Page 14 of The Texas Cowboy's Rescue

“Right before their dad died, he told them. They were shocked. But then they had other things to worry about and time passed and, believe it or not, they matured. Don’t share that with them. And they had no problem. But they kept it quiet, hoping that one day we might find you. And then you ended up finding us instead. Anyway, do you accept the gift?”

“This is something I want to get right.” Deke needed to think it through.

“The land isn’t going anywhere. Think all you need. Take a ride out and look it over. Try it on for a few days,” he said, a little levity injected into the moment. “Make the decision when it’s right for you. You know where to find me.”

The pair shook hands, and Deke went across the street to where he had parked the Jeep beside the courthouse square. The folder went into the passenger seat. He headed in the direction of the hospital. He parked in his usual spot and went inside. His office was on the first floor, off the emergency rooms. Luckily, it was quiet. Only one trauma room was in use out of the six rooms designated as such.

“Hello, may I help you? Are you looking for a patient?” The voice was familiar and strangely calming to his racing mind. He turned in its direction.

Kenzie stood there and the surprise registered on her face when she reacted to the “cowboy” in their midst.

“I haven’t had time to change into my usual uniform. I had some personal business in town today. It’s been slow, I take it, since my pager hasn’t gone off?”

“No air traffic until we have to pick up a transport from Amarillo. Jay began his vacation, so I’ll take his spot. There’ll be a neo nurse on the trip with the infant.”

“Sounds good. You’ll be in the copilot seat. I’ll meet you at the bird.”

*

Kenzie was usuallygood at reading people. It came in handy in her profession. Twenty minutes later of mostly quiet, she got the vibe from Deke’s body language and his silences that perhaps he didn’t feel the need for extra conversation. Either that or he was making it overly clear that there would be no overlapping of the time he spent off the clock in the company of an employee and her daughter and the office hours. Either way, she would give him space and quiet. She turned her attention to the scenery in front of them and outside her window. She could only hope that he hadn’t read anything more into the moment when their gazes might have lingered with each other a bit longer than she would have liked.That’s the problem. You did feel something.

The last thing she needed was the voice in her head being outspoken. And the truly last thing she needed was to let her guard down with her boss... another flyboy. Been there, done that, and never to be repeated.

They reached their destination and, while Deke checked out the chopper and spoke to the local control tower and weather center, she met the nurse and saw the chart on the preemie they would be carrying. Then she met the little girl in person and her heart melted. It usually did for the children they often flew, some under the worst of circumstances. This one was going to a regional trauma center with a superb unit to help her grow and thrive, so she could join a mom and dad who were already en route to the hospital to await her arrival.

Her pager went off and she noted Deke’s code that meant to move it. She and the nurse wheeled the child and its accompanying support system onto the tarmac and then situated the unit through the wide side door opening, stabilizing it and making sure all wires and equipment were on and talking to each other. The baby would be monitored on the entire trip by the team it was leaving and then by the team standing ready to receive her at her new trauma site.

Deke made a final check around the craft and then climbed into the pilot’s seat. The rotors were flipped on and the craft began waking up.

“All set to transport?”

“Yes, sir. All set,” she responded as usual. The rotors were rocking the craft as the speed increased and, with very little movement on his part, Deke lifted the chopper off its skids and skyward.

“We’ll be racing a dry line that is throwing off some strong columns. I don’t want to deal with those conditions, so I’ll be punching it home. I’ll try to keep us out of the rough edges if possible. Hopefully, we’ll get that little girl safe and sound on the ground with her parents, and you can get home to Brooke before the storm can kick up too much.”

“Luckily, Brooke is spending the night with Jackie’s twins. Although she made sure to remind me that she had a lesson that she couldn’t be late for tomorrow afternoon. If you’re getting tired of the lesson commitment, we can get you off the hook. Brooke can be an enthusiastic student and taskmaster rolled into one.”

“I doubt that she’s tired of them. It might be her mother? I know I’m still in.”

He had sent her a look as he had said the words. It was the first time he had actually looked at her that entire day. But then he had turned his attention back to the instrument panel.

“Well, it isn’t me, either. Guess we’ll see you at the pool unless the storm hangs around.”

“Do you have a thing about swimming?”

Where did that question come from? “A thing about swimming? What do you mean by that?”

“It was a hot afternoon and you sat there beside a great pool and didn’t even put your toes into the water.”

“I love to swim. I just wanted to read the book I brought with me.”

“That sounds like a lame excuse. If you’re one of those females who doesn’t want to be seen in a swimsuit, don’t worry. I won’t look. We’ll be on the other end of the pool. No reason you shouldn’t enjoy the water too.”

He wouldn’t look. He said it so nonchalantly that the fact she believed him made her even more angry that he had even thought that was the reason. Her chin lifted.

“If I do decide to go swimming, I will go. I couldn’t care less who else is around.”

“And so you shouldn’t. But you get in the pool tomorrow, and I will not be paying attention.”

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