Donovan's Daughter (The Californians, Book 4) (13 page)

Once again, Marcail caught her lower lip between her
teeth and nodded her head, taking in the orders with
wide-eyed agreement. Alex's heart melted just a little at
the sight of her.

"I'm teasing you," Alex said softly, and watched as she
visibly relaxed and even laughed quietly. He also noticed
that her cheeks were just a bit flushed.

"How about a game of checkers?"

Marcail agreed and looked as though Alex had thrown
her a lifeline. He set up the checkerboard on the kitchen
table, poured fresh cups of coffee, and settled down to
play.

The talk across the checkerboard was light for the
most part, and Alex noticed that Marcail was relaxed
around him until the conversation led to her calling him
Dr. Montgomery, a name she nearly stumbled over.

Marcail noticed that Alex was an easygoing host who
seemed to be a genuinely kind individual, but like all
doctors she had encountered, he seemed just a bit too
sure of himself. She wouldn't have called his demeanor
outright arrogant, but it wasn't far off.

As they played, Alex coaxed Marcail into talking about
her class, and when she was relaying something that
Daisy Austin had said, he interrupted her.

"Since we're going to be spending the day together,
why don't you call me Alex?"

Marcail hesitated, and Alex allowed her a few moments
to think it over. 'All right," she finally said and fell silent.

"You missed your turn."

Marcail stared at him in confusion. He'd just watched
her move one of her checkers.

"It's your turn to tell me your name is Margaret, and
that I can call you by your first name," Alex explained.

Again Marcail hesitated. "What if my name isn't Margaret?"

Alex blinked in surprise. "Didn't I hear your brotherin-law calling you Marg?"

"No. You heard Rigg call me Marc." She emphasized
the hard c. "My family's nickname for Marcail."

"Marcail." Alex tested the name on his tongue and
spoke sincerely. "That's a beautiful name. It fits you."

Marcail smiled at the compliment. The smile gave Alex
courage.

'And may I call you Marcail?"

As he watched her with eyes that were a beautiful
sapphire blue, he didn't seem quite so arrogant to Marcail. She found herself liking him just a little.

"That would be fine," Marcail told him, and then
watched as he concentrated on his next move on the
board. Alex took a little extra time, and Marcail's attention began to roam. A glance out the window told her it
was still snowing steadily. Her gaze wandered around
the room, and she noticed what a meticulous housekeeper Willits' doctor seemed to be.

There were wooden pegs by the back door, and his
coat, her sweater, and some scarves were all hung neatly
in line. Not a dish was out of place in the kitchen. There
were high shelves along the wall, which led Marcail to
believe his wife must have been a tall woman. All the
cups, bowls, and plates were stacked in tidy rows, and
beyond them sat Alex's black medical bag.

Until now, Marcail had taken little more than a glance
at the living room, which sat in the long part of his
L-shaped house. It was as neat as the kitchen, with a
small sofa and chair, two tables, and a bookshelf.

Marcail's gaze moved to the bedroom door, where she
remembered an orderly setting with two wardrobes, a
dresser, and the bed. Her eyes slid back to the table
where Alex's Bible was placed before one of the chairs.

Looking at his Bible made Marcail wish she had her
own copy on hand. Realizing she couldn't remember
where Alex's checkers had been, she glanced at the
board suddenly and then at the man himself. She found
him sitting back in his chair, one hand resting on the
table, the other laying casually in his lap. He was studying her intently.

Marcail sat mute under his inspection, not able, for
some reason, to take her eyes from his.

"Is there someone special back home, someone who
tells you on a regular basis how beautiful you are?"

Marcail could only give a negative shake of her head.

"Since you don't hear it that often, I'll tell you. You're
very beautiful."

Alex watched as she caught her lower lip under her
teeth. His voice was filled with laughter when he spoke
this time. "You're beautiful even when you're trying to
chew off your lower lip."

Marcail's hand came up as though she'd never realized
it was habit. Her action made Alex's eyes sparkle all the
more. Not wanting to make her suffer overly long, Alex
stood in one fluid motion.

"I need to go out to the barn to check on Kelsey." He
threw these words over his shoulder as he headed for his
coat and boots.

Marcail stood also. "Will you be-all right?"

"I'll be fine. The wind has died down some, and I've
strung a rope from the edge of the house to the barn. I
use it as my guide. That's why I carried you over my
shoulder last night; I needed one hand free."

