by Lori Ryan
Kayleigh wiped at her cheeks now, unable to hold back her tears.
“Every day Abigail told me to be strong.” He used air quotes. “I wasn’t sure what she meant or how to be strong. And I was definitely lost when she died. Then I came to your office one afternoon after she passed away. I was lost and lonely and more than a little out of it. I knew there was nothing really wrong with Pebbles, but I just needed…”
She reached across the bench, taking his hand in hers. “You needed help.”
He nodded. “I needed help to be strong. And you had always been so strong.”
She bit her lip to keep back the tears.
“Being strong doesn’t mean you don’t need help, Kayleigh. Being strong means you ask for help. And guess what?”
She shook her head, unable to speak.
“The people who care about you most will be the first to step up and help.” He reached in his coat and handed her an envelope. “I know it’s not much, but I can pay more next time. I just want to help you, Dr. Montgomery. We all do. Because you’ve been a blessing to us.”
He scooped Pebbles into his arms and reached down to kiss Kayleigh’s cheek. Pebbles licked her chin.
She smiled. “Thank you,” she whispered.
“Thank you.” He set Pebbles on the ground and together the two walked up the pathway back toward town.
She laughed, watching as he led the cat on the leash like she was a dog. She glanced down at the envelope in her hand, a sinking feeling hit her hard in the pit of her stomach. Slowly she opened the envelope and slid out the contents. It was a check, made out to Mr. Ferguson in the amount of $16,000. It was from a life insurance company and the memo read: Death Benefit for Mrs. Abigail Ferguson.
She clamped a hand over her mouth. He had signed over his life insurance money. To her. She shoved the envelope and check in her pocket, standing to chase after him. She couldn’t let him do this. But he was gone. How could an older man and a cat walk so fast?
She sank back into the bench feeling somehow hollow and whole at the same time. Was she a blessing to these people? One thing she knew with certainty…they had been to her.
All this time she thought she’d been strong, making her own way. But maybe that had been her weakness all along.
Her phone buzzed in her pocket. She slipped it out, surprised to see Alan Rutherford’s phone number.
“This is Dr. Montgomery.”
“Hey, Kayleigh, it’s Alan.”
“Hey, Alan.”
“Look, I want to say I’m sorry about earlier.”
“It’s okay. I shouldn’t have gotten so angry.”
“I’m calling about Sunshine.”
Kayleigh sat up ram rod straight.
“What’s wrong with her?”
“She’s going into labor. Normally, I wouldn’t call you out if there wasn’t a problem, but with Izzie being so sick, I want all the support we can get. I don’t want that little girl having any reason in the world to be stressed.”
“How close is she?”
“She’s laying down and getting up all the time. She’s cranky and restless. No one can go into the stall, not even Izzie is calming her down.”
“Has her water broke?”
“No, not that we can see but she’s not letting anyone inside the stall.”
“I’ll be right there.”
“Thanks, Kayleigh.”
“Sure.” She hit end and tucked her phone into her jacket. She loved her job. That had never been the question here in Canyon Creek. What she wasn’t sure of was how much help she was willing to accept. Maybe as much as she was willing to give.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Aaron sat on his mother’s back porch, staring at the fire in her ceramic outdoor fire pit. “What the hell was I thinking?” he asked no one in particular.
“Fuck if I know,” Max answered.
Aaron glanced up and stared at the people sitting around the fire. Why had he thought he was alone? As long as he stayed in Canyon Creek he was realizing he’d never be alone. And he found he liked it more than he thought.
After years of living in big cities, Aaron was appreciating the slower pace and his ability to care for patients of all kinds. It didn’t hurt that he was also seeing one of the hottest women in town. But his heart broke at the fact he might have forced her away from the town she’d grown to love.
“Did you really laugh at her?” Devlin asked.
“No.” Aaron scrubbed a hand down his face. “I mean, I don’t think so. Maybe we laughed at how stubborn she is.”
