by Caroline Lee
Copyright © 2019, Caroline Lee
[email protected]
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. This book contains material protected under International and Federal Copyright Laws and Treaties. Any unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author.
First edition: 2019
This work is made available in e-book format by Amazon Kindle at www.amazon.com
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Cover: EDHGraphics
Dr. Dustin “The Flirt” McIver. The playboy. The one who makes no promises to women—to any woman—because he’s never interested in any one lady for long. And here’s one lady he can’t charm.
Marley Santana has come to Idaho to be her best friend’s maid of honor, but first she has to check out the swimming facilities. She’s one of the country’s top paraplegic swimmers, and needs to keep up her training if she’s going to compete internationally. She’s not here for romance, but that doesn’t stop her from admiring the hottie she almost runs over at the pool.
With all of his siblings—and most of his cousins!—recently married off, Dusty McIver is determined to remain the last bastion of sanity in Quinn Valley. Why in the world would he fall in love and settle down, if there’s a smorgasbord of beautiful ladies out there? But after hanging out with the incredibly interesting Marley, his wandering eye is less…wandering. Of course, she’s not someone he’s planning on dating, she’s just a cool friend. Right? No romance for this playboy, thankyouverymuch.
But between physical therapy appointments, painting with Bob Ross, trivia contests, and swim lessons, Dusty realizes Marley might just be a bit more. Watching her learn to master the exoskeleton is inspiring, but her wheelchair is part of who she is. And if she thinks she needs to change that for him…well then, he hasn’t done a good enough job of convincing her she’s awesome just the way she is.
Contents
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
EPILOGUE
Five years later
Other westerns by Caroline Lee
River’s End Ranch and Quinn Valley Ranch:
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Playboy’s Promise
Quinn Valley Ranch
Book Twenty-Four
Dedication:
My first boyfriend, who still holds a special place in my heart, shares a similar history with Marley. As an author, I was tired of people with physical disabilities being relegated to secondary characters in romance, and wanted to show the world that people like Mike and Marley are main characters, with desires and passions and needs and foibles, just like any of us. It takes a while for Dustin to see and understand that, because he—like so many—sees the disability before the ability.
So I guess, in dedication, this one is for everyone who sees the ability.
Also, the parrot fish.
CHAPTER ONE
Bikinis. Bikinis as far as the eye can see.
Dr. Dustin McIver smiled in appreciation as he crossed his arms in front of his chest and settled into an easy stance. He could be happy standing here all day, and reminded himself to offer to take little Jerm here again next week, if the kid wanted to.
In the summer months, like now, Quinn Valley’s water park was popular among the tourists, and Dustin was one of the men who appreciated getting the chance to see so many lovely strangers in various neon-colored bathing suits.
Of course, I’m an equal-opportunity appreciator. Bikinis, one-pieces, tank-tops—
His lips broke into a smile as a particularly svelte red-head sauntered by in a one-shoulder blue number and sent him a flirtatious smile.
God bless summertime.
Of course, since this water park had been roofed-over recently, the swimming continued year-round. But on average, there were fewer tourists in Quinn Valley in the winter months, since the hot springs weren’t as tempting in sub-zero temps. And while Dustin preferred the water park in the cooler months, fewer tourists meant more locals, and since he was related to half the town anyhow, he found it safer to not bother admiring the bathers then.
Today it was really busy. When his nephew called to him from the shallow end of the wave pool, Dustin lifted a few fingers in return. The six-year-old had been the one to suggest today’s outing, since he was staying with Dustin for a few days, and it had been a great idea.
One of the benefits of working for yourself was working your own hours. His chiropractic office was usually booked solid Monday through Thursday, and Dustin tended to reserve Fridays for administrative work. But this week, he’d taken Wednesday and Thursday off as well, so he and Jerm could hang out and do “guy stuff” while his nephew’s parents were out of town on their honeymoon.
His parents.
Dustin snorted softly and shook his head. His twin sister, Alyssa, had surprised them all six-and-a-half years ago when she’d announced she was pregnant…and surprised them even further by refusing to name her baby’s father. It was only this very summer when Tripp Weston had finally returned—he’d been in Afghanistan all these years in the Army apparently—that the Quinn family had discovered the truth.
Remembering the way Tripp had been—Dustin and Alyssa had been in the same grade as the explosive teen screw-up—it was easy to see where Jerm got his temper from. But Tripp was a changed man now, and he was helping his son learn to control his impulses.
Yeah, it was weird to think of Alyssa having a partner now, after all these years, but Dustin couldn’t deny it was good to see her so happy. Although he hadn’t guessed it, even back then, Alyssa had been in love with Tripp all these years, and the man obviously felt the same. And now that he had a steady job, and a steady head, he was good—really good—for Alyssa.
So if they wanted a few days alone, in Spokane, to celebrate their recent courthouse ceremony, then Dustin was more than happy to take his nephew to the bikini-populated water park.
“Beep-beep.”