Marcail blushed over the reminder, but Alex pretended not to notice. His hand was on the door when she
called his name.

'Alex?"

He turned back, his brows raised expectantly.

"Thank you for bringing me out of the cold last night."

"You're welcome," he told her softly, before opening
the door and disappearing into a flurry of snow.

"I can't think why this has happened, Lord," Marcail
prayed in the empty house. "But I want to keep my eyes
on You. Alex has been so nice, and he's not as scary as I
first thought, but this feels very strange-this being
snowed in with a stranger.

"It was silly of me to come out without my coat," Marcail
continued to share with God from her heart, "but somehow I don't think it would have made any difference."

Marcail hovered at the window and continued to pray
until Alex came back. She was unaware of the fact that
Alex was lingering in the barn and doing a little praying
himself.

"Please bless Marcail, Lord, and ease her anxiety over
doctors. Help me to be gentle with her, and give her no
reason to fear me. I'm so drawn to her, but I fear if I'm not
careful, I'm going to scare her away forever."

Alex continued to pray and think of ways to make
Marcail feel at home. Having many books in the house,
he hoped she would feel free to sit down and become
absorbed in one before he returned.

In an attempt to give Marcail some privacy, Alex didn't
rush back to the house. He eventually slid the barn door
back and made his way through 15 inches of wet snow.
The wind was still blowing, but not as hard, and Alex
thought he might be able to get Marcail home.

But then, why risk it, he reasoned to himself. The damage
is already done.

'Are you all right?"

"I'm fine, Marcail. Why wouldn't I be?"

"You were gone so long, I thought you might have
become lost."

Alex shook his head. "The wind has died down, and I
could see the house as I moved from the barn."

"If it's that clear maybe I should head home. I mean,
you've been very kind, but I really hate to take advantage
of your hospitality or wear out my welcome."

Alex was tempted to tell her she could stay for the next
50 years and not wear out her welcome, but he kept this
thought to himself.

"Even though the wind has died down and it's stopped
snowing, the sky looks like it could dump again at any
moment. I'm sure you have things to do at home, but we
had both better stay put for the time being," Alex told
her reasonably.

Marcail nodded and then glanced around uncomfortably for something else to say. It was still a little unbelievable to her that she was snowed in with this man.
Since it was still early, it was also hard for Marcail to
face the fact that they were going to be together for the remainder of the day. She was wondering what they
would find to talk about when Alex spoke.

"By the way, what were you doing out in the snow,
and where is your coat?"

"My coat is at the schoolhouse. I was working after the
children left when I noticed the snow coming down. I'd
never seen it snow before, and I-"

"You'd never seen it snow before?" Alex interrupted
her.

"No, and I never meant to wander so far from the
school-"

"But I thought it snowed in Santa Rosa once in a
while."

"It does, but I've only lived there since I was nine. The
two times it did snow, it was in the middle of the night
and had stopped before I got up." Determined not to let
Alex interrupt her again, Marcail quickly finished her
explanation. She then fell silent.

Too busy thinking about how terrified she must have
been, Alex wasn't about to break in again. He pictured
her wonder and delight over the snow, and then without
warning, her terror in finding herself blinded by the
wind and stinging flakes, lost and freezing. A thought
suddenly occurred to him.

"Were you hurt yesterday in any way?"

"No, I'm fine."

"You didn't fall or anything?"

"I did fall once, but I'm not hurt."

Alex eyed her speculatively, wanting to believe her but
afraid her fear was overruling her good sense. "I think
you might find that, as a doctor, I'm really not so bad,"
he told her quietly.

Alex watched as Marcail's face heated. It made the skin
on her cheeks look as soft as rose petals, and even though Alex told himself he was embarrassing her, he could not
drag his eyes away.

"Could I have another cup of coffee?" Marcail finally
said in a small voice, all the while telling herself not to
bite her lip.

"Sure." The question was enough to tell Alex that
even if she was hurt, he was not going to know about it.
He turned toward the stove, and Marcail once again sat
at the kitchen table.

"If you like to read, I have a shelf full of books in the
living room." Alex said as he filled her mug. "I need to
do a little baking, so please, make yourself at home."

"Can I help with anything?"

"I don't think so, but I'll let you know."