Page 4 of For Him

“Yes. But your parents showed me videos of your work, and even if I hadn’t seen them, I heard the passion and intelligence in the way you spoke to me,” he replied, shutting off the engine. We hopped out, and he furrowed his brows, running a weathered hand over his chin. “It can’t be…”

“Can’t be what?” I asked, following him back towards the shiny, chrome trailer hitched behind the truck.

Doc let out a slow whistle as a cow bellowed inside and the truck door swung open. Worn boots hit the ground, light-washed wranglers coated with some dirt, held up by a nice belt and buckle. A thick beige Carhartt coat covered wide shoulders, and a grin sat upon the most chiseled and handsome face I’d ever seen.

Dark hair peeked out beneath a gray cowboy hat, hinting at stubble that had been trimmed this morning. “Cassidy Duke!” Doc said, sauntering up to the man and offering a handshake. “Never thought I’d see the day that a Duke would be hauling to the clinic. Y'all got too much going on up at the ranch.”

“Till an emergency arrives, Doc.” Cassidy answered the shake, and then his eyes flashed to mine. A beautiful hazel, pulling together what seemed to be a cowboy right out of fiction. “Ain’t never seen this lass before.”

“That’s Doctor Mayn,” Doc replied, and the cowboy raised his sharp brows subtly before flashing a crooked grin.

“Petite thing, ain’t she.” He chuckled to himself. “Sure you can handle it?”

“My degree and arm that’s been up too many cows’ butts this morning says so.” I snarkily replied, annoyed.

Doc grinned as Cassidy chuckled once more.

“Well, you definitely got spunk, that's for sure,” he answered, his eyes raking over my body.

I narrowed my gaze at him, only halfway upset that such a handsome man afforded me a look.

“What’s going on then, Cassidy?” Doc asked, pulling his attention away from me.

“Two heifers turned up pretty sick. Poor breathing, seemed to just wander aimlessly, tripping over their own hooves. Don’t seem to be eating much. Problem is, they got out of the pasture a week or so ago, and we couldn’t find them until this morning. It ain’t getting better, Doc,” Cassidy responded. “Figured while I was here, I’d also bring two others for preg checks, since it needs to be done and I already had to haul into town.”

“So, two sick, two pregnant. None of the others that they’ve been around are sick?” Doc asked as he unlocked the back door and we followed him into the clinic. Doc gestured towards the garage door button, so I pressed it. The garage began to rise, the brisk autumn air rushing into the previously warm space.

“Nope. Don’t seem contagious,” Cassidy replied, as Doc began setting up a small run for the cattle to come into and then be confined.

“Alright, back the trailer up and we’ll take a look,” Doc replied, and within a minute, Cassidy had that trailer lined up and ready to go. He opened the trailer door and out stumbled the first two heifers, seemingly unaware of their surroundings. I watched, mesmerized and confused, as they slowly stumbled across the cement floor and towards the end of their designated path.

Even Doc’s face was twisted in confusion. The next two that came out seemed to move normally, with their heads raised, aware of where they were going and completely in tune with their surroundings. They both seemed larger than the other two heifers, and not just because they were possibly pregnant.

I cautiously approached the two sick heifers as Doc and Cassidy chatted behind me. The closer I came, the more nervous they seemed. Almost as if they were drugged by something. They tried to stumble away, nearly falling over each other, almost oblivious to each other. The two healthy thick black angus cows were wary of me, but not nervous.

Something sat on the tip of my tongue as I watched them move, watched their bleary eyes. Something I’d read once seemed to be tugging at my brain, but I couldn’t quite place it.

“If you’re ready, we’ll send the first one through,” Doc said, breaking my thoughts.

Cassidy jumped the railing, walked in, and pushed one of the sick ones forward. Doc caught it in the green chute, confining her neck between the metal bars. She tossed her head about for a moment, and then hung it limply towards the ground.

Cassidy leaned against the railing as Doc ran a hand over the heifer’s head and then began checking things. The cloudy eyes were obvious from here, but I wanted a closer look, too. Quietly edging forward, I placed a hand against her neck and felt it. Her coat seemed extremely coarse, gritty compared to other cows I’d touched before. Then she opened her mouth and bellowed weakly. A faint hint of garlic caressed my nostrils, and I whipped up straight.

“It can’t be,” I muttered.

Doc glanced my way. “Speak up, Tenley,” he chastised me.

“I think I might know what it is,” I spoke louder, although not quite as confident as I should’ve sounded.

“Oh?” He crossed his arms and rocked onto his heels.

“Oh is right. I’d like to know what the newbie thinks it is.” Cassidy swung himself over the railing, landing with a loud thud, and walked our way.

Before I had a chance to answer, the clinic door groaned open and one of the assistants poked her head in. Grinning from ear to ear, she smoothed her blonde hair that was pulled tight into a ponytail.

“Hi, Doc,” she said, her eyes drifting from Doc, towards me, and then ending at Cassidy. “Just seeing if you or Doctor Mayn need any help.”

Doc shook his head. “Thank you, Carly, but we’ve got this.”

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