Page 43 of Unexpected Danger
He towered over her bed, this time his eyes roving over her. Bile lodged in her throat, and she pressed the call button again.
“The hospital is really busy today, so you might as well give up on that.”
Londyn’s gaze rested briefly on the landline phone.
“Don’t even think about that either.” Dustin shoved her cell phone further from her reach, then lifted the landline, yanked the cord from both the handset and the jack, and straightened it between his hands, released it, then flipped it again so it was pulled taut. “You weren’t thinking of calling someone, were you, Londyn?”
Her head swirled with dizziness. “You won’t get away with this.”
“What? You’ll tell your boyfriend on me? Oh, wait. He’s not your boyfriend anymore. Not after you broke his heart.”
Jasmine had shared far too much.
“But you don’t need him anyway. You have me, and we were meant to be together.”
How had Londyn ever considered Dustin a friend? How had she ever considered dating him?
She was such a fool.
It took him all of three seconds to confirm he still loved her.
Which really wasn’t a surprise.
Brodie climbed into his service vehicle and drove first to the sheriff’s office. He’d check in, head home for a shower, then return to the hospital. Hopefully, by then, the doctor would have released Londyn.
Sleeping in the avocado-green chair in the hospital hadn’t been conducive to a good night’s rest. The crick in his neck wouldn’t be going away anytime soon. But it had been worth it to ensure Londyn would be all right.
Brodie couldn’t stop thinking about her. Their past and the present.
He was a guy, for crying out loud, and men didn’t think about broken hearts, or at least they usually didn’t. Why then couldn’t he get Londyn off his mind? Why then had he been glad and disappointed at the same time to hear she was going to be staying in Pronghorn Falls?
A call came over the radio just as he was about to turn into the sheriff’s office parking lot.
Chapter 12
This time, Londyn pressed and held the call button. There was no way Dorena could be the only nurse on duty today. And where was Brodie?
Dustin stood so close she could smell his cologne mixed with a hint of body odor. He snapped the phone cord again before pushing the button that lowered the rail on the right-hand side of the bed.
Her pulse surged, and she felt the thundering rhythm of her heartbeat in her throat.
“If only you had agreed to date me,” he hissed. “You know I love you.” Dustin planted one knee on the bed beside her and folded himself forward. He pressed the cord against her neck.
Londyn attempted to push him away, inadvertently jerking the arm with the IV, causing her to wince in pain as it pinched the skin at the access point. But she was no match for him, especially given her weakened state.
He pushed harder on her throat. She choked and gasped for breath.Lord, please help me!
Mr. Brenneman’s words again came to mind.“When your life is in danger, remember many things can be weapons.”
Londyn wriggled and attempted to put a hand between the cord and her neck. She kicked her legs and writhed. With her other hand, she felt around on the table, the tips of her fingers grasping for the pen while she attempted to retain consciousness. She rolled it toward her, but it flipped from her fingers. Londyn strained and tried again while attempting to squirm from Dustin’s grasp. He pressed harder.
Finally, she wrapped her fingers around the pen, and in a burst of adrenaline, she aimed for his eye.
“Nice try,” he growled, turning his head.
She aimed a second time for his neck, but he lowered his head to avoid her attack, causing her to jab him as hard as she could in the cartilage of his upper ear.
“Ah!” He screamed and released the cord. He clutched his ear while uttering a stream of profanities.
