I wake up to my alarm clock, as I do every morning, but something is different. For one thing, I'm much warmer than usual. For another thing, certain long-forgotten muscles are deliciously sore. Memories of last night flood over me, and all at once I'm a confusing mix of embarrassed, satisfied, and aroused.

I shut off the alarm and peek over at Eric, who is beginning to stir. He's still naked, unless he has his boxer briefs on under the covers. I admire his chest of chiseled muscle and a little golden blonde hair. The dark ink of his tattoos contrasts strongly with his pale skin. This man is like the statues of the ancient warriors. What is he doing in bed with me?

"Good morning, Beautiful," Eric mumbles.

"Morning," I say shyly.

His eyes pop open and he studies my face intently. "Are you feeling okay? Do you regret last night? Did we go too fast?"

"Stop," I say, trying to quell his panic. "Last night was amazing. I don't regret it at all. I'm just not sure what we do now."

He smirks at me. "Well, if we had more time, I could think of some things. But we're due in the barn this morning, and if we don't show up, Uri will come looking for us. And I've never been interested in having a threesome with Uriah Pedrad."

I blush deep crimson at Eric's words, both embarrassed and appalled by the idea.

"I shower after morning chores," I tell Eric, desperate to change the subject. "The bathroom is through that door if you'd like to shower. I'm just going to put some clothes on and go start the coffee."

I leap out of bed and start shimmying into my clothes as fast as I can.

"Love," Eric's deep voice interrupts me. I stop what I'm doing and look at him. "Are you sure you're not feeling any regret or anything? You seem tense."

"I'm tense because you seem to think Uriah is going to walk through that door at any moment, and I really don't want him to see this, much less what you said." I reply, resuming my attempt to set a new world record for getting dressed.

"I was teasing, Love," Eric says. "We have plenty of time, the house is locked, and neither of us want to involve Uri in any of this. Now come here and give me a kiss. Please."

I crawl across the bed and do as Eric requested. We don't allow the kiss to get too heated, and a moment later I head downstairs to start coffee and breakfast while Eric heads to the bathroom to get ready for the day.

We make it to the barn on time and start working on the morning chore of feeding and watering my herd.

"I didn't hear you come back to the bunkhouse last night," Uri teases Eric.

"You must have been busy with your wife," Eric replies, hedging.

Uri blushes, and I nearly laugh out loud. Apparently we weren't the only ones to have a little fun last night.

.

xxxx

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Word spreads quickly that the new vet has a little clinic setup in the barn at Dauntless. Eric takes more and more calls from horse owners who want him to take a look at this or that. Dr. Jones and Eric consult on many of the cases, and the town's longstanding vet admits that he's relieved to have most of the far-flung rural house calls off his plate.

As promised, the electrician checks over the barn, and declares it perfectly reasonable to run Eric's slate of diagnostic tools, which is growing to include an x-ray machine as well as the ultrasound machine. The plumber installs the promised sink in the exam area, and by mid-December it's really taking shape.

Matthew enjoyed his weekend at home over Thanksgiving, and thanks to our new arrangement, he plans to go home for Christmas as well. I've never been able to send a ranch hand home for both holidays before - Al and Matthew had to trade off last year - but having Eric here has made that possible. It's good timing, too, because Matthew and Jessica are getting pretty serious, and he's planning to take her home to meet his family.

I have some surprises planned for Christmas, and I'm really excited about it. Uriah's gift was the easiest to plan. I had Eric do an ultrasound on Uri's horse, and she is, as I suspected, having twins. Instead of half ownership of one foal, Uri will have full ownership of one, and I'll own the other. For Christmas I'm giving him that good news and full ownership of the second foal. He'll have three horses of his own, free and clear, and he can choose to train and sell the babies or keep one or both of them here. It's a valuable gift, but as my right-hand man here on the ranch and my close friend/brother, he deserves it.

