Cooper's Wife. Jillian Hart

Mandy bit her lip, trying to hold back her tears like a big girl.

      “Let me see, pumpkin.” Anna gently pulled Mandy’s bandaged arm away from her chest. When she loosened a few buttons on the now ragged dress, she saw a horrible bruise marking her skin. But it was the sight of the left side of her little chest rising when her right side did not that terrified Anna. Something was dreadfully wrong.

      “Tucker.” Calling to one of the deputies, the mighty sheriff strode away.

      Would Mandy die? Fear condensed into a tight, hard ball in her stomach. Her hands trembled as she used a thin stick from the ground as a splint. She wrapped the last strips from her petticoat around Mandy’s broken arm, trying to keep hold of hope.

      “I’m going to ride her into town.” Cooper squinted against the midday sun. “With the trouble she has breathing, I don’t figure we have a lot of time. My mount is the fastest.”

      “I’ll go with you. Just give me a minute—”

      “You’ll only slow me down.” Apology rang low in his voice.

      “No, I’m not leaving her.” Anna held her daughter tight.

      “You have to, ma’am. I can get her to a doctor faster than anyone can.”

      “But Mandy needs me.”

      “She needs medical care.”

      It was as if she were on that cliff again, knowing there was nothing she could do to stop the coach from breaking apart. She could not let a stranger care for her daughter. Yet Mandy needed a doctor. Immediately. And this man could provide it.

      He said he was a father. And it was true that he’d braved the chff to rescue Mandy. Judging by the breadth of those strong shoulders and the honor shining like a promise in his eyes, Anna decided she had to trust him. Mandy would die without help.

      Her decision was already made, even though it was hard to let go. “This little girl is my entire life.”

      “I know.” He produced a warm blanket to wrap around Mandy. “Flint Creek is the first town on the other side of this pass. The doc’s clinic is the third building on your left past the hotel. Tucker will take you there.”

      Anna’s knees wobbled with the worst kind of fear. But the badge pinned to the sheriff’s vest glinted in the sunlight. When he mounted his powerful horse, he looked heroic enough to topple any foe, right any wrong.

      Anna wiped the wet hair from her eyes. She prayed he would make it to town in time.

      Chapter Two

      

      

      “How’s the little girl?” Tucker strode through the jailhouse door, trail dust thick on his hat brim and boots, and everything else in between.

      “She’s still alive. I hope the doc can keep her that way.” Cooper closed his eyes, unable to block out the remembered image of tiny Mandy so blue and struggling hard to breathe. “How’s the mother?”

      Tucker swept off his hat. “She’s a widow. Imagine that. She told me so herself on the ride down here. Yep, Mrs. Bauer sure is pretty, don’t you think?”

      “I don’t need anyone to play matchmaker, especially not you.” Cooper thumped his brother on the shoulder. “I take it the rest of my deputies are on their way?”

      “Yep.” Tucker followed him out onto the late-day street. “It took a while to find the gold shipment. We thought it had gone over the cliff, too. The men will be bringing it to town soon and they’ll need help. I was just going to head back. Are you coming?”

      “Yes. I hope we’ve seen enough trouble from the Corinthos gang for one day.” Evening scented the air. The sun was fast sinking toward the horizon. Cooper’s gaze focused on the doc’s clinic down the street. He thought of the woman and child inside. He thought about how lucky they were, how lucky all of them were.

      

      Anna brushed back gossamer curls from her sleeping daughter’s forehead. The dim light of the room in the back of the doctor’s clinic cast just enough glow to see by. But not enough to ward off the many fears that increased as each hour passed.

      “My wife made you a supper tray.” The door whispered open on its leather hinges. The faint rattling of dishes filled the quiet room, then footsteps as the doctor strode across the floor. He set the meal on a low table. “I hope you like beef stew.”

      “I’m sure it’s very good.” Anna straightened in her chair, careful of her hurting arm. Her stomach grumbled, but she wasn’t in the mood to eat. Not until she knew Mandy would be all right. “Thank your wife for me.”

      “You need to keep up your energy if you’re going to care for your girl. So you eat, and let me check on my littlest patient.”

      His kindness touched her, made her ache deep inside. When she had explained she couldn’t pay the bill because her savings had been stolen, the doctor told her not to worry. Now he was treating Mandy with care and skill.

      She watched him listen to Mandy’s breathing, saw for herself the uneven rise and fall of her chest. He’d said a punctured lung could be fatal, but there was some hope.

      Hope. It was what had brought her here in the first place. A new start for Mandy, a home of her own. She worried about what kind of man Mr. Cooper Braddock would be—kind or strict, stern or forgiving. But now her big plans felt false and foolish with her daughter so injured.

      Anna stood and somehow made it to the table. Her own body ached, especially her arm, but she hadn’t said anything. Would not detract the doctor’s attention from Mandy, even for herself.

      Steam rose from the fragrant stew. Her stomach turned, but she knew she had to eat. At least had to try. She sat on the rickety chair, one leg shorter than the other three. It bumped against the floor when she shifted her weight. The warm scent of gravy, the hearty scent of beef tickled her nose. She lifted the spoon and filled it. But how was she going to get any food to stay in her twisted-up-with-worry stomach?

      “Mrs. Bauer?” A low rumbling voice called to her. She turned around to see the sheriff, his broad-shouldered form filling the threshold, his dark hat shading his eyes. “How’s your little girl?”

      Just looking at him made her feel better, the same way she’d felt when he climbed hand over hand down that rope to rescue Mandy. “She’s doing better. Thanks to you. You got her to the doctor in good time.”

      “I was Just doing my job. Serve and protect.” He swept off his gray hat, looking uncomfortable with her praise. “Daughters are priceless.”

      “Yes, they are.” She couldn’t picture this enormous and powerful man as a father to little girls. Yet his presence comforted her, Just as she imagined it would a small child. Goodness shone in his eyes, the strength that came from tenderness. He was not the kind of man who harmed others. Not like the cowards who’d caused this injury to her daughter and the passenger on the stage. “How is the wounded man?”

      “He took a shot to his chest, but he will live.” The sheriff stepped back into the hallway, his hat clutched in his big capable hands. The silver badge pinned to his wide chest glinted in the lamplight. “The driver’s not as lucky. He may never walk again.”

      “Those horrible outlaws.” Anna shivered, wrapping her arms around her middle. “If you hadn’t come along, we might all be dead by now.”

      His smile broadened, etching dimples into his cheeks and softening the hard, tough lawman look of him. “We’ve been having trouble at that pass. There are few towns and fewer lawmen to keep the peace, and too damn many renegades who think they can take whatever they want from innocent people. It’s my job to teach them differently.”

      “So, you were waiting to protect the stage at the pass. That’s how you were there to save us?”