Tomorrow's Promise (The Hawks Mountain Series) (12 page)

Without saying a word, she took his hand and led him inside the house and closed the door.

Chapter 12

COLE GLANCED AT the clock. He’d been sitting in his darkened living room for over two hours, ever since he’d slipped out of Faith’s house as she slept, and made his way home. However, sleep had eluded him. He sipped at the can of beer that had grown warm in his hand. His thoughts ricocheted between knowing that making love to Faith tonight had opened a door he had not wanted opened and wanting to go back there and crawl back into bed with her.

The latter choice, as much as he wanted it, was not going to happen. It would only add another brick to the wall that would eventually collapse on both of them. He didn’t need any more heartache, and Faith had already had enough pain to last a lifetime.

Taking the last sip of the beer, he crushed the can in his fist. Then he threw it on the coffee table, barely mindful of how it skidded across the table and dropped to the floor. His concentration remained centered on his problem.

Having painted himself into a corner by promising not only to drive her to work but to also give her driving lessons after work, Cole had laid temptation right in his path. He couldn’t back out. Faith was depending on him. So what was the answer?

He strode to the window and stared out at his front lawn where the moonlight painted eerie shadows across the grass. Behind him, the clock ticked away the minutes until he would have to come face to face with her again.

Protecting her from the pitfalls of life had always been number one on his list. Now it seemed that the one thing that posed the most dangerous threat to her was Cole Ainsley. Being with her on a daily basis had already intensified his initial attraction, luring him into something that he wasn’t able to control.

The only answer was to call on the willpower he’d used as a detective on the streets of Richmond. He’d have to put up a barricade between Faith Chambers and his emotions.

FAITH WOKE UP and rolled to her side. Stretching out her hand, she felt the cold, empty bed beside her. She slid her hand to the pillow and traced the dent left by Cole’s head. Then, while memories of their love making danced through her head, she buried her face in the pillow and inhaled his fragrance.

She’d only been with two other men in her life: Ronnie Connors, who had taken her virginity in her senior year and left her wondering what all the fuss was about, and Sloan, who had been more concerned with his own satisfaction than hers. So her basis for comparison was somewhat limited, but Cole had been far and above anything she’d experienced before. He’d been a gentle, caring lover who had held her afterward and whispered sweet things in her ear until she fell asleep in his arms.

Without warning, doubts and regret stole the beautiful memories of the night before. Not until now did she realize that she had expected Cole to be there when morning came. Why had he slipped away while she slept? Had she been a one-night stand, or had he left before he had to face her? How badly she wanted to believe it wasn’t the latter.

The strident
buzz
of her alarm clock brought her back to the present. She shut the alarm off and got out of bed. Time enough for reflection later. Right now, she had to get dressed for her first day of work. Wasting no time, she showered, dried her hair, and dressed in brown slacks and a white blouse, what she decided would be proper attire for a veterinarian’s receptionist. Dressed, and makeup done to her satisfaction, she went into the kitchen and made coffee. It was a little strange not having to see to Lizzie’s morning needs along with her own. However, although she missed her daughter, it was also nice to be able take her time and not have a demanding child to see to and puddles of milk and cereal to mop up.

When the coffeepot had finished its brew cycle, she poured herself a cup and took a sip. The jolt of caffeine removed any remaining remnants of sleep her shower had left behind, and by the time she heard Cole pull into the driveway twenty minutes later, she was wide awake and ready to face the day, if not the man outside.

THE RIDE TO THE Paws and Claws Clinic was accomplished in a strained silence. It seemed neither of them wanted to talk, fearing that whatever they had to say would segue into talk about the night before.

Cole stopped the car in front of the office and moved the gear shift to Park.

“Thanks,” Faith mumbled and started to get out of the car.

“Faith.”

She paused, her back to him, and prayed that he was not about to launch into a conversation about the last thing she wanted to discuss. “Yes?”

