Читать книгу Tight-Fittin' Jeans - Mary Baxter Lynn - Страница 9

Two

Tiffany stood in the small hospital room in Hurricane, where Bridget had been taken following the accident, though Tiffany had yet to talk to her. A lab tech was in the process of drawing blood from Bridget’s arm.

Unable to watch the procedure, Tiffany kept her eyes averted. Needles gave her the willies, especially when they were used to penetrate the skin.

She had contemplated going to the ranch first and dumping her bags. But in her eagerness to see for herself that her friend was not critical, she had rented a car at the airport and come straight here.

Jeremiah had insisted on meeting her flight, but she’d insisted otherwise, pointing out that he needn’t be concerned about her, that he had enough on his plate at the moment. As if he’d realized she was as headstrong as his wife, he’d let out a sigh and given in.

Now, as Tiffany continued to wait, she peered out the window into a park, serene and breathtakingly lovely with cotton wood, pecan and mulberry trees galore. She had forgotten just how beautiful this part of the country was, even in July. When she stepped outside at the airport, she had felt the incredible heat, but it wasn’t that humid, cloying heat that was so much a part of southeast Texas.

Yet she wouldn’t trade Texas for Utah, not in this lifetime, anyway. She had to smile, still unable to comprehend how her socialite friend, Bridget, had managed to adapt so well. Tiffany sighed out loud. She guessed love had brought about that miracle.

Thank God she was immune from that bug biting her, especially if it meant she had to remain in these parts. Tiffany made a face. Oh, Hurricane, which was a fairly nice-size town, was all right. In fact, compared to Pennington, where Bridget and Jeremiah lived, it was a thriving metropolis. Still, there was nothing in either place for her except her dear friend.

Living in the woods, off the land, was not for her. As soon as she had fulfilled her loving obligation, she would be gone, back to the bright lights.

“Tiff, you made it.”

At the sound of Bridget’s voice, Tiffany swung around. She didn’t move, though, until the nurse and lab tech had left. Then she made her way toward the bed. But at the sight of her friend’s pinched features, Tiffany’s forthcoming smile didn’t materialize. Under close scrutiny, Bridget seemed a mere shadow of her former self.

Tiffany. hadn’t seen Bridget since she married Jeremiah, which was a year ago now. Bridget’s short red hair had been vibrant, and her brown eyes had been alive with fire and humor. Both had diminished to a shocking degree.

A chill darted through Tiffany. Had Jeremiah glossed over the situation? Was Bridget’s condition much worse than he’d let on? Tiffany knew that he loved his wife more than life itself and couldn’t contemplate the thought of her being less than whole. Perhaps that thought alone accounted for his inability to face facts.

Tiffany, forcing a smile, stepped closer to the bed. Despite Bridget’s obvious attempt to reciprocate the smile, her mouth was pinched with pain.

“Hi, sweetie,” Tiffany said, leaning closer and brushing Bridget’s warm cheek with her lips.

Bridget grabbed her friend’s hand, tears filling her eyes. “I’m so glad you’re here. I was afraid you couldn’t come. Or wouldn’t.”

“Hogwash,” Tiffany responded in a low voice, all the while fighting back her own tears. If she gave in and boo-hooed the way she wanted to, the room would wash away. Besides, now was not the time to let her emotions have free rein. She had to maintain a brave front, for Bridget’s sake. “Nothing short of two broken legs would’ve kept me away.”

“I can believe that. When you make up your mind, you’re the stubbornest, most hardheaded person I know.”

“All I can say is, it takes one to know one.”

They both chuckled then fell silent.

Tiffany was the first to break that silence. “So, where do you go from here?”

“To a specialty hospital in Vegas, where they’re going to put me in traction for heaven only knows how long—several weeks, I imagine.”

“Stretch the old bod, huh? Ouch!”

“I know,” Bridget said in a wan tone. “I can’t tell you how badly I dread it, but I have to get well, and not just for myself, either. There’s Jeremiah and Taylor.”

Tiffany heard the desperation in her friend’s voice, and it broke her heart. “Shh...dvn’t work yourself up into a dither. You’re going to be just fine. And you do want to get well for yourself. Why, you know you’re irreplaceable on the end of that hoe. From what I understand, you’ve developed magic in them there fingers.”

