Chapter Eleven

She's still here. The tension in Ford's body began to ease the instant he spotted Maple. Not just here in Bluebonnet, but right here in Adaline's kitchen.

Never had there been such a sight for sore eyes.

Since he hadn't heard a word from her since their kiss the day before, he'd assumed she'd really left this time, as planned. Once he'd checked on Oliver and realized some of his initial symptoms had returned, Ford's singular focus had been on his patient. The fact that he'd missed such an important piece of local gossip was a testament to how distracted he'd been.

"I decided to stay a bit longer." Maple swallowed, clearly caught off guard by the sight of him. She crossed her arms, then uncrossed them, and recrossed then again, as fluttery and nervous as the day they'd met.

Ford tilted his head. "You okay there, Doc?"

"Fine," she said. A lie, if he'd ever heard one before.

What exactly was going on here?

Alas, Ford didn't have a chance to ask because Lady Bird had finally torn her attention away from the pie plate on the kitchen counter and registered his arrival. The dog's paws scrambled for purchase on the slick floor in her haste to get to him. Ford braced for impact as she crashed into his legs and threw herself, belly-up, at his feet.

"Hey there, sweet girl." He crouched down to give her a belly rub. "At least someone's happy to see me."

Maple let out a cough, and Ford winked at her.

"Maple is here for book club. We're finishing up soon." Adaline frowned down at her brother. "What are you doing here? And why are you in scrubs? You already did your shift at the hospital this week."

Ford straightened. "I did, but I wanted to stop by and check on a patient who wasn't feeling well. I ended up staying for a while."

After spending the evening playing Yahtzee with Oliver, he hadn't felt like going home to an empty house. Plus he knew that his sister always made fresh pie on book-club nights, so he'd swung by, hoping Adaline would take pity on him and let him crash the festivities. The last person he'd expected to find here was Maple.

Not that he was complaining.

"I hope everything is okay." Concern glowed in Maple's big brown eyes.

A look passed between them. She'd met Oliver and likely had a good idea how special that kid was to Ford.

He wished he could say more, but he couldn't discuss his patients. Ford's face likely said it all, though, as Maple's look of concern only deepened after their eyes met.

He gave his head a small shake, indicating they all needed to move on to a different, safer topic of conversation.

"We have pie." Adaline offered him a plate.

He took it and reached for a fork. "Thanks. I was hoping you might."

Adaline's gaze flitted toward Maple. "Come on in. You can join the rest of the book chat."

"But I haven't read the book."

Adaline shrugged. "It doesn't matter. Right now, everyone is pretty much just gushing over Lady Bird, anyway. If Maple isn't careful, that dog is going to be booked twenty-four-seven with therapy dog visits."

"Grover would love that. I'm not even joking. I think he'd actually prefer it if I was out of his hair and he could handle the pet clinic all on his own," Maple said.

"I doubt that," Ford countered as they headed toward the living room, even though he was fully aware the elder veterinarian could be a little rough around the edges.

Maple knew her stuff, though. Surely, Grover could see that, or maybe Ford just needed her to believe she was welcome at the pet clinic...welcome enough to make her stay in Bluebonnet permanent.

Maple aimed a sideways glance at Ford. "Have you met Grover Hayes?"

"Point taken." Ford laughed, but before he could offer a word of encouragement, Adaline swept between them and steered them toward chairs on opposite ends of the room from each other.

Lady Bird immediately left him in the dust to follow Maple. No big surprise there, but Ford felt lonely all the way on the other side of the living room, despite being surrounded by Adaline's friends. As the evening wore on, his gaze kept straying toward Maple. And once the pie had disappeared and the women had decided on their next book-club read, the night came to its inevitable close.

"Maple, where's your car?" Adaline peered toward the driveway from the front porch, where everyone was saying their goodbyes. "I figured you'd be driving Percy's truck."

Maple shook her head. "We walked."

Adaline's gaze dropped to Maple's feet, once again clad in a pair of strappy high-heeled numbers that looked more appropriate for a beauty pageant than walking a dog. "In those?"

