The Bachelor Ranger Read online

  “Go on.”

  She got straight to the point, leaving nothing out except of a personal nature. “You should have seen how grateful those campers were. They had a couple of children with them. The dog got rid of the bears like magic. I’ve never seen anything like it in my life.”

  “Yeah?” She felt Vance’s excitement through the phone.

  “His bark terrified me!”

  Vance gave a hearty laugh.

  “Cal deserves some kind of recognition for what he did.” Her voice cracked as she said it.

  “I couldn’t agree more.”

  “If other rangers could train more bear dogs who’d behave like Sergei, you could turn the bear problem around in the park. I wish I had a video to show you.”

  “So do I.”

  “Vance? Would you consider letting the Trent Foundation set up a fund for more dogs?” There was a protracted silence. “You don’t have to answer me now. I realize you’d have to pick rangers who’d be willing to work with an animal all the time. Maybe there aren’t that many who’d be committed. But if Cal trained them…”

  She was running off at the mouth. That’s what a close shave with a terrifying bear encounter had done to her. "Just think about it, but don’t tell Cal. I don’t want him to know I shared this with you. He’s so modest he’ll just blow off what happened this afternoon anyway. Let him think it came from someone else.”

  “I hear you. Tell me—while you were out, did you come across any other stashes of weapons or mutilations?”

  “We combed the area for a long time, but unless Cal noticed something I didn’t, then no. He’s still at the campground. I’m on my way back to the ski lodge. I need to check in with the guys.”

  “Understood. We’ll keep in touch. And Alex—I’m thankful you all came out of today’s adventure safe.”

  Her lungs took an extra breath. “So am I. Talk to you later.” She hung up feeling a little less shaken until she phoned Lonan and found out he was at the clinic with Lokita.

  “It’s his appendix.”

  “He had a bout with that last year,” Alex said.

  “That explains why he hasn’t felt good the last couple of days. The doctor says it needs to come out, but he’s fighting me on it.”

  “He has to have the operation. Where are the boys?”

  “Swimming at the Yosemite Lodge.”

  “I’ll be there shortly. Do you want to drive him to the hospital in Merced, or shall I?”

  “He’s refusing to go anywhere, Alex.”

  If Lonan couldn’t budge him, then Lokita was being his most stubborn self. “I’ll be at the clinic shortly.”

  After they hung up, Alex phoned Cal. She had to get his permission. It was his car she was driving after all.

  “Alex?” He sounded upset. “Why haven’t you picked up? I’ve been trying to reach you.”

  “I’m sorry. I…was on the phone with Lonan.”

  She heard a sharp intake of breath. “After that scare, you shouldn’t have gone off alone. I can tell something’s wrong. What is it?”

  When she told him he said, “I’m five minutes behind you and will meet you at the clinic. Just keep your phone line open!”

  “I will,” she said, secretly relieved and surprised he was so close. And thrilled. Before another moment passed she needed to call Lokita’s parents and tell them what was happening. They were the only ones who could get him to see reason.

  Or so she thought.

  When she arrived a half hour later, she found him sitting in the reception room next to Lonan, shaking his dark head. He refused to look up at Alex.

  She and Lonan exchanged a concerned glance before she whispered she’d take over. Lonan looked relieved and wished her luck before he left the clinic to round up the other teens.

  Alex stood in front of him. “Did you talk to your parents?”

  “Yes.”

  “Did they tell you to go to the hospital?”

  “Yes. I said no.”

  “Are you trying to prove how brave you are?”

  His mouth tightened.

  “You’ll show the guys what brave is if you go. They hate the idea of a hospital. Everyone does.”

  “Alex is right” came a deep, familiar voice behind her. She felt it resonate clear through her. Cal’s presence brought Lokita’s head up. He sat down next to the boy. No doubt Cal had bumped into Lonan and knew what was wrong. The boys had certain apprehensions about Western medicine.

  “I had my appendix out at your age.”

