****
    Reba was in a vehicle. A moving vehicle. She
just didn’t remember how she got there or why. So, she lay still,
eyes closed, and listened.
    All she heard was her heart pounding, and
that was a bit of a distraction.
    After a moment, she slowly opened her eyes.
She was in the extended cab of a pickup truck, looking up at the
back of a headrest and a cowboy’s head.
    “Where are we going?” she managed to get
out.
    “Reba?” A woman’s voice came from her right.
She strained to look that way, but at the same time, the woman’s
face was suddenly next to hers.
    “Yes,” she squeaked out. “Where are we
going?”
    “To the hospital. You passed out.”
    “Oh.” It was coming back to her. “In my
kitchen?”
    “Yes. Here,” she said with a soft voice. “Do
you want to try to sit up?”
    A voice barked from the driver’s seat before
she could respond. “Maybe she shouldn’t, Callie.”
    Callie. That’s right. Callie McKenna.
And the cowboy must be her brother. Parker. Whom she had
kissed.
    Ugh.
    Reba pushed up on an elbow. “Yes, help me sit
up please,” she said. As she moved slowly into a sitting position,
she added, “Pretty soon you all are going to start charging me a
fee for coming to my rescue. What happened?”
    “You fainted. Out cold. Twice.”
    “Twice? I can’t imagine why… Oh.”
    “Oh?” She glanced up to see Parker looking at
her in the rearview mirror. “You know why you passed out?”
    “I might be dehydrated,” she said. “And the
altitude still bothers me a little.”
    “Oh my God, Reba. Here.” Callie twisted the
cap off the water bottle and handed it to her. “Drink up.”
    She turned to Callie and said, “Thank you. I
still feel a little weak and fuzzyheaded. I probably need to