For a moment nothing happened. Then metal screamed. The door jerked outward with a violent snap that echoed across the ditch. Adam cut the engine immediately and ran back toward her to yank the door the rest of the way open. He reached inside. “There we go.”
Cold rain blasted into the cab, soaking both of them instantly. Bianca exhaled in relief. “Thank you. I thought I’d have to spend the rest of my life in this stupid seat.”
“That would be a shame.” Water dripped from the rim of his hat onto the steering wheel. He paused when he saw the awkward position of her leg beneath the steering column. “Can you move it?”
She tried carefully. “Yes, but it feels swollen.”
“All right.” He pushed the column out of the way with one hand. Man, he was strong. Not superhero strong, but with muscled-cowboy strength. He slid one arm behind her shoulders and another beneath her knees before she could protest. With a smooth motion he lifted her from the driver’s seat and stepped back into the rain.
She ducked her head against his chest, shutting her eyes against the blistering wind. Lightning flashed again, illuminating the wreck behind them and the twisted fence posts scattered across the field.
He opened the passenger door of his pickup and set Bianca gently onto the seat. Warm air from the heater washed over her chilled skin.
She dropped back against the headrest and let out a long breath.
He closed the door and walked around the front of the truck. When he climbed into the driver’s seat he studied her carefully. “You sure you’re okay?”
“I think so.” She looked down at her pounding knee. “Um, thank you for the rescue.” She was soaked through, her knee hurt, and still, a soft warmth filtered through her. He’d gotten the door open, freed her knee, and carried her to safety like a guy at the end of a rom-com.
Adam turned up the heat. “No problem. I was hurrying home to get ready for our date.”
She blinked.
“Well,” she said after a moment, “this is certainly memorable.”
He glanced at her sideways, a hint of a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. “Yeah,” he said. “I’d say the evening took a turn. Let’s go check you out, darlin.’”
Adam keptboth hands on the wheel, but his attention stayed split between the road, the storm, and Bianca. Her scent was warm and sweet, like heated honey.
The wipers fought a losing battle against the rain. Each sweep cleared a narrow view and then the windshield blurred over again, water sluicing sideways in sheets. Lightning flashed often enough that the pasture alternated between darkness and harsh brightness.
He’d lost his breath when he saw her rental car sinking in that ditch.
Bianca sat slumped in his passenger seat, her wet hair dripping onto the collar of the spare jacket he’d thrown over her shoulders. She looked small in his truck, even fragile.
The woman was made for paved roads and city lights. Not darkness and danger from the land all around her. He glanced over again. “You dizzy?”
Bianca blinked and then looked at him. “No. Just wet.”
“That’s fixable.”
A faint, shaky breath of a laugh left her. “So is my car?”
He snorted. “That rental’s going to need prayer and new front end. I’ll have our local mechanic come out and pick it up once the storm passes.” He eased the truck around a curve, tires biting into the slick dirt. His ranch road was up ahead, a narrow turnoff hidden behind a stand of cottonwoods.
The ranch wasn’t big. Not compared to the spreads around here. He had enough pasture to run cattle with his friends, alongside the bar income. The space suited him.
Bianca shifted in the seat as the truck bumped along the rutted lane. “Where are we going?”
“My place.”
Her brows rose. “Um, I don’t know.”
He breathed out. “That’s fair. I’d like to give you dry clothes, check out your knee, and then hand over a warmed brandy. If all is well and you don’t have to see the doctor, I’d like to talk about this movie situation. However, if you want me to take you to town right now, I will.” He didn’t want to scare her, and she was smart to be wary of any man she didn’t know.
Her shoulders rolled. “I’m fine going to your place.”
Amusement caught him. “No way in hell am I allowing a film crew anywhere near my home, pretty Bianca. So don’t be scouting the place. Also, I won’t hurt you or even make a move. But if you want me to take you to Mrs. Shiller’s, or even the doctor’s place, I will in a second.”