The Doctor's Calling Page 3

  As if on cue, Laurel could hear a child’s loud squeal in the background and then the tap, tap of running footsteps followed by more shouts and squeals.

  “Hang on, Laurel. I’ve got to put down the phone.”

  While Alexa was away from the phone, Laurel imagined her disciplining her small son and daughter with a firm but loving hand. Just the way a child should be handled, she thought, as loss and regret stabbed her deep.

  Years ago, she and her twin had both dreamed and planned, like most young girls their age, of growing up and having babies of their own. But that had been before Lainey came down with a blood disease. That had been before she and her twin had been deserted by their mother and neglected by a weak-willed father. Now Lainey was dead and Laurel’s dreams of having a family of her own had died along with her.

  “Sorry, Laurel,” Alexa said when she finally returned to the phone. “The kids were playing tag in the house. I shooed them outside.”

  “Don’t apologize. I need to let you go.”

  “Not before you tell me what you plan to do about your job.”

  Laurel sighed. “I’m not sure—oh, God, Alexa, maybe I should use this opportunity to move on and work for someone else.”

  After a long pause, Alexa said thoughtfully, “I couldn’t count the times you’ve told me that you’d like to wring Dr. Hollister’s neck. On the other hand, you clearly admire him. If not, you wouldn’t have worked for him this long.”

  “Five years and counting,” Laurel said dully. “And now—it’s either follow him or end everything.”

  Silent moments passed before Alexa finally said, “Sounds to me like you’re talking about a personal relationship instead of a working one.”

  A hot flush swept over Laurel’s face and she thanked God that her friend couldn’t see her. “Look, Alexa, outside of work, Russ doesn’t know I exist.”

  “You’re young and attractive,” Alexa argued. “You could change that if you wanted to.”

  “That’s just the point. I don’t want to change anything. I want things to stay just as they are.”

  “You have all the ingredients to be a good wife and mother. Instead you want to cling to the past, to believe you’re unworthy of anyone’s love.”

  “I don’t expect you to understand what I’ve gone through with my family. And it’s too complicated to explain. But when Lainey became ill, I lost everything—even my childhood. I can’t deal with more losing. If I move on to another job, I’ll forget Russ. And in the end that would be better for both of us.”

  “Would it?”

  Laurel closed her eyes. “At least I’ll never be hurt.”

  “You’ll never really live, either.”

  “If I didn’t love you, I’d slam this phone down and never speak to you again,” Laurel said in a low, strained voice. “But I do love you. Even though you don’t understand me.”

  “Okay, Laurel, let’s make this simple. Do you like working with Russ and believe your job is worthwhile?”

  Laurel groaned as the conflicting emotions inside her continued to battle back and forth. “I need to decide if I’m going to move on or simply hang on?”

  “Why bother?” Alexa asked with annoyance. “You’re not going to let yourself get involved, so working with Dr. Hollister is the safest place you can be.”

  Safe? Laurel never felt safe when she was around Russ. He was a constant pull on her heartstrings, a constant reminder of how lonely she’d become. “That’s so crazy it almost makes sense.”

  Alexa chuckled. “Grandfather Abe gave me my brains. But don’t tell him I said so.”

  * * *

  Later, after the two women had said goodbye, Laurel walked to her bedroom where a photo of her and Lainey sat on a dressing table. The two girls were standing in front of the family Christmas tree, dressed identically in jeans and red sweaters, with reindeer antlers on their heads. They were hugging each other close, their smiles full of childish, ten-year-olds’ giggles.

  At that time, the two girls had been happy, normal sisters, swapping clothes and whispering about boys. Four years later, Lainey’s death had shattered Laurel’s world, and for years afterward, she’d believed she would never feel much about anything or anyone. She’d finished high school, gone through college and even tried to date and pretend to have all the basic needs and wants of a normal young woman. But she’d only been going through the motions. Then she’d gone to work for Russ, and slowly everything began to change. She’d began to feel again, to want and dream again. But along with those wonderful feelings had come doubts and fears.

