Page 125 of Nate

Locking the door behind her, Markie made her way to the bedroom. She quickly changed into her comfiest lounge pants and a soft cotton T-shirt before returning to the kitchen to feed Socks. The cat followed her every move, emitting a continuous stream of meows.

Markie chuckled and crouched down to pet Socks. “I know, sweetie. I wish I could take you with me when I stay with Nate,” she said fondly. “Guess what? He loves me, and I love him too.”

Socks purred louder as Markie scratched her under her neck. With a contented look on her face, she picked up the cat and carried her over to the sofa.

“Let’s watch some TV before bed, alright?”

She settled onto the couch, still holding Socks in her lap. After flipping through several channels, she finally settled on a sitcom that she had seen a million times before but still found comforting. As she tried to watch the show, she couldn’t shake her nerves about Jarrett.

Suddenly, her phone buzzed loudly, jolting her awake. She must have dozed off. Rubbing the sleep out of her eyes, she read Nate’s message that he had made it home safely and was going to take a shower before bed. She quickly responded that she was heading to bed soon too since she was struggling to keep her eyes open.

Markie couldn’t stop smiling at Nate’s reply that he loved her. After replying she loved him too, she got up, turned off the TV and lights, then walked to her bedroom. She plugged in her phone and crawled under the covers. With thoughts of Nate swirling through her mind, she closed her eyes and soon drifted off to sleep.

The following morning, she made her way down the stairs to the back door of the hospital. She unlocked it, entered the building, then locked the door. She made her way to her office, put her purse in the file cabinet, and then looked at the computer to see what appointments were scheduled for the day.

Later, she passed Tess in the hall, while heading to an exam room.

“Good morning,” Tess said.

“Good morning, Tess. I’m going to be coming in the back door until we find out where Jarrett is, okay?”

“Of course. It’s closer for you than walking around the building.”

“Nate suggested it. I never gave it a thought, but the door isn’t far from the stairs.”

“Markie, you do whatever you feel is necessary to stay safe. I know Sam and his deputies are looking for him.” Tess tilted her head. “Despite that, you look happy.”

“I am. Nate told me he loved me. I love him too.”

“Oh, I’m so happy for you. It’s so wonderful hearing that for the first time, isn’t it?”

“Yes. I’m so crazy about him.”

“I can tell. I am really happy you two worked out. You make a great couple. Oh, did you enjoy the race?”

“I did. I will definitely watch that again.”

“Rafe’s horse is so fast. Not long after it was born, it would be running around the pasture. Rafe told Mr. Hancock that he was a rocket. That’s how he got his name. Mr. Hancock gave him the colt. Rafe and that horse have a bond. I am surprised he raced, though.”

“Nate talked him into it. I’m glad Warren wasn’t upset.”

“Warren would never let something like that bother him. He was happy for Rafe.”

“He did seem to be. I’m glad it’s just for fun. Nate knew he didn’t stand a chance, but he did it anyway.”

“I’d love to see Sam do it, but he’d rather watch and keep an eye on the crowd. He’s constantly watching over the town.”

“He’s a good sheriff. His deputies seem like good men too.”

“Yes, all of them are. Well, I’d better get to my next patient before they think I left.” Tess smiled.

“Okay. I’ll talk to you later.”

Tess nodded, then entered a room. Markie stopped at the next door, removed the file from the patient chart holder hanging on the door, then entered and got started with her day.

****

As Nate sat in his office, he looked over what needed done this week. He liked to give the men their chores for the week on Mondays. That way, everyone knew what was expected of them. If someone had a problem, they were allowed to switch with another ranch hand, but only if they found someone willing to do that. Most of the time, the men did what was expected of them, but things sometimes came up, and someone needed to switch for one reason or another. Nate never got in on that decision. As far as he was concerned, it was between the men.

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