A Marriage In Wyoming (The Marshall Brothers 3) Read online

  “Hi, Dee. Are you busy?”

  “Hey, Rache!” Deirdre Ames, her best friend in Seattle, clicked her tongue. “I’m never busy where you’re concerned. How are you? How was the drive to Back of Beyond, Wyoming?”

  “No problem. I arrived Monday morning as planned. Sorry I haven’t called, but an emergency came up before I’d been here an hour and I spent a lot of the week with that patient.”

  “Nothing like jumping in at the deep end. Everything all right?”

  “A teenager on the edge of ketoacidosis, now diagnosed with diabetes. You understand how hard that adjustment can be.”

  “Tough one.” Dee was a pediatrician with plenty of experience in juvenile diabetes. “Hope her parents are up to speed.”

  “Not exactly. Her mother is dead and her father refuses to cooperate. I’m kind of helping Lena get used to managing her condition on her own.”

  “You can’t do that forever.”

  “No, but we’re figuring things out as we go.”

  “Not your normal style—you usually make plans way ahead. And who is we?”

  “The other adult in this scenario is Garrett Marshall. He’s in charge of the camp Lena’s attending at his ranch. He’s made himself responsible for her and I’m supposed to be his medical support.” She couldn’t repress a sigh at the thought.

  And her friend heard it. “Why is that a problem? Is he a pain in the butt?”

  “Oh, no. He’s a really nice guy.”

  “That’s promising. Handsome?”

  “Definitely.”

  “Where’s the difficulty? Sounds like a perfect setup.”

  Rachel took a deep breath. “He’s a minister.”

  “Oh.” Dee was silent for a long moment. “That’s too bad. Well, you just meet with him for Lena’s appointments and let it go. Right?”

  “He’s…interested in more.” Rachel revisited this afternoon in the kitchen. “He kissed me.”

  “Is he a good kisser?”

  “Incredible.”

  “Incredible? I’ve never heard you say that about a guy before.”

  “Garrett is different than anybody I’ve met before.”

  After a pause, Dee cleared her throat. “Have you explained to him about your mom?”

  “Only that she died. I’m trying to keep things casual between us.” She remembered what he’d said about hating that word. “Not sharing too much.”

  “You kissed him!”

  “He kissed me first. I thought I could keep it in control.”

  “You always think that. Maybe for once you ought to let go and just follow where it leads.”

  “It leads straight to disaster. He’s honest and reliable, as well as charming, but—”

  “That makes him totally different from those guys who took advantage of your mom. They were criminals, Rache, not well-meaning pastors. Are you really attracted to him?”

  Rachel sighed. “More attracted than I’ve ever been to anyone else.”

  “So maybe…just maybe…you could give this guy a chance.”

  “What would be the point? I’m also worried that I’ll lose the respect of my patients if I’m known as the local preacher’s girlfriend.”

  “I can’t say that wouldn’t happen.” Deirdre took an audible breath. “Still, you shouldn’t have to live like a nun just because you’re a doctor.”

  “But his faith and his church are part of who he is. How can I be so drawn to him when I can’t share that aspect of his life?”

  Her friend laughed. “You don’t want to hear my answer to that question.”

  “Give it to me.”

  “You won’t believe it.”

  “I’ll listen.”

  “No, you won’t. You’ll put up defenses against whatever’s happening here. I’m not going to help you do that.”

  “Deirdre!”

  “Call me back when you figure it out. I’ll be waiting.” She ended the call.

  Rachel barely stopped herself from throwing her phone across the room. Dee could be a soft shoulder to cry on, but she could also be the most frustrating person on the planet when she decided to help you for your own good.

  Of course she needed defenses against Garrett Marshall. What had happened when she left herself vulnerable? Those kisses in the kitchen, that’s what, which would be hard for her to forget. The strength of his shoulder under her hand, the scent of lime from his skin, the shape of his mouth and the way it fit so perfectly over hers…

  …were not things she should dwell on. And, for Rachel, the antidote to ruminating was always action.