Bridget rolled her eyes. “Yeah, right. It would be closer to the truth to say that Jeremiah tolerates my crooked rows and merely turns his head when I mistake plants for weeds and chop them down.”

“Oh, well,” Tiffany said with a grin, “I bet he prefers your other talents to that one, such as your ability to cook a mean Lean Cuisine.”

“If I live to be an old lady leaning on a cane, I’ll never live that one down.”

“You sure won’t.”

“So, how long can you stay?” Bridget asked.

“As long as I’m needed.”

“Thank God. I hate leaving Taylor. She’s upset, and—”

“Hey, she’s going to be just fine. Aunt Tiffany’s going to see to that. We’ll be big buddies before you know it. All you have to do is get well.”

“I feel like such an idiot. If I’d been concentrating on my driving instead of the carnival at Taylor’s play school, then I wouldn’t have had the accident.”

“What exactly happened? I haven’t had a chance to talk to Jeremiah about the details.”

“I was blinded by the sun, and before I knew it, I was looking at the rear of a school bus. In order not to hit it, I veered, then lost control. The next thing I knew I was skidding down an embankment, straight for a tree.”

“God, you’re lucky it didn’t mangle your insides.”

“I credit my seat belt with saving my life.” Bridget paused. “Still, I have a long way to go before I’ll be one hundred percent.” Her voice broke. “I was hoping to get pregnant, and now that’s out of the question.”

“For now, but not forever. Just remember that. Besides, you’re like me. You’re a fighter. In a few months, your curvy bod will be as good as new.”

“Oh, Tiff, you’re so good to me, and for me.” Bridget’s voice cracked again. “I’m so thankful you came, and so is Jeremiah. It’s been terribly hard on him, with the ranch and all.”

“The ranch has nothing to do with it. He’s certifiable because he’s so damn crazy in love with you.”

“I feel the same way about him.” Bridget brushed back a tear. “I know why both he and Taylor are so upset. After all, Jeremiah’s already lost one wife, and Taylor lost her mother.”

“Well, they are not going to lose you.”

“They nearly did.”

“Well, nearly ain’t the real thing.” Tiffany grinned, then changed the subject. “I never thought your marriage would last, you know.”

“No one did, least of all my parents.”

“Well, getting drunk, then, a few hours later, marrying a man you won in an auction, does lead one toward skepticism.”

“It was fate at its beast” Bridget shrugged. “What more can I say?”

“I’d say that pretty well sums it up.”

“So what about you? I didn’t by any chance pull you out of the clutches of any man?”

“Not no, but hell no!”

“Tiff!”

“Don’t ‘Tiff’ me. I’m not interested in ties that bind. I’m only interested in jump-starting my career and making money.”

“So what did this trip do to those plans?”

Tiffany laughed. “It brought relief from the boss from hell.”

“Not as in, you were fired, I hope.”

“I quit, actually.”

“Oh, Tiff, I feel awful.”

“Don’t. I’ve been aching to do it for months. That call from Jeremiah was just the push I needed.”

Bridget laughed. “I can just see you marching into her office.”

“That’s exactly what I did.” Tiffany grinned. “I would have given anything if you could’ve been a fly on the wall and seen the look on Witch Hazel’s face when I told her in a nice way to kiss my you-know-what, that I was outa there.”

“I just hope you didn’t make a mistake.”

“No way.” Tiffany’s grin strengthened. “I don’t anticipate ever being in that position again.”

“You lovable idiot.”

“That’s me,” Tiffany quipped, peering at her watch. “Look, I’d better get going. I’m surprised a nurse hasn’t been in and run me off.”

“As badly as I hate to see you go, Taylor’ll be in from play school soon, and I’d like for you to be there.”

Tiffany leaned over again and kissed her friend on the cheek. “You hang in there, okay? Everything’s going to be just fine.”

Later, as Tiffany walked out into the bright sunlight, she paused and took several deep breaths. Bridget had to be all right. She just had to.

“Hey, squirt, what’ve you been doing? Making mud pies in your ears?”

Taylor giggled, then gazed up at Tiffany. “You’re being silly.”

“I’m being truthful, young lady. I don’t think you’ve had that washcloth anywhere near that part of your body.”

