The Doctor Wears A Stetson (Contemporary Western Romance)

by Anne Marie Novark

  "I don't know . . ."

  "Think about it," the mayor said. "I came to live in Salt Fork after you left town, so I don't know you personally, but I know your family. The job is yours, if you want it."

  Cameron didn't know what to say. His first impulse was to say yes. But he wasn't used to acting on impulse. He was acting on gut instinct where Jess was concerned and it was proving to be a wild ride. His life and career needed to be carefully planned and thought out. He'd always planned everything carefully in the past.

  And look where it's gotten you.

  Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Jessie hurrying toward him from the parking lot. That calmness only she could provide settled in his stomach.

  For years, he'd been living according to his well-thought out plans. But he wasn't happy or content. He lead a hectic life, he was nursing an ulcer and he'd become someone he didn't even like. And worst of all, he'd never conquered the damned restlessness that had dogged his every step.

  "Dr. McCade," the mayor said, "I have to go see about my daughter. Thank you again. Please consider the clinic. Salt Fork needs you." He turned toward the automatic glass doors leading to the emergency room.

  To hell with planning. "Wait a minute," Cameron said.

  The mayor turned toward him. "Yes?"

  It was now or never. "I'll take the job."

  The mayor beamed a smile and walked back to shake his hand. "Thank you, Dr. McCade. Thank you so much. Welcome back to Salt Fork."

  Jessie crossed the street just as the mayor entered the emergency room. She was out of breath, her cheeks glowing from the cold wind. She looked beautiful.

  In that moment, Cameron knew he'd made the right decision.

  "Is Hilda going to be okay?" she asked as soon as she reached his side.

  Cameron pulled her into his arms and kissed her hard. She felt so good, smelled so sweet, and tasted oh so wonderful.

  Jessie laughed. "I take it, she's going to fine?"

  "Yes, I think so."

  "I'm glad. You were great back there. Taking control of the situation, making sure Hilda wasn't dangerously injured. I know the mayor and his wife are thankful you were at the game and able to help."

  "That's my job, Jess. Helping people."

  "But not every person would have acted so quickly. It was something to see you in action. I can tell you're an excellent doctor."

  Cameron smiled. "Well, thank you, sweetheart. I enjoy helping people. It's very satisfying. Exhausting, but satisfying."

  "You wouldn't have it any other way, would you?"

  "No, I wouldn't." Cameron hugged her close and twirled around, capturing her lips in another soul-searing kiss. He'd never get tired of kissing Jessie. Never. And now, they'd have a chance to see where their relationship would take them. They'd have time to explore the volatile chemistry they shared.

  Jessie pulled back. "Not that I'm complaining, but this isn't exactly a private place to be doing this."

  Cameron hugged her again. "We're celebrating."

  "Oh? What's the occasion?"

  Cameron set her from him and made a little bow. For the first time in his life he felt carefree and content. "Congratulate me, sweetheart. You're looking at Salt Fork's new resident physician."

  Jessie's jaw dropped. "What?"

  "Mayor Vandeford asked me if I wanted to move my practice to Salt Fork. I told him yes. He said you were meaning to ask me. So why didn't you?"

  Jessie looked shell-shocked. "But I did. I asked you that first night when your car broke down and I drove you to the ranch. You told me you had no intention of moving back to Salt Fork--"

  "Well, I changed my mind."

  "But what about your plans? What about that big promotion?"

  "I declined the promotion when I went back to Houston. It didn't feel right."

  "And this does?" she asked, searching his face. She was so dear to him. Why hadn't he realized it before?

  He took her hand in his. "This feels very right. A couple of nights ago up on Lover's Point, you and I started over. Now, I'm starting over with my career."

  Jess removed her hand from his grasp. "Are you sure you want to do this, Cameron? It's such a drastic change. Have you thought it through?"

  He shrugged. "Only to a certain degree. I thought I had everything I wanted in Houston. But something was lacking, Jess. And I realized I missed Salt Fork and the ranch." And you. But now wasn't the time to tell her that. Their relationship was still too fragile. Cameron didn't want anything to rock the boat.

