“Does my head look bad?” she asked, smoothing her hair before holding the ice back to her temple.
He shook his head but didn’t trust himself to speak. Instead, he called, “Sprinkles. Come on, girl.” He kept shaking the bag, hoping the crackle it made would be too hard for the little dog to resist. It was. The rapid tap tap of Sprinkles’s claws announced her speedy arrival. She sat, putting her little paws up to beg. He gave Sprinkles a biscuit and graced Jo with a smug smile.
“Oh, please.” Jo sighed. “Really?”
“I get this from all the girls,” he teased.
Jo burst out laughing then. “I bet you do.” She stood, setting the ice and towel in the sink. “I’ll leave the two of you alone while I go recover my brush...and anything else she’s hidden under the bed.”
He watched her go. Her pockets might be bulging with rollers, but the sway of her hips was unmistakable.
Sprinkles scratched his jeans.
“That’s how it is?” he asked, giving the dog another biscuit. “You don’t deserve another one, picking on Jo like that.”
Sprinkles whimpered, spinning around twice.
“Yeah, you’re cute and you know it.”
Sprinkles sat and yapped at him, ears perked forward.
“No!” Jo’s cry had Hunter headed back down the hall to her room.
“What now?” he asked, leaning against her door frame.
She spun, holding her dress out to him. “Hates me.” Holding up the dress, it was clear to see a series of tiny teeth marks along the little slit up the back of the dress.
“I can stitch it,” he offered. “Believe me, this is nothing.” He took the dress from her, inspecting the tear. “Needle and thread?” He glanced at Jo to find her staring at him, her expression thoughtful.
“Hunter, I can wear something else.” She glanced around her room.
He did, too. “Uh-huh.” Organization wasn’t one of Jo’s strong suits.
She grinned at him. “Fine.” She hurried out of the bedroom, returning minutes later with what looked like a mini black suitcase. She handed it to him. “Thank you. Again.”
“My pleasure.” He took the dress and bag and headed back into the living room. “I’ll let you finish your hair or whatever.” Because if he stayed there, in her disaster of a bedroom, he’d never want to leave.
* * *
JOSIE SUCKED IN a deep breath as she climbed into the truck. “I’m sorry about tonight.”
“What for?”
“Where should I start? Finding me crawling around on the floor in a robe. Having to apply first aid on my head, sewing my dress up—”
He laughed, a deep, rich sound that filled the cab. “That’s not exactly the way it happened.”
“Storyteller, remember?” she teased.
“Not the way your dates normally start?” he asked, still smiling. He started the truck and backed up, pulling down Main Street.
“If I had a normal dating protocol, I’d have to say no.” She laughed then. “What about you? I guess playing doctor is a possibility—”
“Nope.” He shrugged. “Not much opportunity, between work and Eli and all.”
“No?” She didn’t want to point out that she’d been here for less than two weeks and he’d found the time to cook her dinner, make a house call for her dad and take her on a date. “I can’t imagine how hard it is, being a single parent.” Not that she hadn’t thought about being a mom. She had, a lot. But motherhood meant relationships and that, she knew, wasn’t going to happen.
He shook his head. “Not really, not for me, anyway. It’s more like Eli’s got four fathers. And my dad and sister, Renata, make sure to spoil him now and then.”
Eli was lucky to have so much love. Eli, who couldn’t be happy about his father’s date tonight. She sighed, not wanting to think about the rage she’d seen in the young boy’s eyes, not tonight. “So, what do you do, besides work and fatherhood?”
“That’s about it, Jo,” he answered, amused. “A man’s gotta sleep.”
She sighed. “So you’re a hobbyless, dateless hermit?”
He chuckled. “What about you?”
“I work, a lot. And when I’m not doing murals or teaching classes or working on a book, I’m painting. You know me...” She broke off, glancing at him. “Guess I haven’t changed all that much.”
He looked at her. “Not much.” He turned his attention back to the road, but she saw the way his hands tightened on the steering wheel and wondered at it. “Dad mentioned a new job. Does that mean you’re moving?”
