by Ann Yost
“You were both right about Baz Outlaw. He did come to Eden to convince me to get back together with him. I’ll admit I’m tempted.”
“What’s stopping you,” Sharon asked. “You love him don’t you?”
She nodded. “You know about the endometriosis.
The part you don’t know is that last year Baz and I became lovers. I knew I didn’t have a lot of time to have a child. I explained it to him, and I proposed. He turned me down.”
“Mercy,” Jo murmured.
“As you know he got me a job here, with his dad. I thought it was over between us, and then he showed up on Christmas Eve.”
“Does he know about the latest lab report?” Sharon asked.
Hallie nodded. “He says we can be happy without a baby of our own.”
Jolene looked into her eyes. “What do you think?”
“At first I thought there was no way. I was so angry at him, at the situation. But I’m coming to grips with how unfair it was to ask him to solve all my problems that night. I mean we’d been friends for a while, but we’d only slept together once.”
“Great heavens,” Jo said.
“I’ve been telling him I couldn’t get over this but, you know what? I think I can.”
“Because you love him,” Sharon said.
“Yeah.”
“So what happens now?” Jo was a bottom-line type of person.
“I’m not sure. We’re trying a courtship.”
“That sounds dangerous,” Sharon teased.
“Tell me about it. He’s already brought me two meals at work. Tomorrow night we’ve got a date for dinner out.”
“What if he proposes?”
“He already did.”
“But what if this time’s the real thing? You’d better figure out what you’re going to do. Baz Outlaw doesn’t strike me as a patient guy. He knows what he wants, and my guess is he won’t slow down until he gets it. You know, Hal,” Jo added, kindly, “a baby’s a baby. You can always adopt.”
Hallie didn’t answer. She couldn’t bring herself to go over the old, sad story of her childhood. She knew intellectually that not all adoptions ended badly. It was different inside her heart. “You make it sound so simple.”
“It is simple once you cut through all the bull.
You love him and he loves you. Marry him.”
“I don’t know about love. He hasn’t really talked about that.”
“It’s implied,” Sharon explained. “No man would propose to a woman without strong feelings for her.”
“Maybe he won’t ask tomorrow.”
Sharon and Jolene exchanged a glance. “He will,” they said in unison.
“Pinky swear.”
The women grinned and hooked their little fingers.
Hallie had picked Sharon up. As she pulled up in front of the inn to drop her off, the redhead turned to her. “I didn’t want to mention this in front of Jo, but before you agree to marry him, I think you should ask him where he’s been the last twelve months.”
Good grief. She’d practically forgotten about that.
“You can’t build a good marriage on secrets.
Believe me, I know.”
Five minutes later Hallie pulled into the parking lot behind the clinic. The sound of her phone released butterflies into her stomach but it wasn’t Baz. “Hey,” Jo said. “I didn’t want to make a big deal of this in front of Sharon, but I think you should find out where the hell the guy’s been for the last year.”
“Good thinking,” Hallie said. “I appreciate the suggestion.” She stared at her phone for a long minute before she went upstairs. If nothing else the events of the past year would make for good dinner conversation tomorrow night.
If she could wait that long. She had a sudden, overpowering impulse to talk to him now.
She found Lucy alone in the parlor.
“Welcome back, stranger. How was Boston?”
“Big. Cold. I’m glad to be back. If you’re looking for Baz he isn’t here. Asia said he called and told her he’d be really late.”
“Oh.” Hallie was disappointed. “Okay. Thanks,
Luce.”
“Hallie, wait.”
The younger woman got to her feet. Her short dark hair framed a pixie-ish face. Her eyes were sky blue, like Cameron’s. “How was your New Year’s Eve date?”
Hallie got the sense that she wasn’t asking out of idle curiosity. “It was a little weird. I had too much to drink and acted silly. I wound up leaving with Baz.”
Lucy wrapped her arms around her slim waist.
“Was Jake all right?”
Hallie nodded. “He’s an exceptional man. Very
understanding.”