  "You can't just leave Houston and your practice. That's all you ever wanted. You couldn't wait to leave Salt Fork when you were a kid. And you rarely came back to visit."

  "I know. But some of that was because I've been too damned busy to visit. Med school was brutal; my residency even more so. Besides, what does an eighteen-year-old know about life? How many kids that age know what they really want?"

  Again, she searched his face as if trying to read his soul. "You always seemed to know what you wanted."

  "I made a wrong turn somewhere along the line." And he'd just figured out where that wrong turn had been.

  Jessie took a deep breath. "So, you're really coming back? Where will you live?"

  Cameron took her in his arms again. "I'll stay at the ranch, at first. Then you can help me find a house in town. I'll need to live close to the clinic."

  "The clinic," she said. "I can't believe you're going to actually work at the clinic."

  It was his turn to search her face. Something didn't seem quite right. "You haven't congratulated me, Jess. Don't you want me to move back?"

  Jessie looped her arms around his neck and smiled, but it looked forced to Cameron. "Of course. If it's what you really want."

  "I really want."

  "Then congratulations, Cameron."

  He kissed her and for a split second, she hesitated before melting under his onslaught. He would have to figure out what was wrong, but now that he was moving back to Salt Fork, he would have plenty of time to devote to Jessie.

  He could hardly wait.

  ****

  "So, darlin', I don't understand why you're moping around like this." Sarah Sue wiped the Formica countertop with a sponge. Jessie sat on one of the stools, drinking a cup of coffee. It was late and the diner was closed. Oftentimes, Jessie came to Sarah Sue's Café after she'd closed up shop to visit and gossip, share a little girl-talk.

  "I know Cameron's been gone a week, but he's coming back," Sarah Sue said. "And he's coming back for good. You should be in tall cotton, what with him moving his practice to Salt Fork. Your wish has finally come true. And you told me yourself, you wished he'd work in that clinic of yours. That wish has come true, too."

  Jessie stirred more sugar into the cup. "I don't know what's wrong with me. I should be overjoyed. And you're right; I have wished that Cameron would return and want to take up where we left off all those years ago. So what the hell is the matter with me?"

  "You're gun-shy, that's what you are," said Sarah Sue. "And who could blame you? Cameron hurt you when he left to go to college. But you've been given another chance. Go for it, girl."

  Jessie sipped her coffee. Going to the prom with Cameron had been a major turning point in her life. Up on Lover's Point, he'd awakened her to passion and desire. Given her a taste of what it could be like between a man and a woman. Between them. He'd been kind and gentle. She'd been so young and inexperienced.

  She remembered being scared, too. Sitting in the parked truck alone with Cameron McCade . . .

  "Earth to Jessie." Sarah Sue waved the coffee pot under Jessie's nose, jolting her from her thoughts.

  "Sorry." She took another sip of coffee. It was cold. Just like she had felt after the prom when Cameron had left her on the doorstep and walked out of her life.

  "Let me freshen your coffee for you," Sarah Sue said.

  "Sure."

  "Where'd you go? You were as far away as the man in the moon."

  "Just
thinking."

  "About Cameron?"

  "What else?"

  "Seems to me, you've been thinking about that man your whole life."

  Jessie stared at the dark fragrant liquid in her cup and nodded.

  Sarah Sue set the coffee pot down and picked up her sponge again. "Well, the good Lord has seen fit to give you and Cameron another chance. Just like He gave TR another chance with you."

  Jessie's head snapped up. "What do you mean by that? I wasn't TR's second chance."

  "Sure you were, darlin'. TR lost Dolly Mae in the prime of his life. Then he married you, didn't he?"

  "Yes, but I wasn't a very good wife." TR had deserved better, no getting around that fact.

  "You made him happy, Jessie. He told me so himself."

  "He did? When? Where?"

  "Right here. He was sitting on that very same stool you're sitting on. He used to come in at closing time, same as you do. Have his cup of coffee and piece of pie. I may not be a bartender or a psychologist, but people tend to tell me their trials and tribulations."

  Jessie couldn't believe what she was hearing. "What did TR tell you?"

