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mountain. The sheriff needed to be brought in on this, so he was going to have to drive to town to get him.
    He hesitated. What if the wire was gone by the time he got back? He shrugged. It was a chance he’d have to take.
    Walking like an old man, he turned and went back to his SUV. His vision kept blurring, and he found it hard to keep the SUV on his own side of the road. Another vehicle stopped in front of him, and he slammed on the breaks. His head snapped forward, then back and he sank into darkness.
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    The dusty SUV had almost T-boned her. Shaken, Skye gripped the steering wheel and tried to quiet the sudden thumping of her heart. Whoever he was, he’d run a stop sign and hit a rock. She threw open her door and hopped out onto the macadam road. Steam was escaping from the SUV’s hood. As she neared the vehicle, she recognized the man inside.
    Jake’s head lolled to one side, and he was covered in blood and dirt. Skye ran forward and opened the vehicle’s door. “Jake!” She touched his face, but he didn’t respond. Her cell phone was in the truck.
    Racing back to her truck, she scrabbled for her purse and found her cell phone. She dialed 911 and told the dispatcher to send an ambulance. Her father had always insisted on a first-aid pack in the truck, but Skye had never had occasion to use it. She opened the glove box and rummaged inside. She found antiseptic wipes, antibiotic ointment and Band-Aids.
    Jake was moving restlessly by the time she got back to his SUV. His eyes fluttered, and he moaned when she cleansed his wounds with the wipes.
    He sat up. “What happened?”
    â€œYou tell me. I found you passed out cold after you nearly hit me.” Skye dabbed ointment on the cuts around his eyes and forehead. His lips were cracked, too, but she didn’t think he’d take kindly to greasy ointment on them.
    â€œSomeone tried to kill me.” He leaned forward onto the steering wheel. “I think I’m going to throw up.”
    Skye massaged the back of his neck. “Take deep breaths,” she advised. She didn’t like his pallor under the dirt. Trying not to hurt him, she probed his thick hair for lumps. She suspected he had at least a mild concussion.
    â€œOuch!” He jerked his head away. “I’m fine, quit fussing.”
    â€œYou’re not fine. And where’s your hat?” she added, feeling like an idiot for asking the question. He didn’t look the same without his hat. His vulnerability tugged at her heart, and she didn’t like the way it made her feel.
    â€œFell off when I pitched over the cliff,” he mumbled. He closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the headrest.
    He’d fallen over a cliff? What if he had broken something? She touched his forehead, and his skin felt clammy. “Hang in there, Jake. Help is on the way.”
    â€œShould have run when I took one look at you,” he mumbled. “So beautiful.”
    Her heart took a sudden leap like a deer running from a bear. He thought she was beautiful? She swallowed hard and stepped back as she heard the wah-wah of the ambulance in the distance.
    Jake’s eyes snapped open, and he stared at her. Skye was drawn into the dark depths. What made him tick? He seemed so driven about his career, so passionate.
    He reached out his hand and touched her long braid with grimy fingers. “You tied your hair all up again. I liked it down.” He closed his eyes again.
    She would have sworn he wouldn’t notice her hair in church. She didn’t understand this attraction she felt toward him. He was a roving sort of guy, and she craved stability above all else. Men like him could chew her up and spit her out faster than she could react.
    The ambulance’s siren grew louder, and she turned to see the plume of dust behind the vehicle as it came toward them. The paramedics jumped from the ambulance and ran to Jake’s SUV.
    Jake opened his