Cupid to the Rescue: A Tail-Wagging Valentine's Day Anthology

by Lisa Mondello

  The look on her face was one he’d never seen before. Anger, disappointment, deep-set anguish. “According to my therapist, Brad became an easy target for my anger.” She wiped her eyes and shrugged. “Life is filled with priorities. Ours were askew. There was no coming back from that.”

  He stood and pulled her with him. “I’m sorry for your baby. You mentioned her name but I….”

  “Sophia Rose.”

  “My mother’s middle name was Rose, too. At least, Sophia had her grandpa waiting for her at the gates of heaven. And, from what you told me, he’d want you here tonight, helping a new mom with her first baby.” He kissed her brow. “Do you think you can do that, Paige? For Miss Valentine?”

  She bit down on her lip, but her chin came up and she met his gaze with the grit he’d seen when she refused to let Doc write off the little donkey. “What do you need me to do?”

  Her Cowboy Valentine: Chapter 10

  The birth was as simple and euphoric as Paige remembered from the times she’d helped her dad. Miss Valentine did all the work. TJ and Doc FaceTimed for a part of it. Paige stayed close but gave Miss V—as TJ had started calling her—plenty of space.

  Miss V made a low, guttural sound, drawing their attention her way. TJ stepped close enough to examine her. “Any time now.”

  Paige walked to his side. His arm settled around her like they’d been friends forever.

  How am I going to leave when the time comes?

  She’d never heard anything good about long-distance relationships, but she and TJ weren’t kids. She’d come back for long weekends. He’d help her move into whatever short-term rental she found. She’d already decided not to reinvest in a home until she found a job that made her feel happy to go to work every day. She’d never felt that way about the movie industry. Not even in the beginning. She’d been swept up in her first easy success and just stayed.

  “If you’re doing something you love, it’s never work,” her father often said. And he’d been happy. He’d loved his work.

  It’s why I planned to become a vet until…

  A few seconds later, a tiny hoof appeared. “Do you think the baby’s alive?”

  “Yes. This looks good. It’s in the diving position. I always liked the sound of that.”

  She tried to picture Sophia—hands upward rushing through the birth canal instead of being plucked from the open cut in Paige’s belly. “Me, too. It’s life affirming.”

  The rest of the birth seemed to take place at record speed.

  He pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her. They’d both tossed their heavy coats over the stall railing once the space heater kicked in. “This is my first donkey birth, but I’ve seen a hundred cows and a few horses deliver. Nature seems to have her act together with four-legged beasts.”

  A brief pang of sadness became lost in the wonder that overtook her when Miss V’s foal came fully into the world, accompanied by a rush of allantoic fluids.

  Paige hadn’t realized she was holding her breath until he squeezed her. “Beautiful, isn’t it?”

  The wistfulness in his tone made her wonder if he was regretting not having children. And, of course, he still could…with the right woman. Not me.

  Risking another brutal loss was not on her agenda.

  “You can’t give up living just because of a fluke,” Brad had argued with more passion than he’d shown the whole time she was pregnant. Not surprising for a man who had never been denied anything growing up. “Sophia’s problems were one in a million. The chances of that happening again—”

  “Are real. Too real,” she’d returned once he’d made his plans to “try again” clear. “I’m not a masochist. We’re not doing this again.”

  And so ended their negotiations, their hopes for the future, and their marriage.

  As if sensing her disquiet, TJ rubbed his chin near her ear. “Look at our girl. She knows exactly what to do, even her first time out.”

  Paige’s eyes clouded with tears as she watched Miss Valentine nuzzle and lick her baby, urging the little one to move.

  He gave her one more hug then stepped away, reaching for one of the old beach towels they’d brought at Doc’s behest. “Let’s do this together before Miss V gets all motherly and doesn’t want anyone touching her baby.”

  Doc had suggested they help the jenny dry off the baby to avoid any chance of chill or pneumonia. They’d also prepared a 5 percent iodine solution to treat the umbilical stump after the cord broke off.

