by Lynn, Sheryl
A ruckus outside made everyone pause. “Sir!” a woman cried. “You cannot go in there!”
The door burst open and Tate, wild-eyed and pale-faced, filled the doorway. He still wore his uniform, his eyes were bloodshot and his jaw was blue with beard stubble. He looked rather insane and definitely dangerous.
“Pardon me?” the doctor said coldly.
A pair of nurses hovered helplessly behind Tate. One threatened to call security. Diana raised onto her elbow and grinned at him.
“Look, damn it, I love you,” he said, shaking a finger at her. “And yeah, this scares the hell out of me. Right now my heart is about to blow up. But I love you!”
“I know,” Diana said. “You don’t have to do this.”
“Yes, I do. So here it is, in front of witnesses, I don’t care what happens. Cut you up, pump you full of drugs, whatever, I’m with you. At your side, through thick and thin. I’ll quit work if I have to. I’ll cuff myself to your side, but you aren’t going through this alone.”
“Thank you.”
Marlee’s mouth was hanging open. The doctor and nurse looked annoyed.
“And we’re getting married, too. You don’t need some bum chumping off your good will when you’re sick. For better or worse, in sickness and in health. We’re in this together.”
She and Tate had danced around the idea of marriage. Tate brought it up more often than she did. He’d even mentioned the possibility of adopting children. At forty-one, Diana didn’t feel any pressure. She loved his company, loved him. She was content.
As far as marriage proposals went, this was pretty strange. The directness of it appealed to her, even if they did need to discuss the motivation behind his impulsiveness. “Okay.”
He jostled Marlee out of the way and grasped Diana’s hand in both of his. “I’m so sorry about last night. I was scared, terrified. But you’re right, I have to choose. And I choose you. I’ll always choose you, no matter what. Do you forgive me? Do you believe me when I say I’ll never leave you again?”
She stared into his dark, tormented eyes. Suddenly, she wanted marriage, the formal commitment, the knowledge that they would be together for the rest of their lives. She wanted to hear people say, “There go the Raleighs.”
“You’re forgiven and I believe you.” She flashed an apologetic smile at the doctor. “Um, but you really need to let the doctor do her job. Just move over a little, okay?”
“How bad is it? Has it metastasized? Are you going into surgery?”
The doctor cleared her throat. “Deputy, if you’re finished entertaining us with your little melodrama, would you please be quiet and get out of my way?”
“It isn’t cancer,” Diana said. His befuddled expression was so comical, she had to choke down a laugh. “It’s a piece of buckshot that got missed before. It’s formed a cyst. The doctor is going to remove it. It’ll only take a few minutes.”
“It’s not cancer?”
“No. I even had a mammogram. I’m all clear.”
He looked from face to face. Muscles leaped in his jaw. His ears turned crimson. “I just made an ass of myself, didn’t I?”
Marlee, her face bright red, snorted into her hand, giggling about him being a romantic fool. The nurses snickered. Even the doctor had a bit of a smile.
His broad chest rose and fell in a heavy sigh. He turned to Marlee. “And I suppose you’ll tell everybody in McClintock all about this.”
“Not,” Diana said, “if she wants to be my maid of honor.”
“Oh, all right.” Marlee hooked her arm with Tate’s. “Come on, you big dope. I’ll buy you a cup of coffee. I’m sure the doc will appreciate it.”
“I think that’s best,” the doctor said. The hint of humor had fled. She held the hypodermic like a weapon.
Tate balked in the doorway. His dark eyes were filled with hope and relief and shining love. “You’ll marry me anyway?”
“Yes, Tate.”
He darted back into the exam room and kissed her hard, leaving her dazed and so happy she doubted if she’d need the local anesthetic. Then he loomed over the little doctor. “Take good care of her. I want her around for a long, long time.”
ISBN: 978-1-4592-3899-2
COLORADO’S FINEST
Copyright © 2001 by Jaye W. Manus
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*Mirror Images
†Honeymoon Hideaway/Elk River, Colorado
**McClintock Country