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Mercy, did she lookthatbothered? “Of course not,” she assured.
“I been hearing the nurses say it, so I thought it was your nickname. I’ll call you whatever you like.”
“Tegan or Texas is fine,” she said, wondering now why they’d refer to her as Texas. Was that what Patches called her? Surely not to everybody.
“You seem bothered,” she complained quietly. “What’s wrong? Oh mercy, that feels like heaven right there.”
Tegan smiled, working on her heel. “I know the people here are very close and particular about outsiders,” she muttered. “And I sure don’t blame em’ one bit. We’re the same kind of people in Texas. You gotta prove you’re worth your salt. It’s how we protect each other.”
“I don’t say it,” she whispered, “but I think it’s because you’re so pretty and Dr. Patches has an eye on you.”
Wow, everybody was seeing things but her. “Well, I came here to help and that’s what I’m doing. Not here to steal anybody from anybody.”
“I’m as traditional as they come and I know they all want the men to pick from the swamp, but when it comes to love, it ain’t right to stand in the way of that. Love don’t see color, culture, or creed,” she said with pure delight in her sparkly blue eyes.
“You’re right about that,” Tegan agreed while realizing. “I guess I can see why they’d be upset seeing as the leader got with a northerner and one of his Twelve got with another northerner. Least that Seer got with one from local.”
She nodded. “Cherieislocal but not lifetime local.”
“Makes a difference?”
She nodded a lot.
“Gotta be homespun,” Tegan said, moving to her other foot now.
“Right. But it’s getting kinda ugly if you ask me,” she said extra quiet.
“How you mean?” Tegan gently pried.
“There’s a lot of women in the swamp that signed up for marrying one of The Twelve. So far, only two picked a swamp girl, the other four picked out of towners. Including the leader,” she reminded with an extra low whisper like it might be the biggest sin of all.
It all had Tegan grinning. She put the oil back on the stand and opened the drawer. “How about I brush that pretty hair of yours?”
She literally busted out laughing. “Pretty! Swamp-sakes my hair’s wilder than a gator sippin’ gas.”
“You are funny!” Tegan laughed, sitting at her hip.
“Oh!” She took Tegan’s hand and put it on her huge belly, pressing her palm.
Tegan gasped at the hard ball moving across her whole palm. “I felt it!”
She nodded a lot with her half-moon eyes of joy. “He’s strong.”
“You think it’ll be a boy?”
She shook her head against her pillow, smile fading. “I don’t rightly know,” she said, obviously not really caring.
Tegan turned at the knock on the door.
“It’s Patches,” he called.
“Oh!” Becky gasped, smoothing her hair while Tegan stood and fixed her covers. “Am I presentable?” she whispered.
“You’reradiant!” Tegan assured in a whisper, holding back her laugh.
“Come in,” Becky called.
The door opened and in walked thedoctor.“Well, if it isn’t Mr. October, November,andDecember,” Tegan dared, getting a huge laugh from Becky and an actual blush from Patches. A-freakin-dorable.
