Under the Open Sky (Montana Heritage Series) (12 page)

             
“Ouch!” Jenny commiserated before hopping onto the hood beside Amanda. “You think it needs stitches?”

             
“Cade doesn’t think so,” Amanda supplied.

             
“Hold this,” Cade shoved the bag of supplies at Amanda. She took the bag obediently and watched curiously as he wet square gauze. “This is going to hurt but there’s dirt in the wound,” he warned her. Amanda bit her lip and nodded. A moment later she yelped and yanked her knee away.

             
“You prefer the hospital?” Cade asked impatiently.

             
“No,” Amanda glared back him, “but that really hurt.”

             
“Sorry, you want to clean it?” he offered her the gauze. Amanda shook her head and reluctantly turned back to him. She would lose her nerve and she knew it. She wasn’t certain what she intended to go to college for but she knew it wouldn’t be nursing. Animal births and injuries she was immune to. Human pain she preferred to avoid; especially her own. Amanda hunched forward, her teeth chattering, partially from cold and partially in dread of what lay ahead.

             
“There’s two blankets behind the seat of my truck, could someone get them please?” Cade asked of no one in particular. Trent looked relieved to have something to do as he turned to do as requested. Amanda gritted her teeth when Cade started wiping the cut clean. Tears escaped despite her best efforts and Amanda resented them as much as the pain that had caused them.

             
“Here,” Trent thrust a blanket at Amanda and one at Jenny.

             
“Thanks,” Amanda managed through her gritted teeth. She wrapped herself in the blanket and tried smiling her appreciation at Jenny when she took the bag from Amanda.

             
“Peroxide?” Jenny offered to Cade when he laid aside the gauze.

             
“Thanks,” he took the bottle and poured a generous amount over the wound; he repeated the process several times.

             
“It looks better already,” Trent offered hopefully as he peered over Cade’s shoulder.

             
“It does,” Amanda agreed as she leaned over to peer at it. It no longer looked quite as angry and the burning was slowly subsiding. She could now clearly see the injury. It ran across the lower portion of her knee cap and gaped open slightly; she felt slightly nauseated at the sight. No longer wishing to see it, she sat back up and fixed her gaze on the top of Cade’s head as he leaned back over her knee. Iodine, which burned, antibiotic ointment, and a bandage later and Cade was through.

             
“You alright?” he asked her; she nodded.

             
“Thanks.”

             
“Sure,” he shrugged.

             
“You sure you’re okay, Mandy?” Trent was watching her in concern.

             
“I’m certain, just let me sit here a few minutes and I’ll be good as new,” she assured him.

             
“Awright,” he nodded and turned to move off a few feet where he removed his shirt and wrung it out. Cade followed suit and Amanda allowed herself to admire him for a moment. His muscles bunched and moved in quite an impressive show. She wasn’t aware she had sighed until Jenny spoke beside her.

             
“Oh sweetheart, that one’s trouble,” Jenny warned.

             
“I’m aware of that, believe me,” Amanda shook her head with a self-derisive smile.

             
“He is awfully appealing trouble though isn’t he?” Jenny queried, her eyes lit with amusement.

             
Amanda laughed and nodded.

             
“What’s so funny?” Trent asked as he approached.

             
“That one too,” Jenny added, her voice low. Amanda glanced at Jenny in surprise. Jenny was smiling, but her smile appeared almost bittersweet.

             
“I asked what was so funny.” Trent was standing in front of them now.

             
“None of your business,” Amanda returned.

             
“That usually means you’re up to something,” Trent pointed out.

             
“We were having a private conversation. You know what private means, right?” Amanda tilted her head in inquiry.

             
“One of these days that smart mouth of yours is going to get you in trouble,” Trent warned her.

             
“Wouldn’t be the first time,” she acknowledged; it garnered a smile from him. He had been witness to more than one dressing down she had received from Naomi for speaking her mind at inopportune moments.

             
“And still you haven’t learned.”

             
“Nope,” she offered him a cheeky grin.

             
“So how did we end up playing babysitter to these two anyway?” Cade teased as he approached.

             
“You agreed to give my sister a ride to town,” Trent reminded him.

             
“What does that have to do with you, Trent?” Jenny asked him, her smile teasing. Trent grunted and turned to walk away without answering.

             
“What did I say?” Jenny demanded.

             
“I tricked him into coming,” Amanda reminded her. 

             
“Oh yeah,” Jenny smiled.

             
“I need to find my boots,” Amanda scooted the edge of the hood to hop to the ground.

             
“Don’t jump,” Cade stopped her before she could follow through with her plan. “You’ll start your leg bleeding again,” he chastised as he set her on the ground.

             
“Thanks, Cade,” Amanda, unwilling to meet his gaze, muttered. She was fairly certain her cheeks were scarlet. The combination of his nearness coupled with his hands at her waist was more awareness than she needed. The air almost felt charged around her, though she was certain it was own imagination. She had hobbled a few steps when Jenny caught up with her and linked her arm through hers.

