“You drive,” Travis said. “I’ll stay back here, watch the wheels, and push if I need to.”
Conner climbed into the driver’s seat and whistled for Bucket, who jumped onto the backseat. Switching on the ignition, he put the ATV in low gear. “Ready?” he called, glancing back at Travis.
“Gun it!” Travis said.
Conner stomped on the accelerator. The engine roared as the ATV strained forward. The load behind moved, but only
a little. Conner slowed to an idle. “Is everything okay back there?” he asked.
“Fine. You almost made it out. Let me get behind and push. That should do it.”
“You’re sure?”
“It’ll be fine,” Travis said. “All right, on the count of three, one . . . two . . . three!”
Conner revved the engine. The ATV roared forward as the trailer wheels jerked free and moved forward. Suddenly there was a terrible, splintering crash. Conner cut the engine, turned in the seat, and looked back on a nightmare scene.
The load of stacked trees had been secured by a rope going from one side of the trailer to the other. But there’d been nothing to keep them from sliding off the back.
Where Travis had stood to push the trailer from behind, there was nothing but a big mound of trees, still settling from the fall.
Chapter 12
Megan was getting ready for bed when the phone call came from Conner. “Sorry to be calling so late. It’s been a hellish day.” Exhaustion threaded his voice. “Travis is in the hospital. A load of trees fell on him.”
Megan’s heart dropped. Not Travis. Not big, gentle Travis, who was always looking out for everybody else—Travis, who was planning to marry the love of his life days from now.
“How bad . . .” She struggled to get the words out. “Is he going to be all right?”
“He’s got a concussion, a couple of broken ribs, and a lot of cuts and bruises. The doctors want to keep him a few more days, maybe do a scan to make sure he doesn’t have internal injuries. Maggie’s with him.”
Megan began to breathe again. At least it sounded as if Travis would recover. But what about the wedding?
“Rush and I will be cutting and selling trees all day tomorrow,” Conner said. “But I’m hoping you and I are still on for Sunday.”
“I was hoping the same thing,” Megan said. “But with Travis in the hospital, are you sure you’ll be up for a good time?”
“A good time with you is just what I need. Here’s what I’m thinking. If you don’t mind a change of plans, I could pick you up about eleven. We could drive to Cottonwood Springs and visit Travis in the hospital, then go somewhere special for lunch. After that, we could figure something out—maybe a movie or just a nice drive. I want to be with you, Megan. After a day like today, I need to be with you.”
And she needed to be with him, too, Megan thought. There was nothing she wanted more than to spend time alone with Conner—time for them to open up and really get to know each other.
But how could she open up to him when she’d been hiding the secret that was Lacy Leatherwood? And how could she slam him with the truth on their Sunday date when he was still reeling from his best friend’s accident?
Maybe the truth would have to wait.
Or maybe she was just being cowardly.
“Megan? Are you still there?”
She’d fallen silent. “Sorry, I’m still here. Your plan sounds fine.”
“You’re sure?”
“Absolutely. I’d like to see Travis and give him my best wishes—Maggie, too, if she’s still with him.”
“I’m guessing she will be. She hasn’t left his side.” He paused a moment. “I’ll see you on Sunday, then. You might not hear from me tomorrow. With the muddy mess at the ranch, Rush and I are moving the fire, cocoa, and marshmallow operation to Hank’s. We’ll probably keep it going there as long as there are customers tomorrow night.”
“No problem. I promised to take Daniel Christmas shopping after work to buy presents for Mom and Dad. So I’ll see you Sunday.”