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never loved her. Was it possible he’d lied to make her leave?

Shaking her head at herself, she turned back to the window and

stared out at the passing countryside. It didn’t matter if he’d loved

her back then or not. They were leading two separate lives now, and

she’d be going back to Little Rock in two days.

Her disappointment over not getting to see Drannon say ‘I do’

was magnified by the fact that Hawke, Franki, and Roman had left

for the cattle auction this morning. They planned on purchasing a

new bull at the auction, and with the added stress of the continuous

rain and the valley starting to flood, they’d wanted to get a jump on

the trip. She understood, but it meant she was stuck on the ranch with

only Marilyn, Vin, and two women she barely knew for company.

Not the best set-up for avoiding someone.

Lori King

A strange sound drew her attention to the front of the truck, and

she noted Marilyn’s hand pressed to her chest.

“Marilyn? Are you okay?”

The older woman nodded, but didn’t speak.

“What’s wrong?” Vin asked, jerking his head and the steering

wheel to the right. Concern made his tone sound harsh, but he

quickly righted the truck and toned his next question down. “Do I

need to stop?”

Again, Marilyn shook her head, but stayed quiet. Her breathing

was labored, and her cheeks were a mottled gray. She was clearly not

okay.

“Marilyn, if you don’t say something, I’m going to drive straight

to the nearest hospital.” Vin demanded. Lauren met his eyes in the

rearview mirror and gave him a small nod of agreement. Something

was wrong, and the hospital was the obvious next step.

Reaching for her purse, Marilyn shook her head again, fumbling

to pull out a small bottle of pills. She managed to get one in her

mouth, and her head fell back against the seat, and her eyes were

closed. Lauren plucked the bottle from her loose grip and read the tag

on the side.

“Nitroglycerin. Marilyn, what is this for?”

Lauren glanced at Vin when the woman ignored her question. He

was paler than normal and looking even more concerned. “It’s for her

heart.”

The words were like a gut punch, and Lauren dropped the bottle.

Thankfully, the lid stayed on when it hit the floor, and she scrambled

to scoop it back up and pass it back to Marilyn. “I didn’t know you

had heart problems.”

Marilyn’s color was looking better when she finally spoke up.

“I’ve had angina for years. I’m okay now, I promise.”

“Maybe we should go see Mark,” Vin offered, still sending

nervous glances at the woman in his passenger seat.

“No, that’s not necessary. It will pass. It always does. I’ll call

him later and let him know it happened.” Marilyn insisted, patting

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Lauren’s hand where it rested on her shoulder. “Don’t look so

worried, Lauren, dear. I’m feeling better now.”

“How often does that happen?” Lauren asked, still feeling shaky.

Marilyn had helped raise her. She was the last person alive who’d

had a specific impact in shaping her as an adult. The realization that

she was aging was mind-blowing.

“Not often,” Marilyn said, but her eyes skittered away from

Lauren’s to look out the front window again.

“Have you been to see a cardiac specialist?”

Marilyn nodded, but didn’t elaborate, and Lauren looked to Vin

for more information. He huffed with impatience, and frowned at the

older woman. “A couple years ago she went through a bunch of tests,

but they couldn’t do anything for her. She refuses to go back now,

even though I think the chest pains are coming more frequently.”

“I’m just fine.” Marilyn said stubbornly. “You kids just worry

too much. I’m an old woman, I’m supposed to have some minor

health issues.”

“Chest pains are serious, Marilyn. I think—” Lauren snapped her

jaws shut as they pulled into the driveway of Crawley Creek and got

a look at the grounds. “Holy shit.”

“Language,” Marilyn reminded her, but the words didn’t carry

any strength.

They all sat in the SUV staring at the east pasture in shock.

They’d had flooding in the low lying areas and the valley before, but

Lauren couldn’t remember the main pastures filling with water.

Looking out across what should have been at least forty acres of

uninterrupted grasses before the land dipped into a valley of trees and

a creek, there was nothing but water.

“I hope the hands got the herd in before the creek flooded. If that

pasture is flooded then there are at least four houses downstream a

ways that are, too,” Vin said, finally lifting his foot off the brake and

easing down the driveway. Thankfully, the buildings that made up

the main part of the ranch were on high ground, or they’d have much

bigger problems.

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“Should we go check on neighbors?” Lauren was imagining

families stranded in their homes by the high water.

“Probably a good idea to at least call them and warn them about

how high the water is. If we can’t get ahold of someone, one of us

can go check on them a bit later,” Vin agreed. Daniel was waiting for

Vin outside the garage when he parked the truck. Before he got out of

the vehicle, he reached for Marilyn’s hand, “Are you sure you’re

okay?”

“I’m fine, Vin. Lauren and I will go inside and start making

phone calls to check on neighbors. Bran will want to know we’re

dealing with this kind of flooding out here,” Marilyn assured him.

“Great, more phone calls,” Lauren groused with a laugh.

Meeting Vin’s eyes, she could see the concern for their ‘mama bear’,

and she gave him a reassuring smile. “I’ll take care of her, Vin.”

He nodded, and jumped out of the truck, hurrying to meet up

with Daniel and handle the ranch flooding. Lauren helped Marilyn

down and they hurried into the house, shaking rain from their jackets

once they were inside.

“I don’t remember it ever raining this much when I was a kid,”

Lauren commented.

Marilyn chuckled, “Oh we had a few gully washers back then,

but I must admit, I’ve never seen the pasture so waterlogged. I sure

hope it stops raining soon; otherwise, our high ground is going to be

under water.”

