Читать книгу The Doctor Wore Boots - Debra Webb - Страница 11

It wasn’t a dream.

Dex sat up in bed just as the rising sun spilled its warm glow across the aged hardwood floor. Morning had arrived with a good deal more pomp and circumstance than Dex was accustomed to. The crowing of a rooster and the clanging of pots were sounds he could have gone the rest of his life without hearing at the crack of dawn.

His valet George always greeted him promptly at 6:00 a.m. with a tray of steaming coffee and an array of newspapers. The day’s wardrobe awaited him in the dressing room when he completed his morning workout and shower. By 9:00 a.m. he was at the office ready to work.

But not today.

Sometime during the night as he tossed and turned he had made his decision. He would consider this a mini-vacation at a rather rustic resort. There was no reason not to relax and enjoy. He would have a much-needed, whether he chose to admit the need or not, break from the pressure of running a major medical corporation, and he would learn about the Coopers.

When he and Ty were ready they would go public. But not yet.

Dex threw the covers back and climbed out of bed. The wood floor felt cool beneath his feet, a definite contrast to the plush carpeting of his own bedroom. He strode over to a large armoire, which he had ascertained last night was in lieu of a closet. Scowling, he rifled through it. The shirts were all alike in design, the colors varied slightly.

Disgusted by the lack of selection, he dragged a shirt from its hanger and went to the bureau in search of pants. He found several pairs of scruffy-looking jeans and selected the least offensive pair. In another drawer he found white tube socks. For the boots, he supposed with a grimace.

From the duffel bag he retrieved a pair of his own underwear. He drew the line at wearing another man’s shorts.

Since he found no robe, he tugged on the jeans and slipped into the hall, scanning warily for any of the Cooper clan. Silence ruled on the second floor. Everyone appeared to have gone downstairs already.

Good.

Dex padded down the hall to the communal bathroom. Though large and well stocked with linens and bath accessories, it was singular nonetheless. He lowered the toilet lid and placed his attire for the day there. He tried locking the door but, after several frustrated failures, gave up. The latch wouldn’t work. Everyone was downstairs anyway, why sweat it? He grabbed a towel from the linen closet and slung it over the shower curtain rod. After peeling off the jeans, he adjusted the water to an inviting temperature and then stepped beneath the hot spray.

His eyes closed in appreciation. Dex relaxed for the first time since this adventure had begun.

Despite his best intentions not to think about her again, the image of Leanne Watley filled his mind. Those big blue eyes and that silky blond hair. His gut clenched at the thought of threading his fingers in those lovely tresses. The feel of her lips against his jaw sent a stab of desire straight to his loins. His body reacted instantly and his mind conjured up Leanne’s even more enticing assets.

He wasn’t supposed to be thinking about her that way. Forcing his eyes open, he banished the image. If anything, she was Ty’s girlfriend. He wasn’t Ty. He couldn’t allow this thing to progress.

“Fool,” he muttered.

Dex grabbed the bar of soap and began soaping his body. He didn’t need any complications during his stay here. He had to keep this simple.

For all parties concerned.

Rinsing his well-lathered body he frowned when his gaze halted at his feet. He cocked his head away from the spray and stared at the water swirling around his feet and then down the drain. He looked at the soap in his hand, it was blue. Then why was the water going down the drain tinted green?

An explosion of giggles launched him into action. Dex jerked the shower curtain open. Court’s sons, the four-year-old twins, stood next to the tub, an empty mouthwash bottle in their hands.

“What are you doing?” Dex demanded.

The two dark-haired boys looked first at each other, then at Dex. They dropped the plastic container and ran for their lives in a flash of Scooby-Doo pajamas, leaving the door wide open and shouting, “Mornin’, Uncle Ty!”

Swearing under his breath, Dex stamped over to the door, leaving a trail of water on the tile floor, and slammed it shut. He whipped back around and almost fell in his haste. Catching himself, he retraced, much more slowly this time, his path. As soon as he’d washed his hair and rinsed the soap from his skin, he dried himself and the floor.

