Puppy Wishes & Candy Kisses (Kringle Falls #1)

3. Chapter Three

Chapter Three

S he didn’t know what to make of him.

Candi chanced a glance at Michael. He’d yanked off the orange knit cap, and now his short dark hair was scattered as though someone had just run their fingers through the thick strands. He was definitely good-looking. Her gaze strayed to his hands. She wasn’t able to see if he wore a wedding band. And then, realizing she was checking out a total stranger, she glanced away.

Still, she was so curious about this man. How could she not be? He’d appeared out of nowhere, exactly when she needed a helping hand. And yet, she couldn’t quite figure him out. One moment, he was solemn and distant. The next moment, he was doing something kind for her or the pups.

His attention appeared to be laser-focused on the road. Who better to find them in this winter storm than a snow plow driver? Hopefully, he’d be able to get them to civilization.

In truth, her head was really starting to hurt, and it wouldn’t stop bleeding. But she wasn’t sure if the pain was due to the accident or her worry about the van. It just had to be all right. She couldn’t bear to tell Bob that she’d let him down and totaled his van in the process.

It had been so dark when she got out of the van that she hadn’t been able to see how much damage had been done. She’d have to wait until morning when it was towed up that steep hill.

As she watched the snow swirl, her hand ran down over Tater Tot’s soft fur. The other good thing about riding in a snow plow was the fact that the rumble and vibration of the big truck had lulled the puppies to sleep.

She glanced over at Tank. She was shocked to see the pup snuggled up to this stranger. Tank never took to new people. He was usually standoffish and protective of the other puppies. It made her wonder what he knew about this man that she didn’t.

Catching herself once more staring at Michael, she turned away. The last thing she wanted was to make this moment even more awkward. She looked out the window to see a lighted sign that read Kringle Falls Hospital .

She wanted to tell him that she didn’t need to go to the hospital. But when she lowered her hand with the napkin Michael had given her, it was completely stained with blood. So, she might need a stitch or two.

He pulled up to the emergency room entrance and stopped. A handful of people turned their heads in their direction. They continued to stare at them in curiosity.

Candi could feel her cheeks growing warm. She’d never been comfortable being the center of attention, not even when she was a child performing in the school play. “I’m going to guess you don’t drive your snow plow here very often.”

“Why?”

“Because everyone is looking at us.”

He sighed. “It’s the light on top. It’s very bright. Don’t worry. I won’t be here long.”

He got out of the truck. Tank tried to follow him. When the door was shut in the pup’s face, Tank barked and whimpered as he clawed at the door. Even when she called to him, the dog wouldn’t listen—at least not until she raised her voice, which was not something she did very often.

Once Tank quieted down, she watched as Michael walked through the double doors and disappeared from sight. What is he doing?

She didn’t have to wonder for long. The next thing she knew, a hospital attendant was rolling a wheelchair out through the same double doors, and he looked to be heading straight toward her. And then she spotted Michael behind the orderly. The heat in her cheeks intensified. She wasn’t an invalid.

With long strides, Michael passed the man in green scrubs and opened her door. The puppies started to bark. She ignored them.

Her gaze met Michael’s brown gaze. Her heart skipped a beat as heat continued to flood into her cheeks. She averted her gaze. “A wheelchair wasn’t necessary.”

“It wasn’t my idea.”

“Oh.” More heat rushed to her face.

She put the puppies on the seat next to her as Michael helped her out. Once she was seated in the wheelchair, Michael grabbed two of the puppies.

“Do you want to hold them all?” Michael asked.

She didn’t have a chance to answer before the attendant said, “No dogs are allowed.”

Michael frowned. “I don’t think you understand. These are her dogs.”

“No dogs allowed.” The orderly turned and pushed the wheelchair with her in it back into the hospital.

Now she was worried. “But my dogs—”

“Will be fine,” the attendant said in a confident tone. “Your boyfriend can take care of them.

Her boyfriend? Nervous laughter rushed up the back of her throat. It was all she could do to smother it.

She didn’t feel confident at all about this plan. Michael may have helped her, but he was still a stranger, and he didn’t appear to be crazy about dogs. If they took her blood pressure now, she knew she would be in trouble.

Still, coming to the hospital had been Michael’s idea. And surely she wouldn’t be there long. He’d stay and wait with the pups. Right?

What was taking so long?

Candi felt as though she’d been in the emergency room for days when in actuality, it had only been little more than an hour.

They had checked her out from head to toe. She was told how lucky she was to have come through the accident with only a cut on her head that, thankfully, didn’t need stitches. She didn’t like needles. Not in the least.

