“Okay,” Stevie said. “I’m still weighing the pros and cons. I’ll let you know by Monday.”
“Fair enough,” Rodney said, “but I will tell you this. If Darlene had been willing to go, I would have taken the job. I’ve always been interested in that part of the world.”
“And besides all that, you really would like to win that bet they’ve got going at the office about which place I’m going to choose, wouldn’t you?” Stevie asked.
“How did you know?” Rodney laughed out loud.
“I know all of you,” Stevie answered.
Rodney chuckled again and said, “I’ll look to hear from you sometime over the weekend or Monday at the latest.”
“Talk to you then.” Stevie ended the call, finished her breakfast, packed herself a sandwich for lunch, and drove her mother’s car out to the barn so she wouldn’t have to use crutches. She still needed to think, and the tack room was far from finished.
Her hair stuck to her sweaty neck as she swept the floor. She stopped long enough to tuck the errant strands back up into her ponytail and had started to mop when the door opened. She didn’t need anyone to tell her that Cody had made it home earlier than planned, or that she looked and probably smelled horrible. The afternoon sun caused his body to be nothing more than a silhouette, and even though she wanted to hug him, she hung back and kept the mop in her hands.
He crossed the room in a couple of long, easy strides. When he picked her up, the mop hit the floor with a thunk, and he spun her around half a dozen times. “I missed you, Stevie O’Dell, so much,” he said when he finally set her down on the floor.
“I’m a mess…you’re early…” she stammered. “I was going to go home and get cleaned up.”
“Home! That’s the important word,” he said. “I’ve never been so glad to be back here on the ranch again, and we were only gone two days.” He wrapped his arms around her and then kissed her.
When the steamy, hot kiss ended, her knees felt like they had no bones in them. “Welcome home, Dr. Cowboy.” She had to catch her breath between words.
“Best place in the world…love,” he whispered.
Chapter Twenty-One
The tack room hadn’t been so clean and organized since Cody and Jesse were fourteen and fifteen and had to straighten it up for punishment. That memory put a smile on Cody’s face as he passed through the room on the way to the barn. He and Jesse had snuck out of the house after bedtime one night and met a couple of boys who were old enough to drive out on the road.
Jesse came through the back door and shook his head. “Are you remembering what I am?”
“Yep,” Cody said with a grin, “but we agreed the party was worth it.”
“It was at the time but spending every evening cleaning this place taught me a lesson,” Jesse said.
“When Mama says no, she means no, and Dad will back her up on it,” Cody said.
“That’s right.”
“Just think about those twin boys you’ve got and how much trouble we used to get into when we were kids and teenagers,” Cody teased.
“Yes, but that old barn out near Windom where we used to party has been torn down, and kids today would rather sit in front of a television and play video games than go out to an abandoned barn and drink beer.” Jesse shook his head in disgust.
“History just might repeat itself.” Cody raised both eyebrows. “Sam and Taylor might be more interested in girls and beer than video games.”
“That’s a bridge way on down the road,” Jesse said. “Right now, they’re more interested in a bottle of formula, and the only women in their lives are their mama, sister, and grandmother.”
Before Cody could say anything, his phone rang, and when he saw that it was Nate, he said, “I should take this. I’ll meet you out at the pasture in a few minutes.”
Jesse waved over his shoulder as he left the room. “See you there. Tell Stevie hello.”
Cody answered the phone on the fourth ring. “Hey, Nate. Where are you these days?”
“Houston,” Nate answered with his thick British accent. “I thought I was done six month ago, but I’m restless and about to go back. Want to go with me?”
“Nope. Where are you off to this time?” Cody asked.
“South Africa,” Nate answered. “The company I’m working for now has built a fairly good-sized new hospital with a surgery and about thirteen rooms near Nieu-Bethesda. I’ve been asked to be the chief. I’ve got a surgeon lined up, but I need another doctor, and I thought of you. It’s a one-year contract instead of six months, and the area is beautiful. I’ve been over there overseeing the building, and now I’m back recruiting a staff. The village has a population of less than two thousand, but we’d serve a large area. Interested?”
“It’s still a no,” Cody said.
“Will you at least think about it a few days before you give me your answer?” Nate asked.
“My dad’s condition is gradually getting worse, and I’m needed here in Texas,” Cody said.
“What if I sent you pictures of the town and the hospital?” Nate asked. “It’s not as sophisticated as a big medical facility here in the states, but it’s a far cry from a mud hut or a tent.”
“I’d love to see the pictures, but—” Cody started.
Nate butted in before he could finish. “Sending them to your phone right now. I’m really excited about this project, mate, and I hope it’s just the beginning of several more centers we can put up in the next ten years. You’d be getting in on the ground floor with me, and you know that we like working together.”
“We did have some good times,” Cody agreed.
“Think of those and all the people you could help if you put your name on the dotted line,” Nate said.
“I’ll think about it, but don’t get your hopes up,” Cody said.
“That’s fair enough. I’ll look to hear from you in a few days, then. Cheers, old mate,” Nate said, and ended the call.
Cody took time to scroll through the pictures. Compared to the hospital he had just been in with his dad, the facility looked really small, but when he remembered working out of a one-room place with a generator for power, it was downright beautiful. The photo of the village, which sat at the base of a lush green mountain range, was different from anywhere he had been sent before. If his dad hadn’t been on the decline, or if Stevie hadn’t come into his life, he would have jumped at the chance to work with his old friend.
He tucked the phone back into his hip pocket and got on one of the four-wheelers, intending to join Jesse in the west pasture. If it wasn’t too wet, they would be plowing that morning. He hadn’t even had time to start the vehicle when his phone rang again. This time it was Gracie Langston.
“Dr. Ryan,” he answered. “What’s your problem, Gracie?”
“I’ve got strep throat and maybe pneumonia. A fever for sure. Fifi’s puppies have made me sick.” Her tone sounded downright nasal. “The doctor’s office doesn’t have any appointments available, and I need help. I could die before Monday.”