Lone Wolf Read Free Page A

“Don’t look so surprised. I’m not checking you out, if that’s what’s worrying you. I look at all patients’ information before I see them.”
    â€œOh.”
    She sat back and removed the face mask. “Well, that about does it. I’ll just prep the freezing and then we’ll get this over with.”
    â€œThanks.” Thomas was finally able to speak.
    She flashed him a brilliant smile. “Be right back.”
    Thomas couldn’t help the smile that crept across his own features. He suddenly had a brand new appreciation for going to the dentist.
    ****
    Thomas’s mouth still felt tingly by the time they got home that evening. They’d stayed to do a little shopping after their dental appointments since trips to the city were few and far between. Now that they were home and Whisper was in bed, Thomas had time to open his laptop and see what he had missed by not checking in with the team that day.
    He scanned through several emails, his mind not really taking in the information. Finally, he logged off and shut his laptop with a click. There was no point in trying to work when his mind was on other things. On her.
    Dr. Ducharme had surprised him, not just because she was a native woman who was also a dentist. He’d been surprised by her talkativeness and her candor. He liked that. Or maybe what he really liked was her pretty face and body. Thomas frowned slightly, considering that he actually didn’t know definitively what her body type was. She’d been wearing a lab coat, for goodness sake, but it had been open for the most part, and he’d caught glimpses. He guessed her to be in her mid-thirties, seeing as she was a dentist and that kind of schooling took some time.
    He shook his head. It had been awhile since he’d allowed his mind to wander in that direction. He’d gone on a few dates in the last couple of years. Make that two dates, both set up by his cousin. Neither one ended well. He was looking for a woman that shared his values, his faith. Whether she was Cree like him or not didn’t matter. His cousin didn’t seem to get that part of the equation. And then there was that disastrous fling he’d almost had with Whisper’s kindergarten teacher. Thank goodness God had intervened.
    Maybe he was only destined to get one chance at love. One shot and that had been Rhea. She was the love of his life and could never be replaced. Still, he was lonely sometimes, despite his children, friends, and church family.
    He could picture Rhea now, at the camp meeting where they’d met. He had stumbled into the meeting, reeking of alcohol and looking for a place to crash. She was willowy and tall, slim-hipped with long black hair that swung past her waist. She’d prayed with him that first night and he came back the next night—more to see her than experience anything God had to offer. Except God had other plans. Thomas had met Jesus on that second night and his life had never been the same. When Rhea died of cancer, he thought he would die along with her. But he had survived—he and his children—these past five years. Maybe it was time to move on. Rhea would probably approve.
    â€œHey, Dad.” Ryder stood in the doorway of the small office situated at the back of the trailer. His hands were in his jeans pockets.
    Thomas swung his office chair around to better face his son. “What’s up?”
    â€œJust wondered what you thought about me going to Saskatoon in the fall.” Ryder leaned his shoulder against the door frame.
    Thomas’s brows rose slightly. “Why? You having second thoughts about the program in Regina?”
    Ryder moved into the room and sat down in the other unoccupied chair. “No…I just thought maybe I’d like to try Saskatoon.”
    â€œAny particular reason?”
    Ryder shrugged. “I don’t know. A couple of my friends are going there.”
    â€œIsn’t