“You don’t think the flooding could really get that bad do you?”

Lauren was definitely worried now. The impact a serious flood

would have on the ranch as a whole would be monumental. Crawley

Creek was her North Star, the place she felt kept her grounded in life.

If it was gone…she shuddered at the thought.

“No, but that doesn’t mean I won’t take precautions. Why don’t

you check on Jeanette and Destiny, and I’ll give Bran a call.”

“Deal, but only if you promise to call the doctor, too.” Lauren

said firmly.

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“Once we get all of this business handled, I’ll call Mark, and set

an appointment,” Marilyn agreed. “Good grief, you kids are like dogs

with a bone.”

“You guys keep saying Mark, do you mean Mark Gillian?”

Grinning Marilyn nodded. “Sure do. He grew up and went to

medical school. Turned into a damn fine doctor.”

“Wow. I never imagined Mark as a doctor. I always figured he’d

be a movie star,” Lauren said, laughing.

“Oh, I know. All of you girls had a crush on him, but I think it

was just because he was an older boy. He’s married with three little

ones of his own now.”

“What happened to Luke?” Lauren asked, wondering about the

younger sibling. Luke might not have had the clean-cut movie star

features his older brother did, but he was still damn good looking in

his younger years.

“You’ve met Ricky? The young kid working on the ranch this

summer?” Marilyn asked. When Lauren nodded she grinned. “That’s

Luke’s son. Luke is a single dad and a veterinarian. He takes care of

all of the local livestock.”

“Whoa. I can’t believe the Gillian boys are dads.”

Marilyn snorted. “I can’t believe the Crawley Creek boys aren’t!

If I’ve ever met a bunch of men more suited to raising kids of their

own…” Her voice faded off, and she stared off into space.

After a moment Lauren nudged her. “Marilyn?”

The older woman jumped and looked startled, “Yes dear?”

“You were saying about the guys?.

“What? Oh, dear, I’ve lost my train of thought.” She brushed off

the forgetfulness with an airy wave. “I call that a senior moment.

Sometimes I just forget the words that are coming out of my mouth.”

Lauren laughed on the outside, but internally, she was

calculating Marilyn’s age. It wasn’t unusual for someone to have a

moment of forgetfulness, but the way it happened sent up warning

flags. She’d have to remember to mention it to the guys and see if it

was a regularly occurring thing.

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Parting ways, Marilyn headed for the kitchen, and Lauren ran up

the stairs to check in on Destiny. She’d settled into the Lilac room

comfortably enough after Hawke and Vin had gone and collected her

clothes. Lauren felt bad for the woman, because she had so little, and

apparently nothing had been kept when she’d gone missing. The idea

of being torn from her entire world and forced into prostitution was

too much for Lauren to even consider, and she tried to push it from

her head when she knocked on the bedroom door.

Smiling as the door swung open, she was surprised to find

Jeanette in the room as well. “Hey there! I was coming to find you

next. There’s some flooding in the pastures, and I wanted to make

sure you guys were all right.”

“We’re fine,” Jeanette gave her a look of concern, “Maybe I

should go get some things in case I have to stay here at the main

house tonight?”

“You’re in the Huck Finn, right? That cabin’s on high ground

with the main house, so I think you should be all right, but if you feel

more comfortable staying here, there’s plenty of room. I’m sure no

one would mind. The room right next door is empty.” Lauren said

with a shrug.

“Do you mind if I run to get some things?” Jeanette asked

Destiny, “We can continue our conversation when I get back.”

“Of course.” Destiny agreed, “Do you need a hand?”

“Nope, I’ve got it. Thanks.”

With that, Jeanette disappeared out the door leaving Lauren

alone with Destiny. Awkward tension filled the room because neither

knew what to say.

“So, um, I was going to go downstairs and have a piece of the

leftover wedding cake. Wanna join me?” Lauren asked cautiously.

Destiny brightened. “Sure. I’d like that.”

They made their way to the kitchen where Marilyn was just

hanging up the phone.

“Bran’s on his way out to see the pasture. Apparently there’s

flooding all over the area.”

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Lauren laughed, “I’m not surprised; the rain hasn’t stopped. It’s

like Mother Nature didn’t want me to come back to North Dakota

without a welcoming party.”

“He said they had to evacuate the Motel 8 down the highway

when the sewer system backed up because of the high water, and

they’re sandbagging the Blue,” Marilyn said solemnly.

“What’s the Blue?” Destiny asked, as Lauren made a sound of

disbelief.

“The river to our west. It runs through the Turtle Mountains. If

they’re sandbagging it, then the flooding is very serious.”

“Should we call Romeo and Hawke? Maybe they can turn

around and come back in case we need their help here,” Lauren

asked. “If the flood waters keep rising—”

“There’s nothing they can do that we can’t,” Marilyn insisted.

“We’re not going to worry about things until they come to pass. At

the moment we’re right where we should be, and that’s where we’re

going to stay.”

“There’s at least one thing I can do,” Lauren said firmly, digging

her cell phone from her pocket and scrolling through the contacts.

“Being in emergency management gives me a leg up on getting

assistance out here.”

She made a quick phone call to her office and explained the

situation to Jesse. He agreed to call the main office for Fast-Aid and

request a team be sent out to help the local authorities. If she hadn’t

been on vacation, she’d most likely be manning the team herself, but

that was against company rules while using paid time off. Instead,

she’d just have to be the emergency coordinator for Crawley Creek.

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