The Maverick's Snowbound Christmas. Karen Rose Smith

she admitted, “I haven’t done anything like this since an apprenticeship with a vet right after college. But I know what to do, Eli.” This time Hadley pulled on gloves that reached to her elbows.

      His thoughts seemed to be in an uproar until he pulled one free. “What are you going to do?”

      “Just give her a little help if she needs it. Let’s just see if nature takes its course. I don’t want to step in if I don’t have to.”

      He was experienced enough to know that letting nature take its course was the best route to take. Amber giving birth was a natural process. Yet he didn’t want to lose either the foal or the mom.

      The foal’s hocks delivered, and Eli knew the foal’s hips and tail would follow. Yet there seemed to be a problem, and Amber was straining hard.

      Hadley murmured almost to herself, “The hips are the foal’s widest part when delivery happens this way.”

      “Can you help? Can you get her baby unstuck?”

      “I don’t want to interfere too much, and I don’t want to hurt either of them. I remember when Charlie did this...”

      “Charlie?”

      “The vet I worked with. He was seventy and had been delivering horses for almost forty years. I can picture exactly how he handled the birth. I’m going to grasp the foal’s feet and just pull gently down toward Amber’s hooves. That should rotate the foal’s pelvis so it can pass through the birth canal more easily. Say a prayer.”

      As Hadley did what she said she was going to do, Eli did say a prayer. They both seemed to hold their breath as the foal slid out, making its appearance into the big wide world.

      In the next few moments, Hadley removed an instrument from her bag and broke the sac surrounding the foal.

      When Eli glanced at Hadley, he saw her eyes were misty. The birth of Amber’s foal had touched her deeply. His throat constricted too because a miracle lay before them. What would have happened if Hadley hadn’t been here?

      “You saved them,” he said, close enough to Hadley to kiss her.

      She seemed to be eyeing his lips the same way he was eyeing hers. “You could have done the same thing,” she whispered.

      He got a whiff of that vanilla scent of hers that right now seemed as magical as an aphrodisiac. Shaking off the feeling and gathering his concentration, he conceded, “Maybe. But you knew what you were doing. I’ve only read about it.”

      Her eyes searched his face. “You were prepared for this?”

      “I try to be prepared for everything. But I’ve never delivered a breech birth.”

      Awareness of the fact that he and Hadley seemed to be breathing in unison swept over him.

      He was also aware of the way Hadley’s bangs lay near her brows...aware of her high cheekbones...aware of the curve of her lips. With a supreme effort, he forced himself to focus on the situation at hand.

      “They’ll probably lie like this for ten to fifteen minutes,” he said.

      The horses needed to rest as the umbilical cord transferred a vital amount of blood from mare to foal. When that was complete, the cord would break on its own.

      “I know,” Hadley responded.

      Her eyes were on his again, and she was close enough for their words to mix in the chilly air. Suddenly, she backed away. “Since we still have some waiting to do,” she said, pulling off her gloves, “is there any more coffee?”

      Now Hadley had refocused her gaze on the foal and his chocolate-brown coat. He had a white blaze like his mom.

      “Do you see babies delivered often?” Eli asked.

      “Mostly dogs and cats. It’s been years since I was present at a foal’s birth. I’m always in awe.”

      “Just wait until the little one starts to nurse. That’s a sight to behold, too.”

      She nodded, her long dark hair slipping over her shoulder. “When a baby’s born—dog, cat, horse—it’s hard for humans not to want to step in, care for it, wipe down and cuddle it. But letting nature take its course and letting momma and baby bond is so important. Maybe that’s why some women like to use midwives at home instead of going to the sterile noisy atmosphere of a hospital. Mother and baby can bond more easily.”

      “Could be.” Eli had never really thought about that. But Hadley could be right. Hospitals, antiseptic walls, nurses and doctors could muddle up the whole process.

      He would have stepped away then to go fetch the coffee for their wait, but Hadley took hold of his arm. Her touch through the flannel of his shirt caused a reaction inside him he hadn’t felt for a very long time.

      She said, “I’m glad you called Brooks, and I’m glad he called me. I wouldn’t have wanted to miss this.”

      In spite of what he’d thought about Hadley earlier, he suddenly realized his attraction to her wasn’t going to go away merely because he wanted it to.

       Chapter Three

      Hadley had amazed Eli as she’d helped deliver the foal. In spite of being short and slender, she was strong, and she was capable. As they’d tended the mare, they’d been huddled close. Very close. If he had leaned in, he could have kissed her.

      But the enormity of the birth had prevented him from doing that. Watching the miracle had kept him grounded—grounded in what he did for a living, grounded in the satisfaction of raising horses, grounded in the knowledge that Hadley was an expert in her field.

      As they sipped their coffee on stools, watching momma and foal rest, he asked, “Where did you go to school?”

      “Colorado State. It was a good experience.”

      “Have you been in Bozeman since vet school?”

      “I have. They’ve been good to me at the practice. There are three vets, so we rotate and we can each get time off. That’s how I was able to come here to Rust Creek Falls for Thanksgiving.”

      “Delivering a foal came back to you. Maybe you should expand your practice,” he suggested.

      She looked over at the colt. “Actually, doing this has revved up my interest in larger animals again. One of our vets specializes in farm and ranch animals. I might tag along with him more often.”

      She gestured to the lid that had come from the cookie jar. “I noticed those organic cookies for the horses.”

      “I try to keep up with the healthiest feeds and herbs that help temperaments. I keep everything as natural as possible,” he confirmed.

      “You use herbs for temperament?” she asked.

      He nodded. “I mix them in with the feed. I’ve picked up a thing or two over the years.”

      He wasn’t sure why he’d just made himself sound a lot older than she was. But he didn’t think he was. He was thirty-five.

      “How old are you?” Eli asked her.

      “Thirty-one. Why?”

      He shrugged. “I just wondered.”

      She narrowed her eyes. “Did you think I was younger or older than that?”

      Releasing a long breath, he knew he’d backed himself into that corner. “I plead the fifth. No matter what I say, it will be wrong.”

      She laughed, and he liked the sound of her laughter.

      Suddenly their attention was taken by Amber. Apparently the rest period for the mare was over. She stood and the umbilical cord broke.

      Hadley quickly stood, too, as did