Jodie's Choice Read online

  Jodie’s Choice

  By

  Deatri King-Bey

  Acknowledgements

  I’d like to take a few seconds to thank my editor, Lynel Washington, for polishing my baby right nice. I truly appreciate your work on this project. You did a “good” job. I’d also like to thank Wendi, from Red Rose Publishing, for trusting me to write the way I like to write. Happy Reading everyone.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  Jodie’s Choice by Deatri King-Bey

  Red Rose™ Publishing

  Publishing with a touch of Class! ™

  The symbol of the Red Rose and Red Rose is a trademark of Red Rose™ Publishing

  Red Rose™ Publishing

  Copyright© 2009 Kat Holmes

  ISBN: 978-1-60435-637-3

  Cover Artist: Deatri King-Bey

  Editor: Lynel Washington

  Line Editor: WRFG

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews. Due to copyright laws you cannot trade, sell or give any ebooks away.

  This is a work of fiction. All references to real places, people, or events are coincidental, and if not coincidental, are used fictitiously. All trademarks, service marks, registered trademarks, and registered service marks are the property of their respective owners and are used herein for identification purposes only.

  Red Rose™ Publishing

  www.redrosepublishing.com

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  Thank you for purchasing a book from Red Rose™ Publishing where publishing

  comes with a touch of Class!

  Jodie’s Choice

  By

  Deatri King-Bey

  Chapter One

  Linda reached up from the hospital bed and grasped Ashton’s hand. “You have to believe me,” she said weakly.

  “I want to, but…” What she’d just told him was impossible.

  He’d known Linda since he could remember, been her gynecologist for five years and knew there was no way she could have children, yet here she lay telling him she had a daughter, and that was only the beginning of the impossibility. This daughter knew little of the “outside” world. She’d been born and raised on a farm and had little contact with outsiders, their technology or “evil ways” as Linda had put it.

  “This is all too crazy.”

  “She’s expecting me home tonight. If she doesn’t hear from me, she may try to find me. You must go to her. Please, just indulge this crazy woman.”

  Even if this daughter turned out to be the beloved cat of a lonely woman, he had promised his mother to keep an eye on her reclusive friend. “I’ll go.”

  Tears fell from Linda’s eyes. “Thank you, thank you, thank you.”

  Jealous of a horse. Jodie watched her chocolate with white speckles Appaloosa, Bonnie, lazily exit the barn, walk toward the pasture, then begin to graze. Clyde, her cream Appaloosa with jet black spots, followed a few moments later. Once close to Bonnie, he nuzzled her neck with his nose.

  Jealous of a horse.

  She pushed thoughts of having someone who loved her as a man loved a woman out of her mind. Love was not an option for her. Her only option was caring for her mother. She went into the house to prepare supper. A few hours later dinner was almost done, but her mother hadn’t arrived. She stepped onto the porch and looked into the nothingness of the dark night.

  Pacing from one end of the porch to the other, she mumbled, “Where is she?”

  Relief washed over Jodie when she saw headlights peek through the trees. She rushed into the house and headed straight for the kitchen to plate their dinner. After being stuck in the city for a week, she knew her mother was more than ready for a delicious meal and relaxation.

  She’d barely had time to take the plates down when knocking at the front screen door caught her attention. “Here I come.” Every time Linda returned from a trip into the city, she had more bags than she could possibly carry.

  She swung the door open, but froze at the site of an incredibly tall, handsome man. Not that she hadn’t seen a man before. She’d seen Dr. Elders and his son, Lionel. Pete, the mail carrier. Then there were the delivery and repairmen who came by every so often and Mr. Hawkins who repaired the farm equipment. But none of them could hold a candle to this man.

  At a total loss for words, the best she could muster was a hesitant, “You’re not my mom.”

  Seemingly just as surprised as Jodie, the handsome stranger took a step back and held his large hands up slightly. “I’m Linda’s friend, Ashton Tolliver. Are you her daughter?”

  “You’re Mama’s doctor!” So this was the Dr. Ashton her mother couldn’t say enough about. According to Linda, Ashton was one of the few good people left in the city. He’d grown up on a farm, but didn’t return after he finished college. She looked around him toward his SUV. “Where is she?”

  “I’m sorry, but she’s been in a car accident.” He reached for the cell phone on his belt clip.

  “Oh my goodness. I knew something was wrong.”

  “Try to remain calm. She’ll be all right. She knew you’d be expecting her home tonight, so she sent me to let you know what happened.” He placed the phone to his ear. “Hello, Miss Linda. I made it.”

  A car accident. How many times had Linda told her cars were too dangerous? More times than Jodie cared to count. Yet she still wanted to learn how to drive.

  “She wants to speak with you.”

  “Thank you.” Anxious to hear her mother’s voice, she took the phone. “Hello, Mama. Are you okay?”

  “Did you offer Ashton something to drink?”

  She stared at the man before her. Here her mother had been in an accident and injured. Injured so bad that she’d done the unimaginable—invited someone from the outside world into their sanctuary, yet not injured bad enough to give up the slightest bit of control. Knowing Linda, she had sent Ashton to maintain control while she was incapacitated. She stepped to the side and allowed him into the house. “Could we at least start with the subject of your car accident before you change the subject? What happened?”

