by Cora Seton
Zack headed to where Georgie stood behind the pile of balls. He held out his palm. “Give me a couple. I’ll help you drown his ass.”
She shook her head. “Nope. I want to do that myself.”
Zack whispered something into her ear.
“No fair,” Tanner protested. “No coaching.”
“Nothing in the rules about coaching,” Zack said.
“What rules?” Reno said.
Georgie repositioned herself behind the line, moving a little more to the right. Zack got behind her, checked her aim and gave her a kiss on the cheek.
“Go get him,” he said.
The kiss shot a flame of anger through him. Zack should not be kissing Dr. Greyson. It wasn’t right. It wasn’t…he never got to finish his thought. Suddenly the wooden seat beneath him swung down and for a fraction of a second, Tanner was suspended in air. Then he dropped heavily into ice cold water.
The freezing liquid hit him like a wooden bat. His feet hit the bottom and he stood. As tall as he was, his head was easily above the water level.
In the midway, Georgie was dancing and hollering, “I got him! I did it.”
Around her people were cheering her on.
Tanner shook the hair out of his eyes, jerked his board shorts back up to his waist and climbed back onto the seat.
A lucky shot.
Except it wasn’t. The next ball hit and down he went again. And again, she jumped around in an excited dance and the crowd cheered.
After the fourth time she dropped him, she’d stopped dancing and was looking a little bored.
“I’m done,” she said to Reno.
“You bought more balls than you’ve thrown.”
“Keep ’em and keep the money. I got more than my money’s worth.”
She looked up at Tanner, and for the first time addressed him. “Mr. Marshall. Thank you for the best time I’ve had in a long time.” Then she had the audacity to give him a saucy wink and blow him a kiss. She linked arms with Magda, who gave Reno a kiss, and then the two women walked off.
The woman might be the most irritating female Tanner had ever met, but that didn’t stop him from admiring the swing in her hips as she walked away. Georgina laughed at something Magda said, the sound carrying to him over all the fair noise. It wasn’t the first time he’d heard her laugh but he realized that she’d never laughed around him.
For some reason, that gave him pause.
“How much longer have I got up here?” Tanner shouted to Reno.
“You’re done,” Reno said.
“No way,” Zack said. “I want a shot at him.”
“Sorry, squirt face,” Tanner said. “You missed your chance.” He climbed out of the cage before Zack could grab a ball.
*
“Tanner?”
He looked up at the speaker over his head. “Yeah?”
“Supper will be ready in about forty-five minutes.”
“Thanks, Deb. Be up shortly.”
The intercom squawked and fell quiet. He loved and hated that damn thing. Way back before every man, woman and child had their own personal cell phone, his mother had insisted his father install it so she could call him to the house. So from that perspective, the old system still came in handy.
However, once when Tanner had been in high school, he’d worked long and hard to get Tanya Jo Allen into the barn loft. Things were just getting hot and heavy when his father knocked loudly on the barn door and entered. Seemed that Zack had turned on the intercom. Tanner and Tanya Jo had been the evening entertainment until his parents got a good listen to the new radio show.
Now that he thought about it, Tanya Jo never went out with him again.
He chuckled and ran a brush along Jolene’s bulging side. Probably a good thing his dad had come in that night. Otherwise, Tanya Jo might have had a bulging belly like Jolene.
The crunch of tires on gravel drew his attention. He set the brush on the shelf. “Be right back,” he told Jolene.
Georgina Greyson was climbing out of her truck when he walked out.
“Evening, Dr. Greyson. Bring any baseballs with you tonight?”
She laughed. The sound stopped Tanner in his tracks.
“Don’t you think it’s time you dropped the Dr. Greyson, Tanner? After all, I’ve seen you in a wet T-shirt.”
A niggle of amusement tickled him. He smiled. “I think we can do that. What can I do for you this evening?”
“I was reading over Jolene’s file at the office. I didn’t see a note about late pregnancy vaccinations for tetanus, Eastern and Western encephalomyelitis and influenza. Seeing as how the clinic records are as tidy as any records I’ve ever seen, I assumed no notation meant these hadn’t been given. Any reason?”
