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Something About Ewe: Something About Ewe / The Purrfect Man
Ruth Jean Dale
Animal Passions!Something About Ewe by Ruth Jean DaleCounting sheep only made her nights more restless…Oh-so-serious Thalia Mitchell is back in Shepherd's Pass, pretending she hadn't tried to seduce animal crusader Luke Dalton the last time she'd seen him…wrapped in a plastic shower curtain. But Luke hasn't forgotten. And he's no longer the sheepish boy next door. He's all grown up now, breathtakingly handsome and determined to take up exactly where the two of them left off!The Purrfect Man by Ruth Jean DaleOnce bitten, twice shyCat person Emily Patton doesn't like trendy lawyer Michael Forbes and his perfect good looks. She doesn't like his ugly dog, either. So how she ended up with the mutt in her backyard and Michael as a permanent dinner guest is still a mystery to her. Emily has to do something–quickly–before man and beast get the wrong idea…. Or is it the right one?
Two brand-new stories in every volume…twice a month!
Duets Vol. #53
Popular Ruth Jean Dale takes the spotlight with a special Double Duets book on the theme of “animal passion.” This writer has a “talent for combining comedy with romance…and creating memorable characters,” says Romance Communications. Ruth also writes for Temptation and Superromance.
Duets Vol. #54
Quirky Tina Wainscott is back with another delightful Duets novel about a gorgeous hero determined to land his ex—hook, line and sinker! Ms. Wainscott tells “a charming story full of love and laughter,” notes Rendezvous. Completing the month is Golden Heart winner Barbara Dunlop, who makes her debut with a funny tale in the spirit of Due South. Enjoy!
Be sure to pick up both Duets volumes today!
Something About Ewe
The Purrfect Man
Ruth Jean Dale
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
Contents
Something About Ewe (#u4d4b55b2-8a5f-5d36-a102-d937300c46e8)
Chapter 1 (#uf6993fc4-7365-5e41-9213-5d1d140c0e18)
Chapter 2 (#ufe848826-4241-56fa-ac34-c98124eca762)
Chapter 3 (#u4bdccaa9-8f6d-5c68-b832-fb2eb1d4e256)
Chapter 4 (#ub918df2d-dc15-5db0-b632-48d461c4274f)
Chapter 5 (#u9651cb1e-e434-57be-9352-d2b16c2c1323)
Chapter 6 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 7 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 8 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 9 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 10 (#litres_trial_promo)
The Purrfect Man (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 1 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 2 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 3 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 4 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 5 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 6 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 7 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 8 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 9 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 10 (#litres_trial_promo)
Epilogue (#litres_trial_promo)
Something About Ewe
“Shacking up is not my thing,” Thalia insisted.
“When I move in with a guy,” she continued implacably, “it’ll be after I get a ring on this finger.” She pointed to the third finger of her left hand. “I’m in no hurry, you understand.”
Luke winced. “Shacking up, huh.” That one stopped him even colder than the reference to marriage. “That means living together. Does it also cover a little messing around?”
Thalia drew in a deep, forceful breath. “If it did…would I be here, Mr. Dalton?”
It took an instant for that to sink in. “Does that mean what I think it means—damn, what I hope it means?”
Her mysterious smile rocked him. “What do you think…hope…it means?”
“You and me…happily horizontal and all that.”
She laughed. “Oh, Luke,” she murmured, “just shut up and kiss me.”
Dear Reader,
I was having a great time writing my first Double Duets, but about halfway through I suddenly realized I was making life very hard for myself. I had named my fictitious animals all wrong! The Border collie was Jack, the calico was Missy and the black cat was Jet.
As it happens, I have a Border collie, but the name is Reckless. Not too surprisingly, I also have a calico named Patches and a black cat named Rosie. It was tough keeping the names straight.
So I went back to my computer and now the animals you’ll be reading about are all my own, right up to and including their names and their adventures. Sure made my life easier!
There’s another dog in here that I don’t own in real life and that’s Dog. I have had my share of strays, but the newest member of the family is a tiny Maltese named Spike. She weighs something like five pounds and has the heart of a lion. In the future I think there’ll probably be a story that includes Spike….
Anyway, here’s hoping you enjoy my Animal Passions. Old animal lover me sure had fun in the writing.
Best wishes!
Ruth Jean Dale
Books by Ruth Jean Dale
HARLEQUIN DUETS
4—ONE IN A MILLION
HARLEQUIN TEMPTATION
774—THE WRANGLER’S WOMAN
778—ALMOST A COWBOY
782—THE COWGIRL’S MAN
My Animal Passions books are for Aunt Patty the Cat Lady, who likes anything if it has enough dogs and cats in it. Put one on the cover and she’s in hog heaven. Love ya!
1
“DOCTOR, PLEASE DON’T keep anything from me. Will Gertrude live?”
Dr. Luke Dalton, D.V.M., smiled reassuringly at the little silver-haired lady bravely confronting him in the sparkling clean waiting room of the Shepherd’s Pass Animal Clinic and Hospital. The hand she laid on his arm trembled and he covered it with his own.
“Take it easy, Miss Pauline,” he said, gently leading her to a chair. “It’s just a simple ear infection. Gertrude will be fine.”
“What?” Miss Pauline looked indignant and not quite ready to give up her fears so quickly. “But she was yowling something awful and throwing herself around. When I picked her up she tried to bite me! She’s never done such a thing before.”
