Telling himself she’d have told him if she had, he crawled into bed. His lack of sleep over the past two days combined with the concussion caused him to fall asleep in a nanosecond.
“Jordan?” He blinked when he felt Autumn’s soft hand on his shoulder. “I need you to wake up for a minute.”
“How long have I been asleep?” He felt groggy, as if he’d overindulged. Something he hadn’t done since he was a foolish teenager.
“A little over two hours.” Autumn peered into his eyes. “Can you tell me what day it is?”
“The same date I told the doctor earlier.” He sighed, then gave the information.
“Correct.” She smiled and he wished he could return the gesture. “Are you hungry? I can heat up some soup.”
“I’ll try some soup,” he agreed. Then frowned. “Is that straw in your hair?”
“Um, probably.” She raked her fingers through her hair, dislodging it. “I got the saddle off your horse. He didn’t like it and nearly knocked me over, but I did it.”
He couldn’t believe he’d forgotten to unsaddle Durango. Even more astounding was Autumn had noticed and taken it upon herself to manage it. “Thanks.” He pushed himself upright, fighting the nausea churning in his belly. “I’ll head out there now to get Durango into the barn.”
“No, Jordan, you promised to stay on bed rest.” She put a hand on his chest, as if that would stop him. “I’ll figure out how to get him into the barn. I’m sure if I hold a carrot out to him again, he’ll follow me.”
“Not likely.” He gently pushed her hand away. He needed to do this. “And I didn’t make that promise, you did. It will only take a few minutes. I’ll hold off doing the rest of the chores until later.”
Twin sparks of anger flashed in her eyes. “Why did I spend all that time out there fighting with that horse to get him unsaddled if you’re just going to do whatever you want?”
“Durango is my responsibility.” He wasn’t going to apologize for taking care of his horse. Something he should have done right away. Guilt nagged at him as he reached for his boots. For a moment his headache had seemed better, until he stood.
Ignoring the pounding in his skull, and the furious expression on Autumn’s face, he brushed past her. Cutie bolted toward him and he hid a wince as the pain intensified when he bent to pet the dog. “Let’s go, girl.” He drew on his coat and headed outside.
Autumn had gotten the saddle off, but the bridle was still buckled around Durango’s face. No doubt she’d been afraid the horse would bite her. A reasonable fear, considering the stallion was temperamental.
He led Durango into the stall, fed him some oats and removed the bridle. Then, since he was already out there and wasn’t sure he’d have the stamina to return later, he fed the rest of the horses and filled the water trough.
Twice he had to stop, closing his eyes against the pain, but muscled through. When he’d finished, he called Cutie over and trudged back to the house, desperate to climb back into bed.
“Your soup is ready,” Autumm said.
“Thanks.” He avoided her gaze. “I think it’s time for you to head home.”
She reared back as if she’d been struck. Then she closed the laptop and reached for her coat. Without saying a word, she gathered Bear’s things and walked out the door.
He almost called her back, especially when Cutie began to whine. But he didn’t.
It was better this way, for both of them.
FOURTEEN
As Autumn drove away from the ranch, gripping the steering wheel tightly, she battled anger and guilt. More of the latter, to be honest. She’d told the doctor she’d watch over Jordan. Yet here she was driving back to her house. Twice she almost turned around to go back, but didn’t. She was tired, hungry and had sore muscles from trying to get that saddle off his horse, Durango. The animal had shied away from her, over and over. She’d grabbed his reins, but he’d jerked away from her and ran around the corral.
Using several carrots she’d found in Jordan’s fridge, she’d finally been able to approach him. Even then, though, getting the saddle off the horse’s back wasn’t easy. The minute she’d worked the buckle, he’d danced away. It had taken a full ninety minutes to get the task accomplished. Not to mention, the saddle was so heavy she’d staggered beneath its weight and almost dropped it.
And rather than appreciate her efforts, Jordan had defied doctor’s orders by going out to handle the rest of the chores. What if his condition changed for the worse?
He was pigheaded and stubborn and…
Maybe he blamed her for the accident. The realization gave her a jolt. Was that why he’d told her to go home? He was sick and tired of being in danger? Getting thrown from his horse, followed by a hospital visit, may have been the last straw.
Really, she couldn’t blame him. The accident was her fault, not directly, but he’d been hurt just the same. She felt terrible about how he’d suffered. Her biggest fear had come to fruition. Someone wanted to kill her, and Jordan was nothing more than collateral damage.
Swallowing hard, she loosened her grip on the steering wheel. Knowing the source of his actions put their interaction in perspective. Maybe Jordan didn’t really blame her but he needed space. Like a wounded lion that lashed out at anyone trying to help.
