couldn’t stop glancing at him, desire making her heart pound. She tried to focus on the horses, working hard and fast, and shut Luke out of her mind and stop gawking at him.
Suddenly one of the horses collapsed, and she raced to it, kneeling and giving it a shot as quickly as she could.
It was breathing hard, making gasping noises with each breath. It was bleeding from gashes on its belly and neck.
“Scarlett, I’m going to put him down. You’re fighting a losing battle. Go on to the next one.”
Startled, she glanced up to see Luke standing with a pistol in hand. A cold chill ran down her spine. Instantly on her feet, she faced him as she placed her hands on her hips.
“No, you’re not! I can save him. Put that pistol, away, Luke Weston, and don’t get it out again around the horses unless I ask you to.”
He blinked and then pressed his lips together. She didn’t know whether he was biting back a laugh or was angry at her for telling him what to do with his own horse.
She was earnest, and there was no way she was going to let him shoot his livestock. “This horse will be on its feet tomorrow.” She ground out the words. “I’ve given him a shot that will help. Give him time. Don’t you put any animal down without my permission, you hear me?”
“I won’t, Scarlett, but look at him. He doesn’t have the strength to stand. He’s all bones and he can’t breathe.”
“He can breathe, and I’m going to take care of him. He’ll be on his feet when morning comes. I know what I’m doing, Luke, so you go back to work and leave this horse to me.” She glared at him and met his unfathomable gaze. Without a word, he tucked the pistol in the back of his waistband and stalked away.
She watched him go for a few seconds and then turned her attention to the horse and forgot Luke for the next hour. She paused briefly once for another call to her mother to check about Carl and once again, he was fine and all was well at home.
She went from one horse to another, trying to tend to each one, and she thought of the carcasses they had found, of horses that hadn’t survived. During the afternoon Luke had grown silent, and she knew he was furious with his dad and his fury grew with each dead animal they found. She knew he was still devastated over the dog because, as a kid, he had loved that dog.
Occasionally, as she moved around, she saw Luke working, repairing the corral fence. There were so many places where the fence was down or damaged that she hoped he could get it fixed before some of the horses wandered away. The feed he had put out held the attention of those that were able to stand to eat or drink.
Luke had rounded up some cattle, less than a dozen head. She thought of the big herds they’d had when Luke was in high school. She heard a twig snap and looked around to see him approaching again.
“Unless you’ve changed a lot, I know you love hamburgers more than steaks. I’m having dinner brought out here.”
She tilted her head to look up at him. “How on earth did you get dinner delivered to this ranch? There isn’t a café for twenty miles.”
He grinned and shrugged. “My money’s good for some things. I should’ve asked you who to call, but I remember Rusty’s. They’re still in business. We’ll take a break and eat. Okay?”
She smiled. “Okay. If I’d known you were going to do that, I would have asked you to get more apples for the horses.”
“If we’re still here, I’ll try at breakfast. A couple of the horses are back on their feet already. You’re a miracle worker, Scarlett, and I can’t tell you how grateful I am that you’re helping. I’d hate like hell to have to put all these horses down. That would be about my last straw.”
“You’re not going to have to put any down, so forget that. I don’t care how bad they are, we’re going to save them, but if you’d come much later—”
“I already lost some before I got here,” he said, frowning as he glanced at the horses. “I better get back to work.” He turned to leave. “I’ll call you when dinner arrives.”
She barely heard him because she had already turned back to a gash she was stitching. The smaller white horse stood patiently, but she wondered if it would collapse any minute. It didn’t seem to care what she did or that she was even there.
By midnight there were still horses that needed tending to, and Luke was still fixing a stock tank. She wanted to keep working but, mindful of little Carl and her mother, she walked into the shadows, trying to get out of Luke’s earshot before calling home.
As expected, her mother began to argue for her to come home, reminding her again that being with Luke was going to dredge up all kinds of pain.
“Do you really want to go through all that again?” her mother asked.
“Mom, I’m taking care of very sick horses and some of the cattle need attention. They’re in dire shape, and I’m not abandoning them to die when I can save most of them.”
“My heavens! How awful. I haven’t heard anything bad like that about the Double U. Even so, Scarlett, I’m worried about you.”
“Mom, this is my job, to save animals. This is why I became a vet. I’m needed here and we can already see a difference in some horses.”
“Scarlett, Luke is going to hurt you again. Maybe even worse this time because you’re not kids anymore. Please get out of there and come home. Baby Carl and all the family need you. You don’t want to go through all that loss and hurt again, and that’s what will happen if you stay.”
“No, I won’t. I won’t let it happen.” There was a long pause, and she knew her mother was giving up and could not continue arguing.
“Take care of yourself, then. We love you,” her mom said. “And before you start to get caught up in old feelings with that man, just remember that Luke will go home to Silicon Valley in a few days and you won’t hear from him until the next time he pays a visit here.”
She sighed. “I love you, Mom, and I love my family. Luke’s dad has done a terrible thing, and bearing witness to it makes me so thankful for all of you. I’ll take care of myself, I promise,” she said, wondering if she really could keep that promise, or if she would just cave if Luke wanted to hug or kiss her. She almost laughed aloud as she ended her call. Her amusement fled when she looked back and saw the lights, the weak horses, the cows in another pasture. Was she being foolish and risking her heart to try to save horses that might not survive no matter what she did?
But she felt she had to stay. She had taken an oath to help animals, and she took that oath seriously.
She just hoped she could resist Luke, but then again, she might not have any reason to worry about resisting him. He probably had a woman waiting in Silicon Valley for his return.
Her attention was taken again by the ailing horses. She suspected Luke was right about the cattle. There were few left that he had found, and she imagined nearly all the Double U cattle had been rustled long ago. Luke said he would continue searching for more when daylight came, but so far he hadn’t found any. She continued to nurse the horses, wondering if she would have to work through daybreak. Dinner had given her another spurt of energy, but that was beginning to fade. She
