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When they broke off, Joe grinned at her with that twinkle in his eye. Then he kissed her again until a whistle broke them apart.
She turned to see Flynn leaning in the doorway to the main room. “Hey. Mitch says to stop kissing your lady and get her over to the saloon so he can check out the cuts on her neck. And Moose is howling like he’s been abandoned.”
Lia’s face flamed but she couldn’t stop the laugh. “Poor Moose. But I’m fine. He didn’t hit any arteries.” If he had, she would have been dead in an instant.
Joe frowned. “Let’s go. Make sure everything is taken care of. We should have done that first.”
Flynn snorted out a laugh. “Damn straight. Make sure the woman’s going to live, then tell her you’re in love. That’s the correct order of things.”
Lia’s mouth dropped open. “How long have you been standing there?”
Flynn laughed and she could see exactly why Tessa had fallen for him. “Not long. I don’t eavesdrop. But it’s been obvious as hell to everyone else that you and Chevy are head over spurs. Glad you finally figured it out. Now, let’s get you checked out.”
“I’m fine.”
Flynn shook his head, expression dialled to sad. “Doctors are the absolute worst patients. Let’s go.”
Laughing Joe, wrapped his arm around her shoulder. “He’s right, come on.”
They trooped over to Doc’s. At least a dozen people stood outside and along the street. Each one of them asked if she was okay and how they could help.
Her heart wobbled again as she realized she fit in with the town as well as at Midnight Lodge. After a lifetime of never quite fitting in with anyone except Carlotta, she was finding a place here, in a town named Phail.
Inside the saloon’s main room, someone had unloaded the delivery truck. Most of the supplies were in the middle of the space.
Moose came galloping through the interior door to Doc’s, ears flapping and tongue lolling. He jumped up to place his paws on her shoulder and lick her face. She would have landed flat on her butt if Joe hadn’t braced her.
Not only did she have a man who loved her and a family and town around her, she had a smelly, goofy dog. Life couldn’t be better.
Flynn finally led them through the saloon in into the front waiting room of Doc’s where more people were unboxing everything.
Inside the first exam room, she found Rachel laying on an unpacked exam bed. Owen stood beside her, clinging to her hand. His big eyes turned to Lia. “Mitch says Mom’s okay, but you’re the doctor. Is she okay? That bad man hurt her. Can you fix her?”
Rachel squeezed his hand. “I’m fine buddy. It was scary, but it’s over and I’m okay.”
Owen stared at Lia. “Is she?”
Lia nodded. “She will be. And you helped make that happen. Thanks for being so brave and listening to instructions.”
His huge eyes widened further. “I helped?”
“You did. Now you can help again. I need to wash up before I check your mom’s side and consult with Mitch. Can you keep holding her hand and make sure she doesn’t sit up?” He nodded and turned back to his mom.
The plumbing for the exam room wasn’t hooked up yet, so she and Mitch moved out of the room. “How does the wound look?”
Mitch followed her while she washed up in the newly functional bathroom down the hall. She kept her eyes far away from the mirror.
Joe followed them and leaned against the doorjamb. “You need to get checked out yourself, too.”
She smiled at his growl. “Mitch can do that in a minute. I need to check Rachel first.” She looked at Mitch. “Does she need stitches?”
Mitch shrugged. “A couple wouldn’t hurt. It doesn’t appear anything vital was damaged and the bleeding has stopped on its own accord. I think a round of antibiotics is advisable in case of infection, but she’s not showing any signs of infection yet.” He shrugged. They both knew that didn’t happen right away.
Lia held up her hand. “I can’t do any stitches. My grip hasn’t built up to what it needs to be. If it’s okay with Rachel, can you handle them?”
Mitch nodded. “Her call.”
Joe frowned. “You told me you don’t do stitches.”