Matthew will receive a Christmas bonus check, as usual, as a gift from me as his employer. As his friend I also got him a few small things, like some new shirts and a gift card for an online retailer he likes.

Marlene and Shauna are always trying to get me to do girly things with them, so I'm surprising them with a "sister" weekend in the city. I had to clear it with Uri, Eric, and Matthew to make sure the ranch was covered, plus make arrangements with Zeke, and Marlene's boss, Dr. Jones. I booked a suite at the nicest hotel in the city, and even made reservations for dinners and spa treatments for the three of us. On Christmas the girls will receive the news, along with a little shopping money. I feel a bit guilty giving a gift that's for me as well, but I know they'll love it. I planned it for February so we'll be plenty in advance of Shauna's April due date and spring on the ranch. Now I just need to pray for good weather!

Zeke and Uriah's father, Michael, died when they were kids. Hanna kept his business, Michael's Bar and Grill, to support the family, and both boys worked there for nothing but tips when they were teenagers. When Zeke finished high school he went to work full-time managing the place, and Hanna worked there full-time until Uriah left for college. After that, Hanna hung up her apron. The ownership of the bar was transferred to Zeke, and he pays his mother monthly for the business while providing for his own family. It's been a good arrangement, and it allowed Hanna to support her boys and keep the business in the family, but profit margins are slim.

Zeke has been talking for years about some improvements he wants to make at Michael's. He keeps the place clean, but things age, and he really needs to update the decor and fixtures. I know he's been working long hours so he doesn't have to hire, but he and Shauna have a busy toddler and another baby on the way. Hanna, Uri and Mar, and Eric and I decided to work together and have ordered a full set of new chairs and barstools as our gift to Zeke. He has talked about improvements for so long that we knew exactly what he wanted. I'm hoping that with the seating covered he'll have enough in his improvement fund to repaint, update the lighting, and have the floors and bar top refinished. Those are the biggest needs, update-wise.

Bella is the easiest to shop for. I really wanted to get her a pony, but Eric convinced me to wait. She'll be four in June, a perfect age to begin riding, but Eric reminded me that spring would be a long wait for the little girl. We decided to hold off until her birthday. Instead, we took a trip to the city and ended up going more than a little crazy shopping for the only child in our lives. We bought a toy kitchen for Bella, with all the plastic food and dish sets that complete it. We made sure the food set had a fake chocolate cake so she could play bake her own Dauntless cake. I sewed her a little apron that looks just like one of mine. We got her clothes, including matching size four and newborn outfits that say "Big Sister," and "Little Sister" for when the baby is born. Eric and I had so much fun, and it was hard to restrain ourselves and not buy up every cute thing in the store!

Hanna is the hardest to shop for. I like putting thought into my gifts, so I don't want to give her cash or gift cards, but the reality is that she needs so little. Hanna lives in the house where she and Michael raised the boys. It's well-maintained and clean, but small. She watches Bella on school days while Shauna works as a classroom para. She has a weekly Bible study in her home with other retired ladies from town. She knits a little, bakes when she has visitors to share with, and grows flowers in her yard. Zeke handles her lawn care, snow removal, and maintenance projects to pay for the babysitting. Her life is simple, but complete. With Eric's help I select a sweater, some perfume she likes, and a new jigsaw puzzle, a hobby Hanna and I share.

It seems so little to give to the woman who gave me a family when I was alone in the world. Hanna was there for me when I was widowed. Having been widowed herself, she knew what I was facing better than anyone. During the first cold spell after Tobias' death, she showed up at my door with a heated mattress pad for my bed. I still get choked up when I think about how she knew, as only another widow can, just how cold it was getting used to sleeping alone.

Eric was also hard to shop for. I want to add a restraining exam stall to his station in the barn, but that doesn't seem very personal. I rack my brain for weeks and order the stall. That can be his holiday bonus/big gift, but I really need to come up with something more "boyfriend" before the holiday gets here, and time is running out.