He thought about the bean-throwing incident and then the mouthwash. Didn’t anyone discipline these children?

As a child he was never allowed to behave in such a manner. His grandparents had ensured his proper training from the age of four. Though he’d never had a nanny, at least not that he could recall. He remembered clearly the first day George, his valet, began his employment as Dex’s teacher and mentor to the finer points of etiquette.

Dex stared at his reflection in the mirror and wondered what George would think of him now. Pretending to be someone else and wearing this getup. Give him Armani any day. George would likely shake his regal head and make that annoying tsking sound. Since he wasn’t here, Dex didn’t have to worry about that.

Back in Ty’s room, Dex tugged on the cursed boots. His feet ached even before he stood. The gift on the bureau snagged his attention again.

Would it be perceived as odd if he didn’t open the present right away? Would his seeming indifference to the act of generosity hurt his grandmother’s feelings? He sighed. He had no choice but to open it.

Dex placed his hands on either side of the box and hesitated still. His heart thundered in his chest. This was ridiculous. It was just a present. It wasn’t even for him. Not really. The gesture meant nothing to him personally. He removed the lid, the scent of leather filling his nostrils, and studied the gift beneath. Leather chaps. The perfect gift for a cowboy, he supposed ruefully. He picked up the note from inside the box and read it.

Ty, I knew you needed a new set of chaps but wouldn’t buy any for yourself. Your old ones out in the tack room are being recycled. A welcome-home present seemed like a good enough reason to buy new ones for you.

Love, Gran.

Dex closed his eyes and struggled with the emotions suddenly churning inside him. The Montgomerys never did little things like this for each other. He stared at the note once more. He couldn’t even remember the last time he’d received a personal note from his grandparents. If either of them wanted to tell him anything they sent a message with a member of the household staff or his personal secretary. They didn’t bother with personal notes.

But then, the Montgomerys had other assets. Just because he was angry with them at the moment didn’t mean he failed to recognize how much they loved him. Gifts such as this were never necessary. Dex always had everything he wanted given to him well before he needed it.

The Coopers had nothing on the Montgomerys on that score. Of course, he wasn’t actually keeping score. Was he?

Twenty minutes and a half dozen false starts later, Dex made his grand entrance into the dining room. Donning the chaps hadn’t been easy, but he was fully garbed now. From the hat to the boots.

“Good morning,” he said cheerily to the rest of the group assembled around the table.

Grandfather Cooper choked on his coffee. Grandmother Cooper’s eyes widened in a look of disbelief. The rest of the family burst into laughter. Dex frowned. What was so funny? He looked down at himself and then back at them. He looked exactly like the cowboys he’d seen in the movies.

What was the problem?

Maybe they’d all heard about the mouthwash episode. He narrowed his gaze in the direction of the twins.

“Planning on roping and branding cattle this morning, bro?” Chad suggested, barely restraining a new wave of laughter.

Dex didn’t get the joke.

“Sorry to be the one to tell you,” Court added between chuckles. “But today we’re cleaning out the barn and surveying the pastures. You won’t need your chaps today.”

He was overdressed, he realized then. He opened his mouth to explain, but then thought better of it. What could he say? That he was ignorant to the ways of cowboys?

Grandmother Cooper gestured to the vacant chair next to her. “Take your hat off, son, and have a seat. Your breakfast is getting cold.”

Before taking his seat, Dex, determined to save face, leaned down and kissed his grandmother’s lilac-scented cheek. “Thank you for the chaps, Gran. I wanted you to get the full effect,” he told her as if he’d known exactly what he was doing when he put them on.

Court and Chad still looked amused. Grandfather Cooper had regained his composure with only a hint of a smile lingering about his expression.

Grandmother Cooper smiled kindly. “Well, you accomplished your mission, son.” She patted his hand. “You look very handsome.”

The telephone rang before Dex had a chance to sit down.

“Ty, would you get that since you’re still up?” Grandfather Cooper asked.

