Sneak Preview Accidental Hero #3
He nodded vehemently. “I’ll follow you.” He jogged back to his truck.
Since the ambulance was on the opposite side of the highway, he turned on his blinker and put his oversized tires to good use while crossing the median.
He had to spin his wheels a bit in the center of the median to get his tires to grab the sandy incline leading to the other side.
He was grateful all over again that he’d splurged on a few upgrades for his truck to make it fit for off-roading.
He followed the ambulance north and found himself driving the final twenty minutes or so to Amarillo, probably because it boasted bigger medical facilities than those found in the smaller surrounding towns.
Due to another vehicle leaving the hospital parking lot right as he was entering it, Matt was able to grab a decently close spot.
He hurried across the parking lot and entered the waiting room, where he dropped Star Corrigan’s name a few times and tried to make it sound like he was a friend of the patient.
Looking doubtful, the receptionist made him wait while she paged Star, who appeared a short time later to escort him into the emergency room. “Bree’s in Bay 6,” she informed him in a strained voice. She reached for one of his arms and practically dragging him behind the curtain.
If anything, Bree looked even thinner and more fragile than she had outside on the highway. A nurse was leaning over her, inserting an I.V. into her arm .
“She hasn’t woken up.” Star’s voice was soft, barely above a whisper. “They’re pretty sure she has a concussion. Sounds like they’re gonna run a full battery of tests to figure out what’s going on.”
Matt nodded, not sure what to say.
The lovely EMT’s pager went off only seconds later. She snatched it up and scowled at it. “I just got another call. It’s a busy day out there for motorists.” She texted a message on her cell phone, then cast him a sideways glance. “Any chance you can stick around until Bree’s brother gets here?”
It hit Matt that this must have been the EMT’s goal all along — to ensure that her friend wasn’t left alone. She’d known she could get called away to another job.
“Not a problem.” He offered what he hoped was a reassuring smile. Now that they’d reached Amarillo, he was at his destination. “I wasn’t planning on going far, anyway. I’ve got an interview at Pantex in the morning.”
“No kidding! Well, good luck with that.” She gave him a curious, searching look. “Some of my friends moved up this way for jobs after high school.”
Officer Emmitt McCarty had said something similar. “Hey, ah…” Matt hated detaining the EMT any longer than necessary, but it might not hurt to know a few more details about her unconscious friend, since he was about to be alone with her. “Mind telling me Bree’s last name?”
“Anderson. Her brother is Brody. Brody Anderson. They run a ranch about halfway between here and Hereford, so it’ll take him a good twenty to thirty minutes to make it to the hospital.”
“It’s alright. I can stay as long as you need me to.
It was nice meeting you, by the way.” His gaze landed on Bree’s left hand, which was resting limply atop the white blankets on her bed.
She wasn’t wearing a wedding ring. Unsure why he’d even looked, he forced his gaze back to Star.
“Sorry about the circumstances, of course.”
“Me, too.” She shot another worried look at her friend and dropped her voice conspiratorially.
“Hey, you’re really not supposed to be back here since you’re not family, but I sort of begged the powers that be and they sort of agreed to overlook the rules until Brody gets here. ” She gave him a pleading look.
“Understood.” He could tell she hated the necessity of leaving. “I’ll stick around until he arrives, even if I get booted to the waiting room.”
“Thanks a million!” Star whipped out her cell phone. “How about we trade numbers in case you need to reach me for anything?”
Wow! Matt hadn’t been expecting the beautiful EMT to offer him her phone number. Not that he was complaining. It was a boost to his damaged ego. He dug for his phone. “I’m ready when you’re ready.”
She rattled off her number. He quickly typed it in and texted her back so she would have his number.
“Take care of her for me, Matt,” Star pleaded.
There was nothing whatsoever flirtatious about her words or tone.
Their exchange of phone numbers wasn’t about snagging the contact information from a random single guy she’d run into.
It was solely about staying in touch concerning her friend’s condition.
“I’ll do my best.” Matt fist-bumped her.
Looking grateful, she pushed aside the curtain to Bay 6 and was gone. The nurse followed, presumably to report Bree’s vitals to the doctor on duty.
Matt moved to the foot of the hospital bed. “Who do you think I am, Bree?” And why did you ask me not to leave you ?
Her long blonde eyelashes remained motionless against her cheeks. It looked like he was going to have to stick around for a while if he wanted answers.