They’d cleaned out the wound and applied a couple butterfly bandages. While she waited for her release papers, it was time to call Bob and confess to the accident. But then she caught sight of a big clock on the wall. It was after midnight. How had that much time passed?

There was no way she was calling him at this hour. Tomorrow morning would do to deliver the bad news. She also needed to call the shelter in Maine to let them know she’d be delayed.

The nurse appeared and went over all of the discharge instructions. Instead of having her put back on her wet clothes, which had blood smeared all over them, they gave her a set of scrubs. The attire wasn’t exactly warm for such a wintery night, but at least they were clean and dry.

The only problem was that she didn’t have anywhere to go. She didn’t know where Michael had taken the puppies. She didn’t even know how to contact Michael. She could only hope he was waiting in the parking lot for her.

She rushed to the waiting area. As soon as she walked through the doorway, she spotted him. Michael was speaking to some of the hospital staff. He was nodding his head at something one of the men said.

When he caught sight of her, Michael continued to stare at her as he said something to the man. Michael smiled and nodded. She noticed when he smiled how it eased the stress lines on his handsome face. The breath caught in her throat. He was really handsome.

As he approached her, a smile pulled at the corners of her lips. Everything was going to be all right. She breathed easier.

She walked up to him. “Hey...” She stopped herself before she said, “Hey, handsome.” What was up with her? It must be the accident and the bump on the head. It had her all out of sorts.

He gave her a quick once-over. “Are you all right?”

Was that concern in his voice? It touched her. A little smile pulled at the corners of her lips. It had been a long time since she had someone care about her.

She nodded. “I’m good.”

He glanced down at her hospital clothes. “Are you sure?”

“Oh, you mean the scrubs. They gave them to me because my clothes are wet from the snow and they’re blood-stained.”

He nodded in understanding. “And your head. Is it okay?”

She reached up to her hairline where she now sported a couple little bandages. “No stitches necessary, just these bandages.”

It was only then that she noticed the dogs weren’t with him. She really wasn’t clicking on all cylinders. The poor pups. They must be so tired of being cooped up in the truck all of this time. She felt guilty for putting them through so much trauma that night. If only she hadn’t gotten lost with that detour, they’d be in Maine by now.

She should send a text message to her contact at the shelter in Maine. She reached into her crossbody purse, but her phone wasn’t there. In that moment, she recalled that her phone had fallen from the dash during the accident and got lost in the van.

She turned to Michael. “I need to go back to the van.”

His brows scrunched together, as though he was wondering why in the world she would want to do that. “Not tonight. You need to rest.”

“But I can’t. My phone is in it. There are people I need to call.”

He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. He held it out to her. “Here. Use mine.”

“Thanks.” It was a kind gesture, but she didn’t reach out to take it. “But I don’t know the phone numbers.”

“Oh.” He put the phone back into his pocket. “Your husband must be worried about you.”

“There’s no husband and no boyfriend.” She didn’t add that, until recently, there had been a boyfriend. One she’d been dating for four years, but any time the mention of marriage came up, he found every reason why “now” wasn’t the time to take the next step. She finally got tired of wasting the best years of her life on someone who didn’t love her enough to see a future together—even if it meant spending Christmas alone.

Michael didn’t say anything else as they walked to the exit. She wondered if he was as tired as she was. It had been a really long day. A yawn escaped her lips.

“The truck is just over here.” He gestured to the left.

She followed him. She couldn’t wait to go to sleep. It was only then that she realized she had nowhere to stay. What was she going to do? And with three puppies, it wouldn’t be easy to find a motel that would let them all stay.

She was so deep in thought that she didn’t realize Michael had come to a stop, and she ran right into him. He didn’t budge. He was like a giant mountain of muscle.

She jumped back. “I’m sorry. I guess I’m more tired than I thought I was.”

“It’s been a really long day.” He opened the door to an old red pickup.

“This truck is yours?” She hadn’t expected him to be driving an antique, especially in this weather.

“Don’t sound so surprised. It was my grandfather’s. It’s a 1950 Chevy. And the engine purrs like a kitten.” He looked rather pleased with himself.

“Your grandfather must have liked you.”

“That and I was the only grandson who can work on engines.”

Still, she was confused. “But where’s the snowplow and the puppies?”

“The plow is back at the garage, and the puppies are at my place.”

“Oh.” She hadn’t expected him to take them home.

“You surely didn’t think I’d let them sit out here in a cold truck, did you?”

“Of course not.” It seemed like the right answer, but she’d noticed how he’d been distant with the puppies. Usually when people saw the dogs, they would fuss over them. But not this guy. It made her curious to know more about him. Maybe it was just that it was a long day for the both of them, and he was tired. She knew that she was ready to drop from exhaustion, but she had to keep going. But where?