A Randall Returns (7 page)

“Yes, I’m protected,” she murmured, reaching for him.

He lay her on the bed and raked her with his gaze. From her flushed cheeks to her creamy breasts and on to her womanhood, his eyes feasted on her. Caroline thought she’d be shocked by his blatant delight, shocked by her own carnal response, but somehow it felt so right, so exciting, so… perfect to be here like this with Mike.

Emboldened, she stood, reached out and undressed him. When they had discarded their bothersome clothes and were skin to skin, sharing the same bed and the same air, she clung to him, warmed by the magic he made her feel.

He fondled her breasts and her nipples hardened. For every one of his actions, she had a reaction—surprising her, arousing her more than Don ever had. Mike reached down between their bodies to touch her center and she felt as if she’d explode from one simple caress
of his hand. But his finger was nothing compared to what she felt when he entered her fully. This was right, she thought. It couldn’t feel so good if it weren’t.

Mike kissed her and murmured her name against her lips. Then he grasped her bottom and surged into her one more time, and they reached the peak of physical pleasure together.

Caroline fell back onto the bed, closing her eyes, and surrendered to sated exhaustion. Next to Mike’s warm body, with his arm pressed to her middle and holding her close, she drifted off to sleep, a smile on her lips. It was the perfect end to the day.

M
IKE ENVISIONED WAKENING
to a morning kiss, a little conversation, maybe even a repeat of loving. Somehow the morning didn’t quite play out that way.

He woke to a shriek, and the sight of Caroline jumping out of bed, running to the shower. Obviously neither of them had responded to the alarm. He couldn’t vouch for her, but he knew he’d never overslept…until now.

Caroline was halfway to the shower when she seemed to realize she was naked and he was in her bed.

“Oh!” She searched for cover and came up with her robe from the floor. “Mike, I can’t—we mustn’t—we need to forget what happened last night. And you need to go home. You can get dressed while I’m in the shower.” She backed into the bathroom and closed the door.

Mike lay in her bed, staring at the door, trying to adjust from expectations to reality. She wanted him out. Why? Last night had been wonderful.

He got up and pulled on his clothes, checking the
clock. Nine. He should’ve been on duty an hour ago. Now he had to skulk home in his rumpled suit and slip upstairs for a quick shower and a change of clothes.

Not to mention breakfast.

He waited until Caroline opened the bathroom door, this time wrapped in a towel. At her look of alarm, he raised his hands. “I’m leaving, but we’re going to talk about this, Caroline. It’s not something I’m about to forget.” Then he left her house.

Caroline stood there, frozen. He’d looked good, even though his suit was wrinkled. He was a sensual man. And last night had been incredible. That was why they had to forget it. Thank goodness he’d gone.

She found clean clothes, grateful that Jon had established the practice of casual clothes for the doctor on duty. A lab coat made for great camouflage. With her hair still wet, she braided it and headed for the front door. Then she remembered the
pain au chocolat
she’d saved for breakfast.

When she opened the box, she found two pieces of pastry, which meant Mike hadn’t taken his. With a guilty grin, she grabbed the box to take with her. They’d have coffee made at the clinic, and she was going to enjoy the pastries—both of them.

Patients didn’t start coming until ten o’clock, so she had a little time. Jon would’ve looked in on Mr. Gambil for her when the nurses told him she hadn’t come in, so she slipped into her office without seeing anyone. After she hung up her coat and put on the lab coat, she found Connie, one of the daytime nurses, and checked in with her before grabbing a cup of coffee.

“So you made it?” Jon asked from behind her.

“Sorry.” She turned around but couldn’t stop the blush that instantly warmed her cheeks. “I was so tired I slept through my alarm. I couldn’t believe it when I woke up at nine.”

“No problem. Since I had yesterday off for the first time in years, I won’t begrudge you sleeping in after a late night.” His tone was sincere but she couldn’t help noticing his curious smile.

“I won’t let it happen again,” she hurriedly said.

“Hey, Caro, we’re partners. I’m not your supervisor.”

“I know, but I feel bad about—”

“That’s the nice thing about a private practice. We get to make the rules.” He followed her into her office, pulled out a chair and sat. “Now, let me fill you in. I looked in on Mr. Gambil. He had a good night. Nick stopped by a few minutes ago and picked up Mrs. Gambil to go with him and see about bailing Holly out of jail.”

“Will he be able to? She did murder Eric.”

“I know, but Nick’s going to try. By the way, what do you think about our new sheriff?”

The abrupt change of topic unsettled her, as did the topic itself. Why was he asking her about Mike? “Excuse me?” she murmured.

