Chapter Six
The blizzard was still raging outside the following day but that didn't stop quite a few patients from making their way to the doc's. One man broke his leg when he slipped and fell off his porch and another man came to collect medicine for his children who were developing coughs. There was a woman who came in complaining of stomach pain which Kaitlyn finally diagnosed as being the result of eating meat that hadn't been cured properly.
Those were just a few of the patience she spent her day tending to and between doing that and helping Blanch with the cooking and cleaning, she was exhausted that night when she finally collapsed in the sitting room chair.
With all the people that had stopped by today, Kaitlyn was surprised that her pa hadn't been one of them. She knew he had to be worried sick about her because the man very rarely let any of them out of his sight for long. Kaitlyn suspected it had been her mama who had kept her pa at bay and she was grateful that the woman always seemed to know what Kaitlyn wanted—and what she wanted was more time to get to know Pete and work through her feelings for him. Her pa certainly wouldn't give her the time or space to do either if he showed up.
She hadn't even had time to speak to Pete much today other than to quickly change his bandages and check his wound which were both healing fine. She wanted to talk to him though she knew it was fair of her to want that... she knew that Pete wanted more from her than she would ever be able to give him, or any other man for that matter.
Kaitlyn sighed. She couldn't simply ignore the man. She had to at least speak with him. If she didn't, it would hurt his feelings and Kaitlyn certainly did not want to hurt Pete.
The chair was comfortable and her feet and legs were aching so Kaitlyn decided that she'd rest a few moments before checking on Pete once more before bed.
Before she had time to realize she was going to fall asleep, Kaitlyn's light snores were filling the sitting room.
***
Pete paced the room, growing more and more impatient by the second. He hadn't spoken two words to Kaitlyn all day and those had been that morning. He'd caught glimpses of her as she had bustled around and tended to patients and Pete had been amazed at just how good she dealt with them all.
He had been in awe, quite simply. He wondered what made her want to be a doctor—it wasn't a profession chosen by many women. He wanted to know what had happened in her past to make her so afraid. Hell he wanted to know her favorite color and whether she liked summer or winter the most.
It had taken quite a bit of will power on his part, to keep from cornering her throughout the day and forcing her to talk to him. The only thing that had truly stopped him was the doctor who had stayed glued to her side. The old man was dead set against allowing Pete to spend any time at all with Kaitlyn.
Pete had hoped that maybe she would come see him once the doctor and his wife went to bed but they'd gone up a while ago and he was still alone. Pete figured he'd probably ruined any chance he had with Kaitlyn when he blurted out that nonsense about kissing the night before.
It wasn't his fault he'd been born with a faulty brain to mouth filter, at least that' what his mama had always accused him of having. His pa had said that it was Pete's brain that was simply broken. Hell, Pete was beginning to believe the man was right.
He had finally met a beautiful woman who didn't seem too bothered by his face and instead of charming her, he'd fumbled, mumbled and stuttered. He'd managed to spill witch hazel all over the floor and stink the place up like a brothel, admit to the woman he wasn't much good in a fight and asked her to kiss him when he didn't know anything about her other than the fact that she had a brother and sister!
What the hell was his problem?
Pete kicked at the floorboards, not realizing in his fit of frustration that they were uneven, and he was sent flying forward when he tripped. His arms flapped like a pair of windmills but luckily he caught himself when his face bounced off the wall.
Pete groaned and simply remained there, his face pressed against the wall. His side hurt, his arm ached and now he had a damn busted nose. He prayed it wasn't broken. The last thing he needed to go with his scarred up face was a crooked nose.
He pushed himself away from the wall stiffly and rubbed at his throbbing face. A noise came from the sitting room just outside his door and Pete put his ear to the door and listened close.
It came again and Pete realized it was the sound of someone lightly snoring. Knowing it had to be Kaitlyn and unable to fight the urge to see what the angel would look like when she was sleeping, Pete opened the door and stepped into the sitting room.
