Free When Dreams Collide by Brenda Sinclair Page A

to wrangle his libido back under control so the bulge in his jeans would disappear. Yeah, right, like that was likely to happen. He’d just concentrate on the road, keep his eyes off her. Hopefully, that would work.
    Suddenly, his cell phone rang and the shrill noise in the quiet vehicle brought Susan instantly awake.
    “Sorry, I should have turned it off while you were sleeping.”
    “It’s okay. It might be important.” Susan straightened in her seat and blinked repeatedly.
    The cell continued to ring.
    “Here. I’ll answer it. You’re driving.” Susan reached over and plucked his cell phone out of the cup holder. “Hello?”
    “Is Dusty there?” inquired a female voice.
    “Um, yes, but he’s driving right now.” Susan glanced at her traveling companion. “Who is this, please?”
    “Penny Snyder. I’m calling for David Branigan. Here he is now.”
    There was a short pause.
    “Dusty, is that you?”
    “No, David, it’s Susan. Dusty’s driving. What’s up?”
    “I just called to let Dusty know...Jeremy and Amanda were in an accident.”
     

 
     
    Chapter 6
     
    “What?” Susan glanced toward Dusty. “How do I put this phone on conference call?”
    Dusty explained which buttons to push and waited for her nod. “David, what the hell’s going on?” he asked.
    “Jeremy and Amanda were in a car accident up in Canada about an hour ago.”
    “Holy, crap. Are they okay?”
    “Jeremy assured me they’re fine. The police transported Amanda to the local hospital to be on the safe side since she’s pregnant. Jeremy says she seemed okay at the accident scene though.”
    “I hope the asshole who hit them is in jail.”
    “Actually, she was airlifted to Calgary.”
    “Drunk driver?” asked Susan.
    “Nope. Heart attack.” David filled them in on the details. “The father picked the kid up at the hospital. Jeremy talked to the local police and now he’s cooling his heels in the waiting room, hoping for a positive report from the doctor. You know how well he handles waiting, right?”
    “About as well as I do.” Dusty glanced over at Susan. “We’re on our way to Bozeman to look at a ranch. Should we head back to Helena? Do you need us for anything?”
    “No. I already offered to fly the Lazy B chopper up there, but Jeremy says it’s under control. I’ll learn more when he calls again.”
    “Okay, keep us posted. Susan’s going to worry every second until we hear from you again.”
    “And you aren’t?” she swatted his arm.
    “I’ll keep you posted, buddy.” There was a short pause. “I hope you find the ideal ranch for your horse operation.”
    “Thanks, David. That means a lot.” Dusty smiled.
    “Dad gave Scooter the foreman’s job by the way. So don’t worry about the ranch being left high and dry. Of course, if you want to come back, Scooter would be okay with that, too.”
    “Tell Scooter congratulations for me. He’s a good choice.” Dusty laughed and shook his head. “I’ve never worked with such a by-the-book, get-it-done ranch hand in my life. Old Scooter will give Penny and the rest of them a run for their money. Keep in touch.”
    “Will do.” David chuckled and ended the call.
    Susan set the cell phone back in the cup holder. Her hand shook slightly, and she hoped her traveling companion hadn’t noticed. She didn’t want him worrying about her while she was worrying about her friend. She refused to ruin his day after he’d been so excited about viewing this property. She glanced at the time on the radio. Ten to eleven.
    Dusty reached for her hand. “I know you’re worried. David will call when he has news. Jeremy seemed certain Amanda was fine. Think positive, okay?”
    “Okay,” she whispered, amazed at how easily he’d zeroed in on her anxiety, realized how worried she felt like an old friend not someone she’d only known a couple of days. “Where are we?”
    “We’re about twenty minutes away from Bozeman.” Dusty returned his eyes to the