Her Oklahoma Rancher

by Brenda Minton

  “Oh, of course you should go. But before you go, honey, your dad went to church last week. He wants me to go, too. I’m just not quite ready yet.”

  “Church?” Wow, that was huge. “Is everything okay?”

  Her mother laughed at that. “Everything is fine. Oh, I think he’s getting old and thinking about life and what comes next. It’s a phase.”

  “A phase?”

  “Well, maybe not a phase. I don’t think he’ll grow out of it. He said he grew up going to church and then he went through that phase where he questioned everything. Now he’s questioning again. You’d think he was seventeen and not seventy. Well, you go have lunch with your friend. We’ll talk soon.”

  “Mom, I love you.”

  “I love you, too, Evie.”

  Eve ended the call and pushed her way up the ramp to Holly’s. The door opened and Holly held it wide for her.

  “Everything okay?” Holly asked.

  “My mom. And yes, they’re fine. Is Kylie here?”

  “Yep, she’s waiting for you.”

  Eve maneuvered through the crowded café that now boasted the sign HOLLY’S. She was so happy for her friend that this business was now officially named after her.

  “What’s for dessert today?” Eve asked as she approached the table where Kylie waited.

  Holly looked offended. “You know my desserts are good.”

  “Oh, they’re the best,” Eve agreed. “Except that one you made with the mint. That was weird, Holly.”

  The café owner laughed. “I like to experiment. Today we have cheesecake, apple pie and brownies.”

  “The brownies have cherries in them,” Kylie chimed in.

  “They’re good,” Holly insisted.

  “I’m sure they are,” Kylie answered. “But I think I’ll stick with cheesecake. And I’ll have the chicken alfredo.”

  “Salad for me,” Eve told her. “And nothing for Tori. She still isn’t feeling well.”

  “It’s been a week!” Kylie gave the baby girl a worried look. “What’s going on with her?”

  “I don’t know. She’s feverish and just listless. She seemed to be doing better, and then maybe she got a secondary virus while her immune system was weak?”

  Eve unwrapped the baby and handed her to Kylie, who’d situated Cara in her car seat so she could take Tori. “What’s up with you, baby girl?”

  Tori smiled a little but she didn’t respond the way she would have before the virus. Her eyes looked weepy and her cheeks were flushed.

  “I should have noticed sooner, shouldn’t I?” Eve moved a little closer to Kylie and Tori. “She’s really sick and I had no idea why. She’s been miserable and I should have called Carson.”

  “She’s fine, Eve. Babies get sick. We’ll just call Carson and find out if he can see her after lunch. You should let Ethan know that we’re taking her to the doctor.”

  Eve felt a sense of dread in the pit of her stomach. “I’m so sorry, Tori.”

  “Give her a hug and a smile and relax. If it’s a virus, viruses run their course. And if it’s something bacterial, Carson will give her antibiotics and she’ll be back to her happy, smiling self in no time.”

  * * *

  An hour later Eve and Kylie were sitting in the waiting room of Carson’s clinic waiting for him to examine Tori. The outer door opened, letting in the sounds of summer—traffic on the road, a mower in the distance and children laughing as they played in a nearby yard.

  Ethan pulled off his white cowboy hat as he approached, his concerned gaze falling on Tori. He sat in a chair across from them.

  “What’s going on?” he asked.

  Eve held Tori close, comforting her as she fussed and refused her bottle. “She’s sick again. Or maybe she didn’t get over the stomach virus. Kylie thought it would be better if Carson examined her.”

  “I think that’s a good idea.” He smiled at Tori. “What’s up, little chick, aren’t you feeling good?”

  Tori cried and reached for him. The gesture clearly moved him and Eve felt the sting of tears in her eyes as she handed the baby to Ethan. He wasn’t completely dry-eyed himself. Tori had changed their lives. She was no longer responsible only for herself, her own welfare, her own happiness.

