The Best Catch in Texas

by Stella Bagwell

  The conviction on his face struck her and she suddenly realized that he was not the shallow playboy she’d first imagined.

  “And you think you can find that here?” she quietly questioned.

  A wry grin exposed a portion of his white teeth. “I’m going to try my best. At least I’m finding I like the clinic and this hospital. And I like my new place. So that’s a start.”

  And what about a woman to go with it, Nicolette wondered. But she’d bite the end of her tongue off before she’d ask him such a thing. It didn’t matter to her if he had a steady love interest. She’d had her turn with love and marriage, and the experience had left her spirit bound with scars. She’d be a fool to lose what little heart she had left to a man like him.

  She drank a portion of her strong coffee while she felt his gaze roaming over her face and hair, touching her lips and lingering on her breasts. His subtle inspection made her extremely aware that she was a woman, a woman who’d not felt the arms of a man around her in years.

  Resisting the urge to squirm, she asked, “Uh, did you buy acreage?”

  “Two hundred acres. Not very much, but enough for five horses and a small herd of cattle.”

  Her jaw dropped. “Livestock? You own livestock?”

  He chuckled at the stunned look on her face. “That’s right. I’ve always wanted to do a little ranching and now I have the chance. True, I won’t have a lot of free time for it. But I’ll make the most of what I have.”

  “What about the golfing, the boating and fishing? And traveling?”

  Chuckling, he held up a hand to stem her questions. “Nicolette, where did you get this stereotype of doctors? We’re not all made from the same mold, you know.”

  He was right, of course. But from the moment she’d spotted him standing in her waiting room this morning, maybe even before that, she’d formed her own ideas of the man. Now she was learning he was nothing as she’d first imagined. The fact left her shaken. It only proved that she was no better a judge of men now than she had been when she’d married Bill and believed all his hogwash.

  “Sorry. But that’s what most of the doctors around here do with their free time. Not that’s there anything wrong with golfing or fishing. I just thought—” She paused and shrugged one shoulder. “Well, I’ve lived nearly all my life on a ranch and you—just don’t seem the type.”

  This time he looked at her with surprise. “You live on a ranch?”

  She nodded. “The Sandbur. It’s—”

  “The Sandbur!” he exclaimed. “You are one of those Saddlers?”

  “You know of the place?”

  Leaning back in his chair, he studied her as though the revelation called for him to inspect her all over again. “Of course I know of it! It’s spoken in the same breath as the Four Sixes, the Johnson, and the King—”

  “Whoa,” she interrupted, “don’t put us in the same categories as those great Texas ranches, especially the King. We’re big, but nothing close to being that big.”

  Her remark didn’t seem to dim his respect. “Hmm. Fancy that. You live on the Sandbur. That’s exciting. Really exciting.”

  She crumpled the empty cellophane that had held the crackers and cheese. “I don’t know about exciting. It’s just home to me. I live with my mother and brother.”

  “No husband?”

  Unconsciously, her eyes turned to flint as she glanced his way. “No. I’m divorced.”

  “Oh. Sorry. Guess that really wasn’t my business, but I was curious,” he admitted.

  Her nostrils flared, and Ridge realized he’d touched on a very raw spot. But from the moment he’d met her this morning, he’d been craving more information about the woman. Since she was absent a wedding ring, he’d pretty much decided she wasn’t married. But at her age, there had to be a reason for her being single. He’d been tempted to ask some of the clinic nurses about her. But he’d stopped himself from going that far.

  “It’s nothing secret,” she said. “Most everyone knows that’s why I moved back to the Sandbur. San Antonio didn’t hold much charm for me after Bill and I divorced.”

  He desperately wanted to ask her what had happened to ruin her marriage. But he didn’t. She was just now letting down that defensive cloak she wore tightly around her. He didn’t want to push his luck.

  “Sorry, Nicolette,” he said again. “You, uh, don’t think things will ever work out for you two?”