  She walked toward the kitchen to burn off some of her frustration. From the few words exchanged, Linda sounded weary. Jodie knew her mother needed her, but the woman was too stubborn to see issues from anyone’s point of view but her own and too afraid of the outside world to see Jodie had grown into a strong woman who could help her battle whatever may come. Past tired of being overprotected and controlled, Jodie didn’t know what to do, but something had to change and change soon.

  Ashton followed her into the kitchen and stood to the side with an odd look on his face, like he was studying her. He had to have the deepest, darkest eyes ever. She could easily find herself lost in them. Trapped in his gaze and enjoying being there, she snapped herself out of it.

  “Mama, I asked what happened.”

  “It’s nothing major. Someone ran a red light and broadsided me. I have to stay here for a few weeks.”

  “Weeks!” A few days before Linda had to go into the city, she would always become irritable. Whenever she returned, she complained and fussed about how horrible the outside world was. Jodie just couldn’t imagine her mother staying there for weeks. “Where are you? What are your injuries, and why do you sound so weak?”

  “I’m in a place called a hospital.”

  “A hos-pi-tal?” Jodie hated that she knew little of the outside world. She and he
r mother butted heads constantly about expanding Jodie’s horizons, but in the end, Jodie remained trapped by her mother’s fears.

  “Yes, injured people stay here until they are well enough to go home.”

  “But weeks? This must be serious. What’s wrong?”

  “I don’t want to say because it will sound worse than it is.”

  “Don’t do this. You’ll have me sick with worry. What’s wrong?”

  “It’s not as serious as it will sound.” She drew in and released a long breath. “My hip…it’s broken.”

  “Oh no…” She drew her free hand to her face. “I’m so sorry. I’ll call Dr. Elders and arrange for him to—”

  “No, you aren’t to come here. Stay there.”

  “But, Mama.” She turned away from Ashton so he wouldn’t see the irritation, worry, and pain that must had been on her face. All she had was Dr. Elders and Linda. Now that they were starting to age, Jodie worried constantly for them. “You need me,” she said softly.

  “No. Have Ashton program this number into your cell phone.”

  This was it. Linda had gone too far this time. Jodie had no intentions on following her mother’s wishes. Her mother’s fears of the city were just that—her mother’s fears—and Jodie wouldn’t give into them. Not this time. Linda would need her. Phone propped between her ear and shoulder, she grabbed the potholders, took the roast and vegetables out of the warmer and set them on the trivets on the center of the table.

  “Did you hear me, Jodie?”

  “Yes.” She pulled the biscuit tray out of the oven and placed it on the table. She’d already set the plates and glasses of sparkling red grape juice out before her guest had arrived.

  “I love you, baby, and miss you, but I don’t want you here. I’m fine. Really. Stay there. I love you.”

  “I love you, too.” Love of her mother had kept her trapped. Now love of her mother would free her.

  “I’m exhausted, but I couldn’t go to sleep thinking you’d be there worrying about me. I wish you could see I’m well with your own eyes. I just can’t drive. Not in this condition.”

  “When you return home, you’re teaching me how to drive. No more excuses.”

  “That’s not happening.”

  “We’ll see.”

  “Promise you won’t come.”

  “I promise,” she said with her fingers crossed.

  “This time promise without crossing your fingers.”

  Jodie couldn’t help but smile. “Who says my fingers were crossed.”

  “Umm hmmm. Stay there. What do you think about Ashton?”

  “I don’t understand the question.” She loved the way he watched her every move, but she knew her mother couldn’t be asking that. Then there was his voice. The few words he’d spoken sent her pulse racing as it never had before. Between this news of her mother and his presence, it took everything she had to appear calm.

  “Don’t mind me. It’s the drugs talking. I’ll see you in a few weeks. Talk to you tomorrow.”

  “Tomorrow it is.” She disconnected and handed Ashton the phone. “Thank you very much for everything.” She took her cell phone out of her back pocket and handed it to him. “Please program Mama’s hopsticle number in.”

  He gazed into her eyes, and she didn’t know what to do. A strange force drew her to him, but she resisted. No wonder her mother had sent him. This strange pull would keep Linda’s daughter under control. She smiled internally—not if Jodie had anything to do with it.

  “Hah-spi-tal,” he slowly corrected.

  “Hah-spi-tal,” she repeated and handed over the phone. “Tell me the truth. Is she really going to be all right? A broken hip sounds serious to me.”

  “I know it’s hard, but try not to worry. She’s in pain, but that’s being managed with medications. I don’t see any reason she wouldn’t recover fully. Have you ever been off this farm?”

  That voice again, so reassuring, so warming, she believed him. “Dr. Elders lives on the next estate. Sometimes I’ll ride or walk over to visit him.”

  He’d changed the subject a little too quickly for her liking. She moved away from him, away from that voice. Knowing Linda, she’d told him not to take her into the city and to distract her if the subject came up. She’d let it go for now, but when he returned to the city, she would return with him.

