Jacob, Adrian’s older brother, looked so much like Adrian with the dark hair and hazel eyes, but he was slightly taller, and not as muscular. “What did you notice about the dog, Jacob?”
“When I called for him, he just lay on the ground, whining. When I picked him up, he yelped.”
The first thing she did was feel the dog’s heartbeat. It was too fast. Next, she braced her hands on his mouth, trying to get him to open up, but he struggled. She cooed soft words to him, hoping he’d see that she was only trying to help. Finally, his mouth opened slightly, and she looked inside. His tongue and the inside of his mouth were pale.
Panic filled her, and her mind swam with those things she had read in books over the years that might help this poor animal. Gently, she ran her palm over his body slowly. When he jerked back and yelped again, she looked closer. A few places on his back were swollen and red.
“Jacob? Where was Bandit lying when you saw him?”
“Over in the left field.” He pointed in the direction.
She swung her attention to the field. Many wild flowers had bloomed, and even a few trees were showing new blooms. Bees!
“He was stung by bees,” Nicolette said, turning back to Bandit. She continued running her hands over him and felt several more bumps. “He’s been stung at least six times.”
Aunt Betty gasped. “Oh, dear. He’s going to die.”
Nicolette shot her aunt a determined look. “Not if I can help it.” She swung her attention to Adrian. “Do you know what the plant Witch Hazel looks like?”
“I don’t think so.”
She pointed to the far field. “There are some growing near the stream. I picked a bunch last month. They have yellow buds with green in the center. Pick some for me. And, if you see a Lavender plant, I need some leaves from that as well. You can’t miss those. They are purple.” She looked at Jacob. “Grab some cloths and use the cold water in the stream to get them wet. Hurry.” As both men took off, she met her aunt’s confused expression. “Aunt Betty, get an oatmeal bath ready for Bandit. Oh, and I need some honey, too.”
“But... why?” The older woman shook her head. “Do you know how to help the dog?”
“Yes, I do.” Nicolette sighed. “For a few years, I’ve been secretly studying to be a Veterinarian. I’ve even helped Teddy’s horses with some problems, and other animals around town. And...” She paused, wondering if she should say anything but knew this was the time. “I was the one who cared for Adrian right after he was shot. I sewed up his wounds.”
“Good heavens, child. You can’t be serious.”
“I am.” Nicolette pulled her shoulders back, determined not to cower. “And it’s time everyone knew how good I really am.” She motioned to the house. “Now hurry and get that bath ready.”
Nicolette had never seen her aunt move so fast in her life, but at least the woman was taking Nicolette seriously now.
As she waited, she gently petted Bandit, trying to avoid the swollen spots on his body. She continued to talk softly to him in hope of calming him. He was in shock, and she worried that the tone of her voice wouldn’t be enough to help.
“Oh, Lord,” she whispered as tears stung her eyes, “please don’t let him die. I know how to treat him. Please help me.”
Minutes later, the back door opened, and one of the kitchen servants hurried out and handed Nicolette a jar of honey, a bowl, and a spoon. She smiled at the girl. “Thank you.”
“Here,” Jacob said breathlessly, handing her the cold, wet, rags. “I hurried as fast as I could.”
“This will work, thank you.” She gently laid the cool rags on Bandit’s swollen stings. When the dog started squirming, Jacob helped her hold the animal still.
“So, you know about treating animals?” Jacob asked.
She glanced at him and nodded before turning back to the dog. “Yes. I’ve been studying for years.”
He chuckled lightly. “Is that why you go to your hideout in the woods?”
Gasping, she looked up at him. “How do you know about that?”
“Pop sent me to follow you one day. He wondered where you were going and what you were doing for so many hours.”
She cringed. “I didn’t think anyone knew about my secret.”
“Well, just Pop and I knew. Betty doesn’t. And we didn’t know you were studying to be a Veterinarian.”
She sighed. “My aunt does now.”
“Lottie.” Adrian stopped beside her with a handful of Lavender and Witch Hazel leaves.
She held out her hands and he dumped the leaves inside. “Find me a rock to mash them with.”
Both Jacob and Adrian helped as they ground the leaves into smaller portions. She kept the piles separate and placed the ground Lavender leaves in the bowl, then mixed honey with it. She took a spoonful and gave it to Bandit.
At first, the dog turned his head away, so Adrian pried open the dog’s mouth. Nicolette placed a little of the mixture on the dog’s tongue. A few seconds later, Bandit was eating the paste. She didn’t want to give him too much, and she prayed the amount he’d consumed would start to calm him down.
“Adrian, pour the other leaves in the honey paste,” she instructed.
