Saving the Sheriff

by Kadie Scott

  His dad glanced over, raising his bushy gray eyebrows under his straw Stetson hat. “When’d you show up?”

  “Just now.” He tipped his head toward the horse. “What’s going on here?”

  John Hill snorted. “Animal doesn’t have the sense God gave a turnip. Got tangled up, kicking around in her pen.”

  Holly ran her hand over the animal’s right hind leg. “There’s no doubt she’s injured.”

  Cash tried to not notice the husky timbre in her voice. He also tried to not notice how shapely her behind was in a pair of weathered jeans that hugged every curve like a second skin. What a time to be noticing something like that.

  “Let’s see how bad it is.” She pulled his focus back to the issue. She hadn’t detected his presence yet, as her back was still to him.

  Holly rocked on her heels and stood. Turning, her eyes widened infinitesimally, and she gave him a small nod. “Sheriff.”

  Then she completely ignored him as she wheeled over a portable X-ray machine and quickly set it up. She donned a protective lead vest and glanced at the men. “I only have two more of these.” She handed them to Will and Autry. To Cash and his dad, she said, “You two’ll have to wait in the barn, I’m afraid. Can’t be too careful.”

  She turned back to the horse, without waiting to see if they obeyed. Cash and his father watched from a distance as Holly did her job. They rejoined the group when she started pulling off her vest.

  Cash already knew by the flat line of her mouth that the news wasn’t good.

  “She’s got a fractured hock. Worse, though, she’s dislocated her patella. I’m going to try to get it back in place.”

  Holly flicked a glance in Cash’s direction, and he was instantly struck by the pain in her eyes. She blanked her expression quickly, back to business. He doubted anyone else caught it. She saw this stuff all the time, and she could take it. But some part of him realized that accustomed didn’t mean numb, and she hated seeing a creature hurt like this. He barely resisted the urge to give her a big hug to help her feel better, reminding himself she was Georgia’s friend and he wanted nothing to do with her.

  Holly turned to kneel next to the unconscious horse. She spent some time trying to coax the injured bone into place. First, she massaged the thigh then put her weight into it. It didn’t budge.

  She nodded Will over. “Here, hold her by the hoof. Pull when I tell you.” She shoved with all her might as Will tugged. Nothing. Again and again she tried, each time angling the leg differently. Nothing.

  “Trade places with me,” she muttered through pinched lips, as sweat beaded and trickled down her face and neck, mixing with the fine layer of dust that covered her. She showed Will where to push and how. They went through the entire routine again, Will mashing the joint while Holly tugged and angled. Still nothing.

  Breathing hard, Holly wiped the back of her arm across her forehead, leaving a dirty streak, and shook her head. “I’m afraid you’ve got only two options, Will.”

  Hands on his hips, his brother hung his head, jaw clenched. He knew what was coming. So did Cash.

  She spelled it out for them anyway. “I can operate, but it’s invasive and expensive and there’s a decent chance it’ll leave her crippled. Or I can put her down here.”

  Silence reigned in the corral. Even the hum of the cicadas outside seemed to go mute.

  Holly reached out and gave Will’s arm a commiserating squeeze. “It’s up to you.”

  Will squatted to pat the sorrel’s neck gently. Cash knew his brother had made his decision and was saying good-bye in his quiet way.

  “Put her to sleep,” Will said.

  Holly nodded. She went out to her truck and returned with a large syringe containing pink liquid, a lethal dose of barbiturates. It took her a few minutes to prep, then she slipped the needle into a vein and pushed the plunger. Her hands didn’t tremble, her face showed no sign of her feelings as she listened with a stethoscope to the mare’s heartbeat. Even though the horse was unconscious, Holly stroked her velvety neck and murmured soothing words. Finally, she sat back and took out the earbuds.

  “She gone?” Will asked.

  “Yeah,” Holly whispered. “Yeah, she’s gone.” She leaned over and caressed the mare’s sleek, golden-brown neck one last time. “Sorry, mama.”

