full of items he thought he might need in caring for Maddie, and he was going to care for her. He suspected she’d yell—or try to yell—and that her objections to his even being in the house might make a very long list, but he was not going to let her chase him off. Not only because he’d given his word to Mark to keep an eye on her, but because in his professional opinion Maddie needed more than just a casual now-and-again glance.
Even before actually leaving the hospital, Noah saw the falling snow through some windows. Setting down his bag, he took the gloves from his jacket pocket, pulled them on and then continued his trek to the outside door nearest the physician’s parking area. Outdoors it seemed to be a little warmer than it had earlier and the snow was not yet a heavy downfall. The flakes, which were small and feathery, fluttered to the earth from a pale-gray sky that appeared smooth and almost satiny.
Noah frowned over that upward view. He’d seen that deceptively innocent sky once before since moving to Montana, and it had buried the town in two-to five-foot snowdrifts before blowing itself out. He usually listened to morning radio while showering and dressing, and the snowstorm that had been predicted for several days now had obviously arrived.
Before he reached his vehicle, a powerful gust of wind blew snow in his face, which was one more sign that the encroaching storm might be a true blizzard. Once settled in his SUV with the engine running, Noah checked his bag to make sure he had his cell phone with him. It was a safety precaution that probably wasn’t necessary; electricity and telephone service weren’t always disrupted during a storm.
But he drove away from the hospital feeling better knowing that if the storm got really bad and he happened to get stuck or stranded somewhere he could always call for assistance.
By the time Noah got back to Mark’s house—a ten-minute drive in good weather, about twenty minutes this trip—he was positive that the storm had already turned meaner. If that was really the case, this storm could be one for the books, he thought as he pulled into Mark’s driveway. Carrying his medical bag, he kept his head down and quick-stepped to the house.
Inside he felt as though he’d just stepped into an oven. Setting his bag on a chair, he shed his outdoor gear and found the wall thermostat, which he turned down. Then he hurried to the living room to check on Maddie.
The small lump in the comforter looked as though it hadn’t budged at all in his absence, so Noah cautiously pulled back the top of the blanket to see Maddie’s face. She appeared to be in a deep sleep, but he had to make sure that a nurturing sleep was all that was happening with her. Gently touching her neck just below her jaw with the tips of his fingers, he felt her pulse and took note of the temperature and moisture of her skin. She wasn’t sweating, nor was her skin hot and feverish to the touch. He would let her sleep for the time being.
Carefully returning the blanket to its former position, Noah returned to the kitchen, rolling up the long sleeves of his shirt as he went. He knew he was a neat freak, but he couldn’t help despising dirty dishes. Of course, Maddie had an excuse, he reminded himself while stacking the dishwasher and then wiping down flat surfaces with a clean, slightly soapy dishcloth.
When the kitchen was cleaned and tidy, Noah took his bag and returned to the living room. This time he approached Maddie without caution. Taking out his blood pressure gauge and stethoscope, he sat on the coffee table again, pulled back the comforter and wrapped the pressure cuff around Maddie’s left arm.
Her eyes fluttered opened. “Wha-what’s going on? Oh, it’s you. What are you up to now?”
“I’m taking your blood pressure.”
“I would think a doctor would know enough to let a tired person sleep.”
“You can sleep all you want to after I check you out.”
“You’re not my doctor.”
“I am now. Stay silent for a minute, okay? I can’t hear myself think, let alone what’s going on in that puny little body of yours.”
“My body is not puny! God, talk about a revolting bedside manner.”
“Just shut the hell up!”
Maddie clamped her lips together. Good-looking or not, this guy—what had he said his name was?—was a total jerk, certainly not the kind of man she would ever give a second glance.
Noah removed the blood pressure cuff from her arm, then placed the little round sound receiver segment of the stethoscope on her chest.
“Hey!” Maddie slapped away the instrument. “Just stop it!”
Noah was fast losing patience, something that he wasn’t overloaded with, in any case. He gave his friend Mark’s mouthy little sister a look that was colder than the outside temperature and then asked with equal frostiness, “How many doctors do you know in Whitehorn who would make a house call? Either you let me examine you properly or I swear I’ll call an ambulance and put your butt in the hospital. It’s up to you. Take your pick.”
Maddie tried to scoff away her immediate misgivings with a snappy comeback but it came off pretty weak. “You wouldn’t dare,” she said, and actually felt a chill go up her spine from the icy expression in his eyes.
“Just try me.” He focused the icy glare onto her eyes.
She absolutely, positively would not look away first. “I’m not afraid of you, you know,” she said, realizing at the same time that she was getting angry. She knew that anger without the physical strength to back it up wasn’t very formidable, but common sense wasn’t controlling her at the moment. What ticked her off so much was that this…this cretin doctor thought he was.
Noah was in no mood for foolish bickering, and he spoke flatly, without a dram of warmth. “There’s no reason you should be afraid of me.” Then he added, sounding angry himself, “Good Lord, woman, don’t you know when someone’s trying to help you? What kind of doctors have you been seeing? What kind of people have you been associating with?”
“My friends and doctors are at least recognizable. I haven’t the foggiest notion of what or who you are.” Maddie was literally gritting her teeth. No one told her what to do, no one, and this…this pompous know-it-all wasn’t going to get away with it, either.
“You most certainly do know. I told you my name before and showed you my medical ID, as well.” He could see confusion in her eyes and added, “My name is Noah Martin…Dr. Noah Martin…and I’m Mark’s friend.”
“All right, you’re a doctor, but why should I believe you’re Mark’s friend?”
“Maybe because I have a key to his house?”
He was boxing her in, which only made Maddie angrier.
“There’s no way you could put me in the hospital without my permission,” she said daringly.
“Oh, but there is. If a person is mentally unbalanced because of fever or other symptoms of illness, I have every right to hospitalize her…or him.”
Maddie’s jaw dropped. “I am not mentally unbalanced, you…you retard!”
Noah glared right back at her. “You want me to think you’re a tough little nut, don’t you? Well, you’re not, and I don’t, and what’s more, you are going to get a medical exam today. Now, are you going to let me do what’s necessary or should I phone