“I’ll pick you up after work and we’ll go into Charleston to get your permit. I may be a bit late. I have to drop the squad car off at my house and get my private vehicle. You might want to call Granny Jo and let her know we are going to be late coming to get Lizzie.” His tone of voice sounded as though he was conducting an interview with a suspect.

Faith nodded without turning around. “Granny knows. I called her this morning and told her. She’s going to feed Lizzie dinner.”

“Good.” He shifted the car out of Park and into Drive. “See you later.”

She’d barely closed the car door when he accelerated out of the parking lot. Tears gathered in her eyes and blurred the brake lights when he paused to check traffic at the end of the driveway. Evidently, she’d been wrong about Cole. He was no better than Sloan. He’d gotten what he’d wanted because she had been stupid enough to let down her guard and give in to her emotions, and now the real Cole had come to the surface. But even as she told herself that, she knew it was just her hurt talking. In her heart, she knew Cole wasn’t anything like Sloan.

“Faith?”

Jolted from her problems, Faith looked up to find Hunter Mackenzie standing in the office doorway. “Hi. Hope I’m not late.”

“You’re right on time.” He opened the door wider and ushered her into the clinic. “I have a surgery to perform in a few minutes on a wounded fox that was brought in this morning. Before I get started, I wanted to give you a quick rundown of your duties.” He pointed to the chair behind the desk. “You’ll be sitting here, and basically, all you’ll be doing is answering the phone, making appointments, and then checking them in and pulling their files for me when the patients and owners arrive.” He grinned. “Simple. Right?” She nodded. “Any questions?”

“I’m sure I can handle it,” Faith said, taking a seat and stowing her purse in the bottom drawer of the desk.

“Well, if you do have any questions, don’t be afraid to ask.” Hunter walked toward a door behind her. The he stopped and swung back to face her. “By the way, Davy Collins will be in later today to feed the animals. Please tell him I want to speak to him before he starts. I have to give him instructions for feeding the fox I’ll be doing surgery on.”

She gave him a thumbs-up. “Got it.” Then, after Hunter had disappeared into the back room, she made a note to remind herself.

THE MORNING SLIPPED by quickly, filled with calls from Carson residents wanting appointments for their various pets. Bill Keeler needed his blue-tick hound, Rufus, vaccinated so he could take him camping with them. Catherine Daniels made an appointment for her Yorkie, Shasta, to have her ears and teeth cleaned and her nails clipped. Bugs Anderson wanted to know how the fox that he’d brought to Hunter earlier that day was doing. And the list went on, keeping Faith too busy with calls and arriving patients and their owners for her to wallow in thoughts of Cole.

Shortly after three o’clock, the door opened, and Davy Collins came in, accompanied by his wolf Sadie. “Hey, Miss Faith.” He glanced around the room. “Where’s Miss Rose?”

Faith smiled at the boy’s cheery greeting and the smell of bubblegum that seemed to always surround him. “Hello there, Davy. Miss Rose has to take it easy until her baby is born. I’m going to be taking her place until she comes back.”

“Sure hope she’s okay.” He looked toward the house where Rose and Hunter lived on the far side of the clinic property. A worried frown pleated his forehead. Glancing first at Sadie then to Faith, he said, “Sadie usually waits here for me to feed the animals so she doesn’t rile them up. They don’t really like wolves around them. Miss Rose never minded. Is it okay with you? It’s okay if you don’t want to have her here. I can always tie her to the tree outside. She won’t like it, but it’ll only be for a couple of hours.” He gasped for air after his prolonged speech.

Faith suppressed a smile. She wasn’t nuts about sharing the office with a wolf, however, as long as she had a big solid desk between her and the animal . . . “Sure. Sadie can stay here with me.” If it had been okay with Rose, Faith was willing to give it a whirl, even if it did make her a bit nervous.

