Chapter 2
Thunder Canyon Resort’s infirmary was a set of rooms located on the bottom floor at the back of the massive lodge. When Caleb Douglas, wealthy businessman and cattle baron of Thunder Canyon, decided to build the resort, he’d spared no expense. The multistories of wood and glass spread across the slope of mountain like a modern-day castle. By itself, Marshall’s office was large enough to hold a Saturday night dance. In fact, he’d often thought how perfect the gleaming hardwood floors would be for boot scootin’ and twirling a pretty girl under his arm. Not very professional thoughts for a doctor, Marshall supposed, but then he hardly had the job of a normal doctor.
One whole wall of his office was constructed of glass; it was an enormous window to the outside world. His desk, a huge piece of gleaming cherrywood, had been placed at the perfect angle for Marshall to view the nearby mountains and a portion of the ski slope. At this time in the summer, it wasn’t rare for him to look up from his paperwork to see elk or mule deer grazing along the slopes.
Yes, it was a cushy job. One that Marshall had never dreamed of having. At least not while he’d been trudging through medical school, burning the midnight oil over anatomy books while his friends were out partying.
When Marshall had finally received his doctorate, he’d come home and taken a job at Thunder Canyon General Hospital. At the time some of his friends had wondered about his choice. They had all continually reminded him that his specialty in sports medicine could possibly open up big doors for him. Wouldn’t he like to work for a major league team in baseball or the NFL where he could make piles of money?
Marshall would be the first to admit that he liked money and he’d gone into the medical profession believing it was a way to make a fortune without breaking his back. But he hadn’t necessarily had his eye on a job that would take him away from his hometown.
By the time he’d finished medical school and his internship, he’d been too homesick to even consider going off to some major city on the East or West Coast to look for a job. Instead, he’d returned to Thunder Canyon, never dreaming that his hometown was about to undergo a sudden and drastic change.
A little over two years ago the discovery of gold at the Queen of Hearts mine had quickly changed the whole area. Businesses, mostly catering to tourists, were sprouting up in Thunder Canyon like daffodils in springtime. The resort, which had started out as a single lodge with a ski slope, had expanded to an upscale, year-round tourist attraction with all sorts of indoor and outdoor enticements for the young and old. And the resort was continuing to build and expand. Under the management of Marshall’s longtime buddy Grant Clifton, the recreational hot spot had become a gold mine itself. And Marshall was definitely reaping part of the rewards.
This morning, as soon as he’d entered his office, his assistant Ruthann had placed a steaming cup of coffee along with a plate of buttered croissants on his desk. The woman had been a registered nurse for nearly thirty years and three years ago had just settled into retirement when her husband suddenly died of a heart attack. The tragedy had put her in financial straits and when Marshall had heard she’d needed a job, he’d decided she’d be perfect as his assistant.
Now after a year of working with her, he realized he’d been more than right about the woman. She was an excellent nurse with plenty of experience, plus he didn’t have to worry about her ogling him as something to take home to meet mother. In fact, in her early fifties, Ruthann was more like a mother to him than an assistant.
“Surprise, surprise. You actually have three patients this morning,” she said with dry amusement as she watched him chomp into one of the croissants. “Any clue as to when you’d like to see them?”
“Are any of them critical?” he asked, even though he knew if any patient had arrived with serious injuries, Ruthann wouldn’t be standing around gabbing.
“A sprained ankle, a cut knee and a jammed finger. I think the finger case is just a ruse to see you. She’s young and blond and drenched with designer perfume.”
“What a suspicious mind you have, Ruthie,” he scolded playfully.
Her laugh was mocking. “I see the sort of games that go on in this infirmary.
Frankly, it amazes me how brazen women can be nowadays when it comes to you men.”
The memory of Mia Smith’s aloof, even shy behavior toward him yesterday had been something entirely different from the sort of women Ruthann was describing.
Maybe that’s why he couldn’t get the heiress out of his mind.
“Okay, Ruthie, I’ll forget my breakfast and go see if Ms. Blonde really has a finger problem.”
The petite woman with short red hair and a face full of freckles snorted with playful sarcasm. “That’s no way for a doctor to eat.”
Grinning, he retorted, “Then why did you put it here for me?”
“Because I knew you’d sleep instead of get out of bed and make yourself breakfast.”
Marshall shook a finger at her. “I’ll have you know I was up early this morning.
I just didn’t make breakfast because I was chasing Leroy halfway down the mountain. He dug a hole last night beneath the backyard fence. Guess he was mad at me for not taking him hiking yesterday.”
