Rebecca Winters: Cowboy Doctor

Grady watched her, looking uncertain and upset. “I’m sure you’re right.”

“Tell you what. I’m going back to the ranch house now to talk to John about this.”

“Maybe you should wait for Wes.”

Why did he seem so hesitant? “What if he can’t get back right away? The horse needs help. John will know what to do.”

Surely Grady Cox didn’t want to see the horse suffer. You needed to be proactive to keep animals safe and healthy. She’d learned the same thing working with children. When something went wrong, you didn’t wait. “Thanks for your help, Grady. See you later.”

“For sure. I assume you’re staying in one of the cabins for the summer, too.” His eyes played over her with the kind of male interest she didn’t want. Since they’d be forced to work together over the summer, she needed to establish a boundary now.

“Yes. I’ve already settled in.”

Without hesitation, she hurried to her car and drove to the ranch house. When she walked in, no one was at the front desk. Tracey took the initiative and walked around the counter to John’s office. To her frustration, he wasn’t there, either.

She went back outside to her car. Dinner wouldn’t be for another hour. The only thing to do was return to her cabin and change. Because they were having a special welcome dinner, she decided to wear her denim skirt and a Western blouse with snaps.

Though she couldn’t bear to see an animal in pain, she had no choice but to wait until then. Hopefully, Wes might have returned and Grady would have already told him about Chief. By now she hoped their vet would have been called.

At five to seven she drove back to the ranch house, where the family had started to gather in the big dining room. She spotted John behind the counter and rushed over to talk to him.

He gave her a big smile. “Have you had a good afternoon?”

“It’s been terrific, but I’m worried about one of your horses.” She told him what she’d discovered. “Wes wasn’t there, but I pointed out the problem to Grady.”

His brows met. “Grady didn’t know he was limping?”

“No. He seemed surprised.”

“Well, you’re absolutely right. Chief needs a vet, but I don’t know that much about the one we’ve just inherited. Our old vet passed away recently. Still, I’ll call him now. Come in the office with me before we have dinner.”

Tracey followed him down the hall, gratified because he recognized the emergency situation and would take care of it. She sat down and listened while he looked up the number on his computer and made the phone call.

In a minute he hung up and shook his head. “Dr. Cruz isn’t available until Monday.”

“Does he practice here in Hamilton?”

“No. Darby. It’s only fifteen miles away, but I’m going to have to find someone else. There’s a good vet in Anaconda.”

“Isn’t that kind of far from here?”

“Yes, but I have to start somewhere.”

While he searched on the computer, she suddenly remembered something.

“John? On my way to Hamilton I passed a sign that said Clayton Veterinary Hospital. It’s right off the highway about fifteen minutes from here. Have you ever heard of it?”

He blinked. “I didn’t know it existed. You’re sure about that?”

“Yes. I slowed down because I didn’t remember seeing it when I came here for the interview in the spring. It has to be brand-new.”

“That’s very interesting. If that vet is a Clayton, then it’s probably their ranch’s vet who handles large animals.”

“What ranch is that?”

“The Clayton Cattle Ranch. They’re well-known around these parts. It’s worth a call to see if someone there can check out Chief this evening. He’s too valuable a horse to lose.”

John called information and before long she heard him talking to someone else. John outlined the situation before he handed her the phone. “Dr. Clayton wants you to tell him what you saw.”

With her heart pounding, she took it from him. “Hello? Dr. Clayton? This is Tracey Marcroft. I was out in the barn earlier. As I led Chief out to the corral, I noticed he was limping. I lifted his hoof and the second I touched the sole, he grunted in pain.”

“That sounds like it could be a solar abscess, a serious infection that can lead to acute or severe lameness,” he replied, in a deep male voice she felt resonate through her system. “Did you notice anything else?”

“No. At first I thought it might be something wrong with the shoe, but that wasn’t it.”

“Anything more you can think of?”

“His demeanor wasn’t normal. His ears weren’t up and he wouldn’t look at me.”

“Excellent observations. If that hoof can be healed in time, the horse owes its life to your quick thinking.” For no good reason his compliment caused a tingly sensation to sweep through her. “Let me talk to Mr. Hunter again.”

“Of course.”

She handed the phone to John. They talked a few more minutes and he gave the other man directions to the dude ranch before hanging up. “The doctor will be here in an hour.” He squeezed her hand. “Bless you for catching this, Tracey. Let’s hurry in to dinner, and then we’ll meet him at the barn.”

Chapter Two

Roce hung up the phone and wheeled around on his stool. “Our first new patient, Daisy! Who would have thought it would happen on a Saturday night? It has to be some kind of miracle.”

He tossed the border collie–Lab mix a treat. Roce had inherited her from Hannah, whose family didn’t want the dog she’d adopted. After the funeral, Daisy had kept looking for her. It had torn his heart out and he’d decided to keep her for himself.

When he’d moved to the ranch, he’d brought her with him and they’d become fast friends. His whole family loved the dog, especially his brother Eli’s little girl, Libby. She was the daughter from his first marriage, before he’d married his present wife, Brianna.

Libby had regular visitation with her birth mother in town, but when she lived with Eli and Brianna on the ranch, she begged for her uncle Roce to bring his dog to the house.

After first leaving Missoula, Roce had stayed at the main ranch house with his mom. Libby came over all the time to play with Daisy. But when Roce moved into the renovated house down by the highway two months later, she’d wept buckets. He told her she could come to see Daisy anytime she wanted, but she couldn’t be consoled.

Once he’d made himself a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, he pulled on a navy long-sleeved hoodie over his jeans. After finding his doctor bag, he made certain he had all the necessary supplies, including Epsom salts and plenty of bandages.

Daisy made whimpering sounds because she knew he was going to leave. He tossed her another treat. “I’ll be back later.” He could hear her bark as he left the house and got in his dark red, four-door pickup truck.

Twenty minutes later, he turned onto the road leading up to the Rocky Point Dude Ranch. An impressive spread filled his vision. He wound around toward the barn he could see in the distance. As he pulled up to the entrance, he saw an older man and a woman with a knockout figure and long legs waiting for him.

Roce had gone through more attractive women in his life than he cared to admit. Maybe something was wrong with him that he hadn’t experienced that affair of the heart like his married brothers. But one thing was certain: when he jumped down from the cab and approached them, he knew that Tracey Marcroft was the most gorgeous woman he’d ever seen in his life.

In the fading light, her shoulder-length blond hair had a metallic sheen to it. Not silver, not gold, but something in between. Her eyes gleamed the lavender-blue color of larkspurs, flowers that grew in the meadows on the Clayton ranch. For a moment, his breath caught at the heavenly sight.