It was only the phantom pain in his leg that held him back. His stump itched. Both of his legs itched. He itched to move toward her, to run to find her, to bring her to stand next to him.
Dylan began to move toward the exit before he was conscious.
Behind him, he heard Fran cheer, "Hoorah."
Dylan moved faster than he had in months, but it wasn't fast enough to reach her. He turned back into the training area. Fran was standing by holding the reins of the horse.
Dylan took the reins. He hefted himself up and onto the horse. Then he took Fran's hand to steady himself as he swung his straight leg over the horse.
"Don't screw it up this time," Fran called after Dylan as he took off at a gallop.
Dylan couldn't promise that. He'd seen the answers, but he'd been too afraid of the question. Now the only question that remained was was it too late?
Chapter Twenty
There was so much land. Land as far as the eye could see. Maggie could run in any direction that she wanted. The problem was that she desperately wanted to go back in the direction she'd come.
She heard something behind her. Her heart pounded faster as her legs slowed. Had he come after her after all?
Looking over her shoulder she didn't see a big man. She saw nothing on the horizon. But the sound persisted. Looking down, she saw it, Spin wheeling furiously after her.
Maggie stopped. She went to the little dog so that he didn't have to run any farther.
The poor thing. He was panting. His wheelchair was about to come loose. It wasn't meant for running. But the terrier had come after her.
Maggie scooped him in her arms and squeezed him tight. He gave her cheek a number of licks, as though he were trying to soothe her. It was something. But it wasn't enough.
The only one who could soothe this ache was her husband. But he couldn't bring himself to reach out to her.
Maggie came to the gazebo where she'd been married just the day before. Many of the decorations were still hanging. She steered clear of those memories and headed to the pier. It was a short pier overlooking the small pond.
The water wasn't blue. It looked as though there was a lot of refuse in the waters. Maybe it was run off from somewhere? It was no matter, she wasn't going in. No matter how much she wanted to sink down into the abyss.
What had she gotten herself into?
Dylan's reaction to her just now had been worse than indifference. She knew he cared, but he had let his fear and his shame get in the way of what they could have. He was hurting, wounded, and she knew that she had what it took to heal him if only he'd let her.
But he wouldn't.
Maggie looked up at the sky. That was a mistake. The azure of the sky was the same blue of Dylan's eyes. Now, each time she looked up, she'd be reminded of him.
Everything she'd ever wanted in her life was here on this ranch. A group of people ready to accept her as one of their own. A place for her animals. A job helping other animals. And a man who was kind and considerate and strong. He just had this one flaw. He bolted and lashed out when she got too close to his injury.
Could she spend the rest of her life in the face of his flaw?
She had said for better or worse in her vows. The better was good. It was really good. Could she manage the worse?
She had to. She'd promised. She'd simply have to find more patience until he trusted her.
He wasn't like the other animals she'd worked with. He was a man. Those beasts were notoriously hard to train and control.
She wouldn't put this relationship down. She'd find a way to foster and make this marriage thrive. She wasn't a quitter. But, man, was she tired. She'd rest here a bit and then go back for the next round.
Maggie closed her eyes and let the healing rays of the sun seep into her skin. When she caught her breath and felt a bit more rejuvenated, she gathered herself together and prepared herself to jump back into the fight. That's when she heard the splash.
She looked beside her to see that Spin was nowhere in sight. The waters of the pond rippled. Oh no. He'd fallen in.
But then he surfaced. His little nose spewing water, his paws swiping at the surface. Maggie leaned over the edge of the pier to grab him. He was too far.
Maggie had never learned to swim. But that didn't matter, not when a life was on the line. Spin's head dipped back below the water's surface. His legs paddled, but the wheelchair weighed him down. His head sunk below the surface again and resurfaced a second later.
Maggie scooted further out. She almost had him. Just one more inch … and she was in the water.
She was submerged before she'd even taken a breath. The water came at her from all sides. But in front of her was the dog. She reached her arms out and pulled Spin to her.
