Redemption FinalWPF6 7 Read Free

wrinkled as a lizard.
    “Richard Gabriel, checking in.” He eyed the glass-topped
freezer behind the counter, trying to decide if he wanted an ice cream sandwich
now or after his shower.
    “Hey, Doc! Nan said you’d be checking in today.” She turned
away from the counter and grabbed a key from a row of hooks. He noticed most of
the hooks were still full. There would be a lot of achy heads around the table
at dinner if people were hiking in the late afternoon heat.
    When she turned back, she had a key and two cans of beer.
“She also said to give you these for your room, but to remind you to drink your
water, too. Can’t stay hydrated with just the alcohol,” she said, her laugh
braying out like one of the mules. “Okay, Doc, you head on to your cabin, and
we’ll see you for dinner. Reservation says today you got the steak dinner and
tomorrow night you got the stew. That means you get the early seating tonight.”
    With a map in hand, Gabe pushed out of the door and swung
left, as directed. His gaze was immediately drawn to the woman sitting alone in
the shade. Her backpack lay on its side in the dust, and it looked as if there
might be tear tracks on her cheeks.
    “Diane? Is everything okay? Are you hurt?” The doctor in him
was ready to spring into action.
    “What? Oh no, I’m not hurt. It’s just…there was a mix up.
They thought we cancelled our reservation when…” She shook her head and then
took a deep breath. Speaking quickly, she said, “They gave away our
reservation. Of course, now all the cabins and dorms are booked. The campground
is full. I’m not sure what we’re going to do…” Her gaze drifted back in the
direction of the river.
    “Uriah thought we could wait until some of the campers
arrive later and then see if someone was willing to share a space. We do have a
back county permit, but it’s not valid until Wednesday. We have to…have to—
It’s just…” She looked more lost than ever. Tears welled again and threatened
to spill.
    There was no conscious thought process. They were at Phantom
Ranch, at the end of a nine-mile hike, at the bottom of the Grand Canyon. The
temperature was at least twenty degrees hotter than it had been at the top, and
he knew it would soar to close to one hundred and twenty degrees before the
afternoon heat was finished with them. Why in the hell hadn’t her idiot of a
husband confirmed their reservation before they left the rim? The cabins were
booked more than a year in advance.
    Not that he’d actually waited that long himself and wasn’t
that the irony of the situation? Being the assistant soccer coach over the
summer had netted him at least one benefit. His friend Nan had put him on the
waiting list for a cabin shortly after he’d stitched up her son’s foot after a
soccer mishap. When they’d gotten a last minute cancellation, his name had been
at the top of the list. Now he was faced with a couple whose room reservation
had been cancelled. Sharing was the only decent thing to do. 
    “It’s just the two of you, right? I‘ve got this handled, no
problem,” he said. “You’ll stay in my cabin.”
    “Oh, but—“
    “Look, I know we don’t know each other, but I’ve been the
doctor assigned to the clinic here in the park all summer. The rangers can
vouch for me. And you can give them your names to keep on file. That gives us
each a little bit of protection, just in case you’re a homicidal axe
murderess.” He glared down at her, made his mouth a frown. “You’re not, are
you? An axe murderess, I mean. You don’t look like a killer, but God knows, I
couldn’t run away from a tortoise right about now.”
    “No, I haven’t killed a stranger all week,” she said. There
went that dimple again. He’d hoped to make her smile, and wasn’t disappointed.
But it was a good damned thing he was so sore and too tired to move, because
between her and her fucking pouty-lipped husband, he was going to be hard all
night.
    Gabe held out his