  Chapter Four

  Damn, she hated doing that. Even after years of training, putting down animals was still one of her least favorite tasks. It figured Cash would show up in the middle of all that mess.

  “Can you stay for dinner, Holly?” John Hill, the patriarch of the Hill family, offered as Holly focused her energy on packing up all her gear.

  She smiled over her shoulder. “Thank you for the offer, Mr. Hill, but I really shouldn’t. I was out early this morning at the McCain ranch, and I’m a complete wreck.”

  “How many times have I asked you to call me John?”

  She chuckled at the reminder. She’d always liked Cash’s dad.

  “It’s home cooked,” John tacked on as added incentive.

  Holly held in her grimace. Now was not the best time to socialize, not when she was exhausted, not to mention filthy and smelled to high heaven. Especially not with Cash around, seeming to watch her every move, though, perhaps that was her own paranoid thinking. When it came down to it, she didn’t want to stay, but she could hear Grams’ voice saying how the Hills would think her rude if she refused.

  “Dang Southern hospitality,” she muttered under her breath.

  A choking sound had her looking up directly into Cash’s baby blues. Eyes that were currently crinkled with suppressed laughter. Rats. He’d heard her.

  Holly resisted the urge to either stick her tongue out or share in his laughter. She wasn’t sure which would get her in more trouble. His glower, as though he’d surprised himself at finding her humorous, told her the latter was likely the worst reaction she could have picked. Instead, she did her best to maintain a blankly innocent expression.

  “I’d love to join you for dinner. Thanks for the offer,” she replied as graciously as she could. “Why don’t y’all head on up to the house while I get all my gear stowed.”

  “Can we help?” Will offered.

  “No thanks…I know where everything goes, and nothing’s too heavy.”

  With a variation of nods and tipped hats, the men left her to get on with her work.

  Holly took her time putting away all her equipment. She wasn’t in any particular hurry to spend more time in Cash’s frowning presence, not that he’d been frowning a moment ago. More than that, she needed a break to collect herself. She wiped off her hands. Would she ever completely harden her heart to putting animals down?

  Gear loaded, she walked into the barn, breathing in the familiar scents of hay and horse and leather, and took some time to shake it off. She walked along the stalls, patting the velvety noses of the animals.

  Yes, all her training, and a lot of time spent dissecting and practicing on animal cadavers, had given her a certain amount of distance from any emotions related to her job, but that didn’t make her a robot. Besides, these days it was more about the distress of their owners.

  Most cowboys had seen too many dead animals to care anymore. Heck, they raised them for slaughter, much of the time, so they couldn’t let themselves get attached or emotional. Will was a rancher. He’d seen this before. But she knew with this kind of stock he’d likely put his heart and soul into his horses, so losing one was hard. Holly felt for him, but she’d found that owners needed their vets to be a rock—professional, efficient and only borderline sympathetic. She could do that. In fact, she was good at it, but she often needed time alone afterward to let it all go.

  “Holly?”

  She stopped and scrunched up her face at Cash’s voice. Couldn’t a girl just get a second by herself?

  Apparently, she hadn’t been very successful at hiding the evidence of her irritation because he frowned down at her as soon as she swung around.


  “You okay?” he asked in a gruff voice. The question didn’t quite match the rather stoic look he gave her, as though he was irritated with himself for asking the question.

  She gave a deceptively sunny smile. “Fine as a fiddle.”

  After a beat of silence, he glanced around with raised eyebrows. “Why are you in here?”

  “Curiosity got the better of me. I was checking out Will’s stock.”

  He crossed her arms and gave her an assessing look from those clear blue eyes. She could just imagine that look on his face when he was interrogating a suspect. “I’m sure Will would be happy to show you.”

  “Right.” She moved with purpose toward the door leading outside, intending to go up to the house, but stopped as she got up close to Cash and realized he wasn’t moving.

  Tipping her head back, Holly raised her eyebrows. “Something else?”

  “Is it hard? Putting them down?”

  How had he guessed? Holly stared at him for a brief moment, part of her reluctant to admit, even to herself, this was the hardest part of her job, and part of her strangely drawn to sharing something so personal with Cash.