"My wardrobe options are limited," Maple said, and Ford could see her blushing even in the silvery moonlight.

"I need to take you shopping," Adaline said.

"Here? I didn't realize Bluebonnet had much in the way of fashion."

Adaline grinned. "Oh, you just wait."

"Meanwhile, I'm happy to give you and Lady Bird a ride home," Ford interjected before someone else could offer.

"Oh." A look of a panic flitted across Maple's face. "That's really not necessary. Lady Bird and I have been walking all over town together. We like it, don't we?"

Lady Bird wagged her tail, which meant nothing whatsoever. The dog would've agreed to anything Maple asked her in that soothing, singsong voice of hers.

"It's late." Without warning, Ford reached for Lady Bird's leash and slipped it out of Maple's hand. "And dark."

And Ford wanted to spend more time with her. Mostly, he wanted to know why she suddenly seemed keen to avoid him. He'd thought those days were over. The last time he'd seen her, she'd leaned over a picnic table in the middle of the town square and given him the most perfect kiss of his life.

"Ford, you know better than anyone that Bluebonnet is perfectly safe. If Maple wants to walk, you should let her," Adaline said with a slight edge to her voice. "She doesn't need your permission."

All at once, Ford knew exactly what was going on.

He turned toward his sister. "Adaline."

"Ford," she said with a tiny quiver in her chin.

Jenna and Belle fled toward their cars, no doubt eager to avoid a sibling squabble. Maple stayed put, and Ford knew good and well it was only because he still had Lady Bird's leash wrapped around his hand.

He knew he shouldn't be angry with Adaline. His sister loved him and didn't want to see him hurt again. She'd already said so at the bakery, but she also needed to mind her own business. He was a grown man, and if he wanted to give Maple a ride or walk her home, there wasn't a pie in the world that could stop him...

Provided Maple let him, of course.

"Maple, may I walk you home?" he asked quietly. He suddenly liked the idea of a nice quiet stroll. It would give them time to talk, which suddenly seemed quite necessary.

Lady Bird's head swiveled toward him, and she let out a booming bark at the word walk.

"Your dog seems to love the idea," Ford said. He owed Lady Bird a dog biscuit now...possibly three.

Maple's eyes sparked with amusement. "You truly are impossible, you know that?"

"So you've said." Ford shrugged. "Several times, in fact."

"For the record, I concur. You are impossible." Adaline glared at him and then turned toward Maple with an apologetic smile. "Don't let me stop you. I should probably start letting my brother live his own life."

"You really, really should," Ford muttered.

"Good night, Maple. I'm really glad you came tonight. I hope to see you at our next book club." Adaline gave Maple a quick hug and, with a wave at Ford, she disappeared inside the house, leaving the two of them alone on the porch.

Ford offered Maple his arm. "Well, what do you say? It's a nice night for a walk, and we wouldn't want to disappoint Lady Bird."

"She might never forgive me, so I should probably say yes." Maple wrapped gentle fingertips around the crook of his elbow. "For Lady Bird."

"For Lady Bird," Ford echoed and smiled into the velvety darkness as the golden retriever guided them toward home.

"So tell me the truth." Ford gave Maple a sidelong glance that somehow felt as real as a caress, despite the darkness that surrounded them.

A nighttime Texas sky was nothing like the neon lights of New York City. Out here, the darkness was so thick that the stars glittered like diamonds overhead. For the first time ever, she could see the constellations. It made her feel tiny and larger than life, both at the same time.

"The truth about what?" she asked in a whisper. That was another thing about Bluebonnet after hours—the silence. There were no sirens, no honking cabs, no city noises to keep her up at night. Just a casual walk home felt intimate in a way that made goose bumps dance across her skin.

"What's the real reason you're not driving Percy's truck around town?" Ford said with a smile in his voice. "You don't have a driver's license, do you?"

She gasped in mock horror. "I beg your pardon, I certainly do. Just because I'm from Manhattan doesn't mean I don't know to drive."

"And when exactly was the last time you were behind the wheel of an automobile?"