“Well, you two did have quite an exciting evening. I just wonder what you make of him.”

She took a bite of pastry and then sipped some coffee before she answered. “He seems to know his job well.”

Jon’s big smile acknowledged her cautious answer. “Yeah. I like him, too.”

“Jon, don’t start. Dad is going to have to work on Josh or one of the other single Randalls. I’m not on the marriage block.”

“Why not? Now that there are two of us, we should be able to manage a personal life, too. Even by myself, I did all right.”

“I agree. You did fine. But that has nothing to do with me. I worked hard to get where I am and I intend to have a great career and take care of my patients.”

“All work and no play—” Jon began.

“Out!” She waved an arm toward the door. “I’m having my breakfast in peace.”

“Yes, ma’am. I’ll talk to you later.” With a mock salute he headed down the hall to his own office.

Caroline sank into the chair behind her desk and chewed on the slightly stale pastry. It still tasted good. And she still felt guilty for taking Mike’s share. But life wasn’t always fair.

Otherwise, she wouldn’t have to give up Mike Davis.

Mike took an early lunch to make up for missing breakfast. He wanted to pick up two sandwiches and go to the clinic, but he didn’t dare do that until he’d talked to Caroline and straightened things out.

He didn’t know what her problem was, but he wanted it cleared up right away. He wanted to share Caroline’s bed tonight—and every night. Damn, he thought with a smile, the woman was addictive.

Throughout the day, she stayed on his mind. Several times his men teased him about the smile he displayed.

“You’d think all the bad guys were locked up, the way you’re smiling,” Harry said, a question in his gaze.

“Compared to Chicago, boys, this job is a vacation,” he assured them, hoping his answer would remove any suspicion about him and Caroline.

Truth was, he wasn’t thinking about the bad guys—any guys, for that matter. Caroline left no room in his mind for anyone else.

Since he’d awakened in her bed, he couldn’t stop thinking about how she’d responded to his touch, how her body had seemed to come alive under his. They’d been great together. So why had she been so skittish this
morning? He’d have chalked it up to morning-after jitters had it not been for her comments.
We need to forget what happened last night…
As if he could.
I can’t marry…

Not “I
don’t want
to marry,” but “I
can’t
marry.” As a lawman, Mike was attuned to the words people chose when he questioned them. Like many people with something to hide, Caroline’s word choice was peculiar.

He’d wanted to talk to her about her marriage phobia this morning, find out what she meant. Surely she wasn’t frigid, or scared of sex. Did she think she couldn’t devote the time to her career, maybe?

Why does it matter so much?
asked a shrewd inner voice.

Why did it? Mike thought. Because marriage to Caroline had an enticing appeal? Because he worried about her happiness? He shrugged off the questions; the reason didn’t really matter. It wasn’t as if
he
was going to marry her!

He supposed he should dissuade Jake Randall from his none-too-subtle matchmaking. Caroline was obviously uncomfortable with it. Mike saw pleasant, harmless fun, especially at their Sunday dinner, when she’d come to his aid against that obnoxious Alex Olsen. Her protection of him as a Randall guest tickled him. In Mike’s life not many people had ever rushed to his defense, much less a woman.

“There he goes again,” another deputy pointed out. “Could this preoccupation have anything to do with Dr. Randall?”

“More likely it has to do with the chocolate cake I had after lunch. Of course, I’m going to have to work it off. Which reminds me, we need to set up a workout schedule.”

“You’re going to
force
us to work out?” asked Willie Marin, outrage in his voice. At fifty, he was the oldest deputy.

“Yeah, and pay you to do it.”

Silence fell as the men stared at him, frowning.

Harry sat up straighter. “You’re going to pay us to work out?”

“That’s only fair if it’s required, isn’t it? I’ll need to hire at least one other man, but I think we can pay for at least an hour of exercise every day.”

“But there’s no gym in Rawhide,” Willie pointed out. “And I’m not driving to Buffalo to pump iron.”

Mike picked up a pen and looked at the man. “So is that an official refusal to cooperate with your superior?” He hadn’t challenged much his first couple of weeks on the job, but it was time to let everyone know who was in charge.

“Uh, no, I mean…” Fear was on the man’s face, and Mike was satisfied.

“What I was going to suggest,” he said calmly, as if he hadn’t been challenged, “is to clean out that storeroom in the back. I’ve got a few pieces of equipment and I think I could raise the money for the cost of several more. After all, Rawhide supports us well.”

