Stranded with the Rancher

“Peace offering?” she asked.

Taken off guard by her response, Dan laughed and shook his head. “Maybe.”

Beth peeled the paper off her muffin and broke it in half. “What are these?”

“My mother calls them kitchen sink muffins. Fruit, nuts and seeds. They stick to you, that’s for sure.”

She took a bite. “Good stuff.”

He noted her long, slim fingers as she picked up crumbs from the table. No rings, and while her nails were polished, they were short and practical. Even the color, a pale pink, was simple and subdued.

The woman was a puzzle. She gave away very little, yet her panic in the truck had been very real and didn’t mesh with the no-nonsense, controlled woman with the quirky sense of humor who sat across from him. He pondered that as he ate his own muffin.

There was an intimacy in the quiet meal they shared. It was pleasant, and he couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like to share breakfast each day with someone like Beth.

Her gaze met his and she quickly looked away, her face coloring and her lashes fluttering in apparent confusion. Her attention quickly moved to the view outside the window.

Was she having the same thoughts?

Dan studied her profile, admiring the smooth column of her neck visible above the sweater’s rolled collar. A few tendrils of hair had escaped her ponytail and rested on her ear.

Yes, she was beautiful, but what did he really know about Beth Rogers? Experience had taught him the hard way that you didn’t really get to know someone when things were going fine. Reality poked up its head when you least expected it—usually when your guard was down. When the going was rough. Yeah, that was when you really discovered a person’s mettle.

The wall phone began to ring and Dan grabbed it before the sound woke the entire household.

“Gallagher.” He paused. “Okay. Tell Abel to relax, I’m on my way.” Dan shook his head and put the receiver back in the cradle.

“Everything okay?”

“Looks like I’m going to deliver a baby today. Midwife can’t get through.”

“Have you ever delivered a baby?” Beth asked.

He shrugged. “Naw, but there’s no better time to learn than the present. Besides, Ben is the doctor on call. He’ll meet me there.”

“Why bother Ben when I’m sitting around doing nothing?”

“You want to go?”

Beth nodded.

Elsie strolled into the kitchen, her eyes curious. A pleased smile crossed her face when she spotted Beth and Dan. Today his mother’s sweatshirt was buttercup-yellow and bore the words I May Be Wrong, But I Doubt It.

“Go where?” she asked.

“Home birth and Emily can’t get through.”

“You’ll have to take Beth. She’s a doctor and you’ve never delivered a baby.”

Dan barely resisted groaning. Thank you, Mother. He could count on Elsie to reduce him to the youngest child in a heartbeat.

Beth’s eyes met his and she bit her lip as though undecided as to whether she should weigh in on the discussion. “I’m happy to assist,” she finally said. “Your decision.”

“I can do the ranch chores while you’re gone,” Elsie added as she poured herself a cup of coffee.

“What about Amy?” Dan asked.

“Amy and Millie can go with me, and I’ll bring her back when she’s tired.” Elsie’s eyes widened and she smiled. “Oh, and I’ll take Joe’s new truck. It’ll get through the snow on the ranch road.”

Dan grimaced.

“Now who’s having trust issues?” his mother said with an appraising glance.

“I’m just saying, you know how Joe is about that truck.”

“Pshaw. Now, what do you want us to do?”

“Check the cows and lay out the hay and feed. Oh, and Joe’s herd dogs are in the barn. They’ll want some exercise. And my horses. Stalls need attention, too.” Again Dan looked out the window. “Sure you’re up to this?”

Elsie put her hands on her hips. “Who do you think did the chores when there were no kids around here?”

“Uh, Dad?” he offered.

“Why is it so hard for you to believe that your father and I did them together? We were a team.”

Dan did the math. Joe was the eldest and he was thirty-two. Probably not a good idea to remind his mother that she was talking about thirty odd years ago. Instead, he cleared his throat and looked at Beth, effectively changing the subject. “What’s your specialty?”

“Internal medicine.”

“Delivered any babies?”

“Not since medical school. I let the OB docs do that.”

“Isn’t it just like riding a bike?” Elsie countered.

“Ah, not quite,” Beth answered.

“Better eat up,” Dan told her. “I’ve got a few more supplies to load in the snowmobile and then we’re heading out. There’s no telling when we’ll be back.”

“How far away is it?” she asked.

“Short stroll up the road.”

Beth’s lips parted and then she paused, a confused frown on her face.

“What?” Dan asked, nearly laughing out loud.

“I’m having a difficult time translating ‘up the road’ and ‘not far.’ Apparently they don’t mean the same thing to you as they do to me.”

“You’ve got that right.” Elsie’s laughter trilled out.

“Can I go?” a pajama-clad Amy asked from the doorway. Millie stood at her side, eagerly inspecting the floor. The mutt lived in the hope that crumbs would appear.

“May I.” Elsie corrected. “Sorry, sweetie, but there’s only room for two on the snowmobile. Daddy certainly isn’t going to let Dr. Beth walk in this weather.”

“I was kidding about the stroll.” Dan pulled out a chair for his daughter and brushed her hair out of her face. “Amy, what are you doing up so early?” He glanced around. “What are you all doing up so early?”

“The phone woke me,” Amy said.

“I’ve been awake for hours, just praying,” Elsie stated, gazing out the window at the cows. “My joints ache when the barometer drops.” She turned to Beth. “They say that the low barometric pressure makes the cows drop calves early, too.”

“I didn’t know that,” she said.

“Am I right, Dan?” his mother asked.

Dan glanced at the wall clock and then back to the room full of females. Beth, his mother, Amy, and even Millie were all looking at him.

“You are right as always, Mother. Now, I think that Dr. Rogers and I have a baby to deliver, and we had better get going. You could start praying that the barometer doesn’t affect those heifers while I’m gone, or we’re going to be in big trouble.”

* * *

Beth swiped at the wet flakes on her goggles with a gloved hand. Snow continued to fall as Dan led the snowmobile to their destination “up the road,” which took nearly an hour. But despite the weather, she didn’t mind the long trip. Riding the snowmobile was no longer scary, and if pushed, she might even admit she enjoyed riding tandem with the tall cowboy.

When they arrived at the log cabin deep in the woods, above the town of Paradise, another snowmobile was already there. A huge, cherry-red snowmobile with flame detailing along the sides.

A tall, blond and bearded mountain of a man greeted them at the door.

“Abel,” Dan said as he grabbed the tackle box and approached the house. “This is Dr. Rogers.”

The big man frowned, his bushy eyebrows knit in confusion. “Another Dr. Rogers?”

Dan laughed. “Yeah.”

“Nice to meet you, ma’am.” The giant stuck out a hand. “I’m Abel Frank.”

“Nice to meet you, too,” Beth returned. Her small hand was swallowed whole in a gentle grip.

Dan glanced at the snowmobile parked next to his own. “Deke? I thought his father was in the hospital.”

“He is. Emily Robbs made it in on his machine.”

Dan’s eyes widened and he sputtered. “He lent Big Red to Emily?”

“Tell me about it.” Abel shrugged. “Apparently Deke’s sweet on Emily.”

Dan shook his head. “Unbelievable.”

Seriously? They sounded like sixteen-year-olds instead of grown men. Beth cleared her throat.

Both Dan and Abel turned, their expressions sheepish, before they looked back at each other.

Dan opened his mouth, then closed it again.

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