Touché. He had her there.

"The day I got my license." She cleared her throat as Ford chuckled with self-satisfaction. "But I do possess one. I know how to drive—at least according to the State of New York."

"I guess I'll have to take your word for it." He gave her shoulder a little bump with his. "Yours and the State of New York's."

"Do you have any idea how much parking costs in Manhattan? Garage fees are outrageous. Plus, we've got the subway and cabs and Uber. It's just easier to take public transportation."

Ford laughed under his breath again. "Yeah, we don't have much of that here."

"So I've noticed," Maple said. And soon, she'd have the blisters on her feet to prove it.

More than that, she was beginning to worry about the heat. The temperatures were already hovering around ninety degrees at high noon, and it was only the beginning of summer. In a matter of weeks, the pavement would be too hot for Lady Bird's sensitive paws.

At least the evenings were still pleasant. Soft and fragrant with the perfume of wildflowers, almost like walking through a dream.

"I could help you practice," Ford said.

Maple narrowed her gaze at him beside her. "You seriously want to give me driving lessons?"

"Not lessons. You already know how to drive, Doc." His grin turned far too sardonic for Maple's liking. "I just thought you might feel more comfortable if you had a little practice. Also, if you started using Percy's truck, you could bring Lady Bird to the hospital more often."

Right. This was about Lady Bird, her therapy-dog work and, by extension, Oliver. No wonder Ford wanted to volunteer as tribute.

Even so, it was a kind offer and one that Maple would probably be wise to accept. It wasn't like she could accidentally let herself kiss him again while she was operating a moving vehicle.

Stop thinking about kissing.

She bit down hard on her bottom lip as punishment, but, of course, her gaze flitted straight toward his mouth.

"I'd like that a lot. Thanks—" she managed to squeak out the last word "—friend."

How awkward could she possibly be?

Ford looked downright puzzled. This was beyond her usual social anxiety. The way she couldn't seem to think straight around him felt like something else entirely.

Something almost like...

Don't you dare think it, Maple! Not even for a second.

Love?

She released her hold on his arm, because whoa. Being attracted to Ford was one thing, but thinking about the L word was more than she could handle. More than she'd ever be able to handle. In keeping with the automotive topic at hand, she needed to seriously pump the breaks.

"Maple, I'm not sure what exactly Adaline said to you tonight, but—" Ford began.

"Your sister was nothing but welcoming. Truly. I really like her," Maple said in an effort to cut him off.

She really meant it, too. She liked Adaline, and she'd had a great time meeting her friends. But even though Adaline had backed off somewhat and encouraged Maple to let Ford walk her home when he'd obviously figured out she'd been interfering in his personal life, the warning she'd given Maple still rang true.

Ford had already been hurt once by someone who'd turned her back on Bluebonnet. Maple cared too much about him to risk doing it again.

It would be different if she knew she was staying for good, but Maple couldn't make a promise like that right now...not even to herself. She'd only just recently given herself permission to take things one day at a time. Even that had been a massive leap of faith for someone who'd had an entirely different life mapped out for herself just a few short days ago.

"She told you about Charlotte," Ford said, cutting straight to the chase.

"Yes, but I don't want you to think I was trying to pry. For the record, I don't think that was Adaline's intention, either." This discussion was getting more uncomfortable by the second. How was that even possible?

"I know better than to think you'd try and interject yourself into my business, Maple. Quite the opposite, in fact. For a while there, I wondered if you were actively trying to avoid me." Ford's footsteps slowed. Maple had been so consumed by their conversation and the thoughts spinning in her head that she hadn't realized they'd reached her house until Lady Bird's tail stopped waving in front of them. The dog plopped into a down position at their feet. "Until you kissed me yesterday, that is."

"I shouldn't have done that. It's practically turned into front-page news around here. I keep telling people it was just a thank you kiss, and no one seems to think that's a real thing. Maybe it's not. I don't know. It was kind of a new experience for me. Believe it or not, that was rather out of character."