  “Not really.” She shrugged.

  He didn’t respond, nor did he move to let her by. Gently, he reached out and tucked an errant strand of hair behind her ear. “Don’t let yourself get too callous about it.”

  Holly held her breath at the shock of his touch and the resulting sensation his action caused. Electric was the description that came to mind. “No?” She was proud of how steady her voice sounded.

  His eyes dropped to her lips. Slowly, he shook his head. “Uh-uh. ’Cause then you wouldn’t be you.”

  Holly swore her heart stopped beating. Then reality intruded. What was she doing? What was he doing?

  Holly jerked back from his touch. Trying to cover the awkwardness, she tucked her hands in her back pockets. “Thanks for the advice.”

  Her sudden movement seemed to snap Cash out of whatever spell he’d been under as well. With what was clearly a forced laugh, he stepped to the side, letting her pass. “Yeah.”

  They walked in silence to the house. Twilight was falling, casting blue shadows across the land, so the sun was no longer beating down on them mercilessly. However, the humidity meant the temperature remained fairly high, offering little relief. Worse, there wasn’t even a hint of a breeze. After working tirelessly to help the sorrel mare in the dust and heat, Holly felt like a horse that’d been ridden hard and put up wet. Cash could probably smell her a mile away, with all her layers of sweat, dirt and more dirty sweat. She was, in a word, rank.

  “I’d better go in through the mudroom.” She indicated her messy person.

  Cash’s lips quirked as he glanced at her. “You have been working hard today.”

  And that is being kind. “You could say that.”

  He walked her around to the back of the house. In the mudroom, he left her to it.

  Holly took off her boots and started washing her hands and face in the utility sink, resisting the urge to shove her entire head under the spray of water. In lieu of a shower, this was the best she could hope for.

  Suddenly, a kindly face appeared around the door, followed by the rest of Cash’s mother.

  “Hi, Mrs. Hill!”

  “Holly!” She bustled over and gave her a big hug. “I didn’t realize you were the vet today. I thought I’d see Charlie or Luke standing in here. Of course, the men in my life offered you dinner but not a way to clean up. Am I right?”

  The woman’s indignant glower clearly indicated she was so fed up with those men that Holly chuckled. “I am a bit of a mess.” She glanced at her dirt-covered clothes. “But it’s okay. I’ll—”

  Before she could continue, Evaline Hill reached out and grabbed Holly’s grubby hand and proceeded to drag her through the kitchen and dining room and down a long hallway, where she eventually stopped at a bedroom.

  “This is Carter’s room. The en suite bathroom is in there.” She pointed to the door on the right. “And I’m sure she has extra clothes in the closet you can borrow.” She pointed to another door to the left.

  “Oh, I couldn’t—”

  “No arguments. Guests in this house are made to feel comfortable. I’m sure you’ll be more so showered and in clean clothes.”

  That Southern hospitality again. Only this time, Holly didn’t mind all that much. “Thank you.”

  Evaline patted her back and left her to it.

  Holly glanced around the room. Other than the white furniture and boy-band posters, she never would’ve guessed this was a girl’s room, being decorated in varying shades of blue, all very blocky. It also still sported trophies from what looked to be scholastic contests and tons of schoolbooks. Curious, Holly studied some framed pictures on the dresser. She paused when she came across one of the five Hill siblings together at a local football game.

  Holly’s heart warmed as she gazed at a younger version of Cash, remembering how her day used to brighten and her heart would stutter if she passed him in the halls at school, or he said hello. Of course, she’d buried those responses the day Georgia married him. Besides, she wasn’t planning on love or happy families. She’d made the choice to be a career woman long ago.

  Feeling emotionally doused with a bucket of cold water, Holly stepped away from the pictures.

  “All right, woman. Time to stop stalling,” she muttered to herself. “Get cleaned up and go face the music.”

  With those positive thoughts, she moved in the direction of the bathroom. A shower would feel heavenly about now.

