Untamed Cowboy. Maisey Yates

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СКАЧАТЬ lack of guile in Beatrix’s question, the absolute shock that he might not think a raccoon was worthy of saving.

      He looked between Beatrix and Kaylee.

      “Treat the baby raccoon if you need to,” he said, putting his hands up.

      “The baby raccoon needs to be treated,” Beatrix pointed out.

      “Yeah, Bennett,” Kaylee said. “The baby raccoon needs it.”

      Bennett suppressed what looked to be an eye roll, but continued to stand there and watch as Kaylee conducted an examination on the tiny creature.

      “He looks like he’s in decent health,” Kaylee said. “All things considered. Though, I’m sure he’s a little bit shocky. Was he behaving like he was injured when you took him home?”

      Beatrix shook her head. “I haven’t taken him home yet. I just pulled him off the road. I keep a blanket and a box in my truck just in case.”

      Of course she did.

      “Well, I think he can probably go to your house. If you’re up to round-the-clock feedings. I would assume that you could treat a small raccoon like a runt puppy. A little bit of evaporated milk and an eyedropper might help him pull through.”

      “That’s reassuring,” Beatrix said.

      “Do you want me to give him some vaccinations?”

      “Can you?”

      “I don’t see why not,” Kaylee said, working her way through her supply. “I’ll just make sure he gets his rabies shot, and then I’ll send you on your way. Hopefully he makes it through.”

      “Well, if he does, then I’ll have a rabies-free raccoon as a pet,” Beatrix pointed out. “Lindy may not appreciate a raccoon living at the winery.”

      Kaylee suppressed a smile. “That is between you and your sister-in-law. I’m just going to treat the raccoon.”

      Kaylee took care of the vaccination under the watchful eye of Beatrix and the overly amused Bennett. Then she bundled up the tiny animal and put him back in his box and handed the box back to its owner.

      “Good luck, Beatrix,” she said.

      “That was nice of you,” Bennett said once Beatrix had left.

      “It wasn’t nice of me,” Kaylee said. “It’s my job.”

      “No, your job is to work on people’s pets for profit. You don’t have to patch up every sickly critter that Beatrix Leighton brings in on a whim.”

      “Why not? It’s a small thing. But it’s something.”

      “I suppose so.”

      “I’m very giving,” she said. “The kind of woman who leaves her date to help a baby calf.”

      He chuckled. “Yes, you are. And I do owe you a massive thank-you for that.”

      “You’re soft too, Bennett Dodge. Maybe not for raccoons. But for other creatures.”

      “Yeah,” he said, “I’m less soft toward animals that are going to make themselves nuisances because Beatrix ends up turning them loose once they grow up, and they view people as their natural source of food. If I have to pry that raccoon repeatedly out of my garbage cans I’m going to be irritated.”

      “Don’t worry about it,” Kaylee said. “First of all, Beatrix is probably going to keep it. Second of all, it will wreak havoc at the winery, not your place.”

      “Well, Wyatt will be happy about that.”

      “Why would Wyatt care?”

      “He has some kind of uneasy alliance with Lindy. Funneling business between the places.”

      “Uneasy?”

      “They do not like each other. But then, Wyatt used to be buddies with Lindy’s ex-husband. He did PR on the rodeo circuit back when Wyatt was still riding. So they used to be friends, and I think Lindy wants to castrate him.”

      “I can see where that would cause a rift.”

      “Yep.”

      “Wyatt wants to drive business to Get Out of Dodge so badly that he’s willing to work with a woman who hates him?”

      Bennett chuckled. “My brother used to ride bulls for a living. Drooling, angry, two-ton monsters that wanted to rip his guts out. I think one ragey blonde who wants to gut him doesn’t scare him much.”

      “Well, that must be fun to be around.”

      “Fortunately,” Bennett said, “I have my own business to keep me busy. And I’m about to go out on a call, so I will see you later.”

      “See you later.”

      When Bennett walked out of the clinic, her stomach bottomed out, the aftershock of everything that had happened in the past hour moving over her in a wave.

      Why was it like this? All the time.

      Why were there these moments? Thunder and lightning without the rain. A storm brewing that never seemed to break open. Tension. So much tension and nothing to ease it.

      Maybe the tension was only on her side. Because it wasn’t coming from him. And it all felt so big and real and raw to her, and he didn’t seem to feel a thing.

      The door opened again and she had to suppress a sigh, until she looked up and saw that it was Michael, holding Clarence in his arms.

      “Is Clarence all right?” she asked.

      “He is,” Michael said, a smile spreading over his handsome face. “But I’m here to see you.”

      Utter resoluteness washed over Kaylee. She was going to take this opportunity. She wasn’t going to let herself back out.

      “I’m glad you did,” she said, forcing herself to smile. Hoping that it looked like a smile, and not a tragic grimace.

      “Good,” he responded. “I’d like to try dinner again.”

      “Me too,” she said quickly. “And this time I’ll make sure that I’m not inadvertently on call.”

      “I like that you work,” Michael said. “I feel like a lot of people are so insecure with first date stuff they act out of character. But I think that was really you. And I liked it.”

      “Well,” she said, smiling. “Good.”

      She really needed to get a new life. Really, really. Not the whole thing. Because there were parts of it that she loved. But she needed something to fill that void her body, mind and heart kept insisting Bennett could fill. He wasn’t ever going to. That couldn’t have been made more apparent by their conversation this morning. He didn’t feel anything asking about whether or not she had slept with Michael. He saw nothing СКАЧАТЬ