  Two hours later, having vacuumed the whole apartment, cleaned the bathroom and swept the front porch, she’d finally worked off enough frustration to get ready for bed.

  But with the light off and the quiet Wyoming night outside her open window, her mind homed in on Garrett and the predicament he presented.

  The problem was, she did want more than casual with Garrett Marshall. She’d been struck that first day by his care for Lena, his willingness to take on the girl’s situation and deal with it rather than handing it off to someone else. Responsible and committed, he cared for others before himself, a quality that appealed to her as a woman and as a doctor. He did it with a sense of humor, too, which worked well when it came to handling prickly teenagers. Not to mention defensive physicians.

  But what her heart wanted and what her head insisted was smart—safe—were entirely different. Garrett threatened her equanimity in a way she’d never experienced before. He tempted her to give in to her feelings, which were all in his favor.

  In her experience, though, letting emotions guide you led to a life like her mother’s—volatile and uncontrolled. Rachel had never been sure, growing up, what would happen next in her world. One day, her mother’s health would be good, the next she’d require a trip to the emergency room. Sometimes bills would be paid, others the electricity would be disconnected. The new boyfriend might be the man of her mother’s dreams. Or another jerk. And all of it depending on her mother’s feelings.

  In the end, attempting a relationship with Garrett was simply too big a risk. She was starting a new medical practice, a new life, and she couldn’t afford to let sentiment get in the way. The best plan would be to keep things simple between them. Just friendship. Just casual. That way, neither of them would get hurt and her life would continue to be what she wanted. Practical. Logical. Self-sufficient.

  If solitary.

  *

  TRUE TO HER WORD, Rachel returned the evening of Lena’s homecoming to supervise the girl’s dinnertime injection. But she dashed off again with just a few words to Caroline, so Garrett didn’t have a chance to talk with her. He was pretty disgruntled about that.

  Supervising dinner preparations took most of his attention, however. Thomas and Marcos were on the same team and, after this afternoon’s fight, were not inclined to cooperate with each other or anyone else. Their attitudes made getting hamburgers grilled an exercise in patience. Luckily Becky and Justino were there to manage the details and ensure a complete meal was served.

  All the kids loved having burgers, but Garrett noticed that Lena was especially enthusiastic.

  “This looks so good,” she said, adding baked beans to her plate. “I’m starved.” She skipped over the big bowl of green salad and went for the potato chips. “Yum.” She took one off her plate and popped it into her mouth.

  Garrett stepped up beside her. “Salad would be a better choice for crunchy.”

  She pouted. “I’ll get some later. My plate is full.”

  “You’ll be full if you eat all of that. Maybe throw some of the chips away?”

  “I don’t want to.” Her voice approached a whine. “I’ve been waiting all day for these. I ate salad at lunch. And fruit.”

  “Those were excellent choices, the kind you should make most of the time.”

  Lena pounced on his mistake. “Most of the time I will. Tonight, I want chips.” She marched away from him
to sit at the table. Justino, who had been behind her in line, avoided Garrett’s gaze as he followed.

  “How is it possible,” Garrett asked Caroline later, “to have an argument about potato chips?”

  “You can argue with a teenager about anything,” she said. “And a teenager with diabetes might be even more sensitive. You’ve got a real challenge on your hands. Are you okay with that?”

  They were sitting on the edge of the front porch, watching the kids play badminton after dinner. “What choice do I have? Somebody has to be responsible for helping Lena adjust.” He shrugged. “And whether I’m ready or not, her dad handed the job to me. I wish Rachel had been here tonight, though. She might have been more persuasive.”

  “I did invite her to stay, but she said she was expecting a phone call.”

  Avoiding me is more likely. Garrett’s ego still smarted from the idea that a relationship between them would harm her professionally. “I have to say, I’m surprised that someone so bright would choose to practice in little old Bisons Creek at the start of their career. Why wouldn’t she choose a bigger city, with more opportunities?”

