“Nothing.” That was true, but more heat climbed up Dawn’s neck.
“Really. Just now I saw you talking, in a friendly way, with our new doctor. So what gives?”
“Really, not a darn thing.” Please don’t push it, Dawn silently begged.
“Hey, this is me,” Callie said. “Nothing goes on in this clinic that I don’t know about.”
“Okay, good. Then I don’t have to say anything.” She almost laughed at the expression on the other woman’s face, as if someone had taken away her chocolate.
“Wrong. There’s something. Silly you to think I would give up.” Callie tsked. “Since that handsome hunk of baby doctor got here you’ve been like the ice queen around him. Very out of character for you, I might add. Then the two of you have a drink together and get chummy in the hall.”
“You shouldn’t put too much faith in rumors—”
Callie held up a finger to stop her. “There’s no rumor involved. I saw that for myself. And I heard you say something about being at his place last night.”
“So you were eavesdropping.”
The other woman looked smug. “I can’t help it if sound carries in this place.”
Oh, boy. “It was totally innocent.”
“Hmm.” Callie’s tone clearly said she didn’t believe that for a second. “But there is something going on.”
Throw her a bone, Dawn decided. “I didn’t warm up to him when he first got here.”
“Tell me something I don’t know.” Her friend picked up the other half of her ham sandwich.
“He asked me to have a drink and discuss the situation. It seems I’ve misjudged him.”
“So this conversation started at the Ace in the Hole and continued at his house.”
Rather than address that directly, Dawn said, “Did you know he has a three-legged dog?”
“Rerun. So you met him.”
“Yes. Then I left. End of story.”
“That’s what I first thought after meeting Nate.” Callie chewed a bite of her sandwich. “But after repeated exposure something between us shifted. I think there’s romance in the air between you and Jon.”
“No. Absolutely not.”
“You can’t be sure, Dawn.”
“I can.” When her friend started to say something she held up her hand. “I know it because I refuse to be the doctor/nurse affair cliché.”
The other woman didn’t know because Dawn wouldn’t share the information, but she’d been there, done that. The whole awful situation was hurtful and humiliating. Worst of all it jeopardized her career. Lesson learned.
“You could do worse,” Callie said. “Jon’s a nice guy.”
“He is. But all he wants is a peaceful work environment. He won’t push for more and neither will I. And speaking of prying...” She said the words teasingly, but there was no way she would make a drink, a hamburger and meeting his dog into something more than it was.
“Okay,” Callie conceded. “But never say never. Look what happened to Nate and me. Attraction is all about chemistry.”
Dawn took a bite of her sandwich, using the couldn’t-talk-with-her-mouth-full defense. There was too much truth in the statement and denying it would be a falsehood. She needed to have a stern talk with her mother about teaching her to be honest. There were times it was darned inconvenient not to be able to lie and get away with it.
So the luxury of lunching with a girlfriend didn’t come without a price. Now she knew she was the subject of juicy town gossip and she also knew from firsthand experience how destructive it could be when people at work made your business their business. And here in Rust Creek Falls everyone did that.
So, there would be no more socializing with the new doctor for her.
* * *
After a couple days of détente with Dawn, Jon was really hitting his stride at the clinic. He was getting into the work flow of the busy medical facility as opposed to the Thunder Canyon Resort, where there’d been a lot of downtime. And, more important, he lapsed into a routine of glimpsing the pretty nurse going in and out of patient rooms and wondering what cartoon character would be on her scrub top when she came in to work each morning. He liked that routine. A lot.
And then Emmet called the staff into his office. The patients had all been seen and the clinic was closed for the day. Brandy had plans and had already left so it was Callie, Dawn and Jon standing in front of their boss’s desk along with two strangers. The good part for Jon was that Dawn stood next to him. There wasn’t a lot of room so she had to stand very close. He could feel the heat from her skin, and need curled like a fist in his gut.
“Everyone,” Emmet said, “I’d like to introduce you to Dr. Steve Shepard and nurse Lorajean Quinn. I promised you more help and here they are. Don’t ever say I don’t keep my word.”
“Reinforcements,” Callie said. “Yay!”
Emmet introduced each member of the staff and everyone shook hands. The nurse looked somewhere in her late fifties, possibly sixty. She was tall, about five foot nine, with blond hair and brown eyes that had a don’t-get-on-my-bad-side look in them. The new doctor was a little taller than Jon. Jon was no expert, but was pretty sure women would think the new guy was nice looking. He had dark brown hair, blue eyes and a square jaw to go along with that rugged build.
Jon met the other MD’s gaze. “What’s your specialty, Dr. Shepard?”
“Internal medicine. And a rotation in trauma surgery.”
He waited for more and they stared at each other for several moments before it became clear that no more information would be forthcoming. Jon glanced at Emmet sitting in the leather chair behind his desk. It wasn’t obvious, but he swore the other man shrugged in a you-got-me gesture. Maybe he’d have more luck with the nurse.
“Where are you from, Lorajean?”
“Dallas.”
“I thought I heard the South in your voice,” Callie said.