             
“Trouble really should not present itself in such appealing packages,” Jenny offered as she leaned in close to Amanda, her gaze still over her shoulder to where the guys stood together. Amanda smiled and shook her head at her new friend.

             
By the time Amanda had found her boots, pulled them on, and walked the stiffness from her knee, her brother was ready to go.

             
“Could I get a ride home?” Jenny requested. “It’s getting close to my curfew and most of the others are allowed out later than me,” she explained.

             
“Hop in,” Cade nodded.

             
“Thanks,” Jenny offered him a brilliant smile before climbing in behind Amanda.

             
“Sure,” Cade offered another of his careless shrugs. They were soon bumping back down the road to the tower. Once they reached the highway, Cade cranked the windows down to help dry their clothes and laid his arm on the window.

             
“Thanks so much for the ride. I’m really glad you came tonight. It was nice to be out and you made it more fun.”

             
“Glad to be the life of the party,” Amanda joked.

             
“Seriously, I really enjoyed hanging out with you guys.”

             
“I had fun too,” Amanda admitted.

             
“I’m serious about the ride, Amanda, anytime you need a ride, just give me a call,” Jenny offered.

             
“Thanks, I will.”

             
“I’m not sure you two together are such a good idea,” Trent teased them.

             
“We’re great together,” Jenny countered as they turned into her family’s drive.

             
Trent climbed from the truck to let Jenny out, his gaze troubled as it landed on the familiar home.

             
“I see your parents still haven’t fixed the porch light,” he noted almost absently.

             
“No, Mom says she’s given up,” Jenny supplied.

             
“I’ll walk you to the door, though I figure you’d be fine on your own,” Trent shrugged and waited for her to nod her consent. Her heart heavy, Amanda watched him disappear into the darkness. Coming here was understandably difficult for her brother.

             
Cade hopped from the truck and turned to Amanda. “Scoot over,” he nodded to the driver’s seat.

             
“What?” she frowned at him?

             
“You’re driving.”

             
“Seriously?”

             
“Seriously,” he closed the door and circled the truck. Amanda scooted over, somewhat in shock that he had offered. She had to pull teeth to get to drive with her Daddy.

             
“I figure you could use the practice,” Cade explained as he climbed into the truck. “I’ve noticed your dad is still rather reluctant to let you drive.”

             
“Tell me about,” she muttered.

             
“Hey…” Trent stopped and surveyed them a moment before climbing in. “You letting her drive your truck?” His expression was skeptical.

             
“Why not?”

             
“Hey, if you trust her driving more power to you.”

             
Amanda made a face at her brother before putting the truck in gear and starting back up the drive.

             
“I drive fine,” Amanda finally spoke as she paused at the end of the drive and checked for traffic.

             
“So you say.”

             
“Who had the accident the first month they had their permit?” Amanda, never taking her eyes off the road, countered.

             
“That wasn’t my fault,” Trent rebutted.

             
“Oh, I see, the curve just jumped out in front of you,” Amanda taunted him. She heard Cade chuckle beside her and smiled.

             
“Just shut up and drive,” Trent snapped at her.

             
“Touché,” Amanda muttered.

             
“You see what happens when you try being nice to her?” Trent demanded of Cade.

             
“You were taunting her, not being nice,” Cade pointed out.

             
“I was referring to you. You’re being nice and she’s getting all uppity about it.”

             
“I’m not being nice. I know she can drive.”

             
“How would you know?” Trent demanded.

             
“I taught her,” Cade admitted.

             
Amanda glanced over to find her brother staring at Cade hard, his expression inscrutable.

             
“When did you teach her to drive?” Trent finally asked.

             
“When you and your dad ran off to town without her so you wouldn’t have to get her permit.”

             
“That’s not why we didn’t take her. If she wants to go she can ask. You know that Dad would freak if he knew you gave Mandy driving lessons?”

             
“Maybe, but somebody has to quit treating her like a child,” Cade offered as an explanation.

             
“She is a child,” Trent bit out.

             
“No, she is a young lady.”

             
“A
young
lady,” Trent countered.

             
“It was driving lessons, Trent,” Cade’s tone hardened.

             
“Hello, I’m still here; you can quit all your male posturing,” Amanda flipped on the blinker as she slowed to turn into the drive for home. “He taught me to drive; that was it so get over it!” Amanda brought the truck to a stop, grabbed her purse, and opened the door.

             
“Thanks, Cade, for letting me drive. I’m sorry my pig headed brother thinks that every guy who is nice to me has ulterior motives,” Amanda jumped down from the truck and shut the door with more force than necessary before storming into the house.

             
“Something happen in town?” her father called from the living room.

             
“Trent being a jerk; nothing new there,” Amanda responded as she entered the room.