  Holly felt a hundred percent more human after a shower and definitely more equipped to deal with Cash and his family. She left her long hair down, damp and waving. The lemon-yellow sundress she’d picked had thin straps tied in bows on her shoulders, a fitted bodice and a flared skirt that stopped an inch above her knees. She especially loved the hidden pockets in the skirt. The whole outfit appealed to her girly side. She’d have to ask Carter where she’d gotten it.

  For work, Holly always wore jeans, boots and long-sleeve shirts to protect her skin from the sun, mosquitoes, dirt and other nastiness. Given the early heat wave, her work gear was also miserably hot to wear. This was the only dress she’d found in the closet, and the fresh and cool garment was a relief to don after her work clothes. Carter’s shoes didn’t fit her, though, so she left her feet bare.

  Holly poked her head out the door and followed the sound of voices. From the dining room, she discovered another hallway that led to the other side of the long, ranch-style house, where she found the family room packed full of Hills.

  As someone who’d spent most of her time by herself, being with the large Hill clan always made her as nervous as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs. But Georgia always said no one could tell Holly was shy, so hopefully she hid it well tonight. As soon as she appeared, all the men stood politely.

  “Please sit.” She waved them back down and gave an appreciative smile.

  Evaline, who’d apparently taught her boys good old-fashioned manners, also hopped up to greet her. “My, don’t you look pretty in that dress.”

  “Thank you.” Heat rose in her cheeks at the attention. “The shoes didn’t fit. I hope it’s okay that I’m in my bare feet.” She scrunched her toes self-consciously into the plush carpet.

  Her glance strayed to where Cash was seated on the couch situated on the opposite wall, sandwiched between Will and his father. He was staring at her toes. Jerking his attention away from her feet, he glanced up to find her watching. An indecipherable emotion flickered in his eyes as his gaze met hers, one that got her heart pumping faster. The emotion was gone so fast, Holly wasn’t sure she’d seen it. She glanced away.

  “Of course,” Evaline assured her. “And I love that lime green nail polish and the pink in your hair.”

  Holly grinned. “Georgia once told me I wore too much black. What started out as an exercise to prove her wrong turned into a bit of an obsessi
on.”

  “Miz Holly!” a voice called out with glee.

  Holly turned as Sophia flew across the room like a tiny Texas twister to wrap her arms around her waist in a fierce hug. Gazing into that angelic face, with the Hill blue eyes surrounded by Georgia’s blond hair, Holly’s heart melted. Okay, and maybe a tiny prickle of jealousy. This little girl had her wishing… Holly shook off the thought and grinned. “Hi there, half-pint.”

  Sophia giggled at the nickname. “What does that mean?”

  “It means you’re small.”

  Disdain wrinkled Sophia’s tip-tilted nose. “No, I’m not. I’m big for my age. Right, Daddy?”

  “Yup. You got the Hill height.”

  Holly glanced around and, sure enough, other than Evaline, all the Hills were uncommonly tall. Of the five Hill children, all had John’s coloring—dark hair and blue eyes—except Autry, who had Evaline’s hazel eyes. Of course, Marcus and his brothers had similar coloring.

  She shut that idea down. “Your mama was tall too.”

  There was a tiny pause of uncomfortable silence before Evaline said, “That’s right. She was.” At a guess, the Hills didn’t bring up Georgia much. Holly wondered if Cash was still heartbroken at the loss of his wife. They’d married because Georgia was pregnant, but Holly knew her effervescent friend. Who couldn’t fall in love with her?

  “Do you remember Holly?” Evaline asked her granddaughter.

  Holly recognized the curiosity in her eyes. Sophia had only been three at Georgia’s funeral over a year ago, the last time she’d seen her. Given her promise to Georgia, it had been a long year before she could get back, but she’d had to finish her degree first.

  “We bumped into each other at the grocery store a few weeks back,” Holly explained.

  “Oh?” By the tone of Evaline’s voice and her raised eyebrows, apparently that answer only brought up more questions.

  Sophia nodded. “She was Mama’s best friend.”

  Everyone smiled, though a little awkwardly.

  “Yes, she was,” Evaline agreed. “Though we haven’t gotten to see enough of her over the years.”