  “You?” the teen questioned in surprise.

  “Yup. It was over so fast, I got to go back home the same day. If you want to see my scar, I’ll show it to you. It’s tiny, but I always considered it my mark of bravery.”

  Lokita looked Cal up and down. “Will you come with me?”

  The smile Cal gave the teen would stay with Alex all her life. “I wouldn’t be anywhere else. Neither would Alex. We’ll keep you company.”

  “Okay.”

  Thank heaven for Cal. He’d won the boys’ trust. There could be no greater compliment.

  The teen stood up slowly. He was in pain. “Let’s go.”

  They left the clinic. While Cal put Lokita in the backseat of the car, Alex climbed in front. Cal came around the other side and started the car.

  “Where’s Sergei?”

  “I dropped him off at Jeff’s for the night.”

  For the night. Alex’s heart raced at the thought, but right now Lokita was their first priority.

  To keep Lokita’s thoughts off himself during the drive to Merced, she told him all about the bear incident at the Hetch Hetchy in great detail. “You should have seen Sergei scare those bears away with that savage bark. You would have loved it.”

  “Lokita?” Cal interjected. “Did I ever tell you guys a bear can run thirty miles an hour? Well, I figure I could have clocked them going forty.”

  Alex laughed hard, still picturing the bear dropping the hot dogs before he hightailed it out of there. “That’s our Sergei.”

  The words flew out of her mouth before she realized what she’d said. Her gaze collided with Cal’s. What she read in that look electrified her just as it had the first time they’d met.

  Chapter Eleven

  Alex could feel something tickling her nose. She lifted her hand and encountered another hand. Her eyes fluttered open. Early-morning light was coming through the shutters of the hospital room window. The next thing she knew Cal’s lips smothered her little cry.

  “Shh… You’ll waken Lokita. We have to whisper.”

  It took a minute for her to realize Cal had moved his cot next to hers. Last night after Lokita had been brought back from a successful laparoscopic appendectomy, housekeeping had placed Cal’s cot on the other side of the hospital bed.

  “All I ask is that you listen,” he implored her.

  That was all she could do while her heart was thundering in every pulse point of her body. When he spoke, his whiskers tickled her skin. She loved the feel of them. She loved every single thing about him.

  “While I’ve got you where I want you, there’s something you need to know. When I was kissing you at the lookout tower, I knew deep in my gut I wanted you in my life, but because of all the reasons we’ve talked about, I didn’t act on my feelings at the time to keep you there.”

  “Cal—”

  “I swear it’s true.” His voice trembled slightly. “When I bumped into you outside the Chief’s office, I couldn’t prevent myself from going after you. Say you believe me.” He spoke with an earnestness she’d never heard before. “I love you, Alex. I’ve been desperately in love with you for a long, long time.”

  When she opened her mouth to speak, he held up a hand. “After you came to the park with your father the first time, I knew in my gut I’d met someone I’d never forget. The night at the Ahwahnee when you were seated at the dining room table with your boys, everyone could see your great love for them. It was there in your eyes�
��your sweetness and goodness. Your generosity. Right then I realized I would sell my soul if I could get you to love me like that.”

  It seemed like she’d been waiting an eternity to hear those words.

  “I do love you like that, Cal.” It was heaven to be able to finally admit it to him. “I’ve been in love with you forever, but then you’ve always known that.”

  Too filled with her love for him to talk anymore, she slid her arm around his neck and pulled him closer so she could show him what he meant to her. The joy of knowing he welcomed her kiss was so liberating, she had no inhibitions. What started out as one kiss grew into another until there was no beginning, no end.

  “This is torture,” he whispered into her silky hair sometime later. His breathing sounded ragged. “If I make one more move, both our cots will collapse, but it’s killing me not to be able to do what I want to you.”

  “That works both ways,” she whispered back, loving the feel of his hair while she ran her hands through it.