  Paige followed, still a little awed by how flawlessly this birth had been. She congratulated the new mother with a quick hug. “You did good, little girl. I’m so proud of you. What a fighter you are.”

  TJ didn’t say anything, but she thought she detected a certain pride in the way she’d handled the birth, too.

  “This isn’t quite how I imagined our evening,” she said, when they left the barn three hours later. They’d waited until the baby successfully found her mother’s teat and began to nurse.

  Doc had warned that first time mothers often lacked the skill to successfully direct the baby to nurse. As Paige had learned from her birth experience, the colostrum in the mother’s milk was important for the baby’s health and to bond with Miss Valentine.

  “Me, either,” he said, holding her hand as he shined the lantern on the rocky path. “But, hey, what a story to tell our—”

  He stopped dead in his tracks, his hand squeezing hers hard.

  “What? A bear? Mountain lion?”

  He turned the beam on a familiar-looking truck parked behind his. “Betty. And no horse trailer. This can’t be good.”

  ♥ ♥ ♥

  “You’re pulling up stakes and leaving? Just like that?” Even after an hour of discussion and endless cups of coffee provided by a concerned, but oddly mute, Paige, TJ still couldn’t wrap his head around his foster mom’s revelation.

  “I couldn’t tell you any sooner, son. Maria and I had a brief relationship in college, but she was the first in her family to attend college and was under a lot of pressure to go to law school. Things were different back then. Not as open as today.” She stared at her empty coffee cup, as if remembering something painful.

  TJ had always known Betty was gay. Hell, he’d gotten kicked out of school for a week after he popped some wiseass for making a nasty remark about TJ’s “dyke” foster mom. But he could honestly say he never saw this coming. She’s leaving Prospect Creek. The Refuge. Her home. Me.

  As if sensing his pain, Paige left the dishes she’d been drying and putting away to walk behind his chair and lay both hands on his shoulders. He saw Betty register the significance of the gesture before continuing her story.

  “Maria moved to DC to become a social rights lawyer, got married, divorced, raised her kids almost single-handedly and took care of her parents until they passed. Now, she’s retired and volunteering for causes she believes in.”

  “Or causes she knew you’d believe in?” Paige asked.

  Betty smiled for the first time since she broke her life-changing news. “That’s how we reconnected. We’ve been emailing and talking for months. We both knew this meeting would be a game changer.”

  She looked at them pleadingly. “She never told anyone about us. I didn’t know whether I trusted her to be honest this time, but I was with her when she broke the news to her family on a group chat.” She shook her head. “It was weird. And hard. Her son didn’t handle it well, but her daughters were both cool. They said Rico would come around. They want their mom to be happy and said they were looking forward to getting to know me.”

  “That’s amazing,” Paige said. “She obviously raised her children right. I’m really happy for you both.”

  “Thank you, Paige.”

  Her gaze dropped to him. “Is it fair to assume you’re feeling the same way Rico did? Freaked out? Pissed off?”

  He shook his head. “Blindsided. I guess I should be relieved. I was afraid you had cancer.”

  Betty’
s laugh sounded strangled. “Sorry, boy. I didn’t share any of this because…well, you know…once burned, twice as careful. I didn’t see this coming. But, I gotta be honest; the last couple of years have been lonely. I love the Refuge, but it’s a lot of work. And I’m tired.”

  TJ got that. He did. But… “You’re just gonna walk away?”

  “Wouldn’t be the first time. I told Maria I’d have to find homes for the animals. She lives on five acres outside of Vegas. We both decided it’s the best location for our rescue work. She took Suzy and my trailer back with her, and will bring it up here next week or the week after to help me move.”

  She looked around as if deciding what to keep and what to let go. When her gaze landed on him, TJ felt an old memory jump into his mind. His mother handing him off to a man TJ barely knew. “Go with your daddy, Toby. Mama’s got things to do.”

  Emotions swamped him. He shot to his feet, breaking contact with Paige when she jumped back. “Gotta go.”

  Paige and Betty exchanged a look.