Lucy’s dark eyebrows lifted in surprise. “That’s not how he acts with me. He’s always on my case about something.”
Hallie didn’t voice her suspicions about the sheriff’s crush. She didn’t want to put ideas into Lucy’s head. Instead she told the younger woman about the two births at the Meadows Farm. She mentioned Baz’s cool competence in the pressure situation.
“Hard to imagine Baz delivering a baby,” Lucy said. “He’s such a confirmed bachelor.”
“He was unflappable.”
“Huh. Maybe he’s got some dad potential after all.”
For the first time the words didn’t hurt so much.
Dad potential was the same as husband potential. Maybe she and Baz could be happy together without a child.
The next morning, she tingled with excitement. She felt like a teenager preparing for a first date. She pulled on rust-colored cords and a turquoise sweater then she checked with Mavis who assured her there weren’t many clients scheduled and that Baz could handle them all.
“I’ll be out for a while,” she said.
He might or might not propose. She might or might not say yes. But one thing she knew for sure: she wanted a new dress for the occasion. She drove to High Street where Mavis’s niece, Alma Crotts, had a used clothing shop called The Closet. On the few occasions Hallie needed something she couldn’t get out of the L.L. Bean catalogue, she’d found it at Alma’s.
“How was the red dress?”
“It was a great,” Hallie said, honestly. “I got lots of comments on it.” She didn’t tell the proprietor she’d had to throw it out after she’d caught the baby.
Like most folks in Eden, Alma didn’t pull her punches. “I heard about that business between you and Diane Cobbs. You really pregnant?”
“Nope. That was a function of too much spiked punch,” she said, cheerfully. “Listen, I need something suitable for a fancy dinner.”
Alma showed her all the dresses in her size.
Hallie rejected a sequined white ankle-length gown and a short black cocktail sheath. Her eyes lit up at the sight of a retro shirt-waist updated with a shimmery coral-colored material, a stand-up collar and a ballet length full skirt.
“It’s very I Love Lucy.”
“And, coral looks good on everybody.”
“I’ll take it.”
Alma pointed out the absence of sleeves. “You’ll
catch your death.”
Hallie thought about the heat she always felt in Baz’s arms. No way she’d be cold. “I’ll just keep my coat on. “Thanks, Alma.”
Excited about the purchase, Hallie inhaled the fresh cold air on Main Street and caught a whiff of the freshly baked bread at Caroline’s Bakery. She selected treats for the office, then drove home. Her heart kicked when she spotted Jesse’s pick up in the parking lot. She hadn’t seen Baz in nearly twenty-four hours. It had felt like a year.
“Bless you, child,” Mavis enthused as she peeked into the bakery box. “This is exactly what the doctor ordered.” She took a big bite of a jelly doughnut.
Hallie looked at the closed door of the treatment room. “Baz in there?”
Mavis nodded.
She should probably wait until he was finished, but the coffee would get cold. Besides, she knew everybod
y in town. No one would mind if she interrupted.
Her heart beat fast as she plucked two coffees out of the carrier and shouldered her way into the room. And then everything became a blur. She was aware of a sharp piercing shriek and the clatter of cups hitting the floor. She felt the sting of hot coffee on her arms, and she saw it on the walls. She finally realized she was shivering so hard she almost bit her tongue.
“Holy mackerel,” yelped someone. There must be a child in the room.
“Holy shit.” The voice was deeper, smoky, irritated “What the hell’s your problem?”
Baz exploded into the room. He grabbed Hallie’s shoulders and strafed her with wild-looking eyes.
“What happened? What’s wrong? Are you hurt?”
She collapsed against him, and she felt his arms close around her. Even in the circumstances she felt safe.
“What is it,” he asked, his voice gentle. He stroked her arms and back as though checking for broken bones or an open wound.
The heat that shot through her wasn’t generated by his proximity this time. It was pure humiliation.
She closed her eyes and pictured the loosely coiled boa on the treatment table and she shuddered.
“She’s scared of Nadine,” the boy explained.