“Then we can get the going effect as well,” Chad teased, sending the younger Coopers into another fit of laughter.

Dex clenched his jaw long enough to restrain his temper. “Be happy to oblige,” he drawled, doing his best imitation of John Wayne.

He straightened slowly, allowing the phone to ring once more in order to give him the general direction in which to look. The hall. He sauntered from the room, knowing full well Court and Chad were grinning behind his back. Judging by the way they were dressed, he definitely looked like the circus clown leaving center ring.

Annoyed more with himself than anyone else, he scooped up the receiver and barked a hello.

“Dex?”

“Ty?”

“Yeah, it’s me.”

Thank God.

Dex stretched the cord and got as far away from the dining-room door as possible. “Why the hell didn’t you tell me about the investors and the chaps? And Leanne,” he muttered hotly.

“Me? Why didn’t you tell me about that piranha you’ve got working for you! And I think George is suspicious.”

“What?” Dex was confused. What piranha?

“Bridget whatever-her-name-is,” Ty snapped. “She won’t leave me alone.”

“Oh.” Dex stroked his chin thoughtfully. Bridget could be relentless and territorial. Their physical relationship had always been convenient, nothing else. Not that she hadn’t tried to make it more. “Tell her you want the monthly status reports early. That should keep her busy for a while. My best advice would be to avoid her if you can.”

“What about George?” Ty demanded. “How do I handle him?”

“Tell him you’re not in the mood to talk if he starts prying. That usually does the trick.” It sounded as if Ty had the same problems Dex did. “What about your investment meeting?” he prodded.

“There’s nothing to tell,” Ty related what Dex already knew. “I’m trying to expand the Circle C’s market and improve profit.”

“I thought as much.”

“You’ll get an official response in a few days,” Ty went on. “Let me know the moment you receive it. I’m anxious to know which way the wind is going to blow on my proposal.”

Dex cocked an eyebrow. “All right. And you let me know how it goes there.”

“Will do. Anything else? I don’t know how much longer I can hide in this bathroom. George may be spying on me as we speak.”

Dex chuckled. Yes, Ty was feeling the pressure too. “One more thing. About Leanne.”

“What about her?”

“I thought you told me you were just friends.”

“We are,” Ty said flatly. “I guess I forgot to mention that our families would like it otherwise.”

“I guess you did,” Dex retorted dryly. “And this dance?”

“The one on Friday night? It’s just a fund-raiser. I take Leanne every year just to keep the peace between the two families. A little bit of square dancing, foot stomping.”

To keep the peace? Dex didn’t even want to know what that meant. “Okay, I guess I can take her.”

“You’d better be nice to Leanne and behave around her,” Ty warned. “She’s young and innocent and I don’t want her hurt in all this.”

“Neither do I,” Dex said, surprised that his brother felt it necessary to warn him.

“Good. Now, how’s my family?”

Dex heard the wistfulness in his voice. Ty missed his family. Could Dex say the same? Maybe, he wasn’t sure…yet. “The Coopers are fine. I have to go. They’re waiting for me.”

When Ty didn’t respond, Dex added, “Ty, I have to go.”

“Okay, but one more thing. What’s between you and this Dr. Stovall?”

“Dr. Stovall?” Dex paused, searching his brain for recognition. “Nothing. She’s a pediatrician, I believe, at the hospital. Sort of a do-gooder—”

“There’s nothing wrong with that,” Ty interjected sharply.

Dex sighed. This did not sound good. “Listen, Ty, watch your step. I have to come back there, remember?”

“Don’t worry. Everything’s under control.”

“Good. I’ll talk to you when I can. Gotta go.”

Dex hung up the receiver. It took him three long beats to prepare himself to reenter the dining room.

“It was one of the people I met in Chicago,” he announced to the expectant faces still gathered around the table. “I should have word in a few days.”

Nods and sounds of acknowledgment echoed around the room. Grandfather Cooper maintained a solemn, clearly skeptical expression.