  "Well, now. He was afraid to marry you because he knew he didn't love you like he loved his Dolly Mae. Didn't think it'd be fair to you."

  Good lord. TR had thought that? "He never said anything--"

  "Of course, not. He knew you didn't love him that way either."

  That was the god-awful-truth, and the guilt had been killing her. Jessie cupped her hands around her mug. "I know I didn't love him as I should have. I married him without giving him my heart. But I learned to love him. It was just different, that's all." Maybe if she kept telling herself that, she might start believing it.

  Sarah Sue smiled. "Sure you loved him. Everybody loved him. TR Devine was a good man."

  "Yes, he was," Jessie said. "But I still don't think I was a very good wife. I failed him, Sarah Sue. I couldn't give him the child he so desperately wanted."

  "That wasn't your fault. You tried, didn't you? You didn't deny him in bed, now did you?"

  "No, of course not."

  "There you go then. Stop beating yourself up over it. You've got yourself another chance with Cameron McCade. Don't let it slip through your fingers, darlin'."

  "Just because Cameron's moving back and has agreed to practice in the medical clinic--that doesn't mean he wants to include me in his new life."

  Sarah Sue almost snorted. "Yeah, right. Are you blind? That man's smitten with you. The signs are there if you just look."

  "I'm not so sure." Jessie sighed. "I'll have to take it one day at a time, like always. If it happens, it happens."

  "And if it doesn't," Sarah Sue said, "just enjoy it while it lasts, darlin'."

  "And no regrets," Jessie said with a lift of her chin. "I'm finished living with regret and guilt. I'll do the best I can and to hell with all the rest."

  ****

  Six weeks after the homecoming game, Cameron was set up at the clinic and ready for patients. He'd been living at the ranch for the past month and a half, but tonight he'd be sleeping in the house Jess had found for him two blocks from the clinic. She and his mother and brothers had spent the entire Saturday afternoon helping him move in.

  Thanksgiving had come and gone. And so had Christmas. He'd been in Houston for both holidays, wishing he were back in Salt Fork. Wishing he could be with Jess.

  And now he was. Life was good and looking to get better. The restlessness was gone, replaced with anticipation for the future.

  "Where do you want these?" Tyler stood in the doorway leading to the living room, holding a box that looked heavy.

  "What's in it?" Cameron asked. "It should be marked."

  "Medical books. And I hope to God it's the last one. How many damn books you got, bro?"

  "Quite a few. Here, give me it to me. These go in my bedroom."

  "With pleasure."

  "Quit your bellyaching--"

  "Hey, Cam! Where do you want this?" Austin came up behind Tyler, carrying a big silver cooking pot.

  Cameron looked at it and frowned. "That's not mine."

  Ruth scooted in to stand between her two sons. "It's mine. I cooked a batch of chicken and dumplings yesterday. Put it on the stove, Austin. Dinner will be ready in fifteen minutes."

  "I'll go get Jess." Cameron climbed the stairs of the old Victorian house. The place was a lot different from his loft in downtown Houston. Jess had brought over some quilts to drape over the leather furniture and she'd placed several vases of flowers on the chrome tables. Things were shaping up nicely. He felt at home here, and he liked the feeling.

  Now, if only he could get things situated between himself and Jess, all would be good. Something was still not right with her. She seemed to be trying too hard, if that made any sense.

  At the top of the stairs, he walked down the hall to his bedroom and stopped at the door. One wall was built entirely in shelves, and Jessie had spent the last couple of hours arranging his books. He'd tried to help her, but he was constantly being called away by his mother and brothers to oversee the placement of furniture and other stuff.

  Jessie had made up his bed and he looked longingly from the lovely woman engrossed in her work to the soft bed where he wanted to take her and break in the new house in style. After dinner, he'd have to get rid of his family.

  Speaking of which . . .

  "Hey, Jess, time to wrap things up for the night. Mom's brought chicken and dumplings for dinner."

  She dropped the book she was putting on the top shelf and whirled around. "Damn, you scared me."

  Cameron set the box of books on the floor and closed the distance between them. "I didn't mean to scare you." He took her in his arms, loving the feel of her against his body. "Let's go downstairs and eat, then you and I can come up here for a little dessert."