She nodded. “New Mexico Art Institute offered me an artist-in-residency position. It could be a great opportunity. Guess it’s time for me to think about putting down some roots.”
“And New Mexico is where you want to be?” If it was, that was all the answer he needed.
“I don’t know. After spending the day with Annabeth, Lola and Dara, I’ve learned one thing. I’m not sure what I want. Except that, if I don’t make some decisions, I’ll be homeless and unemployed.” Her laugh sounded forced—she heard it. But she was beginning to wonder if the job, the move, the starting over, was really what she wanted.
“That’s not true, Jo. You’ll always have a home. Carl would love to have you back in Stonewall Crossing. I know it’s not where you imagined yourself ending up, but—”
“I don’t mind it,” she admitted. When she’d been lying there, wide-awake, she’d mulled over the possibility of staying there longer. Her new story idea was really shaping up. Who knew, if she stayed, maybe more ideas would come. “Stonewall Crossing, I mean.”
“No?” He sounded surprised.
“Not anymore. Time and distance can put things into serious perspective. I was so...so ready to escape. Not that I had anything to escape from, but I didn’t get that then. Dad was good to me, more than good. Things were stable.” She dared to glance at him. “I...I was young. And stupid. And scared.”
“Of?”
“Life has shown me one thing, Hunter. When things were good, when I was safe or happy, it wasn’t going to last. If I stayed and...” She didn’t finish the sentence, because she’d lost Hunter, anyway. She’d left because she was too scared to fight for him, to trust him, and her worst fears were realized. “Like I said, I was young and stupid. Somehow I thought leaving would make it less painful—since it was my choice.”
“Jo.” He sighed. “Your mom’s version of family and love was messed up. I won’t argue with that. But you had Carl. You had people who wanted you to stay.” His tone was hard. “People who would have gone with you, if you’d asked.”
People who would have gone with you, if you’d asked. She stared at him, stunned. Was he talking about him? Was he—
His phone started ringing. He pressed a button on the steering wheel. “Dr. Boone.”
“Hunter, Archer here.” The clipped voice spilled into the truck cab. “Mars is in trouble.”
Hunter’s head dipped, his voice tight. “Define trouble.”
“Accelerated heart rate. Labored breathing. Hold on.” There was some background noise, rustling and voices. “Pups are fine at the moment. You’d wanted me to let you know if something changed, so I am.”
Even in the dim illumination, she could see Hunter’s jaw lock.
“You need to go?” she asked. She didn’t know who Mars was, but Hunter was worried. If Hunter needed to be with Mars, then that’s where they needed to be. “Let’s go.”
“There’s no reason for you to come in,” Archer said. “I can handle this.”
“Hi, Archer,” Josie called. “I was just telling Hunter I wanted to come visit the hospital, you know, without Sprinkles as a patient.”
“You sure?” Hunter asked, already pulling onto the shoulder of the road.
She nodded. “Absolutely.”
His crooked smile warmed her heart. “All right. I’ll be there in twenty minutes.” And he hung up, pulling across the empty four-lane road and heading back to town
. “Are you sure you don’t want me to take you home?”
“Sounds like you need to get there. And I’d be up for a tour of the hospital, after you save the day in your dashing white coat, of course.”
“You said it was irresistible,” he reminded her, grinning broadly.
“Did I?”
He sighed, shaking his head.
“I know you can’t talk about the case. Doctor-patient confidentiality and all that,” she teased. “But I am curious.”
He shook his head. “Why doesn’t that surprise me?”
“Do you always get attached to your patients?”
“No.” He smiled. “But every once in a while, an animal stands out. Depends on their personality, their nature. Just like people.”
“That makes sense,” she agreed. “Some people are way more likable than others.”
He laughed. “Ain’t that the truth?”
“You just said ain’t.” She giggled.
He shot her a look as he turned into the parking lot and parked in front of the large glass doors. The lights cut through the dark, casting a welcoming glow into the cold night. “Mars is a sweet thing.” He got out of the truck.