  Carson’s nurse, Jenna, appeared in the door. “You can bring Tori back now.” She looked at the crowd. “Maybe not all of you.”

  Kylie motioned for Ethan to go. “Go with Eve. The two of you make her feel safe. I’ll wait here with Cara.”

  Ethan motioned Eve ahead of him and he carried Tori. They followed the nurse down a fluorescent-lit hallway to an exam room. Carson was already waiting for them. He turned from his computer and pulled off black wire-framed glasses.

  “I’m sorry to hear that Tori is still sick.” He closed the door and then he sat down, pulling his stool closer to the three of them. “I’m going to check her temperature, then her eyes, ears, the basics and we’ll go from there. Odds are it’s just a second round of another virus. It happens.”

  He ran the thermometer across her brow and frowned. “That’s a little higher than I expected but nothing out of the ordinary. 102.5.”

  Eve inhaled, and watched as Carson continued his examination. The basics, as he had told them. Eyes, ears, nose, he even got a peek at her throat.

  He pulled the stethoscope up, placing the ear tips in his ears. He rubbed the bell and, before placing it on her chest, let Tori look at it. He listened, moving the bell of the stethoscope from place to place and then to her back. Eve clenched and unclenched her fists as she watched his expression change.

  “Carson?” she finally spoke because she couldn’t take it any longer. She’d known this man for over a year. She knew his smiles, his frowns, his concern.

  He sighed and sat back on the stool. He looked from Tori to Ethan and then to Eve. His gray eyes were somber.

  “I’m convinced she does have a virus but, as often happens during a routine examination, I clearly hear a heart murmur. It’s possible it was previously diagnosed. Ethan, do you have any medical records?”

  He shook his head. “I don’t and I never thought about it. She’s healthy and hasn’t been sick and I didn’t think about medical records.”

  “We’ll need to see if we can find something. There should be records on her immunizations, too.”

  “What do we do?” Eve asked, reaching for Tori. She needed to hold her, comfort her. Comfort herself.

  “First we relax,” Carson said with a calming smile.

  “Relax?”

  Carson grew serious again. “Eve, relax. That’s exactly what I mean. Yes, a heart defect is serious. But there are degrees of serious. There are murmurs that are found in infancy that the child grows out of. There are murmurs that are mild. And some require surgery or other medical intervention.”

  “What kind is this?”

  “The kind that requires a specialist to look at because I’m a trauma surgeon turned family doctor. I don’t have the experience or training to give you a diagnosis. I also don’t have the medical equipment necessary. She needs to see a specialist in Tulsa, one who will do an echocardiogram.”

  “Okay, how do we get an appointment with this specialist?” she asked.

  “I’ll make a few calls and get you an appointment. Until then, I am going to start her on a round of antibiotics.”

  “Thank you.” Eve held Tori closer than ever, until the baby squirmed to get loose.

  “Eve, she’s going to be okay. She’s a typically healthy almost seven-month-old. If I saw a reason for real concern, I would tell you.”

  She nodded. “I know. I do know that. I just can’t...”

  “You won’t,” he assured her with a quick hug.

  Eve didn’t complain when Ethan took the handles of her chair and pushed her back to the waiting room and to Kylie.
When she saw them walk through the door, Kylie stood. Her gaze flicked past Eve to Carson.

  “A heart murmur,” Eve told her friend. “She needs to see a specialist.”

  “Then she will see a specialist,” Kylie confirmed. “And she’ll be fine. I know she’ll be fine.”

  Eve kissed Tori’s soft, baby cheek and felt a hand, firm and comforting, settled on her shoulder. They were a family. Maybe they hadn’t planned this but the three of them were a family. It felt right and it felt frightening all at the same time.

  It also felt not quite real.

  * * *

  Ethan pushed Eve’s chair to her car while she kept Tori held close, as if she feared the child would evaporate. He wanted to comfort her but he didn’t know the words that would make this better. He was afraid if he pushed, she would withdraw from him. After all, isn’t that what she did when she hit an obstacle?

