Page 13 of Destined Chaos
“And me. Well, it was nice meeting you, Hugh. I’m sorry it wasn’t under better circumstances.” I stepped out from under the striped awning. My foot slipped from beneath me, sending me sprawling backward.
“Easy there,” Hugh said, pulling me against his chest and stopping my fall. “The rain turned to ice. You should be more careful.” He glanced down at my feet. “Maybe invest in some boots.”
“Thanks.” I couldn’t remember the last time I needed someone to save me. Yes, I could. I’d been five years old.
I righted my shirt and stepped out onto the sidewalk, heading for my SUV. I stepped off the curb, and my ankle twisted. My weight shifted, and I went down as a scream tore from my lips.
Pain radiated from my foot as I laid half on the curb and half off. The wet ice on the concrete started soaking into the butt of my jeans, sending an ice-cold chill down my legs.
Hugh appeared, staring down at me. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” I said, trying to stand, only to crumple again when I tried to put any weight on my foot. “No, maybe I’m not.”
I’d lowered my head, debating my next move, when muscular arms wrapped around my back and beneath my legs. Hugh hefted me in his arms. “You aren’t in any condition to drive, and my brother’s a doctor. We better get you looked at.”
“One of the Bennett seven?” I asked.
Hugh frowned. “Yeah.”
“You have a brother for everything?”
“Not for everything.”
I crinkled my nose. “I’m sorry, that was rude of me, and you’re just trying to help. I do appreciate it. Honest.”
Hugh carried me around to the passenger side of his truck. He eased me down and kept a firm hold wrapped around my waist while he opened the door, helping me into the cab and then closing the door. He jogged around to the other side and climbed in, starting the engine. He turned on the heater before backing out of the parking spot and heading down the road.
I’d thought this would be a quiet drive between two strangers that hardly knew each other. I was wrong.
Hugh turned down the radio and glanced my way. “What did Mrs. Weller mean when she said you’ve got fog?”
6
Libby
Fractured. I couldn’t believe I’d fractured my ankle, and it wasn’t even the ghost’s fault.
Hugh’s brother Dexter had hurried us through the process of paperwork and x-rays as if he were just as aware of the impending weather that Hugh had been talking about on the ride over.
I left with crutches and my ankle wrapped and stabilized in a boot. The process was quick and painless, if you didn’t count the poking and prodding when we’d first arrived.
My foot had doubled in size just in the half-hour we’d been in the hospital. This was just one more obstacle that was going to slow me down, but even a fractured foot wouldn’t stop me from getting everything done. No way was I letting this house defeat me.
Hugh parked in the driveway as the first snowflake fell.
I shoved open my door and was debating the easiest way to get out when Hugh rounded the truck and swooped me up into his arms, holding me against his chest. He smiled down at me. “Don’t worry. I don’t plan to make this a habit. Unless, of course, you ask me to.”
“I have crutches.”
“Yeah, well, there are steps and ice. So…” He didn’t elaborate as he carried me up onto the porch. He eased me down as I unlocked the door and pushed it open. He helped me hobble inside before jogging back outside.
I was sitting on the staircase when he returned with my crutches and shut the door behind him. His gaze softened as he stared at me with a mixture of pity and humor.
“You don’t have to stay.”
He glanced into the den at my sleeping bag and frowned while rubbing his neck. I could see the wheels spinning.
“I’m not your problem. I’ll manage.”