Marshall’s Australian blue heeler was often so adept at understanding his master that it was downright eerie. No matter how he tried, Marshall couldn’t fool the dog.
“You went hiking? I thought you were going to help your dad paint that workshed of his.”
Shaking his head, Marshall wiped bread crumbs from his fingers and picked up the three files Ruthann had placed in front of them. Since they all belonged to current guests of the lodge, each of the manila folders held only a single sheet inside them. Being a doctor at a place where people resided for only a few days or weeks didn’t allow the opportunity to make longtime patients. Temperature and blood-pressure readings didn’t tell him much about a person. But that was okay with Marshall. He’d never set out to be one of those kind family doctors who knew all the townsfolk by name, made sure they kept all their routine checkups and often served as their counselor and therapist. That sort of doctoring took commitment and he was too busy enjoying himself in other ways to chain himself to an office.
“He and Mom had to do something with some friends—something about an anniversary celebration. We’ve planned the painting day for another time.”
He rose to his feet, a signal to Ruthann that it was time for them to get to work. As they walked to the door, he said casually, “I met the heiress yesterday.”
Pausing, Ruthann twisted her head around to give him a bemused look. “The heiress,” she repeated blankly. “What are you talking about?”
He rolled his eyes. Normally Ruthann was the one who kept him up on resort guests. He couldn’t believe she was unaware of Mia Smith.
“The heiress. You know, that black-haired beauty that everyone has been talking about. The one that’s always alone.”
Ruthann’s brows suddenly lifted with dawning. “Oh, that one. I didn’t realize she was an heiress. Where’d you get that information?”
“Well, I don’t know for a fact that she’s an heiress. Grant was the one who insinuated that she must be from a rich family. She’s been here more than two weeks now. Only a person with money to spare could afford that much time at a luxury resort. He said she rented a safety deposit box for her jewels, too.”
“Grant! Isn’t he supposed to be engaged to Stephanie? What’s he doing gossiping about a female guest?”
Marshall sighed. Yep, Ruthann was just like a mother, he decided, maybe worse.
“Don’t go jumping to the wrong conclusions. I was the one asking Grant about Mia Smith.”
Ruthann shot him a frown of disgust. “I should have guessed.” She clucked her tongue in a disapproving way. “A grown man, a doctor at that, prying for information about a woman you don’t know from Adam. Shame on you, Marshall Cates. Now what was she like?”
Marshall laughed at the nurse’s abrupt turnaround on the sins of gossiping.
“Cool. Very cool,” he told her. “But as pretty as the rising sun. I got the sense, though, that she’s like that beautiful actress, uh—” he paused as his mind searched for the name “—Greta Garbo. She wants to be alone.”
Nodding shrewdly the nurse said, “In other words she didn’t fall for any of your nonsense.”
Reaching for the doorknob, Marshall yanked it open and taking Ruthann by the shoulder ushered her over the threshold.
“Don’t count me out yet, Ruthie. Besides, for all you know the woman has been pacing her room, wondering how she can get a second chance with me.”
Ruthann chuckled. “I’m sure she’s tearing her hair out for an opportunity to get her hands on you.”
That was the last thing Mia Smith was probably doing, Marshall thought wryly.
But then he wasn’t going to let her snub get to him. He’d never had to beg or cajole any woman into having a date with him and he’d be a fool to start now.
With a good-natured chuckle, he nudged Ruthann on toward the first examining room. “Let her pine. Why would I need a beautiful heiress when I have you?”
Behind the lodge, several hundred feet farther up the mountain, Mia paced through the suite of rooms she’d been living in since she’d arrived at Thunder Canyon Resort. A day ago she had considered the luxurious log cabin as a refuge.
But now, after the encounter on the mountain with Dr. Marshall Cates, her peace of mind had been shattered.
She’d gone there hoping the quietness and the beauty would allow her to meditate, maybe even help her decide what to do next with her life. But then he showed up and her senses had been blown away by his charming smile and strong, masculine presence.
Now she was afraid to step out of her cabin and especially leery of walking down to the lodge, where the infirmary was located. The lodge meant maybe running into Dr. Cates and Mia didn’t want to risk seeing him again. He was trouble.
She’d felt it when she’d first looked into his eyes and felt her heart race like a wild mustang galloping across a grassy plain.