  “Rachel really missed Wyoming, especially when she was in Seattle.” Caroline leaned her folded arms on her knees. “And she always felt strongly about ‘underserved communities,’ as she puts it. The chance to work in a one-doctor town was just what she wanted when she finished her residency in Seattle. I hope the folks around here appreciate how lucky we are to have her.”

  “So do I.” Caroline’s comment struck a spark in his mind. “Maybe there ought to be some kind of party to welcome her to the area, introduce our new doctor to her patients. What do you think?”

  Her smile wide, Caroline nodded. “It’s a terrific idea. Where would we have it?”

  “Somewhere in town—maybe Haley Brewster’s place. She’s got a big yard and all those porches.”

  “You’re just going to inform Mrs. Brewster she has to throw a party and invite the whole town?”

  Garrett grinned. “I’ll talk to her at church on Sunday. When I’m finished, she’ll believe it was all her own idea.”

  Meanwhile, though, he was supposed to supervise Lena’s final injection of the day. He searched for her at curfew and found her at the barn with Justino, standing as close together as they could manage without actually being in an embrace. They separated slightly as he walked up.

  “Time for bed,” he announced. “Say good-night.”

  By the longing gazes they exchanged, they might be parting for six months rather than a few hours.

  Sighing, Lena followed Garrett to the girls’ cabin. Caroline waited for them inside, and he could hear Lizzie and Becky in the bedroom at the rear of the house. He was definitely out of his usual element, but the point was to support Lena, as he had promised.

  “So what’s the first step?” he asked her.

  “Test kit.”

  He frowned. “Are you sure?”

  “Yes,” she snapped, rustling through her papers on the kitchen counter. “I’m sure. It says right here—” She stopped and rolled her eyes. “Wash your hands.”

  “Right.”

  “I keep forgetting that.”

  “You’ll get used to remembering. This is only your first day solo.”

  With Caroline observing, they went through the procedure, starting with the blood test. Lena read the meter when it beeped. “Huh. It’s high.”

  “Remember what you had for dinner,” Caroline prompted her. “You ate a brownie for dessert.”

  Garrett nodded. “Those kinds of foods will send your blood-sugar reading up.”

  “Okay, okay.” She prepared her nightly dosage. “I was bad. So sue me.”

  He remembered some of the reading he’d done on handling kids with diabetes. “Not bad, Lena. Just not making the safest choices.”

  Frowning, she dialed the dose on her insulin pen and he checked it against the prescription. “Looks right to me. Show Caroline so she understands what you’re doing.”

  “I love being a show-and-tell project.” But she took the pen to Caroline to demonstrate how it worked.

  The injection itself obviously hurt, but Lena completed it and breathed a sigh of relief. “There. Can I go to bed now?”

  Garrett shared the sense of relief. “Sure. See you tomorrow morning.”

  She gave him a tired smile. “When I have to do the same thing all over again.”

  “It will get easier.” He set a hand on her shoulder and squeezed gently. “Guaranteed.”

  Caroline followed him out onto the porch, where they found Ford sitting on the swing, waiting.

  “I checked in on the boys and they’re all set.” He stretched out an arm along the back of the bench as Caroline sat beside him. “Are you heading for bed, Garrett?”

  He shook his head. “I’ve got to work on this week’s sermon. It’s written, but there’s a lot of editing to be done.”

  “Poor Garrett.” Caroline put up her hand to smother a yawn. “You’ve had a hard week, spending so many hours at the hospital. Maybe it will be easier now that Lena’s where we can all help take care of her.”

  “I’m sure it will be. We still need to have a meeting with Rachel so you, at least, understand the details of the process.” No matter how Rachel might feel about him, Garrett was certain she would do the best for her patient. Talented, concerned and committed, Rachel Vale was a woman to be depended upon. He would stake his life on that.

  “She mentioned she could come out tomorrow,” Caroline said. “Maybe that’s when we should sit down together. I’ll call her early in the morning.”

  He nodded. “I’ll be there. Ford and Dylan can ride with the kids in the meantime.”