Tanner shook his head. “It’s on my to-do list. Just hadn’t gotten to them.” He frowned. “Why are you so interested in my horse?”
“I have a serious thing for horses. That’s all.”
He lifted an eyebrow. “Really? I’m thinking my wet T-shirt from this weekend has whipped you into a lust frenzy.”
She burst out with a loud hoot of laughter from deep in her gut. Her arms wrapped around her waist, she bent over and continued to laugh.
“Sorry,” she said, her words choked. “I mean, yeah. That’s why I’m here.”
“What’s so funny?” Zack asked, walking down from the house.
“Nothing,” Tanner replied. “Georgina is here checking on Jolene.”
“Tanner!” Deb hollered.
All three adults turned toward the house where Tanner’s sister held up a phone.
“Fire,” she yelled. “South’s Ridge.”
“Okay. On the way.”
“Chief is looking for Georgie. The fire’s near Reeves’s farm. Chief said might be some injured animals.”
“Tell him I’ll bring her,” Tanner said.
“I’ll follow you in the mobile clinic.”
“I’ll go with Georgie to make sure she doesn’t get lost,” Zack said.
His brother’s suggestion turned Tanner’s stomach sour.
“No,” Tanner said. “I’ll get my turnouts and ride with her. You follow in my truck.”
Zack opened his mouth as though he was going to argue, but after studying Tanner’s face and then Georgie’s glare, he nodded and headed off.
“You don’t have to ride with me,” she protested. “I can follow you or you could have let Zack show me the way.”
“It’s no problem.” He was lying. Being in close quarters with the curvy doctor was definitely a problem, but he didn’t want his brother to get too attached to the lady vet. First, she was older than Zack, and second, she was a short-timer in the area. If he let Zack get involved, he’d only be hurt when she left town.
So really, he was doing this for Zack’s own good.
“Fine then,” Georgina said with a shrug.
She appeared to be as thrilled as Tanner to be in a closed space together.
“Deb, you and Dillon stay here. Stay off the phone and off the radio in case I need to reach you,” Tanner ordered.
Deb saluted with a sarcastic grin. He would never survive his little sister’s senior year. Thanks Dad and Mom.
He hurried to his black truck to get his gear.
*
Georgie’s heart rattled with nerves. Not because she was going to be alone in the truck with Tanner. She could handle that…she was pretty sure. But she hated the thought of animals being burned in a fire. And it wasn’t just the damage from the burn that could be the problem. Smoke inhalation could kill just as quickly.
As she waited for Tanner, she began scanning through her brain for everything she’d ever been taught about treating animal burns. And then she said a silent prayer she wouldn’t need any of that information today.
Her driver door snapped opened and Tanner leaned in. “Let me drive.”
“Nope.”
“It’ll be faster.”
“You’ve never seen me drive. Now
get in the passenger seat or get in your truck. Your choice.”
He slammed her door and stomped around the front of the truck. A smile desperately tried to crawl onto her lips but she fought back the urge and gave him a serious don’t-mess-with-me look.
“So? Where?”
He huffed a cuss word under his breath as his truck passed with a pair of red lights flashing on the cab’s roof and a loud siren blaring from somewhere on the vehicle. Zack waved and she pulled in behind him. Within minutes, the equipment in the truck was rattling as she hit seventy down the gravel road.
“He’s driving too slow,” Tanner grumbled. “And turn on your emergency flashers.”
“We’re doing seventy and my flashers are on.”
“I should have driven.”
That dadgum smile climbed to her face again, so she bit her lip. The last thing she needed was to poke the angry tiger beside her.
“Zack is driving as fast as is sane on this road.”
He leaned back and crossed his arms. “How old are you?”
The question was snapped at her like a wet towel. “What?”
“Easy question. How old are you?”
“Thirty-one.”
“Hmm. You look younger.”
“Um…thanks?”
“Zack is only twenty-five.”