She kicked and punched, but the water still held her. They were going to die out here, on a ranch full of heroes, with no one coming to their rescue.
Chapter Twenty-One
Dylan pushed the horse harder than he ever had in training. In pushing the horse, he pushed his wounded leg. The ache was very real this time. But he pulled on his training and sucked it up. The pain would be tenfold if he didn't get to Maggie in time before she left him for good.
He pulled the horse to a stop. Pausing to look around. The vastness of the ranch spread out before him. Which direction had she gone?
In the distance, he spied the gazebo where they had been married just the other day. She'd looked up at him with such trust, with such hope, and he'd dashed all of her dreams. He'd give anything to have her look up at him again like that.
The sound of splashing tore him from his reverie. Dylan turned to the pond beyond the gazebo. Those waters weren't the cleanest, definitely not safe for swimming. It was on their long list of repairs for the ranch, but because most of the men didn't like to show off parts of their body, a swimming hole wasn't a high priority.
There was another splash. Then a pitiful bark, followed by a strangled cry. Had one of Maggie's dogs fallen in the water? With their injuries, they might not be able to swim. Dylan took off toward the lake.
He arrived to see Spin's head coming up out of the water. The dog coughed and spurted, paddling his front legs but moving nowhere. It looked odd that the dog was raising up so high. Then he realized, it was Maggie raising the dog. She must have dived in to save the dog not concerning herself with her own safety and livelihood.
He knew the dog couldn't swim with the apparatus on its leg. How the dog came to be in the water, he had no idea. But Dylan knew the added weight would only let the dog sink. And sink he did when the hands holding him up slipped down in the water.
But why wasn't Maggie surfacing? Was she caught on something in the water? Couldn't she swim?
Dylan didn't wait to find out. He dismounted. Crashing to the ground, he felt the impact of his hard landing all the way up his stump, but it didn't compare to the pounding in his heart.
He moved faster than he knew he could down the short pier. Neither dog nor woman had surfaced again in over a minute. Was he too late? Too late to save her life? Too late to win her back?
Diving in that water, he knew the moisture would wreck his prosthetic. He also knew the waters could get into his stump and cause an infection. He didn't hesitate at the pier’s edge. He leaped in.
Opening his eyes under the water, he saw nothing but bleakness and blackness. He kicked with his good leg, the prosthetic weighing him down.
He reached out his hands and felt nothing but more murky water. But he didn't give up. He couldn't give up. Not on Maggie.
She'd kept coming back to him, even after every time he'd pushed her away. When he'd tried to put distance between them, she'd step just a bit closer. She'd never felt she belonged anywhere or to anyone. He'd offered her a home and a family, but he'd put a door between them, he'd crossed his arms over his heart, he'd walked away from her.
No more. Not ever again.
Dylan reached out to her, determined to find her and pull her in
to the safety of his heart.
His hands met with fur. Then flesh. He grabbed them both to him and gave a powerful kick with his good leg. When he did, the prosthetic came off, freeing him to make his way up.
He felt lighter as he kicked them all to the surface. They broke the surface with a mighty gasp.
"Hold onto me," Dylan said when he'd taken air into his lungs.
"I can't let Spin go," said Maggie.
"One hand on Spin, one hand on me. I'll get us to the pier."
Maggie did as he instructed. He wrapped one arm around her and kicked with all his might to get them to safety.
Once they reached the pier, Maggie handed Spin onto the pier. The wheelchair had fallen from his small body. Only his two stumps remained. Spin collapsed in a sodden heap on the wood of the pier.
Dylan made sure Maggie's hands were braced on the pier. Then he boosted her up. The water weighed her down, and she made it clumsily onto the pier.
When it was Dylan's turn, he was dead tired. His limbs cried from exertion. But, with great effort, he hefted himself out of the water as well.
He collapsed on the pier, soaked and exposed. Not just his body, but his heart, his soul.
