They’d had high hopes to eventually move to Alaska so that Kody could become a flying paramedic and there had been talk that perhaps one day he’d go to medical school.
All the plans had been in place, but then, when their daughter had turned two, Jenny had got sick and the doctors had found the cancer in her ovaries. It had been a short battle and all their dreams had gone.
Just like that.
It was just him and his little bug, Lucy, against the world. Although Sally came and helped as much as she could, Sally wanted to be a doctor and wouldn’t be able to help with Lucy anymore. And Sally was moving on with his best friend, Ross. They were happy and he couldn’t begrudge them happiness. He had been annoyed at first, when Ross had made a move and taken up with his little sister, but not overtly unhappy about it. He was just going to let Ross think that every once in a while.
Sally deserved happiness and Ross was a great guy.
Still, he was envious of them, but he couldn’t let another woman into his life. He wouldn’t put Lucy at risk if things didn’t work out. He’d dated since Jenny died, just nothing more than a couple of dates that had gone nowhere because Lucy was his priority.
So, here he was, a widower, father and a paramedic, who really wished he could do more to help the lives he tried to save when he was first on the scene.
Dr. Fraser will save him.
And the fleeting thought of Dr. Sandra Fraser made his pulse beat a bit faster. The moment he laid eyes on Sandra something came to life. There was a spark, something electric, and he wanted to get to know her.
It was just she didn’t seem interested and he couldn’t introduce a woman to Lucy when there was a chance it wouldn’t last. He wouldn’t allow Lucy to get hurt like that.
Still, Sandra made him think about what could be.
Don’t think about it.
Kody ran his hand through his hair and sighed as he turned back toward the ambulance bay. He had no time for relationships and really hadn’t had the inclination since Jenny had died five years ago.
Lucy and taking care of her were his top priority.
That was all that mattered.
“You were a long time,” his partner, Robbie, said. “Did boss lady tear you a new one?”
The mention of boss lady made a few of the other paramedics hanging around their rigs laugh and that made Kody a bit uneasy. If he had known it bothered her so much, he wouldn’t have called her that.
He hadn’t been lying when he’d said he was no stranger to being called “joke” names that apparently weren’t supposed to cause harm but did.
Like half-breed or Injun. Everything that pointed out he was part-Cherokee, as if it were a shameful thing, as if it were something he shouldn’t be proud of, when he was dang proud of that fact.
“Hey, cool it, Robbie,” Kody said quietly.
“Cool what?” Robbie asked, confused.
“The boss lady.”
Robbie shrugged. “It’s just a joke.”
“Yeah, well, what’re we, like, twelve? And no, she didn’t tear me a new one. She was so busy stabilizing our patient that she didn’t release me until now.”
“Sorry,” Robbie said. “No offense.”
Kody didn’t respond and helped Robbie clean up the rig and make sure it was stocked for the next shift. Kody was glad his shift was almost over. He wanted to get home to Lucy, especially before the storm that was threatening to come in hit.
If there was any kind of disaster, he was on call to be first on the scene. He was hoping for a quiet night.
“You okay, man?” Robbie asked.
“I’m okay.” Kody smiled. “Just tired.”
Robbie nodded. “Well, let’s get back to the station house. It was a long shift and an accident involving a car and a cow really wasn’t a great ending.”
Kody half smiled and nodded. “You’re right.”
It had been a bizarre ending to a long shift, but also a good ending since he’d got to see Dr. Fraser. Even though there was no way he’d act on anything, it was nice to see her and admire her, even from a distance.
And that was all it could ever be.
Admiration from a distance.
“DADDY!”
Kody was nearly barreled over when he walked in the front door of his small west-Austin home. Even though Lucy was a big girl of seven, he still scooped her up in his arms and gave her a kiss. Lucy looked more and more like his late wife, Jenny, every day. Strawberry blond hair, with curls and his blue eyes.
“You did your nails,” Kody exclaimed as he checked her hand and saw the wildly garish colors on her tiny nails.
“Aunt Sally helped,” Lucy said.
“It’s about time,” Sally, his little sister, said, coming in from the kitchen. “Ross is waiting for me. He’s driving me to the station.”
“Sorry, Sweet Pea. I was held up at the hospital.” Kody set Lucy down. “My patient was a passenger in a head-on collision with a Texas longhorn.”
Sally cocked one of her finely arched brows. “A cow?”
“Oh, no, was the cow hurt?” Lucy asked.
Kody plastered a fake smile on his face. “No. The cow’s fine.”
Then he shot a look to his sister and shook his head. No, the longhorn did not fare well at all. Sally made a face.
“Well, I fed Lucy...macaroni, beef and tomato sauce casserole,” Sally said.
“Thanks,” Kody said dryly as Lucy plopped herself on the couch to read her book.
“That doesn’t sound appreciative,” Sally teased.
“Sorry. It is, Sweet Pea. It was just a very long rescue. Very messy and now I get to eat a casserole of beef.”
What he didn’t mention was his run-in with Sandra was partly to blame. He didn’t need Sally teasing him about Dr. Fraser.
It was bad enough that Ross bugged him about dating again, he didn’t need Sally siding with her new boyfriend.
“Hey, I didn’t know you were dealing with a cow accident at work.”
“I know.” Kody scrubbed his hand over his face and there was a crack of thunder in the distance, before the slow and then fast patter of rain on his metal roof.
Great.
Sally winced. “Well, I’d better get home so Ross can take me to the station. I am working another twenty-four-hour shift again.”
“It’s part of the job,” Kody teased.
“Don’t I know it.” Sally walked over to Lucy and gave her a kiss on the head. “Later, love bug.”
“Bye, Aunt Sally.”
“Thanks, Sally.” Kody walked his sister out as she dashed from his front porch to her car on the street.
Kody let out a heavy sigh and headed to the kitchen. He was going to heat up some of the dinner and then make sure that Lucy’s grandparents, Jenny’s parents, who had moved from North Carolina to be with Jenny