So what are you going to do, Mia? Stay in your cabin for the next month? Groaning with self-disgust, Mia sank onto a wide window seat that looked down upon the lodge and the cluster of numerous other resort buildings, imagining what it would look like in the dead of winter. Everything would be capped with white snow and skiers would be riding the lifts and playing on the slopes.
Suddenly, her cell phone rang, the shrill sound jangling her nerves. She stared warily at the small instrument lying on an end table.
There were only a handful of people that had her number and she’d left all of them behind in Colorado. She’d told what few friends she had that she was taking an extended vacation and didn’t know when she might return. As for her mother, Mia hadn’t told Janelle Josephson anything. She’d simply left the woman a note telling her that she was going away for a while and to please give her the space she needed.
That had been nearly three weeks ago, and Janelle had rang Mia’s cell phone every day since. And every day Mia had refused to take her call.
Mercifully, the ringing finally stopped and Mia left the window seat to look at the caller ID. Just as she expected. Janelle wouldn’t give up. She wanted to be a part of her daughter’s life. And as much as Mia hated to reject her, right now she couldn’t even think of Janelle as her mother. As far as she was concerned her mother was dead and nothing, not even a pile of money, would ever bring her back.
There are people, like me, who make it just fine in life without a pile of riches.
Dr. Marshall Cates’ words had pierced her heart like a flaming arrow and even a day later they continued to haunt her, to remind her of the awful, selfish choices she’d made in her life.
Money. She desperately wished that she’d never needed or wanted it. She wanted to take what she had of it and throw it into the nearest river. At least then maybe she would feel clean. At least then maybe she could start over. But something told her that even that drastic measure wouldn’t heal the wounds she was carrying.
Angry with herself, she put down the phone, walked over to the dining table and grabbed the handbag she’d tossed there earlier. Seeking privacy didn’t mean she had to totally hide from life. And if she did cross paths with Dr. Marshall Cates, she could handle it. After all, he was just a man.
A man who would look at you with disgust if he knew you’d once been Mia Hanover, a woman who’d killed her own mother.
For a brief moment, Mia shut her eyes tightly and swallowed hard as the memory of Nina Hanover’s death filled her mind like a dark cloud. Her adoptive mother had been a woman who’d worked hard as a farmer’s wife, who’d always tried to give Mia the best in life. She’d been a sweet, loving woman until the alcohol had taken her into its awful grip.
With a groan of anguish, Mia shook her head and hurried out of the cabin, wallowing in guilt and self-pity wasn’t going to fix anything. She had to get out and get her mind on other things.
A half hour later, in downtown Thunder Canyon, she parked her rental car in front of the Clip ‘N’ Curl. Even though Mia had made use of the fancy beauty salon and spa located on the resort, she felt much more comfortable here in this traditional, down-home beauty parlor. Here the women dressed casually and everyone talked as though they were all family.
Since the majority of the women at the resort appeared to use the Aspenglow for their beauty treatments, Mia figured the patrons of the Clip ‘N’ Curl were local residents. In fact, a few days ago when she’d visited the place, she’d heard a couple of the women complaining about the traffic problems that the influx of tourists had brought to Thunder Canyon.
Since Mia was one of those tourists, she’d simply sat quietly and listened to the other customers discussing the Queen of Hearts mine and how the recent discovery of gold there had turned the town topsy-turvy. Several of the women felt that the new money was a wonderful thing for the little town, but others had spoken about how much they hated the traffic, the crowds and the loss of Thunder Canyon’s quaintness.
Money. Gold. Riches. The subject seemed to follow Mia no matter where she went.
If she could manage a walk-in appointment today, she hoped the shoptalk would be about something different. The last thing she wanted to think about was the money Janelle, her birth mother, had showered upon her and how drastically it had changed Mia’s once simple life.
Leaving her small rental car, Mia walked into the Clip ‘N’ Curl and waited at the front desk. The small salon was presently undergoing major renovations. Only three stations were up and working amid the chaos of working carpenters. And today all three styling chairs were full while only three empty chairs remained in the small waiting area.
Figuring she’d never get an appointment, Mia turned to leave the shop when one of the hairdressers called out to her.
“Don’t leave, honey. We’ll make a place for you. Just have a seat. There’s free coffee and muffins if you’d like a snack while you wait.”
“Thank you. I’ll be glad to wait,” Mia told her, then took a seat in one of the empty plastic chairs.
As Mia reached forward and picked up one of the style magazines lying on a coffee table, the woman sitting next to her said, “Your hair looks beautiful. I hope you’re not planning to cut it.”