  She stared at him, then let out a brittle laugh. “Not hardly. He’s married again. You see, I was…getting a little too old for him,” she added. She tossed the crumpled cellophane into her coffee cup and rose to her feet. “I think I’ll go back to Dan’s room.”

  Following her example, he gathered up his trash and rose from the plastic chair. “I’ll go with you. Hopefully the diuretic has been working.”

  After disposing of the remains of their snack, the two of them left the cafeteria and headed back to the elevator. Neither of them spoke until they reached the old wrangler’s room.

  “I’ll stay out here in the hall until you finish examining him,” Nicolette said.

  He frowned at her. “Don’t be silly. You’re my colleague. Besides, Mr. Nelson will feel more comfortable with you by my side.”

  She couldn’t argue that point, so she nodded and followed him into the room.

  Dan was asleep, which was a good sign that his breathing had eased. But as they approached the narrow bed, the old man opened his eyes.

  “Well, I can see there’s nothing wrong with your ears,” Ridge told the man. He checked the patient’s feet and ankles for swelling, then pulled the end of his stethoscope out of his lab coat pocket and warmed it with his hand. “How are you feeling now? Breathing a bit easier?”

  Dan nodded, and though he kept a skeptical eye on the new doctor, he didn’t complain when Ridge leaned over him and placed the instrument against his chest.

  “I’m feelin’ better,” he said. “Just tired of gettin’ in and out of this bed to use the toilet.”

  “Well, the medicine will wear off in a few hours and then you can get some good sleep. I might even let you go home in a few hours—that is if you behave yourself. Now raise up and breathe deeply for me,” he instructed.

  Dan sat up in the bed, and Ridge listened carefully. After a moment he looked over to Nicolette and motioned for her to join him.

  “Have a listen.”

  Surprised at his generosity, she took the stethoscope and carefully listened to Dan’s heart and lungs. What she heard put a small smile on her face.

  “Sounds pretty good,” she said. “I think he’s on the mend.”

  The old man snorted. “I ain’t sick enough to need two doctors!”

  “That’s why I’m going home,” Nicolette told him, then leaned across the bed railing and kissed his grizzled cheek. “Mind Dr. Garroway, you hear? And I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  He nodded, and Nicolette left the room with Ridge right behind her. Before she had a chance to walk away, he caught her by the arm.

  “I just wanted to thank you again, Nicolette. You’ve made this whole night easy for me. And enjoyable.”

  There was no flirtatious light in his eyes now; only warm sincerity, and Nicolette found that idea even harder to deal with.

  She looked down and away from his brown eyes. “It’s no problem. I’m just glad Dan is improving.”

  “I’ll probably release him around noon. Before that, I’m going to put him on medication that will hopefully keep this sort of incident from happening again. I don’t know if he’ll agree to have regular checkups in the future. Maybe you can help me on that count.”

  “I’ll do my best,” she said. Lifting her eyes back to his, she did her best to give him a friendly smile. “You’d better wind your night up, too, and rest before morning comes. See ya around, Doctor.”

  Nicolette walked away before he could make any sort of reply, but she could feel him watching her walk down the dimly lit corridor. It was a great relief when
she was finally able to turn the corner and step into the elevator.

  Chapter Three

  The next morning when Jacki entered Nicolette’s office, she paused at the corner of her boss’s desk and sniffed with appreciation.

  “Mmm. Something smells delicious.” Spotting a flat box with ribbon tied around it, the red-haired nurse picked it up and sniffed at the white cardboard. “It’s in here. What is it? May I have some?”

  “It’s Cook’s famous pecan and chocolate chip cookies. And no you can’t have one. Neither can I. She’s sending them to Dan.”

  Jacki smiled slyly as she placed the box back on the desk. “Oooh. Do I smell romance along with the cookies?”

  Nicolette finished the last notation on the medical chart in front of her before she looked up at Jacki. “Cook has known Dan for many years. She calls him an old codger, but I think she has a soft spot for him. As for romance, I doubt it. Since her husband was killed in the Viet Nam war, she hasn’t shown too much interest in men. Besides, she’s in her early seventies now.”