  “You comin’ back?” Betty asked, her voice gruff with emotion.

  He nodded, but he couldn’t say when.

  Paige put out a hand as if to stop him, but he turned away, grabbed his coat and left. He didn’t have an answer for her, either.

  Her Cowboy Valentine: Chapter 11

  Five days later

  “Are you serious?”

  Paige looked at her mother and smiled. “I know. It’s radical. But, to quote my favorite philosopher, ‘If not now, when?’”

  Mom rolled her eyes. “I hate when you turn my words around on me, but I just got off the phone with Betty and I’m so happy for her I could cry.”

  “Me, too. I like her a lot, and she deserves to be with someone she loves.”

  They’d met at their favorite lunch spot to say their goodbyes in person. Mom, who was still recovering from toe surgery, couldn’t drive, but Paige’s stepdad dropped her off to run errands and give mother and daughter private time.

  “Can’t the same be said for you?” Mom asked.

  Paige’s cheeks warmed, remembering the fledgling feelings she’d felt with TJ. “Betty told you, huh? Me and a certain cowboy?”

  “Apparently, a little donkey was playing matchmaker while Betty was away. And you delivered a baby donkey.” Mom reached out and squeezed Paige’s hand. “That’s…huge. I’m so proud of you.”

  “Thanks. Mostly, I watched. Miss Valentine did all the work, but the process was a kind of healing for me. I’d blocked all the good memories I had with Dad because of that last really bad one.”

  Mom nodded sagely. “I know. And then, losing Sophia. I was afraid you’d shut down completely.”

  “I did. Just ask Brad.”

  “Speaking of Brad, I read that he made some kind of settlement with the nasty blogger. Does that mean you’re off her radar?”

  Paige nodded. “You may not believe this, but she was the first person I called when I got back here. I told her I was sorry for what happened to her sister. It’s funny, but helping Miss Valentine seemed to open my eyes to other people’s pain. I’d been so focused on my own, I couldn’t empathize with anyone else.”

  “Including Brad?”

  “Exactly. I offered to go in half with the settlement as long as the blogger—her name is Ruthie, by the way—agreed to donate the money to a Suicide Prevention group.”

  Mom brought her hands into the prayer position. “That’s wonderful. I’m so proud of you.” She hesitated. “I know we don’t talk money, but how can you afford that and buy Betty’s place and go back to vet school?”

  Paige sat back. “I consider the settlement an investment in my peace of mind and something I owed Sophia’s father. Plus, Betty’s selling me the Refuge for a song, and Doc will be paying me to be his apprentice while I wait for my application to go through. Apparently, it’s very competitive, but he’s backing me, so that might help.”

  Neither spoke for a minute or two, then Mom asked, “So, what does TJ say about you buying Betty’s?”

  “I don’t know. We haven’t spoken. After he left on Valentine’s Day, apparently he went into the mountains to…ruminate.”

  “‘Ruminate’?”

  “That’s what Betty calls it. She said it took him a whole month to come to peace with his breakup. Then, he spent another couple of months in solitary confinement working at his mine. I’ve called and texted, but I know from experience, the reception in the mountains is hit or miss.”

  Mom frowned. “You’ve been through so much, I hate to see you move to Prospect Creek only to be disappointed when your cowboy comes back.”

  Paige set down her coffee cup and folded her hands on the table. “Don’t worry, Mom. I have a good feeling about TJ and my future.” If Miss Valentine believes in us, who am I to doubt? “But I’m not going into this expecting anything from him. I’m doing this for me, Mom. I truly believe it’s what Dad would have wanted for me. I feel at home in the mountains. I’ve made friends. I have a clear path to a future I feel great about.”

  The worried look didn’t magically disappear. Paige understood. Mom had experienced a couple of false starts where love was concerned before she met Paige’s stepfather.

  “I’ll be waiting for TJ when he gets back. We’ll take things slow. Hopefully, he feels the same way about me as I do for him, but I promise I won’t fall apart again if that doesn’t work out. I’m open to love because I know that’s what Sophia would have wanted for me.”

