outrun the blade or
not, the blue sky
above him went black.
121
20
e would have come back for them
sooner or
Hlater.
Colby eyed the set of keys bouncing
on her dashboard. She
wouldn't have bothered to drop them
off if she hadn't
needed to deliver some medicine to
the Carter farm
anyway. When she'd gotten back from
lunch, Stacey found
them on the bench where Ian had been
sitting next to Don
Juan. Realizing they must have been
for something other
than his car, Colby told Stacey she
would take care of
them, not mentioning that she
thought they were Ian's. That
way there would be no probing
questions.
She could have mailed them to him.
Asked Stacey to
run them by his house. Left them
outside the clinic for
him to pick up. But here she was.
Delivering them in
person when common sense told her
she shouldn't be.
Pul ing up to the house, she cut the
engine and sat for
a moment. The front yard looked
newly mown. The pasture
gate hung open. She went to the back
door of the house and
122
GOOD GUYS LOVE DOGS
knocked, but no answer. Ian's car
sat in the driveway
though.
She peered out across the yard, then
toward the field
behind the barn, hearing a noise she
didn't recognize.
It sounded like an engine running.
Faint, but a definite
chug, chug, chug. A tractor
engine.
She stepped down from the porch and
cal ed out,
“Ian?
Silence except for the stil idling
machine.
She ventured to the open gate. He
wouldn't be out on
the tractor. Would he? She'd walk
out a bit and see.
She'd gone no more than fifty yards
past the gate when
she spotted the tractor sitting at a
crazy angle on the hil .
And then she saw Ian. She took off
at a run for the ravine at
the bottom of the incline.
He lay flat on his back, his face
turned to one side. Her
first thought? He was dead.
Her heart pounded against the wal of
her chest, and
sweat beaded across her forehead.
Dropping down beside him, she
checked his pulse,
relieved to find it steady.
“Ian? She put her
hand to his cheek and repeated his
name several times.
His eyes opened final y, slowly, his
pupils dilated and
unfocused. “What
happened?
“You must have
had an accident. Can you move? Where
do you hurt?
123
INGLATH COOPER
“I'm not sure. He
tried to struggle up on one elbow,
then sank back onto the ground, one
hand going to his
neck. “Ouch. That
answers that.
“Don't move, she
said. “You might have a
concussion. Wait here and I'l go cal
the rescue squad.
“No. Don't. No
need for that.
“We won't know
until we get you checked out. I'll be
right back, okay?
He nodded, wincing again as if the
action made his
head hurt.
“I'm going to
turn off the tractor first, she said,
heading up the hil at a run.
Part of the blade lay on the slope,
as if it had been
broken off. A few yards from the
machine, she thought she
noticed one tire roll back slightly.
She kept her gaze on the
tires. The right one slipped a
notch. It was moving! She sent
a frantic look over her left
shoulder. Ian lay in the direct
path of the now-rolling tractor.
She had no time to try to stop it.
Without thinking,
Colby sprinted toward Ian, reacting
on pure adrenaline. A
glance back told her the machine was
gaining on her. She
tackled him, and rol ed, pul ing him
with her. Over and over
they went. She groaned with each
turn.
They came to a stop at the edge of
the creek, Ian lying
on top of her. Neither of them
moved.
“Do you want to
tel me what that was— he began,
then glanced up the hil and spotted
the tractor, which now
sat where he had just been lying,
the engine stalled. He
looked down at her, a stunned
expression on his face.
124
GOOD GUYS LOVE DOGS
Colby tried to find her voice, too
aware of the muscular
length of the man whose body pressed
into hers.
She scooted out from under him as if
someone just set a
match to the seat of her pants. She
tried to sit up, moaned
and sank back down on
not, the blue sky
above him went black.
121
20
e would have come back for them
sooner or
Hlater.
Colby eyed the set of keys bouncing
on her dashboard. She
wouldn't have bothered to drop them
off if she hadn't
needed to deliver some medicine to
the Carter farm
anyway. When she'd gotten back from
lunch, Stacey found
them on the bench where Ian had been
sitting next to Don
Juan. Realizing they must have been
for something other
than his car, Colby told Stacey she
would take care of
them, not mentioning that she
thought they were Ian's. That
way there would be no probing
questions.
She could have mailed them to him.
Asked Stacey to
run them by his house. Left them
outside the clinic for
him to pick up. But here she was.
Delivering them in
person when common sense told her
she shouldn't be.
Pul ing up to the house, she cut the
engine and sat for
a moment. The front yard looked
newly mown. The pasture
gate hung open. She went to the back
door of the house and
122
GOOD GUYS LOVE DOGS
knocked, but no answer. Ian's car
sat in the driveway
though.
She peered out across the yard, then
toward the field
behind the barn, hearing a noise she
didn't recognize.
It sounded like an engine running.
Faint, but a definite
chug, chug, chug. A tractor
engine.
She stepped down from the porch and
cal ed out,
“Ian?
Silence except for the stil idling
machine.
She ventured to the open gate. He
wouldn't be out on
the tractor. Would he? She'd walk
out a bit and see.
She'd gone no more than fifty yards
past the gate when
she spotted the tractor sitting at a
crazy angle on the hil .
And then she saw Ian. She took off
at a run for the ravine at
the bottom of the incline.
He lay flat on his back, his face
turned to one side. Her
first thought? He was dead.
Her heart pounded against the wal of
her chest, and
sweat beaded across her forehead.
Dropping down beside him, she
checked his pulse,
relieved to find it steady.
“Ian? She put her
hand to his cheek and repeated his
name several times.
His eyes opened final y, slowly, his
pupils dilated and
unfocused. “What
happened?
“You must have
had an accident. Can you move? Where
do you hurt?
123
INGLATH COOPER
“I'm not sure. He
tried to struggle up on one elbow,
then sank back onto the ground, one
hand going to his
neck. “Ouch. That
answers that.
“Don't move, she
said. “You might have a
concussion. Wait here and I'l go cal
the rescue squad.
“No. Don't. No
need for that.
“We won't know
until we get you checked out. I'll be
right back, okay?
He nodded, wincing again as if the
action made his
head hurt.
“I'm going to
turn off the tractor first, she said,
heading up the hil at a run.
Part of the blade lay on the slope,
as if it had been
broken off. A few yards from the
machine, she thought she
noticed one tire roll back slightly.
She kept her gaze on the
tires. The right one slipped a
notch. It was moving! She sent
a frantic look over her left
shoulder. Ian lay in the direct
path of the now-rolling tractor.
She had no time to try to stop it.
Without thinking,
Colby sprinted toward Ian, reacting
on pure adrenaline. A
glance back told her the machine was
gaining on her. She
tackled him, and rol ed, pul ing him
with her. Over and over
they went. She groaned with each
turn.
They came to a stop at the edge of
the creek, Ian lying
on top of her. Neither of them
moved.
“Do you want to
tel me what that was— he began,
then glanced up the hil and spotted
the tractor, which now
sat where he had just been lying,
the engine stalled. He
looked down at her, a stunned
expression on his face.
124
GOOD GUYS LOVE DOGS
Colby tried to find her voice, too
aware of the muscular
length of the man whose body pressed
into hers.
She scooted out from under him as if
someone just set a
match to the seat of her pants. She
tried to sit up, moaned
and sank back down on
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