straight to the clinic." He jerked his chin at my brother to get his attention while I went back to my desk and called the emergency clinic in town to inform them Red would soon be on his way.
Returning to the break room, I tried not to hover. The bleeding seemed under control and not as bad as I first thought. Red still had plenty of color in his cheeks, so he must not have lost too much on the drive over from rig eight.
"What the hell happened and why wasn't first aid done at the rig?" Hawk growled his questions at the two men.
Seeing the cold anger burning in Hawk's eyes sent a shiver down my spine. If anyone was to blame for the accident, I wouldn't want to be them.
"The turntable slipped." Red grimaced as he answered, fat beads of sweat popping out on his forehead. "And that damn fool Deitrich didn't have a kit on site. That rig aint cursed, it's just the shit-for-brains rig boss running it."
Beau, who hated to say anything bad about anybody, gave a firm nod. Hawk's mouth flattened to a grim line. He hoisted Red up and Beau took the other side while I rushed to open the office door for them and then the passenger door to Red's truck so they could fold him inside.
"I'll take care of number eight, old man, and its boss." Hawk gave Red's shoulder a little squeeze then tossed Red's keys to Beau. "You just let Kelly drive you to the clinic and then home. And don't hustle the nurses too much. I'll stop by this evening and check on you."
A smile broke across Red's face and he winked. "If there's a pretty enough nurse, I might not be alone. Make sure you knock and give me plenty of time to get my pants on!"
A soft smile playing across his lips, Hawk waved them off then ushered me back into the office, his face grim once more. "Get me Dietrich's file and the time cards for the rest of the crew on eight."
Quickly checking the board, I grabbed the timesheets and the file and handed everything to Hawk.
He placed the stack on my desk then grabbed my shoulders. "Lock the door. No one from eight needs to come back to the office today for any reason. Let the other crews in and process them for the week, but not Dietrich. The man's a hot head and I don't want him blowing off any steam and scaring you in the process."
I started to give Hawk a look telling him I could take care of myself, but he cut my protest off at knees.
"You will obey my instructions, Ginny, or I'll paddle that sweet ass when I get back. Do you understand?"
Struck dumb by the threat, I nodded. Hawk smiled, pinched my chin and brushed his lips lightly across mine. Lightning sizzled through my skin and bones.
"Oh, and that little conversation about you staring at my ass?" He kissed me, the little dip of his tongue inside my mouth so sweet and tender it curled my toes. "It's not finished."
**********************
A storm started rolling in two hours later. Half an hour after that, the crews followed, leaving early and reporting lightning strikes and hail. The last crew through the door said Hawk had radioed and wanted me to close up and head home. I gave a little sigh of relief. The storm had interfered with the radios, leaving me worried about whatever scene was unfolding out on eight. Plus I was in no hurry to see Hawk McKinley. I needed a little time on my own so my guilt over appreciating his backside wouldn't be writ large across my face when he decided it was time to finish our conversation.
Seeing the last crew member out the door, I went around unplugging the computers and any other sensitive electronics. The storm sounded like a big one that wanted to last all night. Locking the door as I left, I about jumped out of my skin as lightning streaked through the sky to hit the ground.
One-one-thousand, two-one-thousand, three-
BOOM
I dropped my keys, terror filling my chest. The strike less than half a mile away, the cloud that had caused it was rolling fast towards the building. I scooped my keys up, took another look at the dark horizon eating up
Returning to the break room, I tried not to hover. The bleeding seemed under control and not as bad as I first thought. Red still had plenty of color in his cheeks, so he must not have lost too much on the drive over from rig eight.
"What the hell happened and why wasn't first aid done at the rig?" Hawk growled his questions at the two men.
Seeing the cold anger burning in Hawk's eyes sent a shiver down my spine. If anyone was to blame for the accident, I wouldn't want to be them.
"The turntable slipped." Red grimaced as he answered, fat beads of sweat popping out on his forehead. "And that damn fool Deitrich didn't have a kit on site. That rig aint cursed, it's just the shit-for-brains rig boss running it."
Beau, who hated to say anything bad about anybody, gave a firm nod. Hawk's mouth flattened to a grim line. He hoisted Red up and Beau took the other side while I rushed to open the office door for them and then the passenger door to Red's truck so they could fold him inside.
"I'll take care of number eight, old man, and its boss." Hawk gave Red's shoulder a little squeeze then tossed Red's keys to Beau. "You just let Kelly drive you to the clinic and then home. And don't hustle the nurses too much. I'll stop by this evening and check on you."
A smile broke across Red's face and he winked. "If there's a pretty enough nurse, I might not be alone. Make sure you knock and give me plenty of time to get my pants on!"
A soft smile playing across his lips, Hawk waved them off then ushered me back into the office, his face grim once more. "Get me Dietrich's file and the time cards for the rest of the crew on eight."
Quickly checking the board, I grabbed the timesheets and the file and handed everything to Hawk.
He placed the stack on my desk then grabbed my shoulders. "Lock the door. No one from eight needs to come back to the office today for any reason. Let the other crews in and process them for the week, but not Dietrich. The man's a hot head and I don't want him blowing off any steam and scaring you in the process."
I started to give Hawk a look telling him I could take care of myself, but he cut my protest off at knees.
"You will obey my instructions, Ginny, or I'll paddle that sweet ass when I get back. Do you understand?"
Struck dumb by the threat, I nodded. Hawk smiled, pinched my chin and brushed his lips lightly across mine. Lightning sizzled through my skin and bones.
"Oh, and that little conversation about you staring at my ass?" He kissed me, the little dip of his tongue inside my mouth so sweet and tender it curled my toes. "It's not finished."
**********************
A storm started rolling in two hours later. Half an hour after that, the crews followed, leaving early and reporting lightning strikes and hail. The last crew through the door said Hawk had radioed and wanted me to close up and head home. I gave a little sigh of relief. The storm had interfered with the radios, leaving me worried about whatever scene was unfolding out on eight. Plus I was in no hurry to see Hawk McKinley. I needed a little time on my own so my guilt over appreciating his backside wouldn't be writ large across my face when he decided it was time to finish our conversation.
Seeing the last crew member out the door, I went around unplugging the computers and any other sensitive electronics. The storm sounded like a big one that wanted to last all night. Locking the door as I left, I about jumped out of my skin as lightning streaked through the sky to hit the ground.
One-one-thousand, two-one-thousand, three-
BOOM
I dropped my keys, terror filling my chest. The strike less than half a mile away, the cloud that had caused it was rolling fast towards the building. I scooped my keys up, took another look at the dark horizon eating up
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