“First rule in the world of love,” Aunt Sally said, holding up one finger, “never ever laugh when she’s upset.”
“Truth,” Elle nodded. “Emmett did it once when I tried to install a new mirror in one of the dance rooms.” She turned to stare at Emmett as she sat in his lap.
“Once,” Emmett said, his mouth pinching trying not to laugh. “I laughed one time and I’ll never live it down.” He looked like he might add to that count, though.
“Don’t you dare.” Elle held up a hand.
“Max laughed at me when I tried to squeeze into a pair of pre-pregnancy jeans after I found out we were having twins,” Devlin said.
Ben’s face scrunched up. “Oh, hell, man. Everyone knows you never laugh at a pregnant woman.”
“Ever,” their mother said.
“It’s okay,” Devlin said, laughing as she leaned back in her chair. “I got him back.”
“How?” Elle asked.
“I told him his brother had his hand up my hoo-ha for a checkup.”
Everyone burst into laughter.
“Aaron, did you really give Devlin an exam?” Emmett sounded appalled and Aaron noticed he was cradling Elle like he had to protect her from his deranged brother.
Aaron’s head sank in his hand as he shook it. “No, I didn’t. Devlin was only trying to get back at him.”
Max only growled in response to it all.
“He was ready to run out and hunt Aaron down to beat him up,” Devlin said, giggling.
Their mother watched with a look of patient exasperation, but when the laughter died, she reached across to Aaron and squeezed his arm. “I’m worried about you right now, dear. About your tremor. You never told us what the long-term effects will be?”
Aaron glanced around the circle. Everyone stared at him with real concern. He’d never finished his discussion since he’d been so worried about Kayleigh. He drew in a deep breath, not sure how to answer.
“They’re not really sure.” He blew the breath out. “It’s called benign essential tremor. There is no cause, and no cure, just certain treatments that could have worse side effects. For awhile, the medication worked for me and the side effects were manageable. Now, the medication has stopped working. I’ve been trying to adjust the dosage, looking for a combination of medicine that might work.”
His mother squeezed his arm. “I’m so sorry, sweetheart. I know doing surgery was such a big part of your life.”
It was. But Aaron wasn’t so sure if that was true now. He realized he couldn’t have had this conversation with his family back then. Not without being angry and lashing out.
“So, what are you going to do?” Max asked.
Aaron searched for a way to change the topic away from himself and had no problem throwing Max under the bus to do it. “So when are you two getting married?” He asked, looking to Devlin and Max.
Max scowled.
Devlin rolled her eyes. “Max wants to marry before the babies are born, but I don’t want to be a huge cow in a wedding dress. I want to wait.”
“You know, Holly is a fashion designer,” Aunt Sally said, speaking of her daughter who lived in New York. “She fixed your bridesmaid dress when you first found out you were pregnant, remember?”
Devlin nodded.
Aaron didn’t know the entire story but apparently Devlin had known she was pregnant several weeks before she’d disclosed the information to Max. Part of
that meant that her dress didn’t fit and no one knew about it until two days before the wedding. The result had not been good, even though everything was fine now.
“I’m sure she could design something beautiful for you, Devlin,” Sally said. “You wouldn’t look like a cow. Holly would never do that.”
“She did do an amazing job on the bridesmaid dress.” Devlin turned to stare at Max.
Max’s brows were raised, a small smile curling his lips. Aaron’s brother looked good wearing happy on his face.
“We’ll see,” Devlin said, squeezing Max’s arm.
“So, are you going back to Chicago?” Ben asked Aaron. “You said they offered you a position.”
Apparently, Aaron wouldn’t be able to keep the topic off him for long. “Yeah, but it’s not the same. If I can’t operate, I don’t think I want to be there.”
“I get it,” Ben said. “That’s why I sold my computer company. I was tired of board meetings. I missed writing software but if I was there, I wouldn’t be able to just write the code. It was all or nothing with running that place.”