The other nurse grinned. “Just FYI, the ‘Don’t mess with Texas’ slogan is about littering the roads not Lone Star State attitude. Although I don’t recommend testing that out on me.”
“Understood,” Dawn said.
Everyone else in the room laughed but the new doctor didn’t seem to have a sense of humor.
“What brings you to Rust Creek Falls besides a job here at the clinic?” Dawn looked from one newcomer to the other, putting the question out to both.
Lorajean fielded it. “I retired from the army. Been around the world. I’m ready to put down roots and this little town seemed like a real nice place to do that.”
“Dr. Shepard?” Dawn asked. “How did you find us?”
“Emmet still has contacts in the army medical corps.” Lorajean fielded this one, too. “He reached out. Steve and I reached back.”
“These two come highly recommended,” Emmet chimed in. “Performing surgery under combat conditions is a unique qualification.”
“One we hope you don’t need here at the clinic,” Callie interjected.
“So, you’re a trauma surgeon?” Jon asked.
“That’s the rumor.” Shepard’s tone was almost a challenge and there was something guarded in his eyes.
“Emmet said a lot of babies have been born here since March,” the nurse said.
“Did he tell you why?” Dawn glanced up and Jon resisted the urge to look at her.
Emmet chuckled. “You mean did I tell them about the legend of Homer Gilmore and the spiked wedding punch?”
“That would be the one, yes,” Dawn answered.
“Sounds like a good party,” Shepard commented.
“It was.” Dawn smiled at him. “Unfortunately most of the people who drank that punch can’t remember very much about what happened.”
“Shame.”
Jon waited for Dawn to get all icy and clipped with the guy and when she shrugged it off, he was a tad miffed.
She merely nodded. “What do you think of Rust Creek Falls, Dr. Shepard?”
“It’s Steve.”
“Okay. Steve. This town must seem awfully small to you,” she persisted.
“Small isn’t bad.”
So Nurse Laramie obviously didn’t have a problem with this new doctor. Huh. John had had to buy her a drink and introduce her to his dog to earn the privilege of being on a first name basis with her.
This was more than a little irritating.
Emmet cleared his throat. “I asked Steve and Lorajean to come in after hours to get acclimated now so tomorrow they can hit the ground running.”
“I’ll orient them,” Callie offered.
“Me, too.” Dawn raised her hand. “I’ll show them where all the supplies are kept.”
Emmet looked grateful. “If you ladies don’t mind staying a bit longer this evening, that would be awesome sauce.”
“What?” Dawn stared at him as if his beard had just caught fire.
“Aren’t you the man going all cultural reference on us.” Callie made a fist and when she held it out, Emmet bumped it with his.
“Just trying to be current,” he explained. “Saw it on a commercial. Been waiting for a chance to drop it into casual conversation.”
Everyone laughed. Well, not Steve, but he did crack a smile. And this wasn’t casual, Jon thought. Adding personnel was going to change the dynamic just when everything had fallen into place.
“Come with me, Lorajean,” Callie offered. “I’ll show you around.”
“Right behind you, Callie.”
“Steve, I’ll give you the guided tour.” Dawn smiled and headed for the door.
“Roger that.” Steve was wearing jeans and a T-shirt but the clipped response was all military. It wasn’t hard to picture him in camouflage saluting his commanding officer.
Jon watched the four of them file out of the office, feeling uneasy about all of this and not sure why. He could see Dawn in the room across the hall pointing out instruments and supplies in the cupboard above the sink. But it was the look on her face that grabbed his attention. She was smiling at the new doctor as if they’d known each other for ten years instead of ten minutes. It had taken Jon almost a week to get a smile out of her. What the—
“Jon?”
“Hmm?” He turned to Emmet. “What?”
“Something bothering you?” The older man leaned back in his chair and linked his fingers over his flat stomach.
“No. Why?”
“You look like someone tied a knot in your favorite stethoscope. And it has something to do with Steve Shepard.”
That was an opening and Jon figured he should run with it. “Are you sure he’s the right fit for the clinic?”
Emmet’s expression was wry. “When I started looking for help there wasn’t a lot of positive response so I had to get creative. And hope any takers would work out.”
“Okay. Fair point.” Jon moved closer and leaned a hip on the desk. “But what do you know about him?”
“Not much,” the older man admitted. “I got his name from an army buddy. I contacted Steve and he was receptive to the offer. His credentials checked out and his references were impeccable.” Emmet raised a brow and chuckled. “And he’s not wanted by the law as far as I could tell.”
Jon didn’t think it was funny. “I see.”
“Those are the right words but they don’t match the expression on your face. If you’ve got a beef, I’d like to hear it.”
“He doesn’t say much,” was the best he could come up with.
“He’s a hotshot doctor who lets his skill do the talking. That’s good enough for me.”
Not good enough for Jon, not when he heard voices in the hall followed by Dawn’s laughter. The new doctor might not be wanted by the law, but Jon wanted something—to get him the hell away from her.
He wanted something else, too. Dawn.