The call from behind him had him whirling around, then scrambling out of the way. He’d been blocking the aisle from the locker room to the wave pool, but the handsome woman in the wheelchair grinning up at him didn’t seem irritated.
Still, he flushed and backed up even further, gesturing for her to wheel by. Instead, she put her hands—encased in purple fingerless gloves—to the wheels and stopped herself right beside him. She stared out at the bodies in the wave pool, same as he had been.
He wasn’t sure if he should say something or not. Her expression seemed almost pensive as she watched the kids playing, and he examined her out of the corner of his eye.
Her skin was dark, and her hair a mass of tight black curls, which poofed up from her headband. She was wearing a white tank top, and a skirt splashed with neon green flowers. In his time in school, and as a chiropractor, he’d met a few paraplegic patients and knew some of the women favored skirts, since they were easy to get on and off. Dustin’s gaze took in her muscular shoulders and arms, and the way she held herself
easily in the zippy little sports-model wheelchair.
Just professional interest, of course.
As if she knew he was watching her, the woman snorted softly and shook her head, then said something.
With the kids’ happy screams echoing in the big room, it had been impossible to hear. “What was that?” he prompted.
Just as it occurred to him she might not have been talking to him, she tilted her chin up towards him. “I said, this place is nothing like the real thing.”
Real thing? Oh, she meant the ocean. “Waves?”
She nodded. “This place is pretty cool, but you can’t surf in a wave pool.”
The way she said it wasn’t sad, but more like pity, as if it was a shame all these Idahoans wouldn’t have the chance to surf. Dustin wasn’t sure how to respond, so he scrambled for something to say.
“Uh, yeah. Since the hotel took it over, they’ve done a good job with it, as much as they could anyway.” He had to raise his voice to be heard.
She nodded. “I’ve been looking the place over, and it’s impressive. Very accessible.” She patted one of her wheels.
Making everything ADA-compliant had been the push of Rachel—Dustin’s new sister-in-law—in the years she’d worked for Uncle Bob at the hotel. Having heard all about it, Dustin nodded and glanced towards where Jerm was playing in the shallow end.
“The zero-depth entry is—” He cut himself off when he realized what he was saying. Sure, the shallow end was great for toddlers, but would it work for someone in a wheelchair?
He found himself flushing again, embarrassed, and dropped his hands into the pockets of his swim trunks.
The look she shot him said she knew exactly how silly he’d sounded. Would she ignore it? “Yeah, but that’s only relevant if you’ve got a waterproof chair.” She jerked her thumb towards the lift in the deep end of one of the other pools. “That’s the way to get in and out.”
“Right, sorry.” He was a professional, dang it! So why did he keep putting his foot in his mouth? “Are you here to swim?”
“Not today. I wanted to check out the lap pool my friend told me about.”
It wasn’t actually part of the water park, but Uncle Bob’s hotel had added it when they’d taken over the facilities. The lap pool was Olympic-sized, and many of Quinn Valley’s year-round residents used it for exercise as often as the tourists did. Travis, Dustin’s business partner, was one of the town’s most popular physical therapists, and he often sent his clients to the pool for therapy. Heck, even Dustin had spent some time last winter doing laps, when he couldn’t stand to run on his treadmill any longer.
He shifted so he could still keep one eye on Jerm, while facing her and the distant door to the locker room, with the lap pool on the other side. “What’d you think? Pretty impressive, huh?”
She wasn’t looking at him, which was a bit of a blow to his ego. When she shrugged, the little smirk on her lips wasn’t entirely promising. “It’s not bad. I heard it was state-of-the-art, and it’s obviously new, which is great.” Light eyes flicked up towards him, then back over the squealing mass of bodies in the pool, as the waves started. “I spoke with the manager and got my name in for a private lane Thursday morning.”
Dustin’s brows went up. A private lane? That wasn’t cheap. On the other hand… His gaze flicked over her wheelchair. She was probably used to the expense, if she liked to swim. Sharing a lap lane with strangers was enough of a pain even when you had full use of your legs. The muscles in this lady’s arms told him she was probably a force to be reckoned with in the water, and he had the urge to ask her more about herself.
But before he could, Jerm’s high-pitched call came from the shallow end. “Uncle Dusty! You promised!”
Dustin swung around, pulling his hands from his pockets. “What, sport?”
The six-year-old rolled his eyes and blew out an exasperated breath as he sloshed closer. “You promised you’d take me into the deep water next time the waves started!” he called.
Oh yeah.
Grinning wryly, he glanced back down to the stranger by his side. “Duty calls,” he said with a shrug.
Her lips twitched as she made a shooing motion towards the water. “You promised,” she said in a teasing tone.
He nodded his goodbye, then pulled his t-shirt off over his head. After he tossed it onto the chair with Jerm’s things, he strode towards the water, not minding at all that more than a few of the bikini-wearers shot him appreciative glances.
