“I should have gone out there the minute she didn’t pick up when I called,” Cody said.

Addy laid a hand on his shoulder. “You can’t blame yourself for this. Let’s get these wet clothes off her and wrap her up in warm blankets. I’m glad she had gloves on her hands. As cold as it’s been, they probably protected her from frostbite.” She talked as she removed Stevie’s boots, socks, jeans, coat, and everything else, down to her bra and underpants.

Cody brought a stack of blankets from the end of one of the bunk beds and began to cover Stevie with them, when her eyes finally fluttered open. “Where am I?” she muttered.

“You had a wreck,” Addy said.

“No, I didn’t”—she shivered—“I made it to the barn on flat tires, and Cody was there with a fire already going.”

“You are at the bunkhouse on Sunflower Ranch,” Addy explained. “You were checking the cattle when the four-wheeler must have thrown you.”

Her eyes darted around the room. “I’m so cold.”

Cody shook out two more blankets and piled them on top of her. “I’m Dr. Cody Ryan. I’m going to check your eyes.” He leaned in close to her face. “You hit your head on something when you wrecked the four-wheeler.”

Stevie closed her eyes, and then opened them wide. “I’m so sorry. I’ll pay for the damages. How did I get here? The last thing I remember was landing on my back with the wind knocked out of me and then I kind of woke up and saw a donkey.”

“I hope it’s just a concussion,” Addy whispered, “and not a brain bleed. Did you notice if she had hit a rock?”

“I remember flying through the air, and hitting the low limb of a tree,” Stevie said. “Then the fall must’ve knocked the wind out of me. I couldn’t breathe and everything went black.” Stevie sat up and pulled the top blanket up to her chin when she realized that she was only wearing her underwear. “How did I get from the pasture to here?”

“Now, she’s coming around,” Addy smiled.

“I think I hit a pothole,” she said with a frown. “There were coyotes, and I thought they were coming to eat me.”

“Your memory is coming back,” Addy said. “Do you feel dizzy or nauseated? Your pupils are slightly dilated, so I believe you have a concussion. Hopefully, only a mild one, but all the signs point to one.”

“I’m not nauseated. I do feel a little dizzy,” Stevie admitted. She reached up and laid a hand on her forehead. “My head hurts. Are these stitches I’m feeling?”