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“Leah.” Krista touched her arm and blue eyes snapped to Krista’s face. “It takes more than a plunge off a ladder to bring this guy down. Trust me. I once saw him almost split his head open on an ATV and yet, here he is still.”
“Yeah,” Noah said, “here he is being a major pain in the ass.”
“I need new friends.” Dakota’s arm was really starting to throb now. He did a quick inventory of the rest of his parts and decided his right arm must have taken the brunt of the impact. As far as injuries went, not the worst. At least he was left-handed.
A few minutes passed with Krista not able to get Leah to abandon her paralyzed post by Dakota’s side. He’d tried talking to her again, but Leah wasn’t registering anything around her. Dena and Jacy, even Luke, tried getting her to stand and have a seat at one of the tables. Her eyes remained wide and locked on him though he didn’t really think she was actually seeing him.
She’s seeing what happened to Chase and her family.
Sirens sounded outside the hall then EMTs bustled in. One took care of Dakota and Dena directed the other one to Leah.
“We think she’s in shock over seeing him fall,” Dena said. “It was pretty bad to watch.”
“Looks like a broken arm,” the EMT handling Dakota said. “Nothing too serious.”
“Hear that, Miss Greenstead?” Luke kneeled in front of Leah. “Dakota’s only a little busted, not all the way busted.”
With the EMTs help, Dakota got to a sitting position on the floor. He saw Leah’s gaze flick to the boy then flash over to him. He smiled at her, happy she’d snapped out of her trance.
“See, I’ll be fine.” He gestured to his arm. “I promise, Leah.” How could he make her understand that he knew what was running through her mind? How could he assure her that there was no risk in letting him into her heart?
“I have to go.” She stood suddenly, almost knocking over Jacy, who had been crouching beside her.
“Leah, wait…” Dakota started.
She bee-lined for the hall doors before he could finish, rushing through them and churning up dust in her wake.
“What do you want me to do?” Dena asked. “Should I go after her?”
Dakota wanted to go after her himself, but he couldn’t do that with a busted arm that was really aching now. “Her cottage isn’t far from here. Call Carter. Maybe he can head this way and pick her up.”
Dena nodded as she pulled out her phone and made the call.
“Let’s get you to the hospital,” the EMT said to him.
“I’ll cancel the two o’clock hike,” Krista said, digging her phone out of her pocket.
“I can still—”
A multitude ofnoresponses hit him from all sides.
“You rest,” Noah said. “Because you know Nana is going to expect you to still come to her birthday bash whether you’re injured or not.”
His buddy had a point. One didn’t disappoint Nana. And really, a broken arm wasn’t that big of a deal. He’d broken arms before. He’d be fine.
Dakota was more worried about Leah. They’d had a wonderful night and morning and he felt as if things were heading in a forward direction. Her reaction to him falling, however, made him acutely aware of how deep the scars of her past were. He didn’t fault her. She’d endured a horrible tragedy and seeing him sail and smack to the floor was another reminder of how easy it was to lose someone.
Dammit.
He wanted to wring the necks of those clumsy-ass hall workers, but he needed two good arms to do it properly.
The second EMT wheeled in a gurney.
“Oh, c’mon, guys,” Dakota said from his seated position on the floor. “A gurney? Totally unnecessary.”
He started to get up, but Luke stopped him by standing in front of him with his arms folded across his chest. “Don’t be a baby, Dakota.”
“How am I being a baby?” Why did the whine in his voicesoundlike a baby?