Maple was babbling. She couldn't seem to stop the stream of nonsense coming out of her mouth, and the more she said, the more tenderly Ford seemed to look at her—so tenderly that she wanted to lose herself in those kind eyes of his. Forget-me-not blue.

As if I could ever forget Ford Bishop, she thought. Never in a million years.

"I'm sorry," she blurted, apologizing once and for all for the kiss heard—and more importantly, seen—around the world. Or at least Texas, which had begun to feel like the only place on earth.

"I'm not," Ford said in a voice so low and deep that it scraped her insides. Then he took a step closer and gazed into her eyes with such intensity that every sliver of space between them cracked with electricity. "In fact, I want you to do it again."

"You do?" Maple heard herself say. She wasn't sure how, because her heart had never pounded so hard and fast in all her life.

Ford nodded, and tipped her chin upward with a gentle touch of his fingertips until her mouth was positioned just below his. "I do. Right now, in fact."

"Right now," she repeated, as weak and small as a kitten. If she didn't give in, the longing just might kill her. So much for flipping her feelings off like a light.

He wasn't like any man she'd ever known before. He was passionate about his career, just like she was. But when he was with her, he was fully present. He made her feel like there was nowhere he'd rather be than with her. She'd shown him exactly who she was—the messy side of her that she never let anyone else see. And somehow, it only seemed to make him like her more.

How was she supposed to resist that?

She rose up on tiptoe, and just as the yearning became unbearable, her lips met his. And this time, there was no hesitation...no restraint. The warmth of his mouth on hers sent a hum through her body that made her wrap her arms around his neck and pull him closer.

Yes.It was the only semi-coherent thought in her head as his hands slid into her hair. Oh, my, my, my. Yes, please.

She felt her soul unfold like the petals on a flower, inviting him in. She needed him even closer—so close that she could feel every beat of his heart crashing against her rib cage. No one had ever kissed her like this before. Like she was special, like she was cherished. Maybe even adored.

Then, without warning, it was over almost as soon as it had begun.

Ford pulled back, and when Maple dragged her eyes open, she found him looking down at her with the strangest expression on his face. He was as still as stone, but his eyes were wild and dark with desire. Maple wished she could press Rewind and live the last two minutes of her life over and over again on constant repeat.

She wanted that so much it scared her a little. "What is it?"

Ford pressed a fingertip to his lips, signaling for her to be quiet.

"I think I just heard something," he whispered.

Maple blinked. You certainly did. It was every last shred of my resistance crumbling down around me. "Wh-what did it sound like?"

"A whimper. Or a cry, maybe. Like someone in pain." His head jerked toward the right and he peered over her shoulder. "There. I just heard it again. Did you?"

"Maybe?" She couldn't be sure. Her head was all fuzzy after that kiss, brief as it had been.

But then she glanced down at Lady Bird and snapped back to awareness.

"Ford." Maple's fingers curled around the fabric of his shirt and she balled it into a fist as a shiver coursed through her—and not the good, yummy kind of shiver she'd been experiencing just seconds before. "Look at Lady Bird."

The gentle dog's ears were pricked forward, and her hackles were raised. She'd obviously heard something, too, and whatever it was had her spooked.

"It's okay, girl." Ford rested a hand on Lady Bird's back.

The golden panted and relaxed a bit at his touch, but then a mournful cry pierced the air.

Maple's gaze immediately collided with Ford's.

"That sounds like a hurt animal," she said.

Lady Bird barked and sprang into action. She darted past Ford, dragging her leash behind her before either of them could stop her.

"Lady Bird!" Ford shouted, chasing after the dog.

Maple followed with her heart in her throat. Lady Bird was just a streak of gold in the darkness, dashing sideways across Percy's lawn toward the pet clinic next door.

Now, Maple really wished she'd given up on her fashionable stilettos. She could barely keep up. She finally kicked them off and ran barefoot toward the front porch of the pet clinic, where she could scarcely make out the silhouette of Ford's profile in the moonlight.

"It's a dog," he called out, and the tone of his voice alone told her it was bad. Really bad. "She needs help!"