Aaron hadn’t talked much with Ben about the transition to being in Canyon Creek. “And you can do that now? You’re writing software here?”
Ben nodded. “I have a small business. Plus I do a lot of stuff around the lodge.”
“Are you thinking of staying?” Aaron’s mother asked with anticipation.
“Staying would give me a lot more freedom,” he said.
“How so?” Emmett asked.
“Well, in Chicago, it was all about cardio thoracic surgery. Here in Canyon Creek, I see all types of patients, from tonsillitis to health and wellness to—”
“To pregnant women.” Emmett laughed.
Max threw a stick at Emmett. It missed and hit Elle.
“Ow,” she said, rubbing her head.
“Sorry, Elle,” Max said. “Collateral damage. Keep a muzzle on your fiancé.”
“Impossible,” she said.
“Kayleigh’s father mentioned Operation Smile and invited me to go along. It’s something I never could have done doing my fellowship at Northwestern. There wasn’t time to slip away for something like that until you’re more established.”
“What’s Operation Smile?” Aunt Sally asked.
“They provide free surgery for people around the world affected by cleft lip and cleft palate.”
“That sounds remarkable,” his mother said, smiling. “And that was Kayleigh’s father who invited you?”
He nodded. Just thinking of Kayleigh brought a pain to his chest. “Where is Maggie?” he asked Ben. She’d left hours ago to talk to Kayleigh and still hadn’t returned.
“Not sure,” Ben said.
Aaron wondered if Maggie had found Kayleigh. He’d tried calling Kayleigh but she wasn’t answering his calls. “God, I just meant to help her. I had no idea Kayleigh would be so upset.” He shook his head.
“How did you feel when you found out you had the tremor?” his mother asked.
“Devastated,” he said with no hesitation.
“And it took you how long to tell us all?” his mother asked.
“I know.” He nodded. “I didn’t want anyone to know.”
“And you didn’t want help,” she said. “Kayleigh kept your secret though, right?”
Aaron nodded. She had. But he hadn’t been as loyal. He moved to stand. “I have to see her, tell her I’m sorry.”
“Do you want to stay in Canyon Creek?” his mother asked.
He stared down at her, finally acknowledging what he’d known all along. “Only if she does.”
“Then give her some time,” Aunt Sally said.
“Yes,” Devlin said, Elle nodding with her.
“I don’t want to give her time,” he said. “She’ll just get madder at me.”
“It’s her choice now, Aaron.” His mother said the words, but all the women around the fire were nodding their agreement. “You have to let her get there on her own.”
“What if she doesn’t? What if she decides she doesn’t want help, that she wants to leave Canyon Creek?”
“Well,” his mother said, pulling him back down, “that will be her decision and you’ll have to learn to accept it.”
“That’s the worst answer I’ve ever heard,” Aaron said.
Everyone laughed.
“Does she know you’re thinking about staying?” Devlin asked.
“No, I’ve never said it out loud.”
“But you’re going to?” Ben asked.
He studied his brother for a long moment.
“Ah, hell, it’s happened again,” Sally threw herself back in her chair.
“What?” Aaron asked.
“Your mother is four for four.”
Aaron glanced at his mother. She was staring down at her nails. “Ma?” he asked.
She shrugged. “I didn’t do anything,” she said innocently.
“Yeah, like you didn’t do anything here,” Devlin rubbed her belly.
“Or here.” Elle held up her engagement ring.
Aaron turned to Ben, who shrugged.
“I was the first to fall,” Ben said. “Trust me, there are worse things than falling in love.”
“I’m not in love.” Was he?
Everyone laughed.
He was so fucked.
Aaron had to find Kayleigh. Now.
His mother held his hand. “Sleep on it,” she said. “Give her the night.”
He didn’t want to give Kayleigh the night. Hell, he didn’t want to give her two minutes to think about how she felt for him, and possibly come to the wrong conclusion. He stared around the circle and they all nodded.