Easing back in the chair, Mia glanced over to see it was a college-aged woman who’d given her the compliment. Short, feathery spikes of chestnut hair framed a round face while a friendly smile spread a pair of wide lips.
Mia smiled back at her. “No. Just a shampoo and blow-dry. I’ve tried short hair before and believe me I didn’t look nearly as cute as you.”
The young woman let out a quiet, bubbly laugh. “Thanks for the compliment, but compared to you I’m just a plain Jane.” She thrust her hand over toward Mia.
“Hi, I’m Marti Newmar.”
Mia shook Marti’s hand and as she did she realized it had been months, maybe longer since she’d felt a real need to communicate with another woman just for the sake of talking and sharing ideas. Dear God, maybe this quaint little
western town was beginning to help her heal, she thought.
“Mia Smith. Nice to meet you.”
Marti’s nose wrinkled at the tip as she thoughtfully studied Mia. “I think I’ve seen you somewhere. You live around here?”
Trying to push away the cloak of wariness she constantly wore, Mia said, “No.
I’m a guest at Thunder Canyon Resort.”
Marti’s lips parted in an O, then her fingers snapped with sudden recognition.
“That’s it. That’s where I’ve seen you. In the resort lounge.”
Mia relaxed. She should have known this young woman had to be a local and not someone from Denver or Alamosa, Colorado, where she’d lived for most of her adult life.
“Yes, that’s probably where it was,” Mia agreed.
“I just started working at the coffee shop in the lounge a few days ago.” She laughed. “I’m still learning how to make a latte. I grew up on a nearby ranch and the only kind of coffee my parents ever drank was the cowboy kind. You know, throw the grounds and water into a granite pot and let it boil. This fancy stuff is all new to me.”
Warmed by the woman’s openness, Mia smiled at her. “I’m sure you’ll learn fast.”
“I hope so. Grant Clifton, the guy that manages the resort, was kind enough to give me a job doing something. You see, I’m trying to get through college and the cost is just awful. I got a partial scholarship on my grades and this job should help with the rest of the expense.”
Marti’s situation was so familiar to Mia that she almost felt as though she were looking in a mirror. Five years ago she’d entered college with hopes of getting a degree in nursing. But at that time her father had already passed away and, using what little money she and her mother could earn at menial jobs, she’d had to settle for taking one or two classes at a time. Those years had been very rough and discouraging. It had been during those terribly lean times in her life that her priorities had gone haywire. She’d begun to think that money could fix everything that was messed up in her life. She’d been so very, very wrong.
“Whatever you do, don’t give up,” Mia encouraged her. “It may take you a while to find your dream, but you will.”
Nodding, Marti said, “Yeah, that’s what my mother keeps telling me.” Tilting her head to one side, she continued to study Mia. “Have you met many people at the resort?”
The young woman’s question instantly brought the image of Marshall Cates to Mia’s mind.
“A few. I’m not…much of a social person.”
“Hmm. Well, there’re all sorts of good-looking men hanging around there.” She gave Mia an impish grin. “But I only think of them as eye candy. I’m not about to let some smooth-tongued devil change my plans to become a teacher.”
“I’m sure some day you’ll want to marry. When the time is right for you,” Mia told Marti, while wondering if that time would ever come for herself. At one time, Mia had dreamed and hoped for a family of her own. Now she would just settle for some sort of peace to come to her heart. Otherwise she’d never be able to give her love to anyone.
Marti shrugged in a ho-hum way. “I don’t know. I’ve seen my older sister get her heartbroken over and over again.” She looked at Mia. “You know Dr. Cates? The hunk that works at the resort?”
Every nerve in Mia’s body suddenly went on alert. What was she going to learn about the man now?
“Vaguely,” she said, not about to elaborate on the surprise encounter she’d had with the man.
Marti sighed, telling Mia that the young woman definitely considered Marshall Cates eye candy. “Gorgeous, isn’t he?”
“He’s, uh—a nice-looking man.”
“Mmm. Well, my sister, Felicia, thought so, too. They dated for a while and she was getting wedding bells on the brain.”
Mia was afraid to ask, but she did anyway. “What happened?”
Wrinkling her nose, Marti said, “She found out the good doctor wasn’t about to settle for just one woman. Not when he had a flock of them waiting in line.”
So the man was a playboy. That shouldn’t surprise her. No matter where he was or who he was with, the man was bound to turn female heads. The best thing she could do was forget she’d ever met him. Still, she couldn’t help but ask the question, “Is your sister still dating Dr. Cates?”