  “Eve, we’re both worried. But we have to trust that this situation isn’t a surprise to God and we also know that Carson isn’t taking chances. He said it could be minor, something she’ll grow out of.”

  “I know that.” She opened the back door of her car and lifted Tori into the car seat. The baby whined a little. “I was thinking about the verse, about all things working together for good for those that trust God. I want to have faith but I also want to yell because why this baby? Hasn’t she been through enough?”

  “Yes, she’s been through enough. You’ve been through enough, too. Storms don’t stop coming just because we’ve had enough rain.”

  “Nice analogy. I’m just tired of storms.”

  “We can rest in the fact that He’s a refuge in the storm.”

  “Does your faith ever waver?” she asked.

  “Of course my faith wavers, Eve. Do you think I’m made of stone and all of this hasn’t affected me? You broke my heart.”

  He hadn’t meant to say it. It seemed like the least effective argument. Plus he couldn’t help but think that a man didn’t just open up and tell a woman that she’d knocked him down emotionally. But it was too late to take it back now.

  “I’m sorry,” she said, backing up to close the door of her car. “I didn’t mean to break your heart. Or mine. I’d convinced myself that mine was the only broken heart. I was the only one hurting. I didn’t think about your pain. For that I am truly sorry and I hope you can forgive me.”

  “I forgave you a long time ago.”

  “It’s good, for us to talk. This way we can clear the air and focus our attention on Tori and what she needs from us.”

  “I agree, she needs us fully committed to her happiness.”

  She opened her car door and transferred herself inside, then reached over and quickly took the wheels off her chair and hauled the three pieces over her lap to place them in the passenger seat.

  Watching her, he thought that maybe she’d been right to distance herself from him. He did want to do everything for her, even now. He wanted to ease her way, make her life less complicated. If he could do more than pray, he would chase away the storms so that she never had to deal with another thing that shook her world.

  “Stop looking so serious, cowboy.” She smiled up at him, a glimmer of her old self. Her expression teased and her dark eyes flashed with humor.

  “What makes you think I’m serious?” But he was, of course. And his attempt at lightness fell flat.

  “That’s the face a man wears when he’s about to fight a bull and win. A woman likes to know her man will fight those battles for her.” She reached for his hand. “I always knew you’d win any battle, Ethan. You’re that determined. Don’t try to conquer me. Please.”

  “You’ve got my word.”

  Her laughter shattered the stillness and even Tori giggled a little. “You know that isn’t a promise you can keep. It’s a part of who you are. You have to conquer enemies and save us all.”

  “This isn’t a conversation I can win.” He leaned over and kissed her, just once. And then, on second thought, he kissed her again. “I do like to win.”

  She pulled back and reached for her car door. “I know you do. But right now, you have to conquer the pharmacy in Grove and get that prescription for Tori.”

  He glanced at his watch. “I guess I’d better get on the road. I’ll bring you the prescription as soon as I get it.”

  “Thank you.”

  Ethan closed her door and then watched as she pulled out of the parking lot. He allowed a slow grin to spread across his face as he watched her go.

  “That’s the smile of a man who thinks he’s won a victory.”

  He turned, laughing just a little because Kylie West had managed to sneak up on him. “I thought you were inside talking to your husband.”

  “I was, but he has patients and I need to get Cara home. The other two kids will be getting out of school in an hour and Cara needs a nap before the chaos. Carson said he’s confident the murmur is mild, by the way.”

  “I’m glad. That makes me feel better. She’s so young to have to go through so much.”

  “Yes, she is. But she has the two of you, and Carson will make sure she sees the best pediatric cardiologist. But that smile was the smile of a man who thinks things are going his way.”

  He adjusted his hat on his head and thought about the best way to answer that question. “I bought a place about thirty minutes from Hope.”

