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Nora’s big brown eyes were soft, and she scrunched up her face. “Am I gonna see Daddy today?” Her voice was high, and Millie thought she detected a bit of a tremble beneath the words.
“I don’t know, honey, but if not today, then I bet real soon.”
“Auntie tolded me last night his booboos were better.”
“They are.” She guided the little girl with her hand and walked into the bar via the back entrance. Then traipsed through the kitchen, yelling out hellos to big George Caplan the cook and Sharon, a waitress who’d been at the Downer longer than Millie could remember. After bypassing the office and the washrooms, they walked into a large open room with a stage directly in the center with tables scattered around it. The bar lined the entire left side, and a dance floor sat at the far end. Zach appeared from nowhere. If Millie had been paying attention, she would have noticed the sheen of sweat on his face and the nervous tic on the right side of his mouth.
As it was, she was focused on navigating her way past all the tables with a little girl in tow, a fully stuffed backpack and lunch pail, as well as a box of supplies for behind the bar.
“Hey,” Zach said quickly.
“Sorry I’m late.” She shoved the box into his arms and then moved past, Nora’s little mittened hand tucked into her own. “I’ve been running to catch up all day. And I—”
“You look like my Daddy.”
Millie almost tripped over her own feet and stopped in her tracks. Her eyes were glued to the floor on account of the whole nearly-tripping-over-her-feet thing, and as she brought then up slowly, her stomach sank to where her eyes had been.
Scuffed boots. Long, jean-clad legs. Thick blue plaid button-up over a white T-shirt. Hair that waved over said plaid collar. Wide shoulders. Strong jaw with a couple of days of growth. Beat-up Buffalo Bills cap. Pale eyes with a whisper of gray.
Cal Bridgestone in the Sundowner. The one place she never expected him to be. An image of that last night together momentarily blurred her vision. Of him standing in nearly the same spot. The air electric with anger and passion and a whole bunch of other things. She remembered her words and wondered if he did too.
His eyes gave nothing away as he stared at her silently, and all she could think was that hell, indeed, had frozen over.
CHAPTER3
Cal had arrivedin Montana exactly six hours ago, and in that time, a lot happened. After the plane refueled and jetted to Nashville with the rest of his team, Ivy drove him to the hospital.
“You’re not coming in with me?”
“No.” Ivy glanced away. “I don’t do well in hospitals, and besides, I think you and Bent are better off without an audience. I’ve got some things to take care of but I’ll be in touch.” She paused and glanced back at him as he slid out of the rental. “A piece of advice?”
“Sure.”
“Stay away from Millie Sue.”
He didn’t bother with a reply, and Ivy obviously wasn’t expecting one. The window rolled back up, and she sped away. He thought of Millie’s advice the day before and decided it was solid. Cal avoided the front doors and snuck in the back way, near the cafeteria.
Big Bend Trauma Center was small, though well-equipped, and it didn’t take long for him to spy someone he knew: Mackenzie Fischer. She was a couple of years older than Cal and, wearing a white lab coat, with a stethoscope slung around her neck, he guessed she was a doctor. Something she confirmed when she spied him and, after chatting with a nurse, made her way over.
Her inky black hair was pulled into a ponytail that emphasized high cheekbones and a generous mouth. With light blue eyes and golden-brown skin, she was a study in contrasts. Her genetics were no different from a lot of locals—her mother’s family were Crow, and her father was a tall strapping man of Nordic descent whose forefathers had come to Montana on the wagon trail nearly one hundred and fifty years ago.
“Cal,” she said warmly. “It’s been a minute.”
“More like ten.” He cracked a smile he didn’t feel. “At least.” He cleared the cobwebs from his throat and didn’t waste any time. “Where is he?”
“Follow me,” she said, pointing at the elevators. “I was just on my way up. I’m sure you’ve heard the news.”
His stomach clenched at her words, and Cal did his best to hold himself together. “News?” Even so, his voice sounded thin and weak in his ears.
“Bent’s doing very well, all considering. A bit of a miracle, and we don’t mind those around here. The last few years have been rough.”
As he followed her into the elevator, relief washed over him. His throat was so damn tight, he couldn’t speak.
Mack pressed the third-floor button and gave him a reassuring smile. “Your brother is a strong man. I wasn’t sure how he’d be looking three days ago. He has two broken ribs, a broken leg, and we had to remove his spleen. He also had a serious myocardial contusion.”
At Cal’s confused look, she offered a soft smile. “A bruised heart. However, it was the swelling in his brain that concerned me the most. We had to remove part of his scalp to alleviate the pressure, which is normal procedure, don’t worry about that. But like I said…” She stepped off the elevator and he followed suit. “He’s strong, he has a lot to fight for, and he wants to live. The swelling went down much more quickly than I’d anticipated. Last night, we did a CT and an MRI. After a thorough examination, I’m fairly confident he’ll make a complete recovery. This isn’t going to be overnight. He’s definitely got a long road ahead of him, but he’s lucky. It could have been a lot worse.”
“He’s lucky and stubborn as hell.”