  “If we’re not baling hay, moving cattle or keeping Thomas and Marcos from tearing each other apart,” Ford said. “We’ve got plenty of extra time.”

  “We’ll get it all done,” Garrett said, too tired to keep the irritation out of his voice. “A little positivity goes a long way.”

  “You’re the one who’s short on sleep.”

  “I’m not complaining.”

  “No, you just keep taking on more and more responsibility until something has to give. You can’t do it all, Garrett.”

  He managed to quell his irritation. “Thanks for the concern, brother.” He gave Ford a salute off his hat brim. “I’ll be okay.”

  Of course, after getting to bed at 2:00 a.m. on Friday morning, he wasn’t quite so optimistic when his alarm rang at five. A cold shower and two cups of strong coffee got him moving, though, and the prospect of seeing Rachel in a couple of hours put a smile on his face when he went to wake up the boys.

  With breakfast eaten and cleaned up, he helped the kids saddle up for their ride. As he left the barn, he noticed Rachel’s SUV approaching on the drive. Caroline and Rachel were already sitting at the dining room table when he came in.

  “Thanks for coming,” he said, pulling out the chair across from Rachel. “We checked on Lena last night and this morning—everything went according to orders.”

  She met his gaze directly, but he thought she might be blushing. “From what I observed yesterday,” she said, “Lena understands the procedure and can follow it, though she’s not organized about the process.”

  “How long should we plan to supervise her?” Caroline asked.

  Rachel shrugged. “As far as the injections are concerned, you can probably trust her to manage on her own now.”

  Garrett sat forward. “After less than a week? That seems way too soon to me.”

  “Lena’s a smart girl,” Rachel said, “and she understands what’s at stake. Like most teenagers, she wants to take control of her own body, her own life.”

  “I agree.” Caroline braced her folded arms on the table. “Granted that you’re standing in for her parents, Garrett, but Lena should have privacy for her injections. She’s an adolescent girl. More important, we want to teach all the teens independence and responsibility while they’re here.
What better example than allowing Lena to take charge of her treatment?”

  “I’m not sure we can risk her physical well-being for the sake of a principle.” He scrubbed a hand across his face. “What if she makes a mistake?”

  “She’ll experience the consequences,” Rachel said. “And learn not to make mistakes. Caroline’s right—Lena can handle this.”

  He shook his head. “I think it’s asking too much of her at this point.”

  “In that case, there’s another option.” She slid some papers toward him. “I did a little research on the internet last night. There’s a camp for kids with diabetes in the mountains near Laramie. They offer trained staff, the right kind of support and peers who face the same issues. I called this morning—they have spaces open and scholarships are available.”

  Folding her hands on the table, she sent him an encouraging smile. “Why not send Lena there?”

  Chapter Six

  Garrett flushed as if he’d been slapped in the face. “Send her away?”

  “Oh, no,” Caroline said. “We can’t do that.”

  Rachel hadn’t expected the suggestion to meet with immediate approval, so she had prepared her arguments. “On top of everything else you’re trying to do, supporting Lena is a huge burden. This other camp is designed for exactly that purpose. Why not give her the benefit of expert care?”

  “Lena is not a burden.” Garrett’s voice, usually so easygoing, had a hard edge. “I won’t abandon her the way her dad did.”

  “You wouldn’t be—”

  “She’d believe we were. Anyway, how do you imagine we’re going to separate her from Justino?”

  “That’s a point.” This discussion was proving to be every bit as difficult as she’d expected. “But you could talk to her and get her reaction to the idea. You might be surprised.”

  “She’ll believe we want to be rid of her,” Caroline said. “Because she’s too much trouble.”

  “If you explained—”

  Garrett got to his feet. “I know you’re trying to find the optimal solution for everybody, Rachel. I just don’t agree this is the right one.” He scooted the chair in and then stood, gripping the back. “We’ve developed a relationship with Lena. She trusts us and has faith in us as caregivers. I don’t want to jeopardize that by even hinting she should go somewhere else.”