“Um…okay.”
“You realize that you’re too old for him.”
That almost made her slam on the van’s brakes out of astonishment. “What are you talking about?”
“You’re thirty-one. He’s twenty-five. You’re too old for him.”
She chanced a glance in his direction and answered his frown at her with one of her own toward him.
“I seriously have no idea what you’re talking about. Hold on. Zack’s turning.”
She slowed to sixty for her turn and wheeled the truck onto a paved road…finally. Zack pulled away from her and she increased her speed accordingly.
“Zack’s a great guy,” Tanner continued, “but he’s not right for you.”
“Not right for me? Really? And why is that?”
“I told you. You’re too—he’s too young for you.”
“I’m pretty sure you’ve lost your mind. Are you seeing a doctor for these delusions?”
“Watch out here,” he said. “There’s no shoulder and the bank in the road is totally wrong.”
She slowed slightly as they went into a curve. As he’d warned, it was a difficult curve to take. When she hit the straightaway, she punched the gas again.
“How much farther?”
“About ten miles.”
She nodded and concentrated on her driving. However the Zack’s-too-young-for-you discussion annoyed her and she didn’t know why.
“So,” she began, “you think Zack is too young for me. Did you have another man to throw in my path to distract me from my evil intentions with your baby brother?”
Did he just growl? She would have sworn he did.
“Wait. Are you throwing yourself at me to save him? Oh gosh, Tanner. I’m just so flattered.” She glanced over, batted her eyes at him and then looked back at the road. Luckily they were on a straight stretch. If they weren’t driving almost ninety, she might have taken the time to study the interesting cuts and angles of his high cheeks or maybe the slant of his nose which suggested he’d broken it sometime in the past.
And then again, lots of time could be allocated to staring into his semi-sweet, chocolate morsel eyes. Since chocolate chip cookies were a mainstay of her diet, his eyes held the potential to draw her into a hypnotizing haze.
All the more reason she should not look over again.
“Don’t be,” he said in a gruff tone, totally blowing the lust out of her eyes. “I’m not volunteering for the job, but if I did, I can guarantee you that I would make the thought of any other man disappear from your brain.”
The smile that’d threatened for the past ten minutes pushed onto her lips. A laugh bubbled up and out, popping the mounting tension in the van.
Before she could respond, black smoke and orange flames leapt over the hill in front of them. In response, Zack had slammed the truck to stop and pulled to the side of the road. Georgie did the same.
“Damn. Hold on. Let me call the chief.” Tanner pulled out his phone.
Chapter Five
‡
Zack climbed from the truck and walked back to the van. Georgina rolled down her window.
She tilted her head toward the passenger seat. “He’s on the phone with the chief,” she said.
Tanner ended his call with, “Yes, sir. If you think that’s where we’re needed.”
“What’s the deal?” Zack asked.
“Chief wants you to go on up to Happy Acres farm. There’s a team there that needs some help.”
Zack nodded. “Okay. Where you guys going?”
“Reeves’s Ranch. Got a problem with a horse there.”
“Know what kind of problem? I just sort of like to know what I’m getting into.”
Tanner shook his head. “Chief said Mrs. Reeves was screaming into the phone so he wasn’t sure. Zack, go on. I’ll catch up with you later either up on the ridge or at home.”
“Stay safe,” Zack said.
“You too,” Tanner said.
Georgina turned the van around and headed back the way she came. Tanner held on to the door as she took curves at breakneck speed. He didn’t know where she’d learned to drive, but he was impressed with her ability to control the van at such high speeds…not that he was going to mention that.
Pointing to a dirt road about a quarter of a mile ahead, he said, “Turn there.”
The sudden deceleration rocked his head forward. He held tight as she swung the lumbering vehicle into the Reeve’s driveway and flew up the narrow lane, spitting rocks and dirt behind her.
Becky Reeves was middle-aged with graying hair, an extra seventy-five pounds and the look of the woman hanging by a thread. As they parked the van, her already pale face grew a few shades lighter.