But once he was up to his armpits in chlorinated water, little Jerm holding onto his shoulders and shrieking in delight, Dustin thought to check on the stranger in the wheelchair.
She was gone.
Playing in the water with his nephew had been way more fun than getting him bathed and dressed proved to be, but Dustin figured it was all part of the gig. And honestly, it was much easier to get the kid bathed here in the locker rooms, than at home in his apartment, where Jerm had a tendency to run around naked and wet, while hollering about needing to be free.
The two of them were finally heading for his car, discussing dinner options, when Dustin’s phone pinged. He pulled it out of his jeans pocket and saw a text from Travis.
You want to get sushi? Caroline invited us both out with her BFF.
Sushi did sound good, but a promise was a promise.
Sorry man, Dustin texted back. Just promised Jerm we’d head for burgers.
That sounds better than raw fish, came Travis’s quick reply.
Dustin winced as they stepped into the bright August sunlight, and wished he had his sunglasses. He jerked his chin towards Jerm. “You mind if I invite Uncle Travis along for burgers, sport?”
The kid’s eyes lit up. “Awesome! Can we play Go Fish?”
Jeremiah and his cousins—Dustin’s older sister Heather’s kids, Sean and Sophie—referred to Dustin’s many cousins as aunts and uncles. And like the rest of the family, the kid knew how bad Travis was at playing games.
“Sure,” Dustin offered, hiding his grin as he typed out a reply. Kid probably figures he can kick Travis’s butt.
You’re welcome to join for burgers. J and I are leaving the water park, give us 30?
Travis’s reply was immediate. Awesome, thanks for the save. I just dropped Caroline off there, headed to my place to change, see you at Bacon Boys.
Caroline was here at the water park? Dustin was just about to ask why, when he heard his name being called.
“Uncle Dusty, that’s Aunt Caroline, isn’t it?”
Dustin’s gaze swung from his nephew to the lane across from the main entrance. There was a brightly painted van in the handicapped spot, and standing beside it, was his cousin’s pretty fiancé, waving enthusiastically.
“Looks like it. Wanna go say hi?”
“Do I have to hold your hand?”
Dustin knew it was a struggle for the kid, who thought he was old enough not to need the safety precaution. But Alyssa insisted.
“Tell you what, sport, you hold onto the strap of my backpack like I’m a puppy, and you’re walking me.”
Jerm giggled at the suggestion, and leapt at the opportunity. Dustin made sure to lead the kid on a meandering course through the parked cars, pretending to be a dog on a leash. Meanwhile, his fingers danced over the screen of his phone.
I see her. Want me to give her a kiss for you?
Over my dead body, Romeo.
Dustin was grinning when he shut off his phone and shoved it back in his pocket. He had a bit of a reputation among the ladies of Quinn Valley, and that was okay by him. He couldn’t help it—he liked the company of ladies, and he liked to make them feel lovely. His cousins were dropping like flies, getting married and finding love—sometimes even in that order!—but he saw himself as the last bastion of sanity in a world gone mad.
Heck, in the last year alone, every single one of his siblings had gotten married. Every one! Andrew was back in the fold, married to the hotel’s assistant manager, Rachel,
and expecting triplets. Heather had eschewed the big Hollywood wedding to America’s heartthrob, Jack Raven, and she and her kids seemed really happy with the guy. Katie was married and expecting a little girl, and Dustin had to admit her husband, a fancy billionaire designer, was more down-to-earth than he’d expected. Even Alyssa was now married!
But it hadn’t been until Travis announced his upcoming nuptials to Caroline, a gal he’d met when she’d gone to work for his parents—and whose cat wouldn’t seem to leave Travis alone!—that Dustin truly felt alone.
“Whoa, puppy!” Jerm called, and Dustin realized he was almost to the brightly colored van. He gave a few more shakes of his “tail” making his nephew giggle, and they pulled to a stop in front of Caroline.
“You look like you caught yourself a big fish, Jeremiah,” Travis’s pretty fiancée announced with a smile.
“He’s a puppy,” the boy corrected.
But Dustin wasn’t listening. His eyes had landed on the open door of the van, where the intriguing stranger from earlier was currently locking into place the lift she’d used to get into the vehicle.
When she met his eyes—level with his, now that she was inside the car—she was smiling.
Her light brown eyes, with flecks of gold, seemed to sparkle, as if she knew some joke he didn’t. Despite his flustered demeanor earlier, he liked the fact she didn’t seem to be laughing at him.
Dimly, he realized Caroline had been speaking this whole time, but he only tuned in to the last part.
“—Marley Santana, my best friend. Marley, this is Dusty—sorry, Dustin McIver. He’s Travis’s partner and cousin, and I keep forgetting he’s being all professional now and going by his full name.”
Normally, when being introduced to a lady, Dustin made sure to add the “Doctor” title, because he knew that—along with his smile—it would impress them. Today, he wasn’t sure why he didn’t, as he stepped towards the van with his hand raised.