There was a real shift in attitude at his suggestion. But a couple of men still remained unconvinced.

“Your uncle never suggested anything like this.”

Mike smiled. “Uncle Bill was older than all of you.” Late fifties, he thought. “He wouldn’t require something of you he wasn’t willing to do. But if I’m going to trust my life to any of you, I want you in good shape. You should feel the same way.”

“He’s got a point,” Harry replied.

“I’d think target practice is more important than working on a treadmill or lifting weights,” Willie grumbled.

Mike smiled even more broadly. They were feeding him the perfect comments. “That brings me to something else I want to talk about. I don’t want guns used unless it is absolutely a question of life or death. Talk is the first weapon. Brute strength is second. Gunfire is your last option.”

“Are you saying Bill shouldn’t have shot Peters?” Willie asked in outrage. Of all the deputies, he’d been the closest to Bill Metzger.

“No, I’m not. That was the only possible response Bill had to ensure the safety of the innocent.”

Willie nodded in agreement, but he still had a disgruntled look on his face.

“So, it will take a little while to get the back room organized, but I’d like everyone to report to work in warm-ups and jog the first hour of duty. If you can’t jog that long, plan to alternate walking and jogging. You’ll be partners, depending on who’s working with you. Then you can shower, change and start work.”

Mike began studying the paperwork piled up on his desk to indicate the discussion was closed. For some time now he’d intended to discuss an exercise program
and firearm use with his staff, though he hadn’t planned it for today. But the discussion allowed him to successfully avoid talk of his love life. That was the important thing.

Now he’d have to make a note to approach some of the local ranchers about his plan right away.

E
VERYONE ASSUMED
C
AROLINE
had come in late that morning because of her activities the night before. And they were right, of course, but it was her activity with Mike that had caused her to oversleep, not her activity with Mr. Gambil. She struggled to keep her blushes at a minimum whenever the subject came up.

At lunchtime, she got one of the nurses to go pick up some food from the café. She hadn’t had time to fix a lunch that morning, even though that was her usual practice.

Time. That had always been a problem in Chicago. But she hadn’t thought it would be a problem in Rawhide, especially as she shared the work with Jon.

Her partner poked his head in her office. “I’m meeting Tori for lunch at the café. Want to join us?”

“I wish I could, but Connie’s gone to pick me up a salad.”

“So stick it in the fridge for tomorrow.”

She hesitated, worrying about running into Mike. But she squared her shoulders and gave an abrupt nod. “Okay.”

“You look like you’re going to face a firing squad. It’s only lunch, Caroline. You okay?”

“I’m fine. Just trying to get used to the routine.” She stood, removed her lab coat and grabbed her outer coat. Then she followed Jon to the door. When they passed the nurse’s station, she asked the nurse on duty to tell Connie to put the salad in the fridge. “I’ll be at lunch with Dr. Wilson and his wife.”

“I have my cell,” Jon added. “You can reach either of us that way.”

As they walked off, Caroline said, “I guess I need to get a cell phone.”

“We should’ve already ordered one for you, but…well, we weren’t sure you were going to come. Or stay if you came.”

Caroline bit her bottom lip. She hadn’t intended to make Jon think that. Unfortunately, it was true.

“I thought I might be bored, that there wouldn’t be enough work for both of us.” She gave a rueful smile. “I didn’t realize how hard you’ve been working.”

Jon smiled in return. “It comes and goes. Some weeks I don’t have many patients. Here, when that happens, I cut back my hours and spend time with our son and help out at home. Since Tori’s pregnant again, she tires out early. Other weeks I never seem to get caught up.”

“In Chicago we never got a respite. I think I might like it here, after all.”

He gave her a long look. Then he said, “I’m glad. We finally did order your cell phone. It should be here any day.”

She was surprised at the relief she felt. And she insisted to herself it had nothing to do with Mike Davis.

At lunch, she asked Tori if anyone had heard from Nick on whether he’d gotten Holly released on bail.

“Yes,” Tori said, a hint of a smile on her face.

“Why the smile?” Jon asked.

“Nick said he thought the sheriff there would’ve paid him to take her away. She’d been crying nonstop since they’d locked her up.”

“She was like that last night, too,” Caroline muttered.

“I think we can go ahead and discharge Mr. Gambil,” Jon said. “That’ll make for a nice family reunion.”

“Great, Jon. I’ll drop by after work and check up on him.”

“Good. That’s the other thing about this job. You have more than a professional relationship with a lot of the patients.”

“That doesn’t surprise me, since I’m related to half the citizens of Rawhide.”

They all laughed, since that statement could describe each of them.