“Thanks.” Davy turned to the wolf and made a slicing motion with his hand. “Sadie, down.” With a muffled
thump
, the wolf instantly splayed her big body on the floor, rested her chin on her paws, and watched Davy. Again using his hand, he held up his palm to the big animal. “Stay.” Without looking back, he headed for the door. “I’ll be getting to work now.”

“Davy, Dr. Hunter wants to see you before you start, and I have a question for you.”

He turned back. “Okay. I pretty much know all there is to know about most of the animals.” His chest swelled. “What do you need to know?”

Grinning at this miniature
animal expert
, Faith leaned forward. “It’s nothing about the animals, although I’ll certainly keep you in mind if I need to know anything about them. I’m going to have a small birthday party for Lizzie in a few weeks, and I wanted to ask you if you’d like to come.”

For a moment, he seemed to be thinking it over, then his eyes brightened and a big smile curved his lips. “You gonna have cake and ice cream?”

“Absolutely.”

His grin widened and lit up the room. “Okay. We’ll be there. Sadie loves ice cream.” Then he zipped past her into the backroom.

Faith laughed. She had a feeling Sadie wasn’t the only one who liked ice cream.

THE REMAINDER OF the week passed quickly, and before Faith realized it, it was Friday, and Hunter was locking up the office and hurrying off to check on Rose. Davy had finished his tasks and rode off on his bicycle with Sadie trotting beside him like a faithful dog. Sadie and Faith had made friends, and before the day had ended, Sadie was lying beside the desk, sleeping with her chin resting on the toe of Faith’s shoe. Surprisingly, as time passed, Faith found she was no longer the least bit uneasy about a wolf snuggling up to her.

Today would be her first driving lesson. She and Cole had gone to Charleston and gotten her permit and the handbook they gave all new drivers. She’d studied it until she was sure the words would come off the pages. As she’d read it, things came back to her that she’d learned in school. Between the handbook and high school Drivers’ Ed, she felt sure she could do this.

As he’d promised, Cole pulled up in his personal car moments after everyone had gone home. He turned off the motor and got out. “Ready for your first lesson?” To Faith’s surprise, he was smiling as if the tension of the past few days had never happened. The nerves that had started to tangle in knots at the prospect of his impending arrival began to relax.

“I’m ready.” She walked around the car and climbed into the driver’s seat.

It felt strange, but at the same time familiar, as memories of her Drivers’ Education lessons came slowly back to her. Move the seat forward. Check the rearview mirror. Check the side mirrors. Fasten her seat belt. She turned to Cole to see if he was ready to proceed, but when she saw his long legs folded up almost to his chest to fit in the passenger seat, she laughed out loud.

“Are you gonna be okay?” she asked when she could catch her breath.

He grinned back at her. Her heart fluttered erratically in her chest. “As long as the circulation isn’t totally cut off, I should be okay. Besides, I’ve been in worse predicaments.”

Her laughter died when images of the danger he’d faced as a big city detective played through her mind. The idea of Cole being hurt lodged in her throat in a big lump of fear.

He touched her arm lightly. “You okay? You’re not nervous, are you?”

Faith quickly cleared her mind and forced herself to concentrate on her driving lesson. “I’m fine. And, no, I’m not nervous at all. I think I remember enough of my Drivers’ Ed classes to make this as painless for you as possible.”

“Well, then, let’s get started.”

After shifting into Drive, Faith drove carefully from the parking lot. It surprised her that, after overcoming the urge to constantly adjust the steering wheel, things went rather smoothly. Cole directed her toward the mountain road where there was less traffic. Although it was winding and narrow, she felt safer on those roads than on the town’s streets, at least for the next few lessons.

As they rounded a curve not far from her house, she spotted a white SUV parked beside the road. “Is that the same SUV we saw the other day?”

Cole frowned, leaned forward, and studied the car. “I think so. It’s got a Georgia plate.” He pulled a small notepad from his shirt pocket. “Slow down so I can get the plate number.” Faith did as he asked, and he jotted down the series of numbers and letters. As they passed the car, Cole continued to study it.

“Is there something wrong?”