Before he could come around and open the door, she hopped out. “You don’t have time to be all gentlemanly right now.” She hooked her arm through his and pulled him toward the door.
The thick glass doors slid open without a sound and four faces peered at them over the admissions desk.
“Dr. Boone,” one of the young men said. “Dr. Boone...er, your brother is in OR 1 waiting for you.”
“Dr. Boone, don your super coat and save Mars.” She glanced at him. “Okay, admit it, that sounded hilarious.”
He laughed, reaching up one hand to stroke her cheek. She froze, her heart racing and her lungs desperately seeking air while his intense blue-green eyes bore into hers.
“Good luck,” she whispered.
He nodded. “Be back soon.” His attention wandered to the fourth-year students at the desk and his hand fell to his side. He shot her a small smile, then disappeared behind the swinging door labeled Staff Only.
She waved at the students sitting behind the admissions desk before taking in the waiting room of the teaching hospital. Last time she was here, she’d been too caught up in her father and Sprinkles to appreciate the facility. She read over one of the framed articles hanging on the wall, baffled by the list of contributors and clinicians praising the work done at the school and the educators on staff. UET wasn’t just one of the best teaching hospitals in the country but, apparently, the world. Good for you, Hunter. The sting of tears surprised her, but the swell of pride didn’t. She’d always known Hunter was capable of anything.
Movement distracted her, drawing her attention to the massive aquarium full of brilliantly colored fish and coral. She wandered closer, watching the rich sunshine-yellow, vibrant cobalt-blue and fiery-red fish hide behind whatever cover they had.
“Would you like some coffee?” a young woman asked.
Josie turned around. “No, thank you.” Her stomach grumbled, loudly. “But I’m starving. Have you guys eaten? And where can a girl order pizza around here?”
Chapter Nine
Hunter stroked Mars’s head. “You did good.” He spoke softly, noting the dog’s respirations and heart rate on her chart. Normal. They’d made the decision to go ahead with the surgery on her back tonight, since the dog would already be sedated. A few pins in three vertebrae. They’d realigned her spine and alleviated the stress off her compressed nerves. In a few days, they should know if Mars would recover use of her legs.
“She’ll be fine.” Archer checked Mars’s IV solution. “Puppies are, too. I told you there was nothing to worry about.”
Hunter glanced at his brother. Archer wasn’t a fan of small-animal medicine. His passion was large animals, not someone’s lapdog. If Mars had been a bull or even a mountain lion, Archer would be over-the-top excited right now. Instead, his brother was almost bored.
“Cute puppies,” one of the students, Lori or Linda or something, said.
Hunter nodded. They were. Two yellow and one feisty chocolate. All healthy and, undoubtedly, hungry. “Need to get some formula mixed up.” He washed his hands, mentally going over Mars’s chart again.
“I can do that, Dr. Boone,” Marco, one of the veterinary assistants, offered. “Tonight was awesome, totally awesome, getting to assist.”
“Nothing too edge of your seat.” Archer led him to the door. “Go on, Hunter, finish your date.”
Hunter clapped his brother on the shoulder. “Thanks for the call and the help.”
“I would say that’s what brothers are for, but this is also my job.” Archer tucked his glasses into his coat pocket and headed toward his office.
Hunter laughed, making his way from the operating room and through the maze of hallways and patient rooms to the front desk. When he pushed through the waiting room doors, he found Jo standing on top of a chair, measuring the wall with a yardstick. Two of his students stood nearby, watching Jo as she teetered on one foot.
“Do I want to know?” he asked, crossing to Jo. She’d twisted her hair up, two pencils sticking out of the messy bun at the nape of her neck.
“Hey.” She was all smiles, for him. And he liked it. “How did it go? Is Mars okay?”
“Fine.” He nodded.
“Puppies, too?”
“Puppies, too.” He wanted to grab her out of that chair and hold her close. “What are you up to?”
She frowned at him. “I’m not up to anything.”
“You’re standing on a chair with a yardstick.” He arched an eyebrow and waited.
“I had to do something while you were working.”