  “Mama says you grew up on a farm.”

  “Until I went away to college. My sister actually lives on a ranch not too far from here.” He went over to the sink and washed his hands. “This smells delicious. I hope the second plate is for me.”

  “It most certainly is.” His closeness heated her in ways that boggled her mind. She took her seat at the table to give herself enough distance from him to clear her mind.

  “Thank you very much. Don’t worry, after I finish dinner, I’ll be on my way back to the city.” He sat across from her.

  “You’re not leaving tonight. It’s too dark. Mama was already in a car accident. I don’t want you getting into one also. You’ll stay here.”

  “I don’t think that’s such a good idea.”

  “But driving in the dark on unfamiliar ground is a good idea?” She flashed a quick smile.

  “Touché.”

  “Touché?”

  He took the knife from her and began cutting the roast. “That means you got the best of me that time.”

  “Oh, I like that.”

  Dinner tasted like dinner to her, but watching him enjoy the meal brought a completely new appreciation for roast, potatoes, green beans and carrots. He seemed to experience the meal, savoring every bite. A long conversation, three helpings and four biscuits later, he leaned back in his chair with a satisfied grin on his face.

  “That was the best meal I’ve ever had.”

  Why it pleased her so well he enjoyed the meal was beyond her and scary. There was just something about him. Something she didn’t want to feel, not for this man her mother sent to control her. But their conversation had flowed so easily. As if they’d known each other for an eternity. “Would you like some peach cobbler?” To distance herself from his pull, she picked up their plates and carried them across the room to the sink.

  “I’m stuffed. Maybe later.” He pushed away from the table and joined her at the sink.

  This was not working. Every time she tried to move away from him, he was right by her side again. He hadn’t done anything wrong, but having him so close felt too right.

  “Let me wash the dishes. It’s the least I can do after that fine meal. You can really cook your tail off.”

  She laughed. “My tail off. I like the way you say things.” She dried and put away the dishes as he washed them. “Horace, one of my pigs, hasn’t eaten all day. I’ve put him off to himself just in case he has something. Can you examine him in the morning for me?”

  “I’m a gynecologist, not a veterinarian.” He handed her a few utensils.

  “I thought you were a doctor.” She opened the silverware drawer.

  “A gynecologist is a doctor who specializes in females.”

  “So if Horace were a female, you’d care for him?” She began placing the forks and knives into the proper slots.

  “Sorry, no animals.”

  This couldn’t be correct. He must have misunderstood. What kind of doctor didn’t take care of animals? Especially a doctor who grew up on a farm. “What about female horses?”

  “No, horses.”

  “Dogs, goats, cows, chickens?”

  “No, no, no and no,” he said with a nervous chuckle in his voice.

  “Men, children?”

  “No, no.”

  “Female children?”

  “No.”

  “So you’re only a women’s doctor?”

  “I’m afraid so.”

  She couldn’t imagine city doctors needing to know less than the country doctors. Her mother had said how selfish people were in the city. Maybe no one would teach Ashton what he needed to know to be a real doctor.
“Dr. Elders is really nice. If you’d like, I can ask him to give you more training.”

  A deep rumble laugh escaped him. “Thank you, but that won’t be necessary. My practice is doing very well.”

  So that was it. He was practicing being a doctor. He hadn’t finished learning yet.

  “Do you ever have visitors? Maybe your neighbors?”

  She noted the change of subject. To keep from embarrassing him, she played along. “Dr. Elders comes by to see Mama a few times a week. I used to see his son all the time before he went off to college. Otherwise, no. Not really.”

  “This is none of my business, and you can feel free to tell me to take a hike, but don’t you get lonely?”

  “No,” she lied, but didn’t know why. For some reason she didn’t want to admit just how lonely she was. Lonely for companionship. Lonely for someone to love and be loved by. “Mama says people in the city live on top of each other and still don’t know each other. It’s like they always want someone around, yet don’t want to be bothered with anyone. Do you know your neighbors?”

  “I guess I don’t actually know them. I mean I recognize them, but haven’t taken the time to get to know them.” He handed her the last plate.

  “Everything is fast in the city, isn’t it? There’s no time for anything.” After drying the plate, she set the drying towel and the napkins in the linen basket under the sink.

  “I think it’s more of a ‘we don’t take the time.’ It all depends on what your priorities are. Besides Dr. Elders, you don’t know your neighbors either.”

  “Touché”

  “I’m impressed. You learn quickly.”

  “I have a fantastic teacher.”

  Ashton watched the seductive sway of Jodie’s hips as he followed her up the stairs, thinking this was a mistake, a huge mistake, yet unable to stop himself. On the ride to the farm, he’d gone through different scenarios in his mind. What if the crazy story Linda had told him was true? He only saw her once a year since he’d graduated. Maybe she’d adopted a child. He had come up with a strategy to woo the timid child out of the house. Convince her he wasn’t there to harm her. Then Jodie swung the door open, and he’d just about been knocked over by her beauty. But there was more than physical attraction at play.