A Cowboy's Christmas Promise

by Maggie McGinnis

  Daniel chuckled as Hayley fumbled for an appropriate answer, but he didn’t immediately save her. Nice.

  “How about puppies?” Bryn continued, blessedly seeming to forget her previous question. “Do they get borned with their eyes closed, too?”

  That she could answer. She couldn’t miss Daniel’s smile at her obvious relief. “They do, Bryn. Eyes all smooshed shut like this.” She closed her eyes tightly.

  “How do they find their way around?”

  “Well, they don’t go very far at first. They just sort of eat and sleep a lot.”

  Gracie piped up. “Have you ever had a baby pig in your office?”

  “I had a guinea pig once, but no real ones.”

  Then Bryn fired a question. “What’s the biggest kitty you’ve ever seen?”

  “No! The smallest dog!” Gracie shouted, and Hayley smiled as she realized she hadn’t needed to worry at all about holding up her end of the conversation this morning. With the girls along, she and Daniel would be lucky to get in a word, let alone have to carry on an entire conversation.

  Two hours later, as Daniel pulled off the interstate, they’d covered every animal she could think of, discussed the merits of fruit snacks versus real fruit, and analyzed the themes of every Disney movie made since the girls’ birth. They’d peppered her with questions the entire way—and Daniel had just steered them down the interstate, a small smile playing at the corners of his mouth while he listened to Hayley try to balance both girls and keep up with their sometimes scattered topics.

  As they walked through the airport after she’d checked in, Hayley realized Gracie was glued to her right side and Bryn had clasped her left hand tightly. Daniel walked beside them, rolling Hayley’s carry-on. The airport was busy, and she found herself scanning left to right, watching people carefully. For signs of what, she wasn’t even sure. She also found her hands tightening around the girls’ tiny ones as they made their way up the escalators and toward the security area.

  When an enormous cart full of big black suitcases came rolling toward them at one point, with no discernible driver in sight, she scooped both girls up and out of the way before she had time to think about whether she could actually even lift them. Daniel steadied her, then helped Gracie and Bryn slide down and find their own footing.

  Gracie peered after the short man steering the cart through the mass of people. “I don’t think he’s tall enough for that job. He almost ran us over.”

  Bryn put her hands on her hips. “He needs a stethoscope.”

  “You mean a periscope!” Gracie laughed.

  Daniel was looking at Hayley with a half-amused expression on his face as she straightened out her shirt and adjusted her shoulder bag.

  “What’s funny?” she said.

  “You.”

  “Why?”

  “Because you have this protective instinct I bet you didn’t even know you have.”

  “Well, anyone would have saved the children from a marauding cart of killer suitcases.”

  He shook his head, smiling. “That’s not what I’m talking about. You’ve been like a Doberman since we got out of the car. Have you actually let go of their hands?”

  She looked down. “Umm, no. I guess I haven’t.” Then she shook her head as well. “Did you just compare me to a Doberman?”

  “It was a complimentary comparison. Have you ever met anyone who’d try to stare down a Doberman? Or take its toys? Or pups?” She shook her head, rolling her eyes. “I’m just saying. It’s great. You don’t even know how great.” He indicated the girls with his chin. “But they do.”

  “Well.”

  She had no idea what to say to that.

  Bryn tugged on her hand, so Hayley leaned down. “Do you really have to go, Hayley? Can’t you stay a little bit longer? We have lots of sick stuffies to keep you busy!”

  Hayley laughed, gathering the girls close. “I’m gonna miss you two.”

  A strange sensation sliced through her gut as she said the words, and it almost made her stop walking altogether. She was going to miss them.

  She glanced at Daniel, and that same smile that had been playing at his lips through the entire car ride was back again. “You say that now, but that plane ride is going to be blessedly quiet.”

  “I don’t know. Quiet’s overrated sometimes.” She slowed her steps, suddenly way less anxious to get free of Montana and Daniel. And the girls.

  When they were only fifty feet from where she’d have to say good-bye to them, she stopped and set down her bag. She didn’t need to get in that security line quite yet, right?