Marti chuckled. “No, thank goodness. She finally opened her eyes wide where Marshall Cates was concerned. She recently moved to Bozeman and got engaged to another guy.”
Across the room, one of the hairdressers called out. “Marti, I’m ready for you, honey.”
Smiling at Mia, the young woman hurriedly snatched up her handbag and jumped to her feet. “Nice meeting you, Mia. Maybe I’ll see you at the coffee shop. Come by and say hello, okay?”
Nodding, Mia returned Marti’s smile. “Sure. I’ll look forward to it.”
Later that afternoon, at the resort lodge, Marshall finished up the small amount of paperwork he had to do, then left Ruthann in charge of the quiet infirmary and headed down to the lounge bar for a short break.
Three couples were sitting at tables, busy talking and sipping tall, cool drinks. One older man with graying hair and a hefty paunch was sitting at the end of the bar. He appeared to be sleeping off his cocktail.
Lizbeth Stanton was tending bar this afternoon, and the pretty young woman with long auburn hair smiled when Marshall slid onto one of the stools.
“Hey, there. I was about to decide you weren’t going to show up today.” She glanced at the watch on her wrist. “This is late for you.”
Marshall chuckled. “I’m so relieved that at least one woman around this place is interested enough to keep up with my comings and goings.”
She shot him a sexy smile. “Awww. Poor Marshall,” she cooed. “Had a bad day?”
With an easy grin, he raked a hand through his dark, wavy hair.
“I’ve never seen so many patients in one day. Several were suffering from altitude sickness and one had taken a nasty fall on a hiking trail. But they’ll all be okay.”
Not bothering to ask if he wanted a drink, Lizbeth went over to a back bar and began to mix him a cherry cola. At one end of the work counter, a small stereo was emitting the twangy sounds of a popular country music tune.
“Well,” Lizbeth said to him, “that is what you’re paid for. To doctor people who have more money than sense.”
Yeah, he thought, that’s right. But sometimes in the darkest part of the night, when everything looks different, he wondered if he was just as shallow as some of the guests he treated. He’d not gone to school for eight years intending to doctor women who’d ripped off nail beds trying to rock climb with false fingernails. But on the other hand, Marshall was making an enormous salary and most days he hardly had to lift a hand to earn it. He’d be crazy to want anything else. Wouldn’t he?
Lizbeth carried the tall glass over to the bar and placed it on a cork coaster before she pushed the frosty drink in front of him.
“Here, since you can’t drink anything alcoholic on the job, maybe this will perk you up.”
“Thanks, beautiful. Remind me to do something for you sometime.” Giving her a wink, he took a sip of the drink, then lifted the stemmed cherry she’d placed on top and popped it into his mouth.
As he chewed the sweet treat, Lizbeth’s brown eyes studied him in a calculating way. “Well, if you really mean that you could take me out to dinner tonight. I’m getting tired of taking home a sack of fast food and eating it in front of the television.”
Marshall chuckled a second time. He doubted Lizbeth ever had to spend a night alone, unless she wanted it that way. Even if she was known as a big flirt, she was pretty, bubbly and enjoyable to be around, the perfect type of woman for Marshall, who didn’t want any sort of clingy hands grabbing hold of him.
“If you’d really like to go out to dinner tonight, then I’m all for it.”
A faint look of surprise crossed her face. “You really mean that?”
Marshall shrugged. He and Lizbeth both knew that neither of them would ever be serious about each other, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t enjoy an evening together. Besides, eating dinner with a warm, appreciative female was better than being snubbed by a cool, beautiful heiress.
“Sure,” he answered. “Let’s splurge and eat at the Gallatin Room. The grilled salmon is delicious.”
Lizbeth’s brown eyes were suddenly sparkling and Marshall wondered what it would take to see Mia Smith react to him in such a way.
Damn it, man, forget the woman, Marshall scolded himself. You’ve got plenty of female distraction around here. You don’t need to get hung up on a woman who’s apparently forgotten how to smile.
“Oh, this is great, Marshall! I can wear my new high heels. Just for you,” she added with coy sweetness. “What time shall we meet?”
“When do you get off work?” Marshall asked.
“Six this evening. But I can ready by seven.”
“Okay, I’ll meet you in the lounge at seven-thirty,” he told her. And by then he was going to make damn sure that the winsome Mia Smith was going to be pushed completely out of his thoughts.
20-10-07, 01:01 PM
Paging Dr. Right- Stella Bagwell (August 2007)l
1
2
جديد مواضيع قسم الارشيف
العرض العادي