Dex pulled his chair out and sat down. He looked at his plate, laden with eggs, bacon and biscuits, just in time to see a Cheerio land in the middle of the two sunny-side up eggs. His gaze met the wicked one belonging to his five-year-old niece, who was sitting on the opposite side of the table eating dry cereal from a bowl.

“Morning, Uncle Ty. You’re a sleepyhead this mornin’,” she accused.

Before Dex could think of an appropriate response, the rest of the men stood.

“The day’s a wastin’. We’d better get going,” Court suggested.

Another Cheerio plopped into Dex’s plate. “I’ll just eat something later,” he said as he pushed up from his chair.

Grandmother Cooper frowned. “Don’t rush out without your breakfast. You can catch up with your brothers later.”

“Really,” Dex assured her. “I’m good.”

He left the room amid a chorus of “Uncle Tys!” resounding behind him. The twins had joined his niece, whom Dex now mentally dubbed the princess, in her farewell dramatics. Dex was pretty sure he’d never faced an opponent in the boardroom as formidable as those three kids.

Considering he was staying for the next few days under the same roof with them, he couldn’t see how things could get any worse.

Once in the yard, Court said, “Chad, you want to oversee the barn work while Ty and I check out the fencing?”

“Will do.”

Check out the fencing? He could do that, Dex decided. He followed Court to the barn. He paused in front of two stalls where a couple of massive horses resided.

“Saddle up, bro.” Court clapped Dex on the back. “We’ve got a long day ahead of us.”

Dex stared at the horse eyeing him suspiciously. Things had just gotten worse.

WHEN COURT finally called it a day, Dex had a complete understanding of the phrase “too long in the saddle.” Every part of his lower body ached.

Sliding off the horse proved almost as difficult as mounting the huge beast had. By the time Dex had gotten into the saddle, Court was convinced the whole routine was an act to make him laugh. He’d laughed so hard he’d nearly cried when he’d had to tighten the cinch. Dex had tried to emulate Court as he saddled his own horse, but obviously he hadn’t gotten it exactly right.

Taking small careful steps now, Dex headed toward the house. He needed a long, hot soak in the tub. He needed food and drink. No. Strike that. What he really needed was a half dozen or so protein shakes and then a double Scotch to finish it off.

He winced with each step. How could anyone like this lifestyle?

“Ty!”

Dex looked in the direction of the driveway and the unexpected but welcome sound of Leanne’s voice. Already he knew it by heart. He was far too exhausted to consider why.

“Leanne,” he acknowledged. “How are you today?”

She frowned, the gesture deepening the worry already clouding her expression. “We need to talk.”

Something was wrong. Dex could see it in her eyes. He had the sudden urge to put his arm around her slender shoulders and assure her that everything would be fine. He gave himself a mental shake. Slow down, he warned. This was a mistake he did not intend to make. He recalled Ty’s warning, but the urge to reassure her still nagged at him.

“Okay,” he said instead, tucking his hands into his back pockets as a precaution.

She glanced around. “Not here.” Her too-serious gaze landed on his once more. “Do you mind taking a ride to my place?”

The thought of sitting down in anything other than hot water almost made him say no, but the need to put that smile back on her pretty face prevailed.

“Why not?” He offered his arm. “I’d be pleased to.”

Looking even more worried, she placed her arm in his and walked with him to her old truck. He opened the door for her then hustled around to the passenger door as quickly as he dared. But lowering himself into the seat proved the most difficult task.

“Are you sure you’re feeling all right, Ty?” she asked, her fingers poised on the key in the ignition.

“Fabulous,” Dex returned. “Just fabulous.”

Shaking her head she started the engine.

This young lady seemed to know Ty better than anyone else. At least, she appeared to be the only one suspicious of Dex. He studied her lovely profile as she drove away from the Circle C. His muscles tightened just looking at her, in spite of his numerous aches.

He definitely had to watch his step around her.