  “Guess what? I made you guys something!” She dug in her carry-on and came out with a little container of chocolate chip cookies.

  “Yum!” Gracie and Bryn chorused.

  “You made these?” Daniel’s eyebrows went upward as she opened the container and handed one to each of the girls.

  “I was completely supervised.”

  “Okay, then. I’ll try one.” He grinned as he plucked one out. “Girls? Did you have something you wanted to give Hayley?”

  They stuffed the cookies into their mouths and reached into a bag Gracie was carrying strapped over her shoulder. Bryn pulled an obviously kid-wrapped package out of the bag and handed it shyly to Hayley while Gracie fished through the stuffed animals crammed into the bag, finally pulling out an almost-identical present.

  “We made these for you,” Bryn said as Hayley crouched down in front of her to open the gifts.

  “You made me something? I’m so excited!” Hayley weighed both packages in her hand, trying to guess what was in them. “Don’t tell me one of these is a baby elephant. They’ll never let me on the plane.”

  “No.” Bryn giggled.

  “A goldfish?”

  “Nope. We made it, we said.” Gracie jumped up and down. “Open them!”

  Hayley slid her fingers under the seventeen layers of tape on each package, trying to open them at the same time. When she was finally able to slide out the contents, she gasped in surprise. The girls had taken pink headbands and what must have been an entire bucket of glue, and had attached little plastic jewels all over the bands. The result was two super-sparkly, super-sticky headbands.

  “You guys! These are awesome!” She turned them over and over, watching the light sparkle against the plastic gems.

  Bryn leaned closer. “We wanted to buy you a new sparkly headband, but Daddy thought you would like homemade ones better.”

  Hayley looked up at Daniel, and couldn’t miss the warmth in his eyes as he watched his girls crowd close to her. “Well, your daddy was just right about that. I will treasure these forever.”

  Trying not to think about just how much shampoo it was going to take later tonight in Boston to get the glue out of her hair—not to mention getting the headbands themselves out—Hayley slid them both onto her head, then stood up and struck a model’s pose.

  “Well? What do you think?”

  Daniel’s eyes went wide. “Oh, God. You didn’t just—seriously, you didn’t have to put those—oh, boy.”

  Gracie nodded happily. “They’re pretty!”

  “Sparkly!” Bryn added.

  “I can’t believe you just put those on your head.” Daniel winced.

  “As long as it’s not the permanent glue, we’re okay.” She reached into her bag. “Girls, guess what? I have something for you, as well.” She’d been planning to send them once she was home, but this was better. Much better.

  She pulled two packages out of her bag and handed them to the girls, who squealed as they made quick work of the wrapping paper and ribbons. Gracie ripped through hers first, squealing when she saw the stuffed momma dog and pups in her package. Bryn matched her volume when her package revealed a stuffed cat and kittens.

  As the girls hugged Hayley tightly, she had to fight a prickling feeling behind her eyes. She leaned down so Daniel couldn’t see, kissing Bryn and Gracie on top of their heads and trying to blink back the tears that
threatened.

  “I’m gonna miss you two monkeys. Thanks for being in the wedding with me.”

  Gracie scrunched up her face. “You should come back.”

  “Yes!” Bryn nodded fiercely. “Daddy, she should come back, right?”

  Daniel’s eyes met hers for a long moment, and then he gathered the girls back to him. “Hayley has a job in Boston, girls. She has to go back and help the animals back there now, just like I have to help the ones here.”

  “But she can come visit, right?” Bryn’s eyes were watery. “Like this time?”

  Hayley smiled. “I would love to come back sometime. Maybe next summer I can take some time off again and come back to see you guys.”

  Gracie frowned. “That’s too long. Kyla said you should come here at Christmas. Christmas is awesome.”

  “Hey, girls.” Daniel tapped them both on the head and motioned toward the window just a few feet away. “I think if you look out there, you’ll be able to see some planes. See if you can find Hayley’s.”