  Oh, Lainey. If you were here now, maybe I would be a stronger woman. Maybe I’d have the courage and confidence to reach out for the things my heart really longs for.

  Her heart heavy, she set the frame back on the dresser as Alexa’s words whispered through her thoughts.

  Working with Dr. Hollister is the safest place you can be.

  Maybe that was why being with him was the only place she wanted to be, Laurel thought dismally. Because there wasn’t any danger of him asking her to be a wife or mother.

  * * *

  Early Monday morning when Russ parked his truck behind the clinic, gray winter clouds were shrouding the nearby mountains and a north wind rattled the bare limbs on the lone aspen standing next to the brick building. Several yards away, near one of the holding pens, Laurel’s truck was already parked and, though she always arrived early, she was never this early.

  Grabbing up a bag of medical tools from the passenger seat, he departed the truck and quickly entered the building. Inside, the scent of freshly brewed coffee wafted down the hallway from the tiny room they used as a kitchen. Russ strode straight toward the smell, while glancing first one way and then the other at the open doorways of the examining rooms.

  He eventually found Laurel in the recovery room, checking on a German shepherd he’d operated on Friday evening for a broken leg. The moment she heard his footsteps, she glanced around and smiled.

  No matter what was going on, she always started the day by giving him a smile, and although he’d never told her so, the sight always lifted his spirits. She was a distant sort of woman who didn’t invite much personal exchange with him or anyone. When he’d first hired her, he’d believed her attitude was reserved only for him, but over the years, he’d come to see that she was an extremely private person. Oddly, though, when it came to work, she was more than quick to spar words with him.

  Along with her smile, Russ liked the fact that she wasn’t afraid to stand up to him, no matter what he threw at her. But he’d never told her that, either. Russ figured after five years she should know he appreciated her work. Otherwise he would have replaced her long ago. Now he feared he’d been lax about letting her know that he needed her.

  “Good morning,” she greeted him.

  “Morning,” he replied as he moved across the room to where she stood by the shepherd’s cage.

  “How is she?” he asked while inclining his head toward the dog.

  “I’m impressed. She’s already eaten everything I’ve given her and drunk her water. And when I first walked in, I found her standing.”

  He nodded with approval. “I could see a spark of survival in her eyes yesterday. She’s going to do just fine.”

  Laurel gave the dog one last pat on the head, then carefully secured the door on the cage. As she turned to move away, Russ caught the fresh, sweet fragrance she always wore. The woman rarely bothered to put lipstick or any other color on her face, but she always smelled very feminine.

  Now, why in heck had that sort of thing entered his mind this morning? he wondered. He thought of Laurel as his helper and friend who just happened to be female, and nothing more. That’s how, after all these years, he’d made sure their working relationship stayed strong.

  “If you’re hungry, there are breakfast tacos in the kitchen. And I just brewed a pot of coffee.”

  Russ started to tell her he’d already eaten, but she walked out o
f the room before he had a chance to speak, leaving him little choice but to follow her. Damn it, what was she doing, trying to make him sweat for her decision?

  Down the narrow hallway, he saw her duck into the tiny kitchen and by the time he entered the room, she was already pouring herself a mug of coffee.

  “Have you forgotten something?” he asked as he rested a hip on a tiny wooden table pushed against one wall.

  She glanced over her shoulder at him, and the innocent arch of her brows made him want to let out a frustrated groan.

  “Was I supposed to bring something to work with me this morning?”

  Russ was doing his best to remain cool, even though he was nervous and worried. Which was a hell of an admission for him. Nothing ever unnerved him and he’d long ago learned that worrying was a waste of time and effort. Yet this uncertainty with Laurel had him behaving completely out of character. “Come on, Laurel, you know that I’m waiting for your answer about the job.”

