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Chance nodded. “I’ll take care of her.”

Doc Bradford studied him, then smiled. “Yes. Yes, I believe you will. Congratulations, son.”

Congratulations? What was that about? “Thanks, Doc. Though I’m not sure what I won.”

“I see that,” Doc said, putting his equipment back in his satchel. “But you will.”

Once the old doctor left, Chance sat beside his bed watching Joy sleep. He didn’t have time to wonder what Doc Bradford had been talking about. Joy was now his responsibility, and he found he didn’t mind the thought at all.

She was his to care for, at least for the next few weeks. He’d let her down once. He wouldn’t be doing that again.

CHAPTER 7

Joy was so relaxed.

She hadn't felt so peaceful in years. It was as if she were wrapped in a blanket, ready for a snuggle. No wonder babies settled when they were swaddled. Her muscles held no tension at all.

The blanket wrapping her held everything in still, safe silence. Worry and fear didn’t exist in this space. It was nothing but bliss.

Only her nose itched. She reached up to give it a scratch, but the blankets kept her from moving. Whimpering when scrunching and twitching her nose didn’t help, and she struggled again to wrestle the blankets off her. Nothing worked. Holy cow! How wrapped up in blankets could you be?

"Stop, baby girl. Don't fight the ropes. Just relax and go back to sleep. Rest is what you need."

That voice. She recognized that voice. Why did she recognize it? She couldn’t remember, but she did know she'd never heard it filled with so much concern.

She tried to reach out to him. To touchhim. If she could convince him to come into her blanket, maybe he would be better, too. But she still couldn't move. And her mind was fuzzy.

"I promise you're safe, little one. I’m right here. Your fever is still too high. You need to be still and rest.”

A gentle hand brushed away the hair clinging to her cheeks. Why was her hair stuck to her face?

Wait, did he say she had a fever? Was that why she couldn't move? Did fevers freeze your bones and muscles? It had never frozen her muscles before. Her eyes refused to open, no matter how hard she tried.

The last thing she remembered was being on the roof of her cabin. She was about to slide, but then someone scared her. And then she was falling.

Cracking one eye open, she glanced around a darkened room. A room she had never seen before. But she had definitely heard a voice. Why couldn't she remember who the voice belonged to?

"Sleep, baby girl. I'm right here with you. I won't let anything happen to you. Not again. You just focus on getting better."

She liked the voice. She wished it didn't sound so worried, but she had to admit, it felt good for someone to be worried about her.

Her brain was tired. It was going to be easy to follow the voice's instructions.

CHAPTER 8

Joy awoke, realizing she had died and gone to heaven. The light surrounding her was too bright for anything else. She hadn’t been certain heaven was real, but now she guessed it was. It kind of shocked her she’d made the cut to get in, though.

Her eyes felt scratchy, as if she had slept in sand. A throbbing pain pulsated through her head, and her ears felt like they were submerged underwater. She opened her mouth as wide as she could in an attempt to pop them and nearly screamed.

She tried to scream, actually, but no sound came out. It was like she was the victim in every horror movie she’d ever watched. She would have tried again if it weren’t for the razor blades shredding the inside of her throat. Swallowing her saliva hurt. Breathing hurt.

She whimpered, but that made her throat hurt even worse. Tears stung her eyes. She wanted to move, to escape the pain, but her body felt like it was made of lead. Moving required too much effort. She didn’t have the energy.

She couldn’t be in heaven and hurt this badly. So, where wasshe? Turning her head to the side, she realized she was lying in a bed large enough to hold her and five other people. She blinked her eyes a few times to bring the bedroom into focus. A bedroom that wasn’t hers. Bit by bit, things began to come back to her. Things like how Chance had picked her up and brought her to the ranch.

The wooden walls gleamed in the sunlight. From the faint scent of Christmas in the room, she guessed they were cedar. A window occupied almost the entire wall on her left, which explained the brightness. The clear blue sky she’d come to expect from Wyoming filled the window, showcasing the snow-capped peaks of the Rockies in the distance. Even with an aching throat and extreme weakness, she couldn’t help but be glad she was here.

When she didn't feel so awful, she’d worry about whose room she was in. And why. Like she didn’t already know. No, this room screamed grumpy, controlling cowboy. Once her immune system wasn’t trying to kill her, no doubt she’d be more appreciative of her surroundings.