  “You shouldn’t have told me that. When the doctor releases Lokita, we’ll take him to my house to recover for another couple of days. In between nursing him, we’ll have our privacy. How does that sound?” His compelling mouth was already covering hers again.

  “You already know” were the only words she could manage before their hunger took over. The driving force of his kiss broke down the barriers between them, robbing her of strength. She clung to him and found herself responding with a ferocity she couldn’t control.

  Alex had never experienced anything that came anywhere near this divine, wild ecstasy permeating her heart and body. She loved Cal to the depth of her being and couldn’t prevent herself from showing him. Neither of them was aware of anything until they heard footsteps outside the door.

  At the sound she started to come to her senses and tried to break off their kiss, but Cal moaned his displeasure and held her trapped in his strong arms. When the door opened, she pushed against his chest, forcing him to relinquish his hold.

  Embarrassed, she tore swollen lips from his. Cal’s hands slid reluctantly from her, finally allowing her to roll away from him. “Don’t mind me,” the nurse said drily as she walked over to check on Lokita. “The doctor’s making rounds now. He ought to be here in a minute.”

  Red-faced, Alex got to her feet on legs of mush and headed for the bathroom to freshen up. She had to cling to the sink until the room stopped spinning. When she came out, she discovered the cots were gone.

  The middle-aged surgeon stood at the foot of the bed talking to Cal. It wasn’t fair for a man who’d lost sleep for the past two nights doing park business to look so incredibly attractive.

  “Lokita’s coming along fine,” the doctor said to her. “So far no complications in twelve hours. He’s anxious to go home, so I see no reason why he can’t leave by noon. The nurse will give you a set of instructions to take with you.” He patted the teenager on the shoulder. “You’ll be up and around in a few days, son, good as new.”

  “Thanks,” Lokita murmured.

  “You’re welcome.”

  Cal walked the doctor out to the hall. Alex moved over to the side of the bed. “How are you feeling right now?” she asked Lokita.

  “Strange.”

  “I’m very proud of you.”

  He looked embarrassed. “Cal says I can stay at his house tonight. Is that okay?”

  “Yes. I’m going to be there with you.”

  “Can the guys come and see me?”

  “Absolutely. In fact we’ll have a party tonight after they get back from work.” He gave her the first smile she’d seen from him in days. “But right now you need to sleep until it’s time to go. Do you want to say hi to your parents first?”

  “Yes.”

  She got them on the phone and handed it to Lokita before she slipped out the door. There was no sign of Cal, who’d probably gone to bring them coffee. She couldn’t bear for him to be out of her sight, not for a single second.

  He loved her.

  The magic of that word…

  CAL LOOKED AROUND HIS living room filled with teenagers. Never in his wildest dreams could he have imagined such a scenario when he’d moved in here in mid-May.

  Except for Lonan, who sat on the easy chair, the rest had plopped on the floor around the couch where Lokita was lying while they ate ice-cream sundaes, Alex’s idea. It was a huge hit. Cal had already eaten his fill and had just scarfed his third brownie.

  Alex came in and out of the kitchen, her face flushed making sure everyone got enough to eat. Though he had to keep his hands off her, Cal couldn’t prevent himself from kissing her soundly each time. This was joy as he’d never experienced it.

  During the party, Jeff arrived with Sergei. The presence of the dog raised the level of celebration several notches higher. He dived for Alex, proof he’d bonded with her, too. Afterward he came to find Cal before the boys coaxed him to play.

  “Come on in the kitchen, Jeff.”

  He followed Cal. Alex brought up the rear. “What kind of toppings do you want on your sundae, Ranger Thompson?”

  He lounged in one of the chairs, grinning up at her. “The works.”

  Cal no longer had to imagine Alex in his house. She was here for real and wouldn’t be going anywhere again. Not without him.

  “Here you go. Take a brownie, too.”

  “Thanks. I could get used to this kind of attention.”