  She plopped two cubes of sugar into her coffee mug and stirred. “All right. But before I give it to you, I want to know about Maccoy. Friday night when we were discussing this, I forgot to ask about him. What’s going to happen to his job?”

  Maccoy acted as the receptionist/bookkeeper and also kept all medications stocked and accounted for. In his seventies now, he’d once been a saddle bronc rider on the rodeo circuit, but a horrific spill toward the end of his career had broken his back and left him limping on his left leg. But the handicap was nothing to Maccoy. He could still work circles around three men.

  “You needn’t worry about Maccoy. He draws a disability check.”

  Outraged, she let out a loud gasp. “You know that Maccoy is a man that wants to be productive. He wants to work!”

  He gave her a wry little grin. “I’m only kidding. I called him yesterday. Maccoy is going to the ranch, along with me. He’s very happy about it, too, I might add. He’ll be living in the bunkhouse with a few of the single ranch hands, so he’ll have company at night and he can cut out the high rent he pays now.”

  She looked at him through long, dark lashes. It wasn’t often that he teased or joked. Apparently, just the thought of this new job had lifted his spirits. “So he’ll still be working with us?”

  Russ nodded. “That’s right. Doing the same thing he’s doing now, except he won’t have to answer the phone a jillion times a day to deal with appointments and hysterical pet owners.”

  She outwardly sighed. “That’s good. I’m glad.”

  “You were actually worried about him?”

  Frowning now, she said, “Why wouldn’t I be concerned? I’ve worked with him all these years. I’m fond of the old man.”

  “You’ve worked with me for years, too. But you hardly seem concerned for me.” Now, why the hell had he made that remark? He didn’t want Laurel’s care or attention. He just wanted her excellent work as an assistant.

  She actually laughed. “Russ, I think you’re a man who’s perfectly capable of taking care of himself.”

  He always had, he thought grimly. From the time he’d been a young teenager, he’d pretty much had to scrape for himself. Once his mother and father had divorced, his father, Curt, had left for parts unknown. Nanette, his mother, God bless her soul, had done the best she could to care for herself and her young son. But about the time of Russ’s seventeenth birthday, she’d developed cancer and without the funds for proper treatment and the support of family, she’d succumbed quickly to the disease. After that, Russ had gone to live with Nanette’s brother, who’d lived in Albuquerque at the time. But Russ’s uncle had been a bachelor, who’d been far more comfortable nursing a cheap bottle of wine than dealing with a teenage boy.

  As a result, Russ had learned a guy had to take care of himself. No one else was going to do it for him, much less do it the right way. Before his mother had died, Russ had promised her he would continue his quest to be a veterinarian, and once she was gone, he was even more determined to achieve the goal.

  With the help of scholarships for good grades, he’d worked his way through college. Then after he’d finally earned his license to practice veterinary medicine, he’d slowly paid off all his debts and eventually purchased this clinic near the racetrack in Ruidoso. Hollister Animal Clinic had given him a more than nice living; he had earned a great living. But the workload was staggering and the money not worth the toll it was taking on him physically and mentally.

  “You’re right, I can take care of myself. But I do need an assistant. What’s your decision?”

  Breaking eye contact with him, she turned back to the coffeepot. “I’ll be going with you. After all these years, I know what you want and expect. Another vet would probably do everything differently and I’d have to learn all over again. And I don’t like changes,” she reasoned.

  He stared at her back and wondered if anything else had persuaded her to follow him to the Chaparral. Such as the fact that she might actually enjoy working with him. But that was hardly an important factor, and he didn’t know why the idea had even entered his mind. It should be enough that she was going to continue to work for him.

  “Good,” he said. “I hope you’ll be happy with your decision.”

  That brought her head around, and she stared at him with skeptical amusement. “Since when has the word happy ever entered your mind? Much less your vocabulary?” she asked.

  “Happy?” he repeated blankly. “That’s nothing new for me. I’m a basically happy man. And I want everybody else to be happy, too.”