Silently he circled her chair and gazed down at her peaceful face. She appeared so innocent, fragile and pure sitting there. It surprised Pete that in her presence, he felt more like a man. He felt as if he could protect and shelter her and he knew he wanted to do those things as well. He felt as if he could make a difference in her life and it had been a very, very long time since Pete had felt like he could make a difference in anything.
Pete wanted to talk to her, but he didn't want to force her away when she was sleeping so peacefully. His shoulders drooped as he decided to simply wait until tomorrow to hear her voice.
He took one step away from her and she moaned. With a raise of his brow, Pete moved back and stared at her, wondering what she was dreaming that had her moaning... maybe it was dreams of him. But then she let out another moan and her head thrashed to the side and Pete realized those were moans of fear, not pleasure.
"No...." she whispered, her voice laced with fear. "No, don't..."
Kaitlyn's breathing became labored and she began to gasp as if someone were crushing her. Her face pulled back into a grimace as she fought against an attacker that only she could see.
Pete wasn't sure what to do. She seemed to be deep in the nightmare and he didn't know if the same ruled applied to that as to sleepwalkers. He'd always heard you shouldn't wake them up.
Sweat covered her brow, she gagged and then a tear slid down her cheek. Pete quickly stepped forward, crouched down to her level and shook her shoulder gently. "Kaitlyn, honey, wake up. You're having a nightmare."
Her eyes opened wide. They were bright with panic. She let out a yelp and Pete was caught off guard when she kicked her leg and caught him directly where Skinny had placed a bullet not too many days before.
Pete grunted with pain as he went sprawling backward. His head connected sharply with the floor. Pete chose to simply lay there, deciding that any movement would only worsen the pain radiating through nearly every inch of his body. His side felt as if it had been torn back apart and his head was pounding so badly, he squeezed his eyes shut tight against the pain.
"Oh no! Pete!" Kaitlyn exclaimed with horror.
The pain seemed to fade somehow when Pete became all too aware of her gentle hands skimming over his arms and then raising the bottom of his shirt. She gasped. "Pete.. I'm so sorry!"
He could hear tears in her eyes so he cracked his open and glanced down to see that he was bleeding once again. Pete forced a smile that he was certain closer resembled a grimace and painfully rose up on his elbows. "It's okay. It doesn't really hurt."
Kaitlyn sniffed. "Of course it does!" Pete didn't the like the way those tears looked streaking down her face. "I've never hurt anyone! I'm sure you must hate me now."
Pete reached out with his wounded arm and slid his thumb across her cheek to smooth away the tears. "I don't think I could ever hate you, Kaitlyn." She tensed at the intimate contact and Pete saw the green in her eyes darken. He swallowed hard. "That must have been some nightmare."
Kaitlyn pulled away and held out her hand to help Pete to his feet. He grunted with the effort it took to stand, wincing with pain. "No, not really," Kaitlyn lied as she used her body to help support him and lead him back to his bed.
Pete laid down on the bed and pressed his fingers into his temples in an attempt to ease the pain. He watched Kaitlyn gather up supplies and avoid his gaze. The woman was lying. The dream had sounded damn bad to him—it had sounded like someone had been forcing her. Why would a woman dream such a thing unless it had happened to her?
No, Pete refused to believe that. Kaitlyn was far too innocent and pure. Surely a woman who had been forced would have lost that.
"It sounded bad to me," he insisted.
"It really wasn't," Kaitlyn insisted. "I'm sorry I worried you," she added as she deposited her armful of disinfectant, bandages and needle and thread on the table beside the bed.
"I'm sorry I hurt you, Pete," she added, raising his shirt and looking at his wound.
"It's okay." He hissed when she poured a bit of disinfectant on him. "Next time I wake you up, I'll find a good long stick to do it with."
Pete swelled with pride when her soft, beautiful laughter filled the room.... That pride was quickly forgotten when she began to add new stitches his torn side.
"Do you want some laudanum?" she offered. "Or some whiskey? I think the doc may have some in the kitchen."
