“Stop that, Domino!”

When the animal sat between them and faced forward, Wyatt pressed the ignition button. The diesel engine rumbled to life. He shifted into drive, stepped on the accelerator, and the next instant, Erin heard a loud thump followed by a lurch of the truck as it jerked to a sudden stop. She was thrown forward. All that stopped her from colliding with the dash was the strap across her chest, which flattened her left breast with crushing force and sent pain lancing over her rib cage.

“Damn it!” Wyatt shifted back into park, jerked out of his seat belt, and threw open his door. “I forgot to disconnect the chain from your car.” He swung out of the cab, strode to the back of his truck, and let loose with more curses. Erin had a bad feeling and got out of the vehicle. The front of her Honda was crunched like tinfoil. “Son of a bitch!” he said. “You left it in neutral?”

Erin bristled. “Oh, so it’s all my fault?”

He swept off his hat, raked his fingers through his blond hair, and then slapped the Stetson back on his head. “I’m not saying it’s your fault. I take full responsibility. It’s just that the car wouldn’t have rolled forward if you’d put it in park and set the brake.”

“No, it wouldn’t have,” she agreed. “Instead of the front end getting crunched, you could have just jerked the subframe out from under it and twisted it into a pretzel shape.”

He sighed. “I’m sorry, Erin. I’ll pay to get it fixed.”

Erin didn’t know why, but she started to laugh. It really wasn’t funny. Repairing the damage would probably cost five or six grand. But the expression on his face, a mixture of incredulity and frustration, was priceless. She placed a hand over her chest, which still hurt.

“I don’t get the joke,” he said. “I just ruined your car.”

“I think Buck does body work” was all she could think to say. “And he advertises on the radio that he offers payment plans. I’ll get it fixed and make monthly installments.”

“I can’t let you pay for the damage. I’m the one who did it.”

“While trying to help me. And, as you pointed out, I was at fault for not remembering to put it back into park. I can’t let you take the financial hit.”

“We’ll share the cost, then.”

Erin decided that was an argument that could take place later. “We’ll talk about it. Okay? For right now, I’d like to get home and make some phone calls. Maybe Sheriff Adams will lend me a county vehicle for a week or so. Otherwise I’ll have to rent a car. I live too far out to walk back and forth to work if the weather turns bad.”

“In spring, that’s a given. And now, thanks to me, you’ll probably be without wheels for longer than a week. Maybe closer to two.” He spun on his heel and strode toward the front of his truck. “Okay. Let’s get you home.”