  Disbelief twisted her plush lips, and for a brief moment he wondered if she’d ever kissed a man. Kissed him with real passion. He’d never heard her talk about dating or having a boyfriend. But that didn’t mean she stayed home and alone every night of her life. The only things they discussed were work and weather and sometimes politics. But since that last topic usually caused an eruption of fireworks, he tried to avoid it.

  “You’ve got to be kidding,” she muttered. “You, happy? I’ve never seen it.”

  He didn’t know how the back-and-forth of their conversation had taken on a personal tone. Or why his thoughts kept turning to intimate questions about his assistant. Whatever the reason, it was high time to put an end to it.

  Rising to his full height, he brushed past her and quickly went about filling a heavy mug with coffee. “I’ll be driving out to the Chaparral tomorrow evening. You might want to go along and see the house where you’ll be living,” he suggested. “I’m sure you’ll want to see what furniture you’ll need to make the place comfortable.”

  “A house! I’ll have a house all to myself?”

  Her surprise prompted him to glance at her, and the look of joyous wonder he saw on her face made him feel as though he’d finally done something right in her eyes.

  “What else?”

  The smile on her face went from ear to ear and displayed her perfect white teeth. It was rare to ever see such a glowing look on her face, and Russ could hardly keep from staring.

  She said, “I figured I’d get a room at the back of the ranch house, or a cubbyhole in one of the nearby buildings that would only be big enough for eating and sleeping. Certainly not a house. This is incredible!”

  Before he realized her intentions, she flung her arms around him and hugged him tightly. The contact of her body next to his momentarily shocked him, and all Russ could do was think about the way her breasts were smashed against his chest, and the way her soft cheek was pressed against his.

  “Oh, thank you, Russ! This makes everything so much more bearable.”

  “You’re welcome,” he murmured, but Russ doubted that she’d heard his reply. She’d already pulled away from him and was rushing out the door. He quickly called after her. “Where are you going?”

  “To tell Maccoy about this!”

  The excitement in her voice filtered back to him, and for a moment Russ stood in the middle of the tiny kitchen and smiled to himself. He hadn’t realized what having a house of he
r own would mean to her. Nor had he realized what having her in his arms would mean to him.

  It was just a thank-you hug, Russ. A brief expression of gratitude. Forget it.

  With a little effort, he might be able to forget the sweet pleasure of having her cheek pressed to his. But even if he lived to be an old man, he’d never forget the relief that had poured through him when she’d told him she would be going with him to the Chaparral.

  What in heck was this change in job, this move, doing to him?

  He wanted to believe his relief stemmed from the fact that she was the best assistant he’d ever worked with, and he didn’t want to lose such a top-notch employee.

  But as Russ swiftly strode toward his office, he realized all this relief he was feeling came from the fact that he was still going to have Laurel in his life. Period.

  Chapter Three

  Even though Maccoy was doing his best to taper off the appointments for the last remaining days of the clinic, it was still late the next evening before Laurel and Russ finished with the last patient and locked up the clinic.

  By the time the two of them climbed into Russ’s truck to make the trip to the Chaparral, the winter sun was long gone and darkness had urged the streetlights to flicker on. The weather had made a turn for the worst, with a sheet of snowflakes flying in front of the headlights’ beams.

  Russ said, “This doesn’t look like the best weather to make the trip, but waiting for it to get better might take days.” He glanced across the console separating their seats to see that Laurel was bundled in a heavy green sweater with a bright plaid scarf wrapped around her neck. A thick parka lay on her lap, and he realized that during all the time that she’d worked for him, whether they’d had to deal with rain or snow, cold or heat, she always seemed to be prepared and never complained.

  “Your truck is four-wheel drive. We’ve made a lot rougher trips in much worse weather,” she remarked. “Remember when old man Nobles called us out to his place to help his mare foal? There must have been two feet of snow on the ground then.”