A Cowboy's Christmas Reunion (The Boones of Texas 1)

“Have Frank get Jester’s vitals and put them in an exam room. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

“Yes, Dr. Boone.” And the intercom went silent.

Tripod leaped onto his desk corner.

“What are you doing here?” he asked, rubbing the black cat firmly along the back of his neck. “Too many dogs in the clinic today?”

Tripod yawned, revealing a long pink tongue.

“You go on and nap, and I’ll just get back to work.” Hunter gave the cat a last scratch before finalizing the chart on his tablet. The pharaoh hound was going to be a daddy. It had been a long road and the poor dog had no idea what he’d been missing out on, but puppies were definitely on the way.

“Hunter?”

Hunter looked up, completely floored to find Amy in UET scrubs. His stomach dropped. “What’s with the getup?” he asked.

“I got a job.” She smiled. “A tech position.”

He sat back in his chair. “At the hospital?”

She nodded, coming into his office. “Yes.”

“This hospital?” he clarified.

“I’ll be over in the large-animal clinic, mostly.” She sat in one of the chairs opposite him. “Unless someone here needs me.”

“And you think this is a good idea?” he asked. “Last time we talked, you were heading to Vegas, following the circuit, living the dream.”

Her smile tightened a little. “And then my son called me and asked me to come home.”

Now he felt as though he’d been punched in the gut. “Eli called you?”

She sat back, looking far too comfortable in the chair. “Ask him.”

“Why did he call you?”

“Hunter.” She laughed the laugh that usually had any man looking at her, appreciating her. It made his skin crawl. “Contrary to what you think, some people want me around. That person just happens to be the boy we made together. He’s upset.”

He waited.

“Josie being here.” She paused, frowning. “Well, he’s just torn up about it. He’s worried about you. And about me.”

“About you?” He shook his head. “You weren’t here.”

“But he knows I still love you.” Her brown eyes bore into his. “He knows I hold out hope every single day that we’ll reconcile.”

“Just because I didn’t go public with why we divorced then doesn’t mean I’m going to keep covering it up. Eli’s getting old enough to figure things out. To realize you left us long before our divorce was final.” He stood, pulling on his white coat. “I don’t know what you’re hoping to gain, but I can’t keep protecting Eli from your mistakes. This time, I won’t.”

She smiled up at him, shifting in her seat. “I’m no

t planning on making any mistakes.”

“Amy, if you’re on the clock, I suggest you get to work. The school doesn’t run without everyone working at one hundred and ten percent. You’d be smart to remember that.”

She stuck her tongue out at him. “Always so responsible.” She stood, stretching so that her chest was impossible to miss. “Fine. I’ll see you later on. I was thinking of having Eli for a sleepover tonight.”

“We’ll talk later.” He brushed by her, heading straight to the clinic.

This was the last thing he needed. Eli was already stretched too thin. Throw his mom back in the mix, let her play her victim card and things would get bad.