“Lots of moms are.”
Hallie closed her eyes. What would Baz think of her? A veterinarian wasn’t supposed to be scared of snakes.
The contemptuous comment did not come from the man who still held her.
“Jesus H.,” the woman said. “I’ve never heard of an animal doctor afraid of a snake.”
Hallie recognized the voice. Diane Cobbs Sanderson. She almost groaned. The woman was going to think she was insane. Worse, she’d probably convince everybody in town.
“She was just startled.” The low rumble of Baz’s voice seeped into her body, and she felt herself calming down. Of course he was completely mistaken. She wasn’t just startled. She was scared to death. There was nothing to do but suck it up and confess.
“No, she’s right.” She inched away from her protector. “I’ve always been afraid of snakes.”
Baz lifted her chin with one finger. There was merriment underneath the compassion in the gray eyes. “You must’ve had one helluva time during the herpetology rotation in vet school.”
She shuddered. The other students, even the other women, had flung pickled reptiles at one another while she’d had to leave the classroom to go throw up.
“It was rough.”
“We actually came here to get Basil to take a look at Nadine,” Diane said.
Hallie suspected the impatience in the other woman’s voice was due more to pique at the interruption than irritation at the delay. Gratitude swept through her as Baz shifted positions and made sure his body was between her and the patient.
“I really wanted to tell you what a great time I had on Saturday night,” Diane said to Baz, her voice smooth and suggestive. “We fit well together, don’t you think?”
“Diane, I don’t believe you’ve been introduced to my partner. This is Doctor Halliday Scott.” He squeezed her. “We’re more than partners. We’re courting.”
“As in Froggie went-a?”
Hallie laughed in spite of the situation.
“Sounds like I guessed right,” Diane said. “You must be pregnant.”
It was time to slay this dragon.
“No,” Hallie answered. “I’m not.”
Diane relaxed. No pregnancy meant there was still room for Baz to change his mind. “Oh. Well. Whatever.” Diane smiled at Baz. “This is my boy, Tommy.”
The redhead shook hands with both Baz and Hallie.
“Nadine won’t bite,” he said. “She’s not hungry now. She just ate on Sunday.”
Hallie shuddered. She could picture Nadine’s victim at Sunday dinner. “I’m sorry I screamed,” she told Tommy. “I do all right with snakes when I have some warning.” She smiled at him. “But I have to admit I try to avoid them. I figured one of the advantages of living this far north would be the cold climate and subsequent lack of reptiles.”
Geography hadn’t helped her today.
“Is Nadine a good pet?”
“She’s awesome,” Tommy said.
“What seems to be her problem?” Baz asked.
“Ennui,” Diane replied. She pronounced it e-noo-ee. “I found the diagnosis in All About Snakes for Dummies.” She walked over near Baz. Hallie could smell the heavy perfume. The woman was wearing tight black capris and an orange spandex top under a short faux fur jacket. When she removed the jacket, even Hallie had to admit she looked pretty spectacular.
Under the spandex her breasts were served up like a couple of oranges. Not the Florida oranges, either. The fat, juicy Navel oranges from the West Coast. Hallie took a moment to admire the determination of Diane’s bra.
“Ennui is common in cold-blooded creatures at this time of year,” Baz explained to Tommy. “Snakes hibernate in the cold. They downshift into two speeds: slow and stop.”
“That describes Nadine’s behavior very well,” said Diane, clearly trying to get into the conversation. When Baz glanced at her she thrust out her breasts in a move calculated to recapture Baz’s attention. It succeeded. Hallie watched his gray eyes glance at the other woman’s figure.
“She’s been off her feed lately, not up to par. So we figured we’d pop in for an examination.”
That part was certainly true. Diane was after an examination. Just not one of the snake.
Baz looked at the creature. How did one even examine a snake? There was nothing there to probe or press or stick a thermometer into. Hallie heard him asking Tommy questions and praising him for his knowledge of his pet. He seemed like a great kid.
“Maybe you could tell Dr. Scott a little bit about Nadine.”
