Jackie winced when he looked at the doorframe. Boone was probably right. The damn thing was torn to shreds. The glass was gone, and the window frame looked as if it had been through a meat grinder.
“Can you call Hugh?”
Jackie winced. “I left my cell phone charging on the counter at home. Since you were with me, I didn’t think I’d need it.”
He’d never make that mistake again.
Boone’s painful chuckle made Jackie’s gut clench. “You’re gonna have to go for help, baby.”
“No, I can’t leave you.”
“You have to, Jackie. I don’t have the strength to pull this thing out.”
Jackie started to reach for it. “I can—”
“No!” Boone grabbed his wrist before he could reach it. “It’s embedded in the back of the cab, Jackie. It’s going to take more than one person to pull it out. I’m going to need you to go get Hugh and Neumus.”
“I can’t leave you here,” Jackie cried out.
“Jackie, you have to go.”
Tears flooded Jackie’s eyes. “But—”
Jackie swallowed hard when Boone cupped his face. “Baby, you have to. Neither of us can pull this hunk of metal out of my shoulder, and I’ll bleed to death right here in my truck if it doesn’t come out.”
Leaving Boone when he was injured went against every gut instinct Jackie had. And they were all screaming at him to stay. Some force deep inside of him was roaring that leaving his mate was wrong. He needed to stay, protect.
“Can’t we call them on your cell?”
He was the sheriff. He had to have a cell phone.
“Honey, my cell phone broke when we crashed.” Boone gestured to his side, which was crunched up against the door. Damn.
“What about—”
“Jackie, the CB got destroyed when we crashed, and neither of us have our cell phones. The only way anyone is going to know we had an accident is if you go tell them.”
Double damn.
“Just hurry, baby.”
Jackie could see pain etched in Boone’s face that gave truth to the man’s words. He needed to hurry. Jackie leaned in and pressed a gentle kiss to Boone’s lips. He feathered his fingers down Boone’s pale cheek.
“I’ll be quick, mate.”
“I’ll be waiting.”
Jackie had to climb out the front window and over the hood. His side of the truck was all crushed in, and Boone’s was pretty much embedded in his shoulder. He quickly scooted off the hood after climbing out and stepped around to Boone’s window.
Boone’s eyes met his through the shattered window.
“Start thinking about what kind of wedding you’re going to throw us, because I’ll be damned if I marry the man I love without a whole lot of fanfare.”
Jackie turned and walked away before Boone could react to his words, too freaked out that he had admitted to the man how he felt before Boone said anything.
“I love you, too,” Boone called out through the broken window.
Jackie smiled and kept on walking.