  She flashed both men a heart-stopping smile before leaving the kitchen with more treats for the guys. Cal straddled the other chair, still pinching himself that this miracle had really happened. For a minute neither of them said anything. Jeff just continued to stare at him.

  “You know who you resemble, don’t you?”

  “I haven’t a clue.”

  He ate most of his ice cream before he said, “You’ve got a dopey grin on your face just like the Chief’s after Parker was born. Like you’re so happy you don’t know where to go with it.”

  “Is that a fact.”

  “You know it is. I take it something profound happened to you over the last two days and the woman in the other room is the reason.”

  Cal was too insane with excitement to do anything more than nod.

  “When’s the wedding?”

  “First I have to get her alone to ask her. Much as I’d like to move her in with me tonight, I can’t. Don’t ask me why.”

  Jeff chuckled. “That’s what you get for living in a goldfish bowl.”

  The only flaw to their private community. “Thanks for taking care of Sergei.”

  “Hey—he and I had a great time. I might get me one.”

  “Too bad there’s no funding.”

  “Oh, but there is.”

  “Since when?”

  “Since Sergei sniffed out that cache of weapons. And, more recently, since some tourists came by headquarters yesterday and told Vance how Sergei got rid of those bears at the campground.”

  This was news to Cal.

  “It’s the talk of the park. You and your dog are famous. Vance says this will open up some funding to pay for a full program.”

  Cal shot to his feet. “You’re kidding me—”

  “Nope. Not about this. He’s even talking about you doing the training. Now for the bad news. He wants us over at headquarters, stat.”

  “No way.” Not with Alex under his roof at last.

  “Afraid so. There’s a new development in the case. Go tell her and get it over with.”

  “ALEX?” LOKITA WHISPERED. “Is it really okay for me to sleep in Cal’s bed?”

  “Of course. And you don’t need to whisper because everyone has gone.” She made sure he took his antibiotic, then drew the covers over him. “We both want you to get well in a hurry. You need a lot of rest where you’ll be comfortable. Are you in pain?”

  He shook his head. “You love him.”

  A simple statement that said everything. She sank down on the side of the mattress and smiled at him. �
��Yes. So much.”

  “He’s a good man.”

  Her eyes filled with tears. Coming from one of her young Zuni friends, those honest words meant more to her than anything in the world.

  “Lokita? Tell me something before I turn out the light. Do you think I made a mistake bringing you boys here?”

  He frowned. “Who said that?”

  “No one. But I worry. Maybe you all came because I wanted you to, and now you wish you could go home but you’re afraid to tell me.”

  “That’s funny.”

  She blinked. “Why do you say that?”

  “We’re afraid you’ll take us back.”

  “Why would I do that?”

  “Because some of the other volunteers don’t like us.”

  “Then they’re the ones who need to go home. Haven’t you made friends with Andy?”

  “Yes.”

  “You see? You heard Cal. Some people will never change their views, but that’s not everyone.”

  Alex saw the relief in his dark eyes. “We’ve already voted to stay the whole time, but we haven’t told Halian yet.”

  Her heart had run out of places to expand. “Thank you for telling me that. Now it’s time to go to sleep. Sergei would like to stay in here with you.” The dog lay right by the bed. “Is that okay?”

  “I want him to.”

  She knew that. “If you need anything, just call out.”

  “I’m fine.”

  “You heard Cal. If you get hungry, help yourself to anything in the kitchen. We bought you Popsicle treats and Cap’n Crunch cereal, your favorite.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Good night, Lokita. Sleep well.”

  Alex switched off the light and went into the kitchen to clean up. As soon as the dishes were done, she started in on the living room. Anything to keep busy until Cal came back. She knew how long those meetings could go.

  With nothing more to be done, she finally lay down on the couch and pulled the blanket over her. It was an extra one Cal had gotten out of the linen cupboard for Lokita. She was exhausted, but there was one difference between tonight and all the other nights since she’d known Ranger Hollis.