Free Lois Greiman - [Hope Springs 02] by Home Fires Page B

around?”
    Casie shook her head. They’d talked about it at some length between Sophie’s rushed trips to the restroom. “We can’t. I’ve got chores to do, and if we hurry, the kids can still get in a couple hours of school.”
    “Sure,” Dr. Sarah said and smiled. “Well . . .” She reached out to shake Ty’s hand first. “We’ll take good care of her. That’s a promise.”
    He nodded. “When can I see . . .” He cleared his throat. Boys in general tended to be uncomfortable with emotions. Cowboys viewed them as lethal. “When do you think we’ll be able to take her home?”
    “I’m not sure yet, but we’ve got your contact information, right?” she asked and glanced at the clipboard hanging on the stall door. “Let’s see, we’ve got Sophie’s cell, Casie’s landline, Emily’s e-mail address, and the Dickensons’ home phone. Looks like we should be able to reach you without sending up smoke signals.” She smiled.
    “And you’ll . . .” Ty paused, unsmiling in the face of her upbeat humor. “You’ll call me either way? I mean, if things get worse . . . I’d like to . . .” His lips twitched. “You won’t put her down or nothing without my permission, right?”
    “No.” She sobered, then reaching out, put a hand on his arm. “If things go poorly, I’ll do my best to make sure you have a chance to say good-bye.”
    For a moment Casie was sure he would argue, would assure them all that that wasn’t what he had meant at all, but in the end he just mumbled a thanks and turned away.
    The walk to Puke was silent. The day was overcast. A stiff wind blew from the northwest, rustling the needles of the fir trees that grew alongside the parking lot and wafting the pungent scent of sap and autumn over them.
    “You okay?” Casie asked, but at that moment Ty turned unexpectedly toward his nemesis.
    “You got money,” he said. His voice was low, nearly inaudible. It took a moment for Casie to understand his meaning.
    Sophie was even slower on the uptake. Apparently, the sight of seventy feet of intestines being unraveled from Angel’s inverted body was still having some negative effects on her equilibrium. “What?”
    Ty pursed his lips, body stiff, eyes narrow. “I’d pay you back. You got my word on that.”
    She scowled. “What are you talking about?”
    Casie dug Puke’s keys out of the pocket of her canvas jacket and tried not to interrupt. She’d never been comfortable with controversy, but there was no way of avoiding this. God knew she’d pay Angel’s medical bills on the spot if she could. Then again, if she could fly, she’d get them all home quicker. Chances were about equal for both.
    “Your dad’ll give you the money if you ask him,” Ty said.
    Sophie shook her head, glossy hair rippling as she finally caught his drift. “Surgery costs . . .” She scowled as if still trying to get her bearings. “The bill’s already in the thousands. If she needs additional—”
    “I’ll pay him back.”
    For a moment there was absolute quiet and then she breathed a snort. “How?” The sound was caustic, ushering in her return to normal. “Everyone knows your family doesn’t have a pot—”
    “Sophie.” Casie kept her voice low. In the time she’d known Ty, he’d never asked for so much as a dime. But his face was flushed with dark emotion now, his body stiff, as if it took every fiber in his being to beg.
    “I’ll pay him back,” he repeated. “With interest. You got my word.”
    For a second Casie was sure the girl would laugh again, certain she would come up with some sharp-edged rejoinder, but she just glanced back at the building behind them. Maybe there was something about the cold concrete blocks that convinced her to pull a cell phone from the pocket of her riding breeches. She jabbed a single number and skimmed her eyes away as it rang.
    “Hi, Daddy.” She kept her gaze carefully averted.
    “Soph?” His voice was clear from halfway across the