Read Online Playing Doctor (Bandit Creek Books) by Julie Rowe - Free Book Online

coolers and a crate of food that didn’t need to be refrigerated. She loaded the crate into the back, and Smitty appeared at her shoulder with one of the coolers.
    “You’re mom is awesome.”
    “That’s because you’re the first creature with testosterone floating around in his bloodstream I’ve allowed anywhere near me since I got home.”
    One side of his mouth kicked up. “Good to know.”
    She glared at him. “You’ve gotten all the knowing you’re going to get.” She got into the Jeep and slammed the passenger door.
    He got in a few seconds later, the grin nowhere to be seen. “What’s up with you?”
    “Drive.”
    He stared at her for a few more seconds then started the engine and drove out of the yard and down the two-wheel track that was the road to the cabin.
    “What I’d like to know is what you said to my relatives.”
    “Which ones?”
    “The women.”
    “Your mom asked me if I could cook. I mentioned eggs Benedict as my specialty, she asked what I used for sauce and we traded recipes.”
    “You traded recipes?” It could not be that simple. “That’s all?”
    “Yeah. Why are you so mad at me?”
    “I’m not mad, I’m irritated. There’s a difference.”
    “Not from where I’m sitting.”
    “You’ve been here all of what two days and you’ve already made friends with half the people in town and every member of my family you’ve met.”
    “What’s wrong with that?”
    “Nothing. Everything.” Her hand curled into a fist. “It’s just not fair.”
    “Abby, you’re not making any sense.”
    “I come home from hell to a place where I know everyone, hell, where I’m related to a quarter of the population, where I should feel safe, but all I feel is terror.” She turned her head to stare him into the ground. “It’s not fair.”
    Instead of backing off or backing down he stopped the Jeep and put it into park. “Terror?”
    Fuck.
    She turned away from his too discerning gaze to stare at the road. “Drive.”
    “Terror, Abby?”
    “I won’t talk about it now.”
    “We will talk about it.”
    “Fine, we’ll talk. Later. Right now, drive.”
    A second passed. Two. Then he put the Jeep in gear and drove.
    Neither of them said anything for a long time. Her father must have told him where to go, but he paused as the track split off into two.
    “Right or left?” he asked her.
    “Left.”
    The track on the left looked only marginally passable.
    “What was the last time someone was at this cabin?”
    “Don’t know.”
    “How rough is it?”
    “Not bad.”
    “Is there a water source?”
    “Yes.”
    “Oh for Christ’s sake, can you give me more than two word answers?”
    She was being childish, she knew it, but she still wanted to hit him. “There’s a natural spring close to the cabin. Dad set up a filtration system, so water isn’t a worry.”
    “What is?”
    “I’m angry.”
    “Yeah, I got that.”
    “I don’t want to be here.”
    “I got that too.”
    “When I catch the person who’s shooting at me, I’m going to ring his neck.”
    “Okay. And...”
    “I won’t have a problem doing it.”
    He blew out a gust of air. “I still don’t get it.”
    “I’m a damn doctor. I shouldn’t be looking forward to hurting anyone like I’m looking forward to hurting this guy.”
    He appeared to think about it, but only came out with, “So?”
    “So?” she repeated. “Really, that’s all you’ve got to say? So?”
    “What’s the problem? Everyone has a right to get angry at someone who’s trying to hurt them.”
    “No. Not angry. I want to hurt him.”
    “You’re allowed to feel that way, Abby.”
    “I can’t allow myself to take pleasure in another person’s pain. That is a violation of everything I hold dear.”
    He tilted his head and she could see him thinking about what she said. “Bullshit.”
    “Fuck off. You’re a soldier. You’re trained to hit back.”
    “If a man comes at you with a knife, are you going to let him stab you