The thought had been there since he’d met her. It was vague and distant because in the beginning she was barely speaking to him. But the moment she walked away with Steve Shepard the urge turned white hot.
From a physical perspective this reaction made perfect sense. He hadn’t had sex for a long time, and Dawn was pretty and fun. He liked her. But he sure as hell didn’t like seeing her smile at another man.
He gave these feelings some more thought and realized the only explanation that made sense was jealousy. He’d never believed in it before. Attraction was chemistry—hormones, pheromones—not emotion. But now he had to admit it. He was jealous as hell.
Suddenly everything was complicated and he hated complications. Especially when they involved feelings. Because feelings were nothing but a confusing pain in the ass.
Chapter Six
Dawn left the clinic even later than usual after orienting the new doctor. Not for the first time since leaving her job at the hospital she was relieved that the drive home was so short. Dr. Shepard seemed nice enough, although he mostly listened and didn’t say much. He was good-looking, in a rugged, loner sort of way. Since Steve Shepard had the don’t-violate-my-space thing down to a science, she didn’t feel the need to distance herself from him like she had with Jon when he was new. And now she’d warmed up to Clifton after getting to know him more and—well—meeting his dog.
That made her smile. But the warm feeling disappeared when she turned the corner and saw a Ford F-150 truck with Hank the Handyman printed on it parked at the curb in front of the house.
“Great,” she muttered. “When I needed a father he was hardly ever around and now he shows up like a bad rash.”
Walking into the house she’d always thought of as a cute little place, she couldn’t help wishing it was a McMansion with thirty-five rooms and multiple places to hide. But there was nowhere to go, so she’d best get it over with.
“I’m home,” she called out.
“In here,” her mom answered. “Hank is here.”
“I noticed.” Under her breath she added, “Pretty hard to miss Hank the Handyman’s truck.”
In the family room she found her mother with the man Dawn had come to think of as hardly more than a sperm donor. Glory and Hank were standing together looking at the far wall, just in front of the fireplace.
“You’re late tonight, honey,” her mom said without turning. “How was your day?”
“I had to show the new doctor around,” she explained.
“Hi, Dawn.” Hank half turned and smiled at her.
He was about the same age as her mother and still handsome. He looked a lot like a younger James Brolin. Hank was fit and trim, probably from the handyman stuff. Grudgingly she admitted, if only to herself, that she could see why her mom might possibly still be attracted to him. If Glory was smart she wouldn’t pursue that, but who was Dawn to judge after her disaster. Curse of the Laramie women strikes again.
“Why are you here?” she asked him.
Her mother turned then and gave her the stink eye. “I’m trying to decide what color to paint the walls. Come and look.”
If this wasn’t so important to her mom, Dawn would have made a snarky remark and voluntarily gone to her room for a time-out. But she wasn’t nine years old and her mom meant everything to her. She would be supportive if it killed her.
She dropped her purse on the sofa and walked over, standing on the other side of her mom. There were several paint chips taped on the wall. “Okay.”
“Which one do you like?” Glory asked.
“They’re all beige.”
“There are subtle differences,” Hank said. “Sahara has more yellow and Sun-kissed Wheat more brown. Honey’s got a little pink.”
&n
bsp; Dawn stared at the man and wondered if he was an alien visitor from Better Homes and Gardens. “All three look the same to me.”
Glory tapped her lip. “She might be right. Are they too boring?”
“You could do an accent wall in a bold color to make it more interesting,” he suggested.
“Isn’t that more work?”
“Not much.” He shrugged. “Some folks are having me paint the walls a lighter color, something neutral, then a darker coordinating shade for the baseboards and doors.”
“Hmm.” Her mother intently studied the colors as if trying to picture what he was describing. “I’d have to see that in person to know if I liked it.”
“I could arrange for you to take a look at some of the jobs I’ve done,” Hank offered. “The Swensons were really accommodating and pretty happy with the results. They’d probably be open to showing it off. If you want I’ll give them a call and you could come to Kalispell. Take a look.”
The thought of Glory driving all the way there only to find out he was full of hot air put a knot in Dawn’s stomach. “You don’t have time to waste, Mom.”
“We’re all busy, sweetie.” There was a warning tone in her mother’s voice. She looked up at Hank. “Aren’t there some projects in this house that I need to do before paint? Should that be the last step?”
“Depends on the project,” he said. “In that back bathroom there’s a dark spot on the wall and my guess is it’s a leaky pipe behind the wallboard. That needs fixing and patching before paint. But I could do the rest of the house first.”
“I’ll consider that.”
Dawn made a scoffing sound because it seemed to her that he was promising to paint her mother’s house. Memories scrolled through her mind, all of them bad. “Don’t go there, Mom.”
“I’m not going anywhere. All I’m doing is thinking it over,” Glory said.
“It’s not the thinking that I’m concerned about. It’s the part where he doesn’t follow through and hurts you.” She looked at her father. “That’s what he does.”
“Sweetie, let’s just—”
“Forget?” she interrupted. “It’s hard to do that when his pattern was to not show up because something else was more important than his wife or daughters.”
Her Maverick M.D. Page 7