“And that would be?” he asked, aware that both students were trying to edge their way back to the admissions desk without being noticed.
“Nothing.” She held her hand out to him, rolling her eyes in exasperation. He took her hand, noticing for the first time that she was barefoot. He helped her step down from the chair, smiling down at her.
“What?” she asked.
“You’re just so damn cute.”
She grinned. “You’re not so bad yourself, Dr. Boone.” She smoothed her hands over his shoulders, her fingers skimming the collar of his white lab coat. “It’s the coat.”
He had trouble focusing. “Hungry?”
She shook her head. “We got pizza.” She pulled him over to the admissions desk. Five boxes of pizza were spread over the counter. “They were hungry. I figured you’d be hungry, so—”
“You bought pizza.” He looked at the students. “Been a quiet night?” he asked them. “No calls?”
One of the students jumped up, reading from the call log. “We did have one call about a dog that couldn’t go to the bathroom.”
Hunter shook his head. “Talk about an eventful night.”
“So, pizza?” Jo asked. “Canadian bacon and mushroom?” Which was his all-time favorite pizza. She’d remembered.
He nodded, taking the box one of the students offered, watching Jo cross the waiting room to a set of chairs. That’s when he saw the papers spread across them.
It was the mural, the note from Dr. Lee and several more pages stapled together. “The commission?”
She nodded, holding up the picture, then looking at the wall.
He sat, holding the pizza box in his lap. “You thinking about it?” He pulled a slice of pizza out, waiting, nervous.
She glanced at him, the picture, the wall, then him again. “You said it—the only guarantee in my future is uncertainty. I guess...” She swallowed, looking at the picture in her hands. “I guess I’m toying with the idea of staying. For a while, maybe.”
“Good plan,” he managed, taking a huge bite of pizza before his smile revealed how happy she’d just made him.
She turned to him. “It’s a lovely idea. The mural, I mean.”
He nodded. “You ready for that tour?” he asked,
grabbing another slice and standing. “Might help you make up your mind about the mural.” And staying.
She tucked all the papers back into an envelope. “Lead on doctor.”
And he did. They toured the exam rooms, the pre-op area, the post-op area, the operating rooms, the lecture halls—pretty much anything that would impress her, he showed her. The hospital was just as big a part of his life as the ranch, and her opinion mattered. And then he pulled out the big guns.
“These are Mars’s puppies.” He pointed to the three pups wiggling around on a heat pad wrapped in soft blankets.
“Poor little things.” Jo’s forehead creased. “Think they’re looking for their mom?”
He smiled. “That blanket belongs to Mars. They’re getting plenty of mama-scent and not having to fight to eat. Bottle-fed pups have it easy.”
“Where’s mom?”
“She’ll be sleeping for a while. If she’s all right, we’ll put them with her for a while tomorrow. We’ll just wait and see.” He reached into the box, cradling one of the pups in his hand. “She’ll do better with her babies around her.” He assessed the puppy, turning it over, lifting its head, running his fingers over the small stomach and smiling when it whimpered.
“Pass inspection?” Jo asked, watching him. Her eyes seemed to make note of everything he did without revealing a thing.
He set the puppy back on the mat. “This wasn’t what I had planned for tonight.”
“So I shouldn’t be flattered you arranged all this—” she pointed at the puppies “—for me.”
He stepped closer. “Is that what you’re feeling? Flattered?” Her cheeks turned a rosy red and hope bloomed in his chest. He reached up, pulling the pencils from her hair. It tumbled around her shoulders.
She held his gaze, her voice husky. “What are you up to, Dr. Boone?”
“Kissing you,” he answered, cupping her face in his hands.
Her breath hitched before she stepped in toward him, tilting her head back.
He bent his head, his mouth finding hers, sealing them together. He groaned and pulled her against him. Her curves made thought impossible, but he could hear alarm bells ringing in his head. He softened his kiss, keeping it tender, gentle and teasing.
A Cowboy's Christmas Reunion (Mills & Boon Cherish) (The Boones of Texas, Book 1) Page 10