Jon held up his coffee cup. “Here’s to our partnership, Caro. I’m glad you’ve decided to stay.”

All three touched their cups together.

W
HEN
C
AROLINE RETURNED
to the clinic, she found a message to call her mother. She slipped on her lab coat and sat down behind her desk. She had about fifteen minutes before her first afternoon patient.

“Mom? You called?”

“Yes, dear. I just wanted to make sure you were okay after your ordeal last night.”

“It wasn’t that bad. When I used to do eighteen-hour shifts in the ER, I made it.”

“But Connie said you arrived at work late this morning.”

Caroline rolled her eyes. “True, I overslept, but I don’t intend to make a habit of it.” She’d have to make sure of it if her every move was going to be reported to her mother.

“All right, dear. Want to come to dinner tonight? You could ask Mike to come, too.”

“Mom! I didn’t expect you to help Dad.”

“I just thought Mike might deserve a reward for his performance last night.”

Caroline was glad no one was watching her, because the “performance” that came to her mind was not the one her mother meant. “I’m sure he doesn’t. Mike is a professional.”

“Well, we appreciate him taking such good care of you.”

She blushed again. “I’ll tell him,” she said.

“Oh. So, you’ll see him?”

“I would guess so. Rawhide isn’t that big a town, Mom.”

After a few minutes, B.J. hung up. Caroline reached for her appointment book, and was preparing her patient list when the phone rang again.

“Dr. Randall,” she answered.

“Caro, I’m going out to the ranch for dinner. Do you want to come with me?”

She recognized his voice, but she wasn’t going to allow Mike Davis to think that. “Who is this?”

“Oh, sorry. It’s Mike.”

“Why are you going for dinner? Did Mom just call you?”

She could hear puzzlement in his silence. “Actually, Red did. And he suggested I invite you, too. I need to speak with your dad, and—”

“What about?” she interrupted.

“I beg your pardon?”

“I just wondered why you needed to talk to my dad,” she hurriedly said.

“It’s police business.” His voice wasn’t as warm as it had been.

“I’m sorry. Mom had just—that is, I’m not going for dinner tonight.”

“Then you’d better call Red. I’m not going to upset him. He was real excited to have you there again.”

“That’s not fair!” she exclaimed. Red was her surrogate grandfather, and she would never disappoint him if she could help it. Was it asking so much, that she let him cook for her? “Fine! I’ll go with you. We can talk on the way.”

“What will we talk about?”

“Don’t play dumb, Mike Davis. You know what we have to talk about!”

“I’ll pick you up at six,” he said, and hung up the phone.

She wanted to hang up on him, but he’d beaten her to the punch. She squared her jaw. He may have had the last word now, but she’d make sure she got the last word tonight.

“S
HERIFF
,” Willie Martin said, practically meeting him at the door as Mike came in after walking around town.

“Yes, Willie. Did something come up?”

“After lunch I tried to start doing my jogging today, but I had chest pains. I think I need to see the doctor. Is that all right?”

Mike frowned, worrying that he might have asked too much from the fifty-year-old man. “Of course it is. I’ll call the clinic. Harry, you go with Willie, okay?”

Mike grabbed his phone and called Jon. He didn’t want to talk to Caroline again until he picked her up. “Dr. Wilson, please. It’s Sheriff Davis.” Then he waited for Jon to come to the phone.

“Anything wrong, Mike?”

“I don’t know. I asked my men to start jogging today and Willie is having chest pains. He’s on his way over.”

“Hang on,” Jon said. Mike heard him ordering a room for Willie, alerting his nurse of what was coming. “Okay, we’re ready for him.”

“Thanks, Jon. Bill the office.”

“If all your men are going to start jogging, they should be checked to see what kind of shape they’re in. Can the Sheriff’s Office afford to do that?”

“Yeah, I guess so.”

“Then have all of them—no, I tell you what. Caro and I will come over tomorrow morning at eight and check the deputies on duty before they go out to run.”

“Are you sure, Jon? I don’t want to burden either of you.”

“It won’t be a problem. The others can check in
here before they go on duty. We’ll leave some time in our schedule.”

“Thanks, Jon. You’re the best.”

Though Caroline might not think so when she heard what Jon had volunteered her for. Not that it would take that much time. Besides Willie, Mike had only five other deputies on duty during the day, and two night guys.

He sighed, hoping Jon told Caro at once and she had time to calm down before he picked her up for dinner.

Fifteen minutes later, Harry returned.

“How’s Willie?” Mike asked at once, coming out of his office.