A COWBOY WHO HEALS
Veterinarian Roce Clayton is starting to wonder if the woman of his dreams doesnât actually exist. So heâs focusing on another dreamâopening his own veterinary clinic on his familyâs land beneath Montanaâs Sapphire Mountains. When heâs called to a nearby ranch to treat an injured horse, Roce is greeted by the most gorgeous woman heâs ever seen. Maybe dreams do come true.
Tracey Marcroft hopes that a summer working with horses will help her forget losing her fiancé. Instead, sheâs confronted with a hostile ranch hand whoâs trying to scare her off...and who is definitely hiding something. But with Roce at her side, Tracey is discovering that this handsome cowboy doctor wonât just protect her...he might just heal her broken heart.
âI canât do a job if Iâm being sabotaged...â
âDo you feel he is trying to get you to quit?â
Tracey swallowed the rest of her coffee. âI honestly donât know, Roce, but my instincts are telling me yes.â
âMine are saying the same thing. He needs watching, Tracey. Be careful.â
âI will. Tomorrow Iâll just play âI Spyâ games with the children on whatever trail we take. Thereâll be nothing for him to criticize.â
âHeâs picked the wrong woman to drive away. Youâre a warrior.â
Their eyes held. âIâll take that as a compliment.â
âWish I could ride with you. I already know the prize I want,â he said with a half smile that sent a thrill racing through her body.
So do I.
Funny how a simple dinner had suddenly made her so breathless.
REBECCA WINTERS, whose family of four children has now swelled to include five beautiful grandchildren, lives in Salt Lake City, Utah, in the land of the Rocky Mountains. Living near canyons and high alpine meadows full of wildflowers, she never runs out of places to explore. They, plus her favorite holiday spots in Europe, often end up as backgrounds for her romance novels, because writing is her passion, along with her family and church.
Rebecca loves to hear from readers. If you wish to email her, please visit her website, www.cleanromances.com.
To James Alfred âAlfâ Wight, better known by the pen name James Herriot. He was a British veterinary surgeon and writer who used his many years of experience to write a series of books, each consisting of stories about animals and their owners. Heâs best known for his semiautobiographical works beginning with All Creatures Great and Small. In 1972 a British television series was adapted from the books, also titled All Creatures Great and Small. Thanks to him, I was given hours and hours of sheer pleasure and developed an even greater appreciation of all Godâs creatures.
Chapter One
âLast on the program is Dr. Rocelin Clayton, who worked closely with Hannah for the last three years, right up to her death.â
Pastor McKinney nodded to Roce, who walked to the lectern.
The Presbyterian church on Spruce Street was filled to overflowing. People from all over had come to pay their respects to the eighty-three-year-old veterinarian whoâd practiced here in Missoula, Montana, for over fifty years.
Roce stood before the audience, some of whom heâd helped after Hannah had taken him into her practice. This was a sad day for him. The only other time heâd ever spoken at a funeral was at his fatherâs, almost two years ago. He was forced to clear his throat several times before speaking.
âA paragon has left us, and no one is more bereaved than I am. Dr. Hannah Larabee, owner of the Larabee Veterinarian Hospital, was not only a legend in these parts, she was the best boss a man could have hoped to work for right out of veterinary school.
âI didnât get the opportunity to meet her beloved Tom, her veterinarian husband who started the hospital with her. He died two years before I was hired. Hannahâs sudden fatal heart attack is proof that she gave her all to the animals big and small that God put on this earth for our comfort and enjoyment.
âNot long ago she told me that she never met an animal she didnât like, and that when she got to heaven, she planned to visit every one of those creatures whoâd already passed on.â
His eyes smarted.
âI bet that right now theyâre all standing in line to see her again. Itâs possible that, at this very moment, sheâs talking to them in her loving voice, commiserating with them about the ailments theyâd suffered on earth.â
He heard gentle laughter from the audience and saw a lot of people wiping their eyes. The church was filled with animal lovers from western Montana who knew exactly what he was talking about.
âWeâre all going to miss her and the great blessing she was to this community. Her family has to be so proud of what she accomplished on this earth.