“Sure.” Tommy looked at her. His young eyes were kind. “I got her because my dad left, and I was sad.”
Hallie’s heart ached for him.
“She stays in an aquarium in my room, but she rides around on my shoulders, too. She likes to sit in my lap when I play video games. Sometimes she plays hide and seek, though. My mom gets pretty mad when I can’t find her.”
“I can understand that.” Hallie could just imagine finding Nadine curled up in the dryer or draped over the edge of the bathtub. “What made you decide to get a snake?” When there are so many abandoned cats and dogs in the world.
“He’s allergic,” Diane said. “Can’t have fur or pet dander.”
Hallie nodded. “Dr. Outlaw’s niece, Daisy, has a potbellied pig.”
“Cool,” Tommy said.
“I’m sorry if I scared you and your mom and Nadine,” Hallie said.
“That’s all right,” Tommy said, with a winning smile. “The time I took her to show-and-tell, Miss Oakrum spent the whole time in the bathroom.”
Baz and Hallie laughed.
“You know, Tommy, you’re a lucky boy to have a mom who lets you keep a big snake,” Hallie said.
“I know. You’re lucky to have a pet pig. Say, Mom, think we could get a pig, too?”
Diane’s lidded eyes were sending a clear message to Baz. Hallie suspected the woman would take on a litter of wolf pups if it meant she could see more of the veterinarian.
“Speaking of unusual pets,” Baz said. “Last week Dr. Scott saved a baby bat. His name was Charlie and he had a broken wing.”
He was trying to restore her credibility with the clients. It worked, too. At least with Tommy. She answered all his questions about Charlie. She realized her pulse was back to normal. It looked like she’d survive the snake experience, after all.
“Dr. Scott,” Baz said, “I’d like you to come over here.” He was inches away from the examining table.
“Why?”
“I’d like you to get a closer look at Nadine.”
Her breath caught in her throat. A flash of panic-induced heat gushed through her veins. She couldn’t afford to have another freak-out in front of cl
ients. He knew that. He was holding out his hand.
She felt nauseous but she didn’t protest as he pulled her next to the table. “Okay, I’m here.” She kept her eyes on her hands.
“I want you to touch her.”
“No.” She remembered her manners. “Thanks.”
“I’ll help you, Dr. Scott,” Tommy offered. He took her ice-cold hand in his then he put her fingers on the creature’s smooth, dry skin.
“It’s not slimy,” she gasped. “It’s smooth and hard.”
“Mmmm.” Amusement played in Baz’s voice.
How could he be thinking about sex at a time like this?
“Everyone knows snakes aren’t slimy,” Diane said, obviously irritated she’d lost Baz’s attention.
“That is, everyone who passed tenth-grade biology.”
She was right. Hallie knew that, too. She had just repressed everything she’d learned about snakes.
Tommy returned her fingers to her. “You did a good job.”
“You are a very kind young man,” she told him.
“Baz? Could you carry Nadine’s cage out to the
car for me?”
He didn’t answer right away. The gray eyes
were focused on Hallie. “Tommy’s right,” he said.
“You did a good job. Next time you can examine Nadine.”
Hallie cleaned up the treatment room while Baz accompanied Nadine and her owners to their car.
The relief she felt at the snake’s departure was only temporary. Now that Baz knew about the phobia, he wouldn’t give up until she’d conquered it.
When he rejoined her, he invited her into the office then sat by her on the sofa. “Tell me about it,” he said, quietly.
“I’m phobic, of course. I don’t know why. I apologize for my reaction. Nadine was a surprise.”
“You’ve never been through a desensitization program?”
She wrinkled her nose. “You mean where you expose yourself to snakes over and over, like in a reptile house at the zoo?”
“Yes.”
“No. But judging from the expression on your face. I’m guessing that’s something I’ll be doing in the near future.”
He smiled. “Yep.”
“I really don’t want to.”
“Nadine isn’t going to be the last snake you ever see. Especially in a general practice like this one.”