Orchard Valley Grooms Read Online Free Page B

Valerie found his nonchalant tone a bit exaggerated, which for some reason made her suspect that he wasn’t “involved with someone.”
    “I’m not in a relationship at the moment, but I might be soon,” she told him. Valerie and Rowdy—a couple. Odd that she’d never thought of him in romantic terms before. He’d be the perfect husband for her. She liked him and respected him, as a man and a professional. Rowdy had hand-picked her for his management team because he believed in her abilities.
    In retrospect, she realized Rowdy had sought out her company on several occasions. But she’d been so absorbed in proving herself worthy of his faith that she hadn’t guessed he might have any personal feelings for her.
    For months she’d been blind to what was right in front of her. Not that she was entirely to blame, though. Rowdy wasn’t exactly a heartthrob kind of guy. Oh, he was handsome enough, with his rugged cowboy looks, but his brusque, outspoken manner didn’t encourage romantic aspirations. As far as she knew, he’d never dated anyone seriously, at least not in the years she’d worked for him.
    For that matter, Valerie wasn’t any expert on fallingin love, either. She’d dismissed the possibility of romance in her own life; it was fine for her sisters and school-friends, but not for her. There’d always been too much she wanted to do, too much to strive for. Too much to achieve before settling down in a permanent relationship.
    “I’m afraid I don’t understand,” Colby said, breaking into her thoughts. At her blank look, he elaborated. “You said you weren’t involved with someone yet, but you will be soon. I may be overstepping my bounds here, but I wouldn’t advise you to invent a phony relationship. Your father would see through that in a minute.”
    “I agree. I wouldn’t even attempt anything so foolish. But there’s a man I work with, and, well, it seems natural for the two of us to…get involved.”
    Dr. Winston looked so relieved that she might’ve been offended if she hadn’t been warmed by the newly risen hope of a romance with Rowdy Cassidy.
    “I’ve given your father something to help him rest,” Colby went on. “He should sleep through the night without a problem, so if you want to drive home and join your sister—”
    “No,” Valerie interrupted quickly. “I won’t leave Dad. I understand that I can’t see him yet, but I want to be here…in case anything happens. It’s important to me.”
    “That’s fine.”
    Valerie was grateful. “Thank you.”
    He nodded, then yawned, revealing for the first time his own fatigue. “I’ve left orders that I’m to be contacted the minute there’s any change in his condition.”
    “I can’t thank you enough for everything you’ve done.”
    “No thanks necessary. I’ll talk to you in the morning.”
    Valerie smiled and sat down to leaf through a six-month-old news magazine. She’d just finished reading the letters to the editor when the nurse appeared, carrying a pillow and a blanket.
    “Dr. Winston thought you might need these,” she said, setting the bundle down next to Valerie.
    It was a thoughtful thing to do, she mused later as she rested her head against the pillow and tucked the thin blanket around her shoulders. She felt a twinge of guilt, especially since she’d already decided to call in the country’s top heart surgeon first thing in the morning.
    By noon, it was unlikely that her father would still be a patient of Dr. Colby Winston’s.
     
    He liked her, Colby realized. He’d been prepared not to. Valerie Bloomfield was everything her father had claimed. Professional, astute and lovely. But when it came to relationships, she was precisely the type of woman Colby made a point of avoiding.
    He liked his women soft and feminine. He was looking for a wife, and David Bloomfield had somehow intuited that, or he wouldn’t have dragged his eldest daughter into almost every conversation. But Colby didn’t have a