“Did you go to Denver after that?” Matt asked.
Lynda nodded. “I was offered a job I couldn’t refuse. At the time, I was specializing in exotic animals. The clinic needed someone with my training, and the pay was good. I meant to stay a year or two, but then I met Ray, and...” She shrugged. “Life happened.”
Matt nodded, understanding in his eyes. “That’s how it goes sometimes. One decision leads to another, and suddenly, you’re on a path you never planned.”
“What about you?” Lynda asked, carefully shifting the puppy in her arms to a more comfortable position. “Did you always want to practice in a small town?”
A shadow crossed Matt’s face. “I had a thriving practice in Seattle before moving here. Maria—my wife—was born in Sapphire Bay. We came back to be closer to her family when she got sick.”
Lynda looked up, surprised. “I didn’t know you’d practiced somewhere else.”
“I worked in Seattle for twenty years,” Matt confirmed. “Large clinic, six vets, all the latest equipment. It was very different from here.”
“Do you miss it?”
Matt considered the question. “Sometimes I miss the resources. The specialists were a phone call away, and the advanced diagnostic tools were better than I can provide.” He glanced around the small, simple clinic. “But I’ve never regretted the move. This clinic and the town suit me better.”
The puppy in Matt’s left arm finished its bottle, and he expertly shifted it to his shoulder, patting gently to release any air bubbles. “Maria used to help me in the clinic when she wasn’t teaching,” Matt said quietly. “She was brilliant with the animals.”
Lynda felt a tightening in her chest at the love and respect in his voice. “You must have made a great team.”
“We did,” Matt agreed. “When she was diagnosed with cancer, we sold the practice and moved back here. I opened this clinic so I could work flexible hours and be with her during treatments.” He sighed. “She worked at the elementary school for a year before it became too much. After that, she insisted on helping at the clinic whenever she had good days, right up until the end.”
“I’m sorry,” Lynda said softly, meaning it. “How long were you together?”
“Twenty-eight years.” Matt’s smile was sad but genuine. “Not nearly long enough.”
They fed the puppies in comfortable silence for a few minutes, each lost in their thoughts.
“What about you and Ray?” Matt asked eventually. “How long were you married?”
“Thirty years,” Lynda replied, surprised at how distant that life now seemed. “We met at a conference. He was brilliant and charismatic. Everyone wanted his attention, but somehow, he noticed me.”
“Of course he noticed you,” Matt said with unexpected firmness. “You’re extraordinary, Lynda. Anyone would notice you.”
The sincere compliment caught her off guard, and warmth rose to her cheeks. “Well, he certainly didn’t think so by the end of our marriage,” she said, trying to lighten the moment. “He traded me in for a younger model.”
“His loss,” Matt said.
Their eyes met over the tiny creatures in their arms, and Lynda felt something shift between them—a deepening of the connection that had been building since the first day they’d met at the shelter. Here in this quiet clinic, surrounded by the storm outside and the gentle sounds of the puppies, she felt strangely at home.
“We should get these little ones back in the incubator,” she said, breaking the moment before it became too intense. “And we need to set up a feeding schedule.”
Matt nodded, standing carefully with the puppies in his arms. “I’ll wake you in three hours.”
“I’m not tired yet,” Lynda protested. “Why don’t you rest first? I’m still too wired from the rescue.”
Matt studied her face, then conceded. “All right. Wake me up in three hours or if you need anything. Anything at all.”
After they’d settled the puppies back in the incubator, Matt showed her where everything was—extra formula, clean bottles, and medical supplies. He grabbed a blanket from a cabinet and hesitated at the door to his office.
“I’m glad you were here tonight, Lynda. I couldn’t have done this alone.”
“Yes, you could have,” she replied honestly. “But I’m glad I was here too.”
After Matt disappeared into his office, Lynda settled into the chair beside the incubator, a cup of fresh coffee warming her hands. She watched the rise and fall of five tiny chests, each breath a small victory against the odds. Outside, the storm continued to rage, but it couldn’t touch the calm center she’d found here.
Lynda thought about what Matt had told her. His wife had been his partner in every sense. They’d built a wonderful life together, and his career had given him something to focus on after her death. It explained so much about him. The wedding ring he still wore, the slightly distant look that sometimes crossed his face, and the dedication to this small-town clinic that seemed beyond professional duty.
