Page 29 of The Cowboy’s Secret Lover

Now she had his attention. “What about her?”

“I’m not her doctor, so I really shouldn’t be telling you this…”

Kurt gripped the steering wheel with knuckles that had gone white. “Stop being so damned professional. What do you know about my daughter?”

“It’s bad,” she said. “Worse even than you thought.”

Her words were a bootheel pressed to Kurt’s chest. He couldn’t breathe and feared that he might retch. “How bad.”

Placing her hand on his, Faith said, “Pull over.”

They were in a residential neighborhood with wide, tree-lined street. Kurt swerved to the side of the road and placed the gearshift into park. “I can handle it,” he lied. “Just tell me.”

“The surgery you talked about—an ablation to stop her arrhythmia—won’t fix Erin’s condition. Her valve has completely collapsed and needs to be replaced. Without it, she’ll die.”

“How much is this going to cost me?”

“A whole lot more than you’re going to make winning another national championship.”

“I can’t just let her wither away, like a flower without water. There has to be something I can do.” He tried to keep his voice steady, but even he heard the alarm that crept in at the edges of each word.

“I spoke to a physician I know in San Diego. Doctor Ortega is a specialist in heart valve replacement. It’s not an uncommon procedure, but nobody here in Bear Creek is really qualified to perform one.”

“You want me to take Erin to California to see another doctor?”

Faith shook her head. “I should have gotten your consent before making the call, but Doctor Ortega said that she’d talk a physician through the procedure. I can assist. I’ve done it before.”

“And you’ve found a doctor who’s agreed to help? One here in Bear Creek? And what about the insurance?”

“As far as the insurance,” said Faith, “I’m not an expert. There will be costs, even if everyone donates their time. Really, Erin doesn’t have a lot of other options—and neither do you. I hate to say it—you might need to stay in the rodeo.”

As far as Kurt was concerned, everything she said was fine. “You have doctor who’s willing to operate?”

She shook her head. “I haven’t gotten that far.”

“Do you think Doc Adams can do it?”

“Are you asking if he has the skills? Certainly. He’s a talented surgeon. Will he? I don’t know. Maybe you could talk to him.”

Kurt pulled back onto the road. His mood was lighter than it had been in months, maybe even years. He had Faith to thank for everything. As he drove, he couldn’t help but glance in her direction. Chin in hand, she stared out the window.

Earlier this morning, he had assumed that she regretted their tryst. Now, he wasn’t so sure. More than once, Faith mentioned that she shouldn’t be involved in Erin’s case. How she’d made calls that she shouldn’t have made. As he pulled into the parking lot of the hospital, Kurt was certain that the plan to save his daughter would work. Yet, what he didn’t know is what toll Faith would pay for it all in the end.