Dylan's and Maggie's gazes connected. Maggie looked him up and down. It took everything in him to hold still while she looked at his missing leg.
But he did it. He held still for her. No more hiding.
Her gaze slid over him, and then her hands followed. Her movements quick and efficient, not a caress or affectionate.
"Are you hurt?" she asked.
A laugh escaped Dylan. At first, it sounded like a cough as he freed a bit of pond water from his chest. Then the laughter rolled out of him like fresh waves. Of course, that would be her first concern.
"Yes," he said after he sobered. "I'm hurt."
Maggie's brows went up in alarm. Before she could move into action, he caught her hands. He brought himself up to a sitting position so that he could look her in her eyes.
"I am a hurt and wounded creature," he said. "Not the kind to lash out, the kind to hide away so others won't see and pity him."
"I don't pity you," she said.
"No, you don't." He ran the backs of his fingers down the side of her face. He'd just come so close to losing her. If he hadn't have followed after her she might be dead. He brought her into his arms, holding her so close he felt her heart beating.
"I don't pity you," she said again. "I love you."
Dylan pulled back to peer into her face. What he saw sent a rush of emotion through him that was so powerful it nearly knocked him on his back.
"I know that wasn't part of the deal," she said, averting her gaze. "But I couldn't help it. Despite your stubbornness, and your infuriating need for independence and self-reliance, you have the biggest heart of any person I've ever met. You are so selfless in how you take care of others. I want to be the one to take care of you."
"Okay." It was the only word that he could get past his constricted throat. Just those two syllables.
"Okay?"
"I want that," he nodded. "I want all of that. I want you. I want all of you. Not just on paper. I've felt like half a man for so long, but you make me feel whole. I'm a whole man when I'm with you."
Maggie looked up at him and beamed. Her face was full of trust and hope. Dylan's heart lurched for her. And then he was pulling her close.
Their lips met under the sun's gentle rays. The water had chilled him, but the press of her lips to his warmed him through. He pulled her tighter into his embrace to offer her everything that he had to give.
"I love you, too," he said when they broke apart.
"You do?"
"I do."
She swallowed, choking back tears, but one escaped her right eye. "No one's ever said that to me before."
"I'll say it every day from now on." Dylan wiped the solitary tear away. When he did, another fell. "I'll say it so much you'll grow tired of hearing it."
"I don't think that's possible."
"Let's see."
He pulled her in for another kiss, but before their lips could meet they were both showered with a spray of water as Spin shook the excess water from his coat.
Maggie and Dylan laughed at the little dog's antics. Spin stood tall on his two front legs, entirely unconcerned and unfazed about his appearance. Maggie's hand fell away from Dylan's shoulder and landed on his stump.
He waited for instinct to kick in and cause him to jerk from her touch. That instinct never showed up. Instead, he covered her hand with his. Their fingers entwined as both their palms rested on the wound that no longer ached.
"We need to get you both back to the ranch and clean those wounds," Maggie said. "You both are at risk for infection."
Dylan scooped the dog into his arms. "This is one brave dog."
"He's the reason we're together. If I hadn't have saved his life, I wouldn't have lost my job and found my way here."
"Seems like this rescued dog, rescued us."
"Yeah," Maggie agreed, giving the terrier a little scratch behind the ears.
Then she looked up at Dylan. They both did. Spin with trust in his gaze. Maggie with love in hers. Maggie ran her hand down Dylan's face, and he melted into her touch. Spin settled between them as their lips met again.
Epilogue
Four little dogs nipped around Fran’s heels as they all made their way from Dylan and Maggie’s backyard to the front of the house. Fran walked slowly and carefully so as not to step on any tails or feet or prosthetics.
The dogs were all excited to see their masters returned from the hospital where Dylan had spent a few days to treat an infection he’d acquired after jumping into the pond to save Maggie and her little terrier, or the Little Terror as Fran had christened him. The little dog followed Fran everywhere in Dylan’s absence.