  “Uh-oh. You’re not a conqueror. You’re a man who needs advice.”

  He rubbed his chin. “I wouldn’t have thought so until you said that. Do I need advice?”

  “You’ve known Eve longer than I have,” she conceded. “But I know the Eve that survived a bombing and paralysis. I know that Eve doesn’t like surprises. Even if they’re good surprises. She likes to be in control of her life, her future, her choices.”

  He started to explain that now Eve’s choices directly affected Tori’s life. But that was an argument he wouldn’t win.

  “I didn’t say she’s right,” Kylie said, giving him a sympathetic look.

  “No, I guess you didn’t.”

  “I’d encourage you to not give up.” She gave him a conspiratorial wink. “She needs her life shaken up a little. Sometimes we get too comfortable and we stop moving forward.”

  “Thank you for that.”

  “Me?” She pointed to herself. “Did I say something? I don’t remember saying anything. See you later, Ethan.”

  “Yes, later.” He tipped his hat, the way his dad had told him a gentleman should.

  The drive to Grove gave him time to think about what direction he needed to take with Eve. Because he did plan on taking their relationship in a certain direction. He was determined to win, but realized that was the wrong tactic to take when trying to win a woman’s heart. It wasn’t about winning, it was about being on the same team.

  The winning team, he told himself. It wasn’t bad to win. Especially with the woman you want to spend your life with.

  Chapter Thirteen

  “I’m not going to lie and tell you I’m not worried,” Eve told Ethan as they started up the elevator at the pediatric care facility.

  Ethan held Tori so Eve pushed the button for the fourth floor.

  “I’m nervous but I’m not really worried. No matter what, this is treatable. She’s going to be fine, either with or without a procedure. Carson assured us of that, and he got her in with one of the best doctors in the state.”

  “I know.” She leaned back, taking deep breaths to relax. She smiled up at Tori. The little girl was definitely feeling better. Since Monday she’d perked up, started eating again and was sleeping much better.

  “Looking at her now, it’s hard to believe she’s sick,” Ethan said.

  “I know, that’s what I was thinking. But what if she hadn’t gotten sick? When would we have noticed that she has a heart murmur?”

 
; The elevator doors slid open and she rolled out ahead of Ethan. A woman smiled at Ethan and Tori, greeted him, then skimmed an awkward gaze over Eve. The woman hurried onto the elevator.

  They entered the cardiologist’s office and Eve approached the new-patient desk. The receptionist looked past her to Ethan.

  “Could I help you?”

  Ethan didn’t respond. Eve glanced back at him and saw that he had heard, he simply wasn’t going to answer. She couldn’t help but smile at him before turning to face the receptionist.

  “Can I help you?” the woman asked again.

  Eve drew in a breath and reminded herself that the woman wasn’t being intentionally rude. She just wasn’t thinking. She wasn’t seeing Eve, she was seeing the wheelchair. For some reason that made people uncomfortable. It made them skim past her, overlook her and direct questions to the person standing next to her.

  “We have an appointment for Tori Garner.” She hadn’t ever called Tori by her full name. She’d just been Tori. All of this time she’d been this little person who belonged to someone else.

  “You’re her parents?” the receptionist asked, studying the computer screen.

  “Guardians,” Eve responded.

  “Do you have legal guardianship?”

  Ethan pulled a paper from his pocket. “We do.”

  He handed it over and the receptionist took it, glanced at it and handed it back.

  “I’ll need you to fill out these forms. The nurse will call you when they’re ready to see you. Please have a seat on that side of the waiting room.”

  Eve took the clipboard with the paperwork from the receptionist, smiled at the woman as pleasantly as she possibly could and turned away from the desk. Ethan followed her to the waiting area. As she started to fill out the paperwork, he watched. After a minute he cleared his throat. She ignored him and filled out the last pages. He cleared his throat again.

  “What do you want?”

  “Do people always do that?” he asked.