  The girls’ eyes brightened as they turned around and headed for the window. Daniel turned to Hayley, keeping one eye on the girls. “Sorry about that. Promise I didn’t pay them to pressure you.”

  “Don’t apologize. It’s sweet.”

  “Montana is nice at Christmastime. They were right about that.”

  “I’m sure it is.” Hayley fingered her bag nervously, knowing she needed to get into the security line if she was going to get to her gate in time. She was practically ripping her own palms to shreds with her fingernails, trying hard not to put her arms around Daniel.

  “I should—I guess I should really get going here.”

  You know, before you say something I don’t want to hear.

  Time to call in distraction reinforcements. She turned to Bryn and Gracie. “Hey, girls! Can I have one last hug? I have to get in line now.”

  The girls flew over to her and wrapped their little arms around her shoulders as she crouched down. She pulled away, then tapped both of them on their noses, making them giggle.

  “Now you two be good, okay? Take care of your stuffies, and always eat your vegetables.” She winked.

  “You mean always eat our fruit snacks!” Gracie crowed.

  “Shh! That’s our little secret.”

  Hayley stood back up, but before she could decide whether to risk giving Daniel a hug as well, he’d pulled her firmly into his arms. She told herself it was just a friendly airport good-bye hug, but as she gave herself an extra couple of seconds to inhale the spicy, warm scent that was all Daniel, friendly wasn’t the primary emotion she was feeling.

  He pulled back, hands on her upper arms.

  “Travel safe, okay? We’ll miss you around here.”

  She nodded, not quite trusting herself to speak—and seeming to sense that, he pulled her back to his body, squeezing tightly. She let herself lean on him, hating the feeling of weakness that made her want to stay right there, nestled into him.

  And then he spoke, and the sound of his voice in her ear, the feel of his warm breath on spots he’d kissed only a week ago, just about sent her to her knees.

  “Come back for Christmas, Hayls,” he murmured into her ear. “Come back.”

  Chapter 19

  “You want to turn your dog purple?” Hayley felt her eyebrows practically hit her hairline. “May I ask why?”

  Mrs. Winger tsk-tsked. “Why, it’s all the rage. Haven’t you seen Doggie Styling 101?”

  “I’m sorry, no. I don’t even know what that is.”

  “It’s a show. Mondays at two o’clock on—oh, gosh. I can’t remember the channel right now. I have it DVR’d. But anyway, they do all the latest styles.”

  “I’m not sure I’m big on the poodle industry having styles.”

  “So can you do it?”

  “Can I do it? Turn your dog purple?”

  Mrs. Winger nodded. “Yes. I want to be responsible about it and do it safely. Only organic dyes and all.”

  “I, umm, I don’t carry dyes here, to be honest. Organic or otherwise.”

  “Well, you really should. But only the organic ones. They’re so much easier on the coat than those other kind.” She shivered dramatically. “Have you seen Animal Primping Disasters?”

  “No. That one, neither.”

  Hayley sighed, trying not to think back to a scene three weeks ago when she’d been sitting in a pile of straw with a newborn foal in her arms.

  Just then, there was a knock at the exam room door, so Hayley excused herself into the back hallway. Dixie pointed her toward her office.

  “You have a call on line three.”

  “It better be about the lab supplies.” She indicated the door she’d just come through. “Any chance you could finish up with her?”

  “Nope. She’s all yours.”

  “I need a new assis—”

  “I know. We can talk about that later. Go do battle with the lab first.”

  Hayley headed to her office and sat in her rolling chair, taking a deep breath. She hated battle. She picked up the phone and tucked it to her shoulder while she shuffled some paperwork that had piled up on her desk.

  “Kit-n-Kapoodle. This is Doctor Scampini.”

  There was a pause at the other end, and then a chuckle that made her throat go suddenly dry.

  “How do you say that without laughing?”

  Daniel.

  She stopped shuffling. “Umm, two years of practice?”

  He laughed again. “I don’t think that would be long enough for me.”

  “It grew on me. Plus, I had no choice.” She paused, feeling her pulse trip in her throat. “So. Hi.”