"No," Pete grunted, though he was damn tempted to say yes to the whiskey. "Just do what you gotta do, Kaitlyn, but try to do it fast."
Kaitlyn nodded and Pete focused his attention on her to help block out the pain. She was chewing her bottom lip and her brow was creased with concentration. Pete noticed that a few strands of her golden hair had fallen in front of her eyes so he reached up and gently smoothed them behind her ear.
Kaitlyn's eyes lifted to his a moment and he saw the longing in them before she quickly turned her attention back to her work. As far as Pete was concerned the job was done far too quickly and soon Kaitlyn was up picking up the mess and preparing to leave the room.
He was fairly sure that she was hesitating as if searching for a reason to stay but that could have simply been wishful thinking on his part. "I really am sorry I hurt you, Pete," she said again as she stood beside the door.
Pete waved off her concern as he pushed himself into a sitting position and leaned against the wall. "I told you not to worry about it. I'm tougher than I look."
Kaitlyn tilted her head as she looked at him and Pete wished he knew what was going on in her pretty head. "Is there anything I can get for you before I go to bed?" she asked. "Maybe some laudanum so you can sleep?"
"Naw," Pete shrugged. "I'll be alright."
"Okay then," Kaitlyn sighed. "Goodnight."
She turned to leave the room and Pete felt desperation fill him. He knew that it was time either man up or shut up and Pete had never been real good at shutting up. Of course the last few years he hadn't been real good at manning up either, but that was about to change.
"Do you know how to play poker?" he blurted.
Kaitlyn turned to face him with a frown on her face. "Poker?"
"Yeah. You know, it's a card game where you...."
"I know what poker is," she promised.
Pete shrugged. "Well I'm not tired and you don't seem all that tired. Why don't we play some poker?"
Kaitlyn's eyes were conflicted and Pete wished he could hear whatever internal battle she was fighting with herself. He was about to ask what she was thinking, when she suddenly smiled softly. "Sure," she replied. "Sure, I'll play cards with you. I know where the doc keeps some. I'll be right back."
Pete watched her leave and she returned moments later with a deck of red-backed cards. "You do know how to play, don't you?" he asked.
Kaitlyn simply smiled as she pulled the chair closer to the bed and sat down. Pete watched in awe as the angelic woman shuffled those cards with more flair than just about any dealer he'd ever seen.
"I was in an orphanage until I was ten," she said, noticing his shocked expression. "I learned all kind of things in that place."
Pete smiled. Was the woman finally opening up to him? "You were adopted?" he asked. "Your family isn't your blood family?"
Kaitlyn's eyes narrowed and her voice held an edge of anger. "They're the only family I've ever known."
"Right..." Pete rubbed at his neck as she began to deal. "I didn't mean it the way it came out."
Kaitlyn simply shrugged. "Let's play poker. You must be awfully good at the game if someone shot you over it."
Pete laughed. "Either that or I'm a real bad cheat."
She studied him closely. "Are you a cheat?"
"No," he assured her.
A smiled graced her face. "I didn't think so. Now let's play."
They played cards late into the night. They talked, laughed and learned all the little things about one another. When Kaitlyn had started yawning, Pete had known it was time to call it a night. He had bid her goodnight before taking her hand and giving it a gentle squeeze.
She had whispered a soft goodnight before leaving the room. If any part of Pete had been unsure about whether or not he was in love with Kaitlyn, it was no longer on the fence. She seemed just about perfect—and now he knew more about her. Her favorite season was spring, her favorite color was blue and she wanted to be a doctor so she could make a difference. And she loved her family. Hearing her talk about them had Pete missing his own.
As he lay down in the dark and stared at the ceiling, he heard her footsteps above him. He imagined her laying her bed alone and felt his desire stir. Pete threw his arms over his face and growled in frustration. He had been a long time without a woman and now there was a beautiful, soft woman he loved sleeping right above him and out of his reach.
Sometimes life was just cruel.