Taylor giggled again, but she made no effort to shift the rag to her head, which Tiffany saw as her first challenge with this precocious six-year-old.

In fact, all the way to the ranch from the hospital, apprehension had gnawed at her. What if she’d bitten off more than she could chew? Hell, what she knew about children could fill a thimble. But since she had no choice, she had to make the best of the situation, no matter what.

Jeremiah and Taylor had both come out to the car to meet her. The first time she had seen the child, with her doelike brown eyes and long, shiny hair, Tiffany had fallen under her spell. Taylor seemed to have bonded with her as well.

Now, two days later, with Jeremiah and Bridget at the hospital in Las Vegas, that love affair was threatened, and all because of mud pies in the ears.

“I couldn’t find Piper Girl,” Taylor was saying.

Tiffany shook her head. “What did you say?”

The child repeated her statement

“Who is Piper Girl?”

“My kitty.”

“Ah, I see.”

“She sleeps on the foot of my bed.”

Great. Tiffany hated cats, but she would bite her tongue before admitting that. “So, I wonder where Piper Girl is?”

“In the barn, eating a rat.”

“Swell.”

“Would you go get her and bring her inside?”

“Only if you promise she won’t eat me.”

Taylor threw her a look. “She doesn’t even bite. She’s a sweetie.”

That remained to be seen, Tiffany told herself, then said out loud, “I’ll make you a deal. I’ll get the kitty if you’ll let me get rid of the mud pies.”

“Oh, all right,” Taylor said, handing Tiffany the cloth.

A few minutes later, a powdered-down Taylor was in her bedroom, putting on her pajamas. Tiffany watched her for a minute, then said, “I’ll be right back, hopefully with kitty in tow.”

Garth Dixon tightened the girth, then climbed into the saddle. Although the horse snorted and nodded its head indicating it was ready to go, Garth didn’t nudge the animal into action. He simply sat there lost in thought. He didn’t want to do this chore. He didn’t want to do anything that required an effort, and being neighborly certainly required that.

As it was, he’d put off doing the favor Jeremiah Davis had asked of him to the point that he couldn’t indulge himself any longer. That didn’t mean he had to like it.

But again, if he was going to live in this place, he should work on his attitude, which meant he shouldn’t mind helping someone out, especially a man whose desperation had been clear even on the phone. Garth guessed he would feel the same way if his wife was laid up in the hospital seriously injured.

Well, on second thought... A jerk of his head veered him off the track. Just do the good deed and get it over with, he told himself. It was such a small thing and here he was making a big deal out of it, which was par for the course. These days even getting out of bed was a big deal, not to mention his poor attitude, something he refused to apologize for.

Sighing, Garth finally nudged the horse and moved in sync with its big but graceful body, the pace leisurely as he guided his mount through the wooded, fertile valley toward the Davis ranch.

Though he continued to nurse his sour mood, he couldn’t ignore the beauty and peace that surrounded him. Still, it wasn’t peace he sought He’d already had enough of that to last him a lifetime.

A short time later, Garth ambled onto the Davis property. Having decided to check the barn before heading toward the house, he dismounted and went inside.

After looking around and finding nothing amiss, he breathed a sigh of relief. Once he checked the house, he could get back to his cabin in the woods.

He smiled a bitter smile.

Tiffany was halfway to the barn when she stopped for a moment, noticing, not for the first time, how liberating it felt to be here and away from the evils of her former job. She stared into the distance, taking in the beauty of the fertile valley, including the surrounding rolling hills and distant mountains. Maybe this was the panacea she had needed to get her life back on track, though she would give anything to have been here under different circumstances.

Refusing to dwell on the negative, Tiffany made her way into the barn, ruing the deal she’d made with Taylor. With nightfall fast approaching, the barn gave her the creeps, not to mention having to cart that cat back to the house.

She was about to call out “kitty, kitty” when she saw him. Tiffany’s footsteps faltered at the same time that her heart jumped into her throat. Her initial reaction to seeing a strange man on the premises was to run, to get the hell out of Dodge.

Instead, while his back was to her, she acted on impulse and latched on to the garden shovel that, luckily, was at her fingertips. Then she raised her weapon and brought it down on his skull.

She didn’t know which emotion was more exhilarating—horror or relief—as he dropped to his knees, then fell facedown in the dirt.