The dog was clearly in need of a leader to suck up to. That could never be Fran. Fran didn’t have time to lead anyone. He meant that as a literal statement. His days were numbered and everyone knew it.
Fran looked back in the yard, noting that the fifth dog had yet to make his way over. Sugar, the Golden Retriever, sat under the shade of a tree. The sleeping dog opened one eye and then gave a sigh as he slowly got to his feet and trudged over. The poor dog had diabetes, a manageable disease, but the dog needed insulin treatments, and he was constantly thirsty and sleepy. Fran made sure to give the dog an extra pat. He and the dog had formed a bit of a friendship since Sugar couldn’t always keep up with his doggy siblings.
Fran understood not being able to keep up with the pack. When he was up on a horse, he wanted to push the great beast to gallop, but knew it wasn’t the best thing for his own health condition. So he kept to a light canter at most on his rides, which never left him satisfied. Fran waited for Sugar to join him, then the two made their way out the back gate.
At the front of the house, Reed and Sean sat rocking in porch chairs. The dogs wound about their legs. Reed pulled the tiny Chihuahua, Soldier, who’d lost his front left arm, onto his lap. Sean gave Stevie, the partially blind dog, a scratch behind the ear. In the distance, they could see Maggie’s truck make the turn into the ranch and begin down the long road toward the living quarters.
“You really gonna give up living on the ranch?” Reed asked Sean.
“Don’t really have much choice,” said Sean. “No woman will want to marry me with a mug like this.”
“If you’re fishing for a compliment, Jeffries, you won’t find one here,” said Reed.
“I’m serious,” Sean rolled his eyes. He wasn’t wearing his sunshades today as they were the only ones around him. The deep gashes on his face added to the frown he gave Reed. “I look like a monster.”
“So, you’re headed home?” asked Fran. He knew the answer to the question though.
Sean shook his head. “I’ll figure something out. We still got two months before the new paperwork gets filed.”
Fran had options. They just weren’t a
ny that he liked. He’d rather stay here with his friends and be surrounded by those that cared about him for his last days. However long they were. But he knew the shrapnel that lay dangerously close to his heart could move at any minute. How could he offer his heart to any woman under that threat?
The truck pulled to a stop in front of the home. Dylan stepped out of the truck, leaning on Maggie. He wore shorts, exposing his prosthetic leg.
“Aw man, Mags,” moaned Reed. “You brought him back alive?”
“Sorry,” she grinned. “It was unavoidable. The hospital was very eager to release him.”
“What did he do?” asked Fran. He knew his friend wasn’t the best patient.
“Let’s just say, nurses don’t respond well to commands,” Maggie said.
“You will note that no one said I was wrong,” Dylan grumbled as they came up the steps.
Dylan leaned down to Maggie’s upturned face and planted a soft kiss at the corner of her mouth. The two gazed at each other as though no one was there. Until the dogs began to bark for attention.
Maggie and Dylan broke apart with a grin and looked down at their brood. Ears were scratched, heads were patted as they all made their way into the house.
“You guys coming in for dinner?” asked Maggie.
“Depends on who’s cooking,” said Reed.
“Hey!” She reached back and gave him a punch on his shoulder.
The punch elicited a chuckle from Reed. Dylan pointed to his chest to indicate that he’d be the one doing the cooking. They all loved Maggie. She was great as a healer and a friend, but cooking was not her strong suit.
Dogs and humans filed into the front door, full of energy and life. Fran kept step with Sugar who made slow progress up the stairs. Once on the porch, the dog needed to rest a moment before heading inside with the rest of his family.
So, Fran waited a few moments with the dog until they both caught their breath. Their illnesses might slow them down, but it wouldn’t keep them from their goals. Sugar’s goal was to get to the offering in his doggie dish and then pal around with his pack. Fran’s goals were somewhat similar.
The Brides 0f Purple Heart Ranch Boxset, Bks 1-3 Page 8
