Chapter One
November
Plink.
“You’re a real asshole, Ralph.” Hands shoved in his pockets, Colt glared at the mop on legs that was his new dog, the mop currently ignoring him while chewing rice and chicken with studied nonchalance.
Plink.
With a delicate spit, Ralph dropped another piece of kibble in the metal bowl, and Colt shook his head. Holly had assured him this would work, her brow wrinkled with earnest encouragement. Yeah, cutting back on the boiled chicken and adding kibble was a real winner at convincing Ralph to make a move to hard dog food instead of what Colt had been cooking for him since he came off the liquid diet.
“You know, you’re pretty damn finicky for a guy who was eating out of a dumpster a couple of weeks ago.”
Ralph wagged his tail and nuzzled through the bowl once more.
Plink.
“Okay, fine.” Colt threw up his hands. “I’ll go by the vet’s office and we’ll try something canned. But hear me, man, I’m not cooking for you every day.”
Hell, he didn’t even cook for himself every day.
He finished his eggs, toast and coffee while the dog picked out every morsel of chicken and rice, leaving the kibble behind. Opening the back door, he turned Ralph loose in the fenced yard and set the bowl next to the self-watering system he’d installed because the finicky-ass mutt turned his nose up at a bowl of still water.
“You get hungry, you’re gonna have to eat that.” Lord, he sounded like Grandaddy. Ralph ignored him, sniffing around the perimeter of the fence. “Don’t dig any holes. Maybe I’ll run by at lunch and bring you some soft food if I have time.”
After he had to walk out to pet the mercenary asshole whose sorry life had cost him nearly a grand in vet bills, he headed out. The morning passed quickly — he was busy as always and he liked it that way. Lord knew how Del and Tick stood their office jobs. Del always shrugged when Colt asked about that when they finished a round of golf, grinned and said he got plenty of exercise when he got home to his kids. And Tick . . . well, a polite “hey” or “bye” was the extent of their conversation.
Colt didn’t blame him.
With ruthless precision, he turned his attention from the keen loss of his cousin, almost as sharp, maybe sharper than losing his younger cousin Will back then. Will was gone, memories of hanging out with him bittersweet, sure, but Tick . . . well, that wound opened up every time Lamar came home or someone mentioned him.
The wound never got a chance to heal all the way, and maybe that explained why Tick never looked him in the eye, but always fixed his attention at some spot between Colt’s eyebrows during those brief greetings instead.
Ignoring the melancholy tug in his hollow chest, he jockeyed the straight truck into an as unobtrusive spot as possible and strode to the front door of the small brick building housing Dr. Hydrick’s offices. For once, the door didn’t open into controlled chaos and cacophony. The mingled odors of just-washed animal fur and disinfectant lingered in the air, the same way the place always smelled. Holly perched on the tall stool behind the counter, chatting to Savannah while they downed a sandwich from the service station deli.
“Hey!” Welcome lit Holly’s eyes – Aunt Lenora would call that shade cornflower, but all Colt could ever think was he’d never seen eyes that blue before. Smiling, she leaned forward, shoulders slumping and mouth twisting a little when she lifted her gaze to his. “Where’s Ralph?”
“Being spoiled in the backyard.” Propping his arms on the counter next to the fat orange office cat, he flicked a finger at Polo, snoozing behind the desk in a massive golden blob. That dog needed to go on a diet. “Some of us can’t take our pets to work.”
“Did you come by just to say hey?” Teasing as always. Like how were she and Lamar friends since all their conversations had to be nothing but the two of them teasing? He guessed they were friends now Tick had married someone else. That had to be awkward because the whole damn town had expected the two of them to tie the knot at some point. Colt got that because he’d expected it – every time Tick had come home from Atlanta, Holly had been in his pocket, although his cousin had continued his string of short-term dating relationships until he’d gone to Houston and wound up hitched. Colt had no insight into Lamar anymore, and not like he was going to ask Holly about her love life. They were friends, sure, but not that kind of friends.
“Need some soft food for Ralph.” He shook his head. “He’s picking the kibble out of his chicken and rice and spitting it out. I am not cooking for the damn dog every day.”
Savannah chuckled, and Holly grinned, sliding off the stool. “That’s hilarious.”
“No, he’s a spoiled jerk.” Even so, a grin quirked at his mouth. He’d never thought he wanted a dog, but the mop kinda brightened his day.
Leaving her sandwich on the desk, Holly disappeared into the stock room off the office. She returned moments later, onecan in hand. “So this is all we have in Vitabrand, but we’re supposed to get a delivery this afternoon. Want me to drop you off a few cans after work?”
“That would be great.” He took the tin and scanned the ingredients. Nothing artificial . . . hell, the dog would eat better than he did. With a resigned sigh, he glanced at Savannah. “You’ve got my card on file.”
“I do.” Smiling, she launched her computer, fingers flying over the keyboard. “I’ll email you a receipt.”
“Great.” The dog cost more than his truck maintenance, and he’d just bought new tires. That was saying something.
Holly climbed back on the stool, puffing a loose hank of hair out of her eyes. Even in a ponytail, her blonde hair was as shiny as she was. “I’ll see you later then.”
“Yeah.” He leveraged off the counter and rapped a knuckle on the laminate. The cat twitched its tail but didn’t stir. “Sounds good. Thanks.”