  Jessie held onto his shoulders and smiled. "That sounds scrumptious." She stood on tiptoes and kissed him. "Come on, I'm starved."

  "Wait a minute." He tightened his hold on her and really kissed her, crushing her mouth beneath his, relishing the taste of her.

  Jessie pushed out of his embrace. "Food first, buster. Lovemaking later. We've got company in the house."

  "We've?" He liked the sound of that.

  "You have company." She inched toward the door and smiled a provocative little smile. "Race you! Last one downstairs has to wash dishes."

  She took off down the hall and Cameron didn't waste any time. He overtook her at the top of the stairs and scooped her in his arms. Jess squealed and threw her arms around his neck, laughing. He loved the sound of her laugh.

  He stomped down the stairs, with a giggling armful of woman, his heart pounding, his body humming.

  Tyler stepped out of the kitchen, with arms folded and a lopsided grin on his face. "If I'd known Jessie needed moving, I'd have volunteered for the job."

  Cameron felt Jessie stiffen, her laughter suddenly gone. He wasn't quite sure why she'd stopped giggling, but only knew he had to do something quick.

  "We were racing to the kitchen and you know how I hate to lose," Cameron said.

  "Don't I, though," Tyler said, his smile widening.

  Jessie wiggled in Cameron's arms and started kicking her legs. "Put me down, Cameron. Right now."

  "In a minute, sweetheart. Hey, Ty, I could use your help here."

  Tyler stepped forward. "At your service, Dr. McCade."

  Cameron hated to let Tyler touch Jessie, but it couldn't be helped. "Here you go. Keep her a minute until I'm in the kitchen. I sure don't want to do dishes tonight."

  He deposited the astonished Jessie into his brother's arms and made a production of stepping inside the kitchen. "I win!"

  Jessie slid out of Tyler's grasp and marched into the kitchen, frowning mightily. "Cheater," she mumbled as she passed Cameron on the way to the table. She felt him behind her; aware of his closeness and blushed when he put his hands on her shoulders to guide her forward.

 
; Ruth, Austin and Kelsey sat at the table. Tyler took a place near his niece. Cameron pulled a chair for Jessie, but she stood for a moment, looking at the McCade family. They were such a close-knit bunch. Except one member was conspicuously absent. He'd kept away all day long.

  Jessie hated to think she'd come between Cameron and Dallas. The rancher hadn't spoken to her since the day he'd stomped up the stadium steps and told her Copper River Oil was preparing to drill on his land. He hadn't forgiven her for signing the lease papers. And he resented the fact that she and Cameron were dating.

  Jessie sighed. Ever since Cameron had announced he was moving back to Salt Fork and working at the clinic, things had been getting more complicated by the minute. Oh well. All she could do was roll with the punches, and wait and see. She was good at that.

  "Something sure smells good." She sat down beside Ruth, who smiled a greeting. Cameron took a seat on her left.

  Ruth ladled a big helping of the dumplings in a bowl and handed it to Jessie. "Here you go, dear. Eat hearty. I know you've been working your fanny off all day long."

  Kelsey held her bowl for her serving. "I've been helping, too, Grams."

  "Of course, you have. Here you go, sweetie."

  Ruth finished dishing out dumplings and silence descended around the table as everyone dug in and ate.

  How long had Jessie wanted to be a part of a family like this? Ruth had always been like a mother to her and Jessie was glad the awkwardness of the mineral rights fiasco had faded away between them. If only Dallas could forgive and forget.

  Jessie felt Cameron's knee brush hers under the table. She glanced at him and he smiled. As usual, her heart sank to her toes and the pleasant sensation of anticipation bubbled just beneath the surface of her skin.

  She didn't know what the future held for her and Cameron. She'd just take one day at a time. She was good at that, too.

  ****

  "There's going to be a Valentine's Dance next Friday night," Cameron told Jessie. She was helping him hang curtains in the house. The house he'd lived in for over a month now.

  "Really? Where?" Jessie handed him the curtain rod. He was standing on a ladder, installing hardware.