This Kiss

“Why lucky? Aside from the fact that if he throws us, you’ll go first to cushion my fall.”

“Because you can’t get down unless I do. And I don’t plan on it until I know you’re not going to give up on this.”

“I don’t understand why that’s so important to you.”

He shrugged, beyond trying to come up with a reasonable answer, even for himself. To her he said, “Because it’s a damn shame that a girl born and raised in Destiny, Texas, is afraid of a horse. You’ll give the town a bad name.”

“If it’s any consolation, I wasn’t raised here very long. I left for college when I was sixteen.”

“Doesn’t matter. You’ve got Texas in your blood. And the least you can do is take a spin around this corral before you head for the hills. Humor me.”

“Okay.” They sat there for a few moments before she asked, “How do I make him go?”

“Gentle pressure with your knees. It wouldn’t hurt to talk to him.”

She nodded. “Go, Trouble,” she said hesitantly at the same time as she followed his instructions. The horse moved forward slowly and began to walk around the corral. “It worked.”

“Don’t sound so surprised. I’m a good teacher.”

“And humble too.”

After several turns around the enclosure, he felt her begin to loosen up. It was time for her to go it alone, but that meant he had to get off. Everything inside him balked at the thought.

But before he could decide what to do, he heard his son calling. “Daddy. Hannah.”

Instantly, Dev covered both of Hannah’s hands with his own, helping her bring the horse to a standstill. Then he slid off Trouble’s rump. He reached up and lifted her down before walking to the fence. Ben got there at the same time, huffing and puffing from running.

“Daddy, hurry.”

“What’s wrong? How are you feeling?”

“Polly said my tem-pitcher’s better. But you gotta come quick. Hannah, too. She’s a doctor. She’ll know what to do.” Then he turned and raced away, in the direction of the house.

Hannah instantly went into doctor mode. Was there something wrong with her mother? In two seconds she was at the gate opening it.

“Mom,” was the only word she could get out when she looked at Dev.

He nodded. “I’m right behind you.”

Hannah hadn’t known she could move that fast. She’d handled emergencies during her training, but it had never involved a family member. She loved her mother so much. The woman had made more sacrifices for her than she could count. Hannah was almost where she’d worked so hard to be—almost in a position to give Polly the easy life. If anything happened to her…

It seemed to take forever, but several minutes later she burst through the kitchen door. “Mom?”

“Here, honey,” the familiar voice said. “In the utility room.”

Hannah raced past the island to the hallway and the door on her left. Her mother smiled at her, then down at Ben who was crouched by a box. Relief flooded her that there was nothing wrong with Polly. Then she inspected the box more closely and saw the cat in it. A moment later, she realized what was happening.

With a wide-eyed, worried expression, Ben looked up at her. “Callie’s havin’ babies. She needs a doctor.”

Hannah nodded solemnly. He was too young to understand that the cat would probably do fine on her own. If not, she needed a vet. But she said, “I’ll get my medical bag.”

She hurried into the family room and retrieved the bag from where she’d left it after examining the boy earlier. When she returned, there was a new arrival. Dev was crouched beside his son, staring at the newest tiny bundle of slick fur.

“Where’s Mom?” she asked.

“She said she had things to do and since reinforcements had arrived, she went upstairs.”

Hannah nodded, then took a paper-wrapped package of disposable gloves from her kit and put them on. Then she knelt on Ben’s other side. Reaching in, she carefully picked up the brand-new kitten then nestled it where Callie could reach if she wanted to clean it up.

A few minutes later, there was another teeny-weeny furball, and she put it beside the first. After about forty-five minutes, three more little ones had arrived.

Hannah rubbed a hand over the mother cat’s side. “I think that’s the last one,” she said.

Ben’s brown eyes were bright as he looked at her. “Wow, five babies. You’re the best doctor in the whole world.”

“I didn’t do anything,” she said truthfully. “Callie did all the work.”

The little boy shook his head as he stood. He threw himself into her arms. “I want you to stay here forever, Hannah.”

Chapter Three

Still squatting beside the mother cat’s birthing box, Hannah steadied herself from Ben’s enthusiastic embrace. Over the boy’s head, Hannah met Dev’s gaze. He was so close she could see flecks of gold that made his brown eyes almost hazel. Or maybe it was the fear she saw that made them seem different. In her line of work, all too often she saw parental anxiety and recognized it in Dev now. And she thought she knew the reason for his apprehension.

“Wow,” she said, rubbing the boy’s sturdy little back. Gently, she pulled his arms from around her neck. “Forever is a really long time, pal.”

Dev was still hunkered down beside her. He put his big hand on the boy’s shoulder and protectively tugged him back between his jeans-clad thighs. Then he pulled Ben just a little closer until the child’s back rested against his wide chest and wrapped his forearms around the boy’s middle. “Hannah lives in California, son.”

Bingo. Dev was worried, about his son pinning any hopes on her staying. She’d taken an oath to help, not hurt people, and that included little boys with big crushes. She needed to set him straight.

She nodded. “Your dad’s right, Ben. I just came to Texas for a visit.”

“Does visit mean you can’t move here?”

She looked into the little guy’s sweet, earnest face, then the father’s tight, tense features. Oh, boy. She’d been there less than twenty-four hours and she felt like she was dodging two Texas tornadoes—father and son.

She shook her head. “No, but visit means that I’m only here for a short time and then I have to go back home.”

Trustingly, Ben patted his father’s big hand where it rested against his abdomen. “So you can move here,” he said, his four-year-old logic simplifying everything.

“It’s not that easy, son.”

“Why?” The little guy turned puppy dog eyes on his dad.

“Because Hannah’s things are there and—”

The boy half turned and put an arm around his father’s neck. “I know what. How ’bout if we help? We’ll put all her stuff in your truck and bring it here.”

“Oh, sweetie—” His words squeezed Hannah’s heart. This pint-sized cowboy could grow on her without half trying.