  “Hi.”

  “I didn’t know you had my work number.”

  “Wonders of the Internet. Oddly enough, there aren’t a lot of Kit-n-Kapoodles to sort through.”

  “Points for originality, right?”

  “Definitely. So, I’m actually calling in an official capacity here.”

  “Okay? Need me to help deliver another foal?”

  “I wish. No. Believe it or not, I’ve got a Himalayan out here who found his way into a barn, and he’s got some serious skin erosion going on. Thought I’d call someone who actually knows how to treat these kinds of beasts and see if you have any ideas.”

  Hayley smiled softly. Daniel was perfectly capable of looking up anything he needed to know about Himalayans with skin issues. Had he used the cat as an excuse to call her?

  “And before you think this is just an excuse to call you, my Internet connection is down, so I can’t research it properly.”

  “Oh. But I thought you looked up my num—”

  “Skin erosion,” he interrupted. “Tell me what you know.”

  For the next fifteen minutes, they discussed the cat, Daniel asking questions and Hayley giving the best answers she could come up with, short of flying out to examine the feline herself. Finally, he admitted confidence in his ability to handle its treatment, while at the same time seeming boggled by all Hayley had told him to watch for.

  He chuckled, and Hayley’s stomach warmed at the sound. “Y’know, for a critter so small, he sure does have a lot of issues.”

  She smiled as she sat back in her chair. “This is why my appointment slots are always full. The tinier they are, the more they break down.”

  “Well, your practice might be more lucrative, but mine is more fun.”

  “This is not something I would ever argue.” She sighed. “While you were probably doing something useful and intelligent this morning, I was trying to talk someone out of dyeing her poodle purple.”

  He laughed out loud. “Please, no.”

  “Oh, yes. Your call was a very welcome diversion. Thank you.”

  “You’re very welcome.” There was a pregnant pause, and to Hayley it felt like neither of them wanted to hang up, but both of them were too awkward to say so.

  “Well,” he finally said. “I’m sure you have a waiting room full of freaki
shly small animals. I should let you go.”

  “Do you have to?” Hayley winced as the words came out before she could stop them. “I mean—never mind.”

  “Is there a very scary Chihuahua waiting in exam room three?”

  Hayley laughed. “Something like that. Poppy the Pomeranian. He has shark teeth, and it’s shot day.”

  “I’m so sorry. Good luck with that.”

  Hayley heard a whinny in the background, and part of her felt suddenly sad that she was here instead of still out in Montana where the air was fresh, the sky was crazy blue, and the animals were the size of normal.

  “Sounds like your patient is getting impatient.”

  “Yeah, I guess that’s my cue. But thanks so much for your help. I owe you one.”

  “Perfect. If a cow wanders in, you’ll be first on my call list.”

  “Take care, Hayls.”

  “You, too. Say hi to the girls for me, okay?”

  —

  “I know it’s going to sound like I’m making yet another excuse to call you, but you know that cat I talked to you about a few weeks back? He won’t eat, and I need an expert.” Daniel’s voice came over Hayley’s phone just as she sat down to watch Nashville’s Next Idol. She’d just shut her window against the chill of the mid-October night, and was enjoying the relative peace of her apartment without the car horns and blaring bass from the street below.

  “Did you adopt him?”

  “No. This is definitely a temporary, foster care situation. I am not a show cat guy.”

  She smiled as she clicked mute, trying not to notice that her pulse was tripping along faster than a hummingbird’s.

  “How long since he last ate?”

  “This morning.”

  “Um, if he ate this morning, why are you worried?”

  “Because he’s been eating like a, well, horse since I found him, but the last day or so, he really hasn’t been eating nearly as much.”

  “Is he eating what would be considered a normal amount for a cat his size?”

  “Huh. I guess so, now that I think about it.”

  Hayley bit her lip, picturing a raggedy little Himalayan training his new owner. “It could be that he’s just realizing he’s not actually starving anymore. Feeling secure, maybe. Do you have him in the house with you?”