  “So what? A woman’s never too old for romance. Did you ever think about that?” Jacki asked pointedly.

  Hoping her expression was vacant, Nicolette closed the chart and handed it to her nurse. “I don’t consider myself too old for romance, Jacki. I’m just not interested.”

  Jacki shook her head shook in disbelief. “Why not? Just because your husband was a—”

  “I don’t want to hear it,” Nicolette said firmly. “What is this, anyway? First my mother and now you start in on me about being single. Is something floating around in the air?”

  “As far as I’m concerned, it’s not about you being single. It’s about you being alone.”

  Rolling her eyes, Nicolette leaned back in the desk chair and gestured at the pile of medical charts on her desk. “I’m hardly alone, Jacki. I’m with people from the time I get up to the time I go to bed.”

  Jacki shot her a droll look. “It’s not the same and we both know it.”

  Jacki was right. It wasn’t the same, Nicolette thought. But it was better than being deceived and manipulated and stomped on by a man.

  “I’m happy as I am, Jacki. Let’s leave it at that. Now, how many patients do I have left before lunch break? I need to take these cookies over to the hospital to Dan before Dr. Garroway releases him.”

  “There are two. Mr. Mayfield and Mrs. Gates.”

  Nicolette rose from her chair and straightened her lab coat. “Good. Let’s deal with them and then we’ll break for lunch.”

  She left the room and Jacki followed closely on her heels. “Uh, Nicci, you haven’t told me what happened last night with Dr. Garroway. You only said he called you for help.”

  Nicolette had been trying her best to put last night out of her mind, but so far she’d made little progress. From the moment she’d crawled out of bed, she’d thought about the new doctor and all the things he’d said to her. Even the brief moments he’d touched her seemed to be etched in her memory, playing over and over like an unwanted song.

  “Nothing happened last night. I talked Dan into taking his medicine. Dr. Garroway thanked me for my help. That pretty much sums up the whole thing.”

  Jacki threw up her hands as the two women headed for the nearest examining room. “But you must have talked to the man! What was he like? Did you learn anything about him?”

  Nicolette paused to toss an impatient look of warning at the nurse. “Yes. I learned he’s not quite what he appears to be.”

  Jacki opened her mouth to press for more, but Nicolette didn’t give her the chance. After knocking lightly on the examining room door, she stepped inside and went to work.

  It was ten minutes until noon before Nicolette finally managed to leave the clinic and head to the hospital. She half expected to find Dan gone, but the older man was still there, dressed and sitting on the side of the bed.

  He gave Nicolette a broad smile as she kissed his cheek.

  “You look much better today,” she said with genuine joy and then teased, “Are you ready to leave this place? Or would you like to stay a little longer?”

  “Don’t press me, girl. I’ve had all of this pokin’ and proddin’ that I can stand.”

  She chuckled. “Now you know how those cows feel when you vaccinate and brand them and cut off their horns.” She placed the box of cookies next to him. “Looks like Dr. Garroway has you on the mend. Are you taking your medicine like he says?”

  Dan nodded and leaned his head thoughtfully to one side. “Yep. I don’t like it, but I guess I can do it. You know that young doctor ain’t too bad after all. He says he has some cows and horses and wants me to take a look at ’em for him. Guess the whippersnapper knows where to come to for advice. I’ve decided to trust him—unless he does somethin’ to change my mind.”

  So the new doctor had charmed Dan, Nicolette thought with surprise. The old wrangler was a tough character. If Ridge could win him over, then she needed to be on guard.

  Nicolette gestured to the box of cookies. “Cook sent you a little get-well gift. Maybe when you get home you ought to call her and thank her.”

  The old man turned a suspicious eye on the box. “What the hell did she do that for? She knows I don’t like her.”

  Nicolette shook a shaming finger at him. “Don’t be lying, Dan.”

  His expression suddenly sheepish, Dan shifted on the edge of the mattress. “Well, maybe that wasn’t the truth. But the old woman…makes me uncomfortable.”