“Fine,” he blew out an exasperated breath. It was going to be the longest night of his life.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Kayleigh stood off to the side of the stall, watching as Izzie looked over the edge at Sunshine and her new foal.
Sunshine licked at her son’s fur and they all anxiously waited for the baby to stand and begin nursing.
“That’s gross,” Izzie said from her perch on the stable gate. “He’s covered in goo.”
Kayleigh laughed. “You think that’s gross, wait until you see the meconium.”
Izzie scrunched up her face. “The ma-what?”
Kayleigh grinned. “The meconium. It’s the foal’s poop. It will look like tar.”
Izzie stared at her, her face scrunched in disgust and confusion.
Kayleigh withheld further medical information that could confuse her more. Instead, she observed the foal quietly to make sure he was progressing normally. She needed to ensure he stood in the next hour, then nurse within two, and pass the meconium in three.
“What are you going to call him?” Alan asked Izzie, who was still wore a look of disgust.
“I get to name him?” Izzie asked, excitement spreading over her face. She was thinner than normal, and still a little pale from her illness but was well on the way to making a full recovery. Sunshine’s early arrival seemed to help boost the little girl’s spirits.
“Well, of course,” Alan said. “Sunshine’s pretty much yours isn’t she?”
Izzie smiled and nodded, revealing two missing bottom teeth.
Kayleigh didn’t want to tell Izzie just how lucky the foal and Sunshine were to be alive.
The birth of Sunshine’s foal had been problematic and she was glad Alan had called her when he did. The foal hadn’t presented in the normal birthing position and Kayleigh had had to readjust the baby’s legs for delivery. If left as it was, the foal’s hooves could have easily torn Sunshine’s internal organs.
She washed up at the make-shift sink in the barn and took the clean shirt and scrubs she kept in her Jeep for occasions like this. Making her way to the tack room in the barn, she quickly slipped on the clean clothes, eager to get back and check on mother and foal.
Glancing down at the jeans she’d just shucked, she laughed. They were definitely ruined. But that was no
thing new to the life of a small-town vet.
Small-town vet.
That’s what she’d been for the past three years, but was it what she still wanted to be?
She cinched up the drawstring on the scrubs and walked out.
“Hey, Kayleigh,” Alan said, catching her by surprise outside the tack room door. “I just wanted to say again how sorry I am that I was discussing your practice with Aaron. It was wrong of me. But it wasn’t Aaron’s fault.”
She shook her head. “It’s okay. I know you had my best interest at heart.”
“I truly did. And I would never bring Dylan here without your consent. I was just trying to brainstorm ways for you to be able to stay here and not have to work so hard.” He nodded toward the barn. “We’d be lost without you. I don’t know how you do it. That foal weighs more than you do and you pulled it right out of there.”
Kayleigh laughed. “It wasn’t me, it was Sunshine who did all the work.”
He shook his head. “Not true, Kayleigh. You do all the work here in Canyon Creek, and the surrounding counties. I just hate that you’re spread so thin. Or that you’re truly thinking about leaving because of something stupid I said.”
“Actually, I’ve been thinking about what you said,” Kayleigh said, knocking around the dirt with her work boot.
“And?” he asked.
She glanced up at his kind face. Alan’s skin was tanned and weather worn but he was still an attractive man. The deep creases around his eyes and forehead told of a hard life lived outdoors. But there was warmth in his eyes and a kindness in his heart that she’d always known. How could she have believed Alan Rutherford would ever laugh at her in a cruel way?
“I was thinking,” she said, “maybe having a partner might be a nice thing. I mean, I love the large animals.” She nodded inside the barn. “I love helping Sunshine and the other animals here and at the other ranches I service. But it’s a lot of work, maintaining the local ranches and the clinic.”
“I can only imagine,” he said. “You do a wonderful job though, Kayleigh. Ask anyone.”