LEANNE STOOD NEXT to Ty on her back porch and surveyed the dream her father had started five years ago. Her mother was resting in her room. She wouldn’t like it if she knew what Leanne was about to do. But she had to tell him before she lost her nerve. She had to be honest, especially in light of recent events. She’d thought about it all night.

“I know you remember my father dreamed of turning this place into a dude ranch.” She looked up at Ty. He looked at a loss for a moment, then nodded. Leanne peered back out over the nearly finished guest cabins and the waiting pool. “I want to make it happen, Ty,” she said quietly, bracing herself for his response.

A full minute ticked by in silence.

“It’s not what either of our families wants,” she hastened to add. “I know that. But it wouldn’t affect the grazing land. The Circle C could continue to lease the grazing land, all of it if they want. That wouldn’t be a problem.”

He looked at her then. She couldn’t read what he was thinking or feeling. Please, she prayed, let him understand.

“This is what you want?” he asked, his tone carefully measured.

She nodded. “Very much.”

He took off his hat and threaded his fingers through his hair, then replaced the hat as if he weren’t used to having to bother. Her frown deepened. What was it that made him seem so different since he’d come back from Chicago? Even the way he talked was wrong somehow.

He took the four steps down from the porch then turned back to her. “Do you mind if we walk?”

She shook her head and hurried down the steps after him.

“Is the wiring and plumbing for the guest cottages complete?” he asked as they crossed the yard.

“Yes,” she answered, afraid to hope. “I still have some painting and clean-up work to do. I’ll have to buy furniture and pool chemicals. But I can be ready in a few months if I work on it every chance I get.”

He paused near the pool and stared at her. “You’re doing this alone?”

She sighed. “I didn’t want to tell you.” She hung her head. “I know what our families have always wanted.” As difficult as it was, she met his gaze. “But this is what I want.” How did she tell the man that she didn’t want to spend the rest of her life as just his wife? She didn’t want to hurt him. She cared about him. Deeply. She just wasn’t in love with him. And she desperately wanted to see her father’s wish come true.

“You could hire a contractor to finish up,” he suggested, while studying the dark, mossy-green color of the pool water. It would take lots of chemicals to clear up that mess.

“That takes more money than I can afford to spend,” she told him. It annoyed her because he of all people should know her circumstances. Well, at least, to a degree. She and her mother were too proud to tell the whole story. “I’d rather do the work myself anyway. That’s what my father would have done.”

He nodded. “Well, I think it’s a great idea. Dude ranches are usually a big hit when operated properly. Are there—” He cut himself off abruptly. “Have you researched the probability of success?”

“If you’re asking if I’ve done my homework, the answer is yes. There isn’t one anywhere near here,” she said, hardly believing he’d even asked. “Tourists love this part of the state, as you well know. I think it would be a tremendous success.”

“All right, then.” He braced his hands on his lean hips and studied the guest cabins that circled the pool. “I’ll help you.”

Leanne felt a ripple of shock. “What did you say?”

He shrugged awkwardly. “I’ll help you. Court and Chad have things at the Circle C under control. There’s no reason I can’t pitch in here.” His gaze locked with hers, and heat roared straight through her. “Isn’t it the neighborly thing to do?”

Leanne couldn’t argue with that reasoning.

Truth be told, she didn’t want to. Another little shock wave shook her.

“Well, then.” He smiled, sending her heart into a wild tattoo. “Let’s do it.”

Before she could stop herself she’d thrown her arms around him. “Thank you for understanding, Ty,” she murmured against his neck.

“It’s nothing,” he argued, his posture rigid.

Darn it. She didn’t want to cry. But the tears came anyway. She held onto him with all her might and cried into his shirt. “I’m sorry,” she muttered.

“It’s all right.” His arms closed around her waist sending a new shard of heat slicing through her. “I—” He let go a heavy breath. His arms tightened around her, drawing her nearer. “It’s okay,” he said softly, his breath whispering against her cheek.

And she knew it would be.

Because Ty had told her so. He’d never let her down before.