  Nicolette tried not to smile at the idea of Dan calling someone twenty years his junior old. And then she suddenly thought of Jacki’s comments that women were never too old for romance. Maybe the same held true for men.

  She cast him a sly glance. “Cook’s pretty and she gets you stirred up. That’s closer to the truth, isn’t it?”

  Dan pursed his lips as though he was going to argue, but then he suddenly let out a deep chuckle. “Well, old Hattie is some looker.”

  They were both still laughing at his admission when a nurse arrived with a wheelchair to take him downstairs. Nicolette placed the box of cookies on his lap and walked along with him. Outside, he climbed spryly into the vehicle with his housekeeper, and Nicolette promised to see him soon, then waved the two of them off.

  Moments later she was walking across the parking lot toward her car when someone from behind called out her name.

  “Nicolette! Wait up!”

  She recognized his voice even before she turned to see Ridge Garroway hurrying toward her. The sight of him in dark slacks and a gray-and-white-striped shirt was enough to make her stare and wish, just for a moment, that she had a whole and trusting heart.

  “Hello, Ridge,” she said when he finally reached her.

  Grinning, he swiped a hand at the blond hair blowing across his forehead. “Been seeing Dan off?”

  She nodded. “I was glad he was looking so much better.”

  His eyes roamed her face with appreciation. “I’m glad to see you looking more rested.”

  And she was glad to be seeing him again. It was an awful admission, even if she was only making it to herself.

  Feeling awkward now, she glanced pointedly at her watch. “Well, I only have a short time left for lunch. I’d better be going.”

  “That’s why I called out to you,” Ridge told her. “I’m on my way to lunch, too. I’d like it very much if you’d join me.”

  Oh no. It would be risky, even foolish to spend one moment more in this man’s company than was necessary. On the other hand, when exactly had she turned into such a coward? Ridge Garroway couldn’t eat her. He couldn’t hurt her. Not unless she allowed him to. And she was a grown woman. She had more sense than to let him get that close.

  Before she could change her mind, she blurted out, “Well, if you’re inviting, I suppose I could. This once.”

  “Great!” He said and quickly reached for her arm. “My truck is right over here.”

  The June day was already hot, with a
humid breeze whipping from the southeast. The wind was picking at the fluttery pink hem of Nicolette’s skirt and threatening to toss it over her head. She held it down firmly with one hand as Ridge helped her into the passenger seat of his red Ford truck.

  “Do you have a favorite eating place?” he asked as he buckled his seat belt and started the engine.

  Nicolette looked at him blankly. How could she think of restaurants when he was sitting so close beside her, his blond hair mussed, a sexy smile dimpling his cheeks? He was enough to turn a woman’s senses upside down.

  “No. Just go wherever you were planning to go. I’m not a picky eater.”

  “All right, we’ll be there in less than two minutes.”

  The lunch hour traffic was heavy on the main thoroughfares, but they traveled less than two blocks before Ridge turned onto a side street and parked in front of an older wooden building painted a dull turquoise trimmed in pink.

  “This is one of the best Mexican restaurants I’ve found in the whole town. Okay with you?”

  “Fine,” she said, while asking herself how she’d ended up here with the very man she’d planned to avoid. She shouldn’t have been so impulsive, she thought with a bit of self-disgust. She should have gone back to the clinic and eaten a sandwich at her desk. But in spite of what she’d told Jacki, she was tired of being alone. And Ridge Garroway made her feel alive. More alive than she’d felt in years.

  He helped her out of the truck, then kept his hand at her back as he ushered her into the little restaurant. Her flowered blouse was made of thin voile and she could feel the heat of his fingers spreading up and down her spine as they walked to a vacant booth in the back of the room.

  The plate-glass windows on the west side of the building were covered with woven shades to block out the hot sun and leave the dining room cool and dimly lit. It took Nicolette’s eyes a few moments to adjust as they seated themselves and waited for someone to bring menus.

  “You eat a lot of Mexican food?” she asked.

  “Actually, I eat too much of it. It’s my favorite. So I try to exercise more to keep the calories and the cholesterol in check.”