Adrian did as she asked and stirred it with the spoon.
“Alright, men,” she glanced from Adrian to Jacob, “I need you to help hold Bandit still. I’m going to apply this paste to his bee stings, and I’m sure it’s going to be very uncomfortable for him.”
Once the brothers held the dog, Nicolette began her work. Poor Bandit whined and jerked, and tears filled his eyes. She hated to see him suffering this way, and her vision became blurry, as well. But it had to be done. This was the only way she knew how to help.
After a few minutes, Bandit didn’t whine as much, and he rarely jumped. It was working... she hoped. There would be only one way to tell.
“Adrian? Can you open his mouth again? I need to look at the color of his tongue.”
She noticed it was easier to open Bandit’s mouth this time. The Lavender leaf must be calming him down as she’d wanted. And thankfully, a little color was returning to his tongue. Silently, she said a prayer of thanks for God’s help.
The back door opened, and Aunt Betty hurried out. “The oatmeal bath is ready.”
Nicolette didn’t have to ask for help this time. Adrian scooped up the dog and carried him inside. A small wooden tub that the family only used for the animals, sat near the door. Adrian carefully set Bandit in the water. Aunt Betty knelt near the tub and took one of the rags that had been used, and she dribbled the mushy oatmeal over the dog.
It made Nicolette’s heart light to know that her aunt knew a little about what she was doing. Adrian moved next to Nicolette and slid his arm around her waist, pulling her closer. She rested her head on his chest as she fought back tears of relief.
“You did it,” he whispered before kissing her forehead.
She wiped a stray tear as it slid down her cheek. “Yes, I think so.”
Adrian cupped the side of her face and lifted it until she could see his eyes. He smiled lovingly. “You saved another animal.” He winked.
She couldn’t stop the grin from taking over her face. “I did, didn’t I?”
“What would I do without you?”
The tenderness in Adrian’s voice caused her to choke up a bit. She didn’t think she’d be able to make it through life without him, either.
Clearing his throat, Jacob stepped in front of them, raising an eyebrow curiously. “I hope you two are going to explain what’s going on here,” he whispered for only their ears.
Adrian chuckled. “We will, I assure you.”
Sighing, Nicolette rested her head against Adrian’s chest and closed her eyes. Her family would know about everything today. However, how would the town feel about a woman Veterinarian?
EPILOGUE
Adrian sat next to Nicolette on the bank holding their fishing poles and watching their lines move in the river. For four da
ys now, they’d been making it a habit of coming to their favorite spot to fish in the mornings. Sometimes they talked about things happening in their lives, and sometimes – like now – they were content just to be together in silence.
Home life for Adrian had changed just in a few days. Pop had wanted him to come to the lumber store to work, which Adrian did, but then after working only one day, a man he used to know when he was a boy, showed up at the store and offered him another job.
Most of the time Adrian spent in the military was working with horses, and he loved it. His father’s longtime friend, Jed Stuart, owned a horse ranch in Upstate New York, and he was looking for a foreman to run his ranch. Adrian felt that this was a blessing from Heaven... and yet, he had hesitated to give Jed an answer. Adrian wanted Nicolette in his life, doing what she loved to do. Finding the courage, he asked Jed about needing a Veterinarian on the ranch. Of course, Jed was thrilled, and he encouraged Adrian to ask her to come along because a job would be waiting for her, too.
Now, Adrian pondered over how he’d spring the good news on Nicolette. But once again, he hesitated. There was other good news he wanted to talk to her about first, but never found the right moment.
“Oh, did you hear,” Nicolette said, turning toward him, “that our kidnappers trial was this morning?”
Adrian nodded. “Pop told me. He also mentioned that they confessed to heavily drinking their homemade moonshine, and they probably only imagined the military burying treasure.”
Nicolette’s eyes widened and then she laughed loudly. She looked so pretty today, wearing a blue flannel shirt and her men’s trousers. He realized it didn’t matter what she wore, he thought she was the prettiest woman he’d ever seen.
“You’ve got to be kidding,” she replied. “They said that?”
Adrian shrugged. “I think they were making excuses in an attempt to try and get out of their arrests.”
“Well, I’m very relieved you don’t have to worry about them any longer.”
Adrian moved his gaze back to the river. His mind swam again, and he tried piecing sentences together. Why was he so nervous about talking to her? She loved him, and he loved her completely, yet... doubt still clogged his mind.
“I just hope,” he continued, “that when they are done serving their time in jail, they won’t come looking for me again.”
She hitched a breath and touched his arm. “Oh, Adrian. Do you think they would do that?”
“It’s a possibility, especially if they think I know about the treasure. Obviously, they didn’t believe me when I told them that before.”