“I probably shouldn’t have called,” she said wringing her hands. “My husband is going to be upset with me.”
“What’s the problem, Mrs. Reeves?” Tanner asked.
“I asked the chief to send Doc Brian. Tommy is not going to like this.”
Tommy was her husband—rumored to be the most sour and unpleasant man in the county. Reeves was always right, no matter how wrong he was.
“Dr. Brian isn’t available, Mrs. Reeves,” Georgina said. “I’m Dr. Greyson. How can I help you?”
Tanner noticed the calming tone of Georgina’s voice. She took a couple of steps toward the fretting Becky Reeves and touched her arm.
“The chief said you had a problem. Something you needed a vet for? That’s why I’m here.”
“Oh, Tommy isn’t going to be happy with me. He…” She looked at Georgina and blushed. “It’s just he don’t believe any woman should be doing a man’s job.”
Georgina nodded. “I understand. I really do. But I’m here. I can help.”
Tanner had to restrain himself from grabbing the foolish woman and shaking some sense into her. Her husband had filled her brain with some total nonsense.
“Mrs. Reeves,” he said. “I know you and your family just moved to the area and you don’t know me but I bet you’ve heard of our family ranch, Flying Eagle Cattle Ranch. Right?”
She nodded.
“And you know I’d never let anything happen to my family’s cattle or horses, right?”
She nodded again, this time drawing her thumbnail to her mouth to chew on the cuticle.
“Then trust me when I say Dr. Greyson is one of the best animal doctors I’ve ever seen. She’s the only one I trust with my mare, who’s going to foal soon. Only her. She’s good. Talk to her.”
The woman, obviously scared of her husband’s ire, licked her lips. “The fire was coming fast. A few sparks got carried in the wind. One of them hit Pablo and startled him.”
/> “Pablo?” Georgina asked.
“My son’s horse. Pablo is young. The sparks scared him and he ran.” She gulped in a breath. “He’s caught in a barbed wire fence.”
Georgina nodded. “Okay. We need to get to him so I can check him out.”
Mrs. Reeves’s gaze shifted around the yard, finally landing on the drive. “Maybe I’d better wait for Tommy to get home.”
Georgina took hold the woman’s forearms and turned her. “Mrs. Reeves. I need to check on your horse now. Not two hours from now. Not twenty minutes from now. I need to see how much damage he’s done and how much blood loss he’s had. Do you understand?”
The woman nodded and her face was a study in fear.
“Tell you what, Mrs. Reeves,” Tanner said. “You tell Tommy I forced you to let the female doctor examine Pablo, okay? It’ll all be my fault.”
She swallowed loudly and then nodded. “Yes. Okay. Follow me.”
Georgia grabbed a bag of medical supplies and hurried after Mrs. Reeves and Tanner.
“Wait, y’all,” Georgina called. “Don’t rush up on Pablo. I don’t want to startle him.”
She caught up with them at the gate. “Who’s with him?” Georgina asked. “Anyone?”
“My son. Tommy, Jr.”
“Good. Mrs. Reeves, can you stay back while Tanner and I approach? Horses are so sensitive to humans. I want Pablo as calm as possible and he’s going to know you’re upset about him.”
“Okay.” Mrs. Reeves opened the gate but didn’t walk through with them.
“Can I carry something for you?” Tanner asked. The three bags she had tossed over her shoulders were bulging and appeared heavy on Georgina’s shoulders. Plus, his mother would kick his ass if she saw him empty handed while this petite wisp of woman carried everything.
“No, no. I’m fine,” she insisted. “I’m kind of weight balanced. If you take anything, it’ll screw up the weight distribution.”
She flashed him a grin. “Don’t worry. I won’t tell anyone that you let me do all the heavy lifting.”
A petite wisp with a mouth on her. Funny. She was exactly the type of woman he wasn’t usually attracted to, except there was something about her that drew him.
They made their approach to the gelding slowly. A dark-haired boy stood holding the horse’s halter by the cheek strap. His wide-eyed expression shouted fear and helplessness.