Page 70 of Love, Untangled

She nodded once but stopped with a wince. He exchanged a look with the paramedic. She needed to get checked out. Soon. He was worried about a break to her cheekbone. It would need to be set and that would require more time with a doctor, maybe surgery.

A pink golf cart bounced onto the driveway. Hattie and her two companions spilled out, hustling toward the house.

“Pen!” Birdie cried out, her voice breaking.

She rushed forward, but Carlo inserted himself between the two women. “She has a concussion, maybe a fracture in her cheek. I was just talking Pen into going to the hospital to get herself checked out properly.”

“Of course she will,” the older woman said, her eyes wide and her skin pale. “Hattie will drive her now. Can you walk, dear?”

Pen took a shaky breath as she met Carlo’s gaze, seeking answers there. He squeezed her fingers again as pleasure rippled through his chest. He liked that Pen turned to him for support—he liked that a lot.

“You won’t have to ride in the ambulance if you go with them,” Carlo noted. “And once I know you’re on your way to the hospital, I can check on Alpaca Man and Lydia.”

Her eyes had dulled, no doubt from the pain. She seemed less focused, less clear than she’d been even minutes before.

“Bill, a word,” Birdie said to the officer who’d taken Pen’s and Carlo’s statements. She pulled him aside as Carlo helped Pen rise from the chair.

Pen’s unsteadiness worried him, and he wrapped his arm around her waist. Carlo helped Pen down the steps toward the golf cart where Hattie and her friend stood, gaping at the burned remains of the barn.

“We’re going to have some work to do here,” Hattie said.

“You’re right,” Carlo said. “But first we need to make sure Pen’s okay.”

She and Trixie settled in the cart, and Pen held the icepack the EMT had given her to her cheek. Hattie rounded on Carlo.

“She can’t stay here while her horrible excuse for a mother is free.”

Carlo nodded. “She’s angry with me—understandably so, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to let her go through this alone. I have a shed for Alpaca Man and Lydia, so she doesn’t need to worry about them.”

Hattie deflated, her arguments dying on the tip of her tongue. She smiled and patted his arm. “You’re a good one, Carlo.”

“Just make sure she gets all the tests the doctors want.” He leaned a little closer. “She’s worried about the cost, not her health.”

Hattie nodded, determination glinting in her eyes. “Leave that to me.”

Carlo chuckled but it was dry. “I knew I could count on you.”

“What are you going to do while we’re at the hospital?” Hattie asked, concern evident in her features. “Not something stupid. Promise me, Carlo.”

“Well, first I’m going to check in on the alpacas. I promised Pen. Then I’m going to talk to the fire chief.”

Hattie nodded, satisfied. “Okay, good.”

Birdie joined them. “I told Bill about Leon.” She wrung her hands as her chin quivered. “This is my fault. I really didn’t think he’d be violent.”

“It wasn’t Leon,” Carlo said, voice firm. “It was Serena, Penelope’s mother. But, please, get her looked over. She’s hurting.”

Once the women left, Carlo shoved his hands into his jeans pocket and headed back across the driveway toward his property. He stood for a long moment, watching the Blazers put out the last of the flames. The ground surrounding the burned building was trampled mud and char, nothing like the old but clean and well-cared-for structure and farmyard Pen prided herself on.

On a whim, Carlo headed over to the guys to talk.

Adam took off his helmet, wiping his sweaty, soot-covered cheeks. “Good thing the barn was set away from the house,” he said.

“Yeah. So would you do me a favor? Maybe we can get some of the team here later this week to clear out the mess. Pen seemed overwhelmed by this whole ordeal.”

“I bet we can once we get the all-clear. What happened?”

Carlo recounted his experience, reminding him to check his phone. The operator must have hung up a while ago though, so Carlo simply tucked it back into his shirt pocket.

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