A Cold Creek Noel. RaeAnne Thayne

Thank you.”

      “You’ll have a hefty bill for overnight care,” he warned.

      “I expected it. I worked here a decade ago and know how much things used to cost—and I’ve seen those charges go up in the years since.” She paused. “I hate to leave him.”

      “He’ll be fine. Don’t worry. Come on. I’ll walk you out.”

      “Is that a service you provide for every female who comes through your office?”

      Close enough. “I need to lock up anyway.”

      She gathered her coat and shrugged into it, and then he led her back the way he had just come. The moon was filtering through the clouds, painting lovely patterns of pale light on the new snow.

      Caidy Bowman drove a well-used late-model pickup truck with a king cab that was covered in mud. Bales of hay were stacked two high in the back.

      “Be careful. The roads are likely to be slick after the snows of earlier.”

      “I’ve been driving these roads since before I turned sixteen. I can handle a little snow.”

      “I’m sure you can. I just don’t want you to be the next one in need of stitching.”

      “Not much chance of that, but thank you for your concern. And for all you’ve done today. I’m sorry you won’t see much of your children.”

      “The clinic is closed tomorrow. I can spend the whole day with them. I suppose we’ll have to go look for a temporary furnished house somewhere or I’m going to have a mutiny on my hands from Mrs. Michaels, which would be a nightmare.”

      She opened her mouth, then closed it again, and he had the distinct impression she was waging some internal debate. Her gaze shifted to the door they had just exited through and back to him, then she drew in a breath.

      “We have an empty foreman’s cottage on the River Bow where you could stay.”

      The words spilled out of her, almost as if she had been trying to hold them back. He barely noticed, stunned by the offer.

      “It’s nothing fancy but it’s fully furnished,” she went on quickly. “It does only have three bedrooms, but if you took one and Mrs. Michaels took the other, the children could share.”

      “Whoa. Hold on. How do you know Mrs. Michaels? And who told you we might be looking for a place?”

      “We met in the waiting room earlier. I knew you were staying at the inn because my sister-in-law Laura runs it.”

      If not for that moment of sweetness when he had found her humming a soothing song to her dog, he would have had a tough time believing the warm and welcoming innkeeper could be any relation to this prickly woman.

      “Anyway, your housekeeper mentioned you might be looking for a place. I, uh, immediately thought of the foreman’s cottage on our ranch. Nobody’s using it right now, though I do try to stop in once a week or so to keep the dust down. Like I said, it’s not much.”

      “We could manage. Are you certain?”

      “I’ll have to ask my brother first. Though all four of us share ownership of the ranch, Ridge is really the one in charge. I don’t think he’ll say no, though. Why would he?”

      He didn’t understand this woman. He had been extraordinarily rude to her, yet she was offering to help solve all his domestic problems in one fell swoop.

      “I’m astonished, Ms. Bowman. Er, Caidy. Why would you make such an offer to a complete stranger?”

      “You saved my dog,” she said simply. “Besides that, I liked Mrs. Michaels and I gather she’s had enough of hotel living. And how will St. Nick find your children in a hotel, as lovely as the Cold Creek Inn might be these days? They should have a proper house for the holidays, where they can play.”

      “I agree. That was the plan all along, but circumstances haven’t exactly cooperated.”

      He had planned to spend the entire next day looking around for somewhere that better met their needs. He never expected the answer would fall right in his lap. A less cynical man might even call it a Christmas miracle.

      “I still have to talk to Ridge. I can let you know his answer in the morning when I come to check on Luke.”

      “Thank you.”

      She gave him a hesitant smile just as the moonlight shifted. The light combined with her smile managed to transform her features from pretty to extraordinarily beautiful.

      “Good night. Thank you again for your hard work.”

      “You’re welcome.”

      He watched her drive away, her headlights cutting through the darkness. When he had agreed to buy James Harris’s practice, he had been seeking a quiet, easy community to raise his family, a place where they could settle in and become part of things.

      Pine Gulch had already provided a few more surprises than he expected—and he suddenly suspected Caidy Bowman might be one more.

      Chapter Three

      “You say the new vet only needs a place to stay for a few weeks?”

      Caidy nodded at her oldest brother, who stood at the sink loading his and Destry’s supper dishes into the dishwasher. “That’s my understanding. He’s building a new house on Cold Creek Road. I’m guessing it’s in that new development near Taft’s place. Apparently, it was supposed to be finished before he took the job, but it’s behind schedule. Now it won’t be ready until after Christmas.”

      “That’s a nice area. Heck of a view. I imagine his house is probably a good sight better than our foreman’s cottage.”

      “They’re at the inn now. I got the impression the children and the housekeeper might be going a little stir-crazy there.”

      Ridge straightened and gave her a look she recognized well. It was his patented What were you thinking? look. He was ten years older than she was and she loved him dearly. He had stepped in after their parents died and had raised her for the last few years of high school and she would never be able to repay him for being her rock, even when his own marriage was faltering. He was tough and hard on the outside and sweet as could be underneath all the layers.

      He still drove her crazy sometimes.

      “You ever stop to think that Laura might not be too thrilled if you go around finding other lodging arrangements for her paying guests?”

      “I called her already and she was cool with it. I know it’s lost business, but all I had to do was paint the mental picture of Alex and Maya cooped up in a couple of hotel rooms for weeks on end—including through Christmas—and she had complete sympathy for Dr. Caldwell and his housekeeper. She thought it was a great idea.”

      She didn’t bother telling her brother that Taft’s wife had also dropped a couple of matchmaking hints a mile wide about how gorgeous the new vet was. He was kind to animals and he loved his kids. What more did she need? Laura had implied.

      Ridge didn’t need to know that. Much as she loved both of her sisters-in-law and considered Laura and Becca perfect for each respective twin, she didn’t need her brothers joining in and trying to look around for prospective partners for her. The very idea of what they might come up with gave her chills.

      After one of his long, thoughtful pauses, Ridge finally nodded. “Can’t see any harm in Dr. Caldwell and his family moving in for a few weeks. The house is only sitting there empty. I can run the tractor down the lane to make sure it’s cleared up for them. It might need the cobwebs swept and a little airing out.”

      “I’ll take care of everything tomorrow after I check on Luke.”

      So it was settled, then. She had to fight the urge to give a giant, cartoon-style gulp. What had she just