Promise Her Read Free

off.”
    Harold gave a nervous laugh. “You’re imagining things. Look at her. The crowd loves it.”
    By now everyone in the skybox had stopped his or her conversation, stopped eating and drinking to watch Tempest and the other three women perform.
    Lisa adjusted the binoculars again to get an even better look. Tempest was definitely in trouble. She missed a side-sweep on the horse and barely covered her blunder. Even from this distance, her face was too pale, as if she were about to pass out.
    “Get her out of there before there’s an accident.”
    “Calm down.”
    An attempted back flip failed. Tempest barely hung on.
    Lisa kept her eyes glued to Tempest.
    The rodeo crowd had turned from screaming excitement to breathless silence. They didn’t know if Tempest’s performance was part of the program or if she was in trouble.
    Lisa knew. Looking across the arena, she saw Owen.
    Pulling out her cell phone, she dialed. He picked up immediately. “Tempest’s in trouble, Owen. Get her out of there before she gets hurt.”
    Owen was one of Lisa’s rodeo buddies. She trusted him to do the right thing. Sure enough, he spurred his horse onto the arena.
    Lisa zeroed her binoculars on Tempest.
    Tempest’s horse followed the other three at a gallop, but Tempest could barely hang on. “Hurry,” Lisa yelled, as Owen dodged the other three performers to get to Tempest.
    Tempest struggled to set up for another handstand.
    “Don’t,” Lisa begged aloud. Knowing she wouldn’t be heard didn’t stop her and she called out again.
    As Tempest tried to lift herself up, she slid off the horse’s back and fell to the ground.
    A gasp came up from the crowd.
    Owen jumped from the saddle, sprinted over to her.
    Other riders hurried their way.
    One of them managed to ward off the galloping horses and riders while the others kneeled to check Tempest.
    Lisa glanced at Harold, who blinked as if in shock. Then, as if finally realizing his wife was in trouble, he shoved through the crowd toward the door.
    Lisa followed closely in his wake.

Chapter Two
    The noise from the crowd turned from cheers to moans of nervous concern. Then silence.
    Cowboys rushed onto the floor to wave the other performers off to a smattering of weak applause, as an ambulance rushed onto the arena floor.
    Lisa got there in time to see Tempest having what looked like a seizure. EMT’s and a Paramedic were working over her in hurried, but practiced movements. A pale, perspiring, Harold with wide glazed eyes looked down at his wife.
    Lisa, her hand to her mouth—her heart fluttering in fear, found it hard to believe that the pale, still woman they put in the ambulance was the same vibrant Tempest she had seen only a short while ago.
    Harold crawled into the ambulance next to her. Lisa heard him ask the EMT what was wrong just as the doors slammed shut.
    She wanted to be there to watch over her friend, and couldn’t help but wonder if Harold’s nervousness hid something about his wife’s accident.
    After a brief announcement that Tempest was on her way to the hospital, the band started up. Three cowboys rode onto the floor and the next act began.
    What had just happened? Tempest looked terrible. Frightened for her friend, Lisa couldn’t decide whether to stay and do her job or go the hospital and be with Tempest.
    As Lisa made her way out of the arena, the bad feeling she had earlier nagged stronger. Tempest had been shaky before her performance. Had there been something in her drink? Lisa hoped with all that was in her she was wrong.
    But she had to find out.
    There was nothing she could do for Tempest except the job she’d been paid to do. Only now, it had morphed into something bigger.
    She might need help. Picking up her cell phone, she hit speed dial and waited.
    Douglas Callahan, her best friend TJ’s brother, was a lawyer. A good one. And darn it, she was crazy in love with him—had been since they first met years ago when TJ brought her to the ranch the