Luke knelt before her, still holding her cold hand. “Gertrude was in pain or she’d never have turned on you that way,” he assured her. “Believe me, it’s nothing life-threatening.” He added as an afterthought, “And Dr. Miller agrees.”
He knew that bit of news would reassure her. The elderly lady might give the thirty-ish Luke his proper title, but she obviously considered him a kid. And why shouldn’t she? She’d known him since he was a baby and his mother before him, had taught him in third grade, had watched him leave Colorado after college and go on to study veterinary medicine. She’d even attended the welcome-home party when he returned six months ago to join the practice of longtime Shepherd’s Pass veterinarian Dr. Gene Miller, more commonly called Doc.
She knew Luke was a real animal doctor, but this was her beloved cat. He didn’t blame her for not wanting to take chances. He understood that. He even respected it.
“May I see my Gertrude now?” She leaned forward with a pleading expression.
“Better than that.” He smiled. “You can take her home. You’ll have to put drops in her ears for a few days, but she won’t give you any trouble now that she’s not hurting.”
Relief and gratitude suffused her lined face. “Thank you, Doctor,” she said as formally as if she’d never kept him in at recess for launching spitballs. “You’ve been very kind. Please don’t feel obliged to wait with me. I know you’re busy, and—”
“Not at all.” He was, but she’d done so much for him in his misspent youth that he wanted to show her every consideration. He slid into the chair next to hers. “Cindy will bring Gertrude out just as soon as she fills the prescription. In the meantime, I’d enjoy keeping you company, if that’s okay with you.”
She looked pleased. “Quite okay,” she said. “So how have you been, Lucas?”
“Fine. And you? I haven’t seen much of you lately.”
“I’ve been quite busy, actually. I’m working part-time at Lorraine’s Pretty Posies. Did you know that?”
“I hadn’t heard.”
“Oh, yes. I answer the phone from time to time, and take orders when Lorraine gets really busy or the regular girls don’t come in.”
“That’s great,” he said, firmly believing that a busy mind was a healthy mind. “How is Lorraine? I haven’t seen her around lately.”
“Actually, she’s quite excited. Her daughter arrived yesterday for an extended vacation. You remember Thalia, no doubt?”
Thalia! The name galvanized Luke and he shot to his feet.
“My goodness.” Miss Pauline frowned. “I didn’t expect quite that reaction.”
He sat back down. “I just remembered something I have to do later,” he apologized lamely. “Of course, I remember Thalia. Is she still living in California?”
“Yes, indeed. Apparently she has some free time—something about her company merging with another company. I’m not real clear on the details, but she’ll be home for a month or so, I understand.” Her tone dropped lower. “Lorraine’s been quite concerned about her since the divorce.”
“Was it nasty?”
“Good heavens, no. Quite the opposite, apparently, but you know how mothers are. They worry when their children are far away and—” She let out a little gasp of pleasure and rose to her feet with surprising spryness. “Gertrude! You poor little thing, let me take you home and nurse you back to health.”
A smiling Cindy passed over the huge white cat. Gertrude purred loudly and pressed her head against Miss Pauline’s neck above the lacy collar of her navy-blue dress. The cat looked none the worse for her experience.
Cindy offered a small brown paper bag stapled closed, a white prescription label pasted on the outside. “Here’s her medicine, Miss Pauline. You put drops in her ear every—”
Satisfied that another crisis had been averted, Luke turned away with a farewell wave. Miss Pauline and Gertrude would be just fine.
So would he, especially now that he knew Thalia was back. Thalia, serious little Thalia, the girl who never left anything to chance. Just thinking about her made him smile.
He entered the gleaming examining room and paused, his thoughts tumbling. He hadn’t seen her in years. Would she be changed? Would she look different, act different…want different things?
He hoped not, he surely did, because once upon a time she’d wanted him.
“HEY, YOU, WAKE UP!”
Luke snapped upright over his desk and blinked. Turning in his chair, he gave his mentor a sheepish grin. “Sorry, Gene,” he said. “I was thinking.” He was supposed to be doing paperwork but was having trouble concentrating, with Thalia very much on his mind.
“Obviously.” Gene Miller pushed back the extra chair and sat. “If it wasn’t September, I’d think you had spring fever.”
“Yeah, well…” Luke couldn’t argue with that.
“Obviously I’m going to have to keep an eye on you.” Gene chuckled. “I wouldn’t be young again for all the tea in China—but I digress. I just wanted to let you know I’m leaving now. Doris is waiting for me to go to Denver with her to pick out the new carpeting.” He made a face. “Like I care what shade of blue it is, but you know women.”
“Not as well as I’d like to.” Suppressing a smile, Luke opened the top folder on the stack. “You go ahead and take off. I’ll hold the fort and see you in the morning.”
“Thanks, kid.” Gene rose. “I knew there was a reason I hustled you into coming back here to work with me after you got your license. What I don’t know is why you agreed—but I’m not asking!” He held up his hands, grinning and backing toward the door. He looked, as always, rumpled and friendly.
The door closed behind him. Luke looked back down at the files without enthusiasm. He hadn’t become an animal doctor to deal with paperwork. He’d done it because he liked animals, all animals, and truly believed that people who owned animals were superior to those who didn’t.