Frowning, she sighed. “Then we must talk to the sheriff... or the judge, and let them know.”
“Or,” he set down his fishing pole and turned toward her, taking both of her hands in his, “you can make me the happiest man alive by becoming my wife.” He gave her a gentle smile. “And, we can move to New York and live at a place where I can work with horses and you can be a Veterinarian.”
“Adrian?” She scooted closer. “Let’s talk about one thing at a time.” She grinned. “Let me catch my breath first.”
She stared into his eyes for a few moments before leaning in and kissing him. The kiss wasn’t very long, but it didn’t need to be. He felt her love immediately.
He pulled away and gazed dreamily into her eyes. “Nicolette McFarland? Would you do me the honor of becoming the center of my world and the reason I wake up and go to bed every day? Would you be the wonderful woman you are by raising our children and teaching them about how to care for others, just as you do?” He lifted her hands to his mouth and kissed her knuckles. “And would you have patience with me for not being perfect, but knowing that the longer we are married, that I want to be perfect in your eyes?”
Tears filled her eyes and she nodded. “Oh, Adrian. That was the most beautiful proposal I’ve ever heard.”
“Indeed? Have you been given a lot of proposals?”
She laughed and shook her head. “Yours is the first, but I read a lot of fiction novels.”
He gathered her in his arms, and she cuddled against him, smiling. “Lottie, I never expected feeling this way about you, and now, I don’t want to know what it was like without you in my heart.”
“I feel the same way.” She caressed his cheek. “And I would love to be Adrian Robinson’s wife, and I’d be proud to bear your children and be with you forever and ever.”
He stared into her intoxicating brown eyes, loving how they sparkled. “Even if we live in Upstate New York?”
“Oh, yes, my love. I’ll go anywhere you want to take me.”
“I was offered a foreman position on a horse ranch from a man I knew as a boy. I told him about your special talents, and knowing how well you are with animals was what made him want us to come quickly.”
“Quickly?” Her eyebrows lifted.
“Yes. He would like us there within two weeks.”
Gasping, she sat up, staring at him with wide eyes. “That means... we’ll have to get married very soon.”
He gave her a teasing grin and waggled his eyebrows. “I’m all right with that if you are.”
She released a playful growl and wrapped her arms around his neck, pushing him back on the ground as she loomed over him. “I’ve been ready since our first kiss.”
He laughed and gathered her back in his arms. “Then we have another thing in common, don’t we?”
“Adrian Robinson, I think we should practice for a little while here on the river bank, and then, we should quickly plan our wedding.”
His heart sang with happiness. She was going to be an adventurous wife, he could tell – which was exactly what he wanted. “I couldn’t agree more, my dear Lottie.”
THE END
Yours Truly: The Lovelorn Series
A multi-author sweet historical romance series puts an old-fashioned spin on the modern-day “Dear Abby”-style newspaper articles. Each story features someone frustrated in love who writes to The Lovelorn. Then the complications set in. Each book stands alone and will have its author’s unique creative touch.
Readers – look for these books in this series:
4/28 – Dear Lovelorn by Marie Higgins
5/5 – Brilliant in Boston by Lynn Donovan
5/12 – Secretive in Sacramento by Marie Higgins
5/19 – Lost in Laramie by Margaret Tanner
5/26 – Confused in Colorado by Cat Cahill
6/2 – Torn in Toronto by Wendy May Andrews
6/9 – Deserted in Dodge by Patricia PacJac Carroll
6/16 – Obsessed in Oregon by Marlene Wilson Bierworth
6/23 – Overwhelmed in Oklahoma by Elissa Strati
6/30 – Wistful in Wisconsin by Marisa Masterson
7/7 – Desperate in Delaware by Caroline Clemmons
7/14 – Vexed in Vermont by Marie Higgins
7/21 – Kissless in Kansas by Elissa Strati
7/28 – Dejected in Denver by Cat Cahill
8/4 – Alone in Austin by Patricia PacJac Carroll
8/11 – Miserable in Montana by Cheryl Wright
8/18 – Bewildered in Billings by Lynn Donovan
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Author’s Bio
Marie Higgins is an award-winning, best-selling author of clean romance novels that melt your heart and have you falling in love over and over again. Since 2010, she’s published over 80 heartwarming, on-the-edge-of-your-seat romances. She’s broadened her readership by writing mystery/suspense, humor, time-travel, paranormal, along with he
r love for historical romances. Her readers have dubbed her “Queen of Tease” because of all her twists and unexpected endings.
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Vexed in Vermont (Yours Truly: The Lovelorn Book 12) Page 8