Hearts in Bloom by Kelly McCrady Read Free Book Online Page B

belly made her drop to the ground. She needed some good food, rest and a warm place to have her puppies.
    A strong gusty wind plastered her shirt to her frame. The rain slowed to a mere drizzle, the replete hush from the sudden change unsettling. Lindy and Boo got out of the car and tiptoed toward her. She stifled a smile, appreciating the humor in their sneaky attempt. She didn’t have the heart to send them back to the car. The girls went down on their knees beside her.
    “Be careful.” Robin stroked the dog gently around the neck. “Injured animals don’t always understand that people are trying to help them. They can bite.”
    “She won’t bite us.” Boo’s little hands imitated her mother’s stroking of the animal’s fur. Lindy’s reach was a little more hesitant, but she soon was petting the animal, too.
    A set of headlights pierced the drizzle, catching Robin’s attention. Looking back toward her car, she saw a truck approaching.
    “Get to the side of the road and stay there.” “But, Mommy,” Boo whined.
    “Go!” She watched until the girls were safe by the edge. Walking back to her car, she waited for the truck to pull alongside.
     

     
    Chad Applegate appreciated the soothing rhythm of the rain plopping on his windshield. After enjoying an impromptu dinner with his grandmother—her savory cooking served alongside another grilling about getting a girlfriend—he was grateful for nature’s noise and nothing else.
    Shifting in his seat, he groaned from his over- full stomach. “Grandma’s cooking beats mine hands down. Again, as always.”
    He smiled. His truck tires slid a bit on the pavement as he rounded a curve. He gripped the wheel, slowed a little more and concentrated on the ten-mile drive from town to his farm. The rain was much needed. It fed the thirsty ground, settled the Texas dust and hopefully signaled the start of a cooler fall. His pumpkin crop could stand some relief from the blistering summer heat.
    Up ahead, Chad saw a car parked at the side of the road, its blinkers flashing. He pressed the brake to slow his truck and snapped off the wipers, now dragging on an almost dry windshield. A slender woman waved him down. Neither the woman nor her car looked familiar. Chad stopped his truck several yards from the vehicle.
    She started toward him. Tight blue jeans molded to trim, long legs and a curvy, tight bottom. A wet, yellow T-shirt clung to well-rounded breasts.
    Sweat pooled at the base of his spine. “Man, oh man!”
    She walked around the front end of his truck.
    He hit the switch to roll down the window, cataloging the wet auburn hair, the hurried grace of her movement. When she reached him, he lost himself in brown, doe eyes.
    All thought process ceased.
    The air whistled out of his lungs.
    His vision blurred.
    When he was a kid, he’d gotten this same feeling during an asthma attack. It hadn’t been accompanied by this dizzy sensation—like someone turned the earth sideways for a minute.
    The woman crossed her arms, rubbing the goose bumps on her forearms. She backed away, her expression guarded.
    Great, Applegate. Scare her why don’t you.
    He straightened in his seat. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to stare. It’s just…I wasn’t expecting…” Chad stopped to take a full breath, slapped both his hands on the steering wheel so she could see them and started again. “What’s the problem?”
    “I hit a dog. I didn’t see her in the rain. She’s not hurt too bad, but she needs attention.” She stayed at arm’s length, poised for flight, an expectation of deer-to-hunter.
    Chad stepped out of his truck. The storm moved east with a final rumble, the clear sky and cool air rolling in behind more than welcome.
    The woman took another step backwards, before stopping herself. “This way.”
    Chad tried to shrink his six-foot-one frame into a non-threatening slouch—an impossible feat for a man his size. He tried, anyway, not wanting her scared of him.
    He