  Mom’s smile looked true for the first time since they sat down. At first, Paige thought it was for her, but then she looked over her shoulder and saw her stepfather coming toward their table. Paige couldn’t help but grin because that look of joy was exactly how she felt about seeing TJ again.

  ♥ ♥ ♥

  “You know I can’t stay mad. I love you, and I want you to be happy.”

  He’d practiced the words all the way from the mine to Betty’s. He’d fled to the mountains to wrestle with the gut punch of her leaving. First, his birth mother, then the woman he considered his real mother. Her announcement that she was selling the Refuge and moving to another state brought up all that old anguish, insecurities, and the recurring question: Did she ever really love me?

  “Oh, TJ, I knew this was going to throw you for a loop, but I never doubted your feelings for me. You’re my boy. My heart. You’re the only thing I really want to take with me, but I know that’s not going to happen. Especially now.”

  They were sharing the top step of her porch. Her truck and horse trailer faced outward, ready to join Maria on the road to Vegas. He’d arrived in time to meet the woman Betty planned to marry as soon as humanly possible. Tiny, but feisty, intelligent, and sharp, Maria somehow seemed a good match for his laidback mother. In a way, their differences made him think of a certain city girl and a certain cowboy.

  Was there a chance for him and Paige? He hadn’t returned any of her calls. She probably hated him.

  Betty’s elbow poked his arm.

  “Huh?”

  “I said, ‘Especially now.’”

  “Yeah. What does that mean?”

  Her smile was part mischief, part satisfaction. “I found a forever home for Miss Valentine.”

  Not what he was expecting, but… “Really? You gave her away? I planned on moving her up to the mine. I need to build a shelter first. We’re not done with winter yet.”

  “Well, you can take up your claim with the new owner of the Refuge. She was part of the deal.”

  “You sold this place already? I was only gone a couple of days. How is that possible?”

  “Good things happen when you’re open and receptive to love.”

  He blinked, trying to make sense of her words.

  “I sold it to Paige.” She checked her watch. “She should be pulling in any minute. We have some papers to sign before I go.”

  The rush of emotions pulsing through his chest reminded him of his first time out on the back of a bull. Fear,
excitement, hope, and terror. Paige. They’d been so close to solidifying their feelings for each other before Betty dropped her emotional bomb on him.

  “Does she know I’m back?”

  Betty gave him a scolding look. “Probably not if you haven’t called her. Why haven’t you called her? She’s not the kind of person who leaves, TJ. She’s the kind of person who sticks it out for the people she loves. Deep down, you know that.”

  Do I?

  He pictured her devotion to Miss V. Her bravery in the face of old anguish and loss. Her fearlessness when it came to meeting new people, herding chickens, and accepting him. His heart—still slightly tender and bruised—suddenly felt a sort of healing and peace. “You’re right. I do know that.”

  He clapped an arm around his foster mother’s back and hugged her tight. “I love you, Mom.”

  She let out an uncharacteristic peep. “I love you, too, son. I’m going to miss you so much.”

  Their heads touched. “No, you’re not. You’re going to be too busy being happy and getting married and rescuing wild mustangs.”

  She took his hand and squeezed it hard. “Speaking of weddings, when the time is right, you and Paige might want to consider Vegas. Destination weddings are all the rage, I’ve heard.”

  Before he could caution her not to get her hopes up, Rocky let out a shrill, ear-piercing cry and Titus scrambled to his feet, chiming in with his deep, thundering bark. Out of habit, TJ and Betty both looked toward the messed-up driveway.

  A second later, a late model four-wheel-drive extended cab pickup pulled in, a rented cargo trailer in tow. He didn’t recognize the rig, but he sure as hell recognized the driver.

  He raced to the truck, nearly bowling over Titus, who’d stopped—torn between greeting the new truck and protecting Betty. “Out of the way, dog. It’s Paige.”

  He yanked open the driver’s side door before she could turn off the engine. He heard the tail end of a country song that cut off the minute she turned off the key.