“Okay, almost there. There’s hardly any traffic.”
“I have a theory that all those snow-birds and visitors get the hell out of here for August, so traffic is good now. Thankfully. I also think we have such shitty drivers because everyone comes from somewhere else and brings their own rules of the road here, where it’s a hodgepodge,” she rambled, talking so fast she sounded like a car commercial. “Like, why do people not get over after they pass on the ten? It makes me bonkers mad.”
“Bonkers mad.” I laughed. “I like that expression.”
She let out a strangled laugh while I parked the car. She hopped out and ran toward the door, barely leaving me time to open it for her. “Thanks.”
“Of course.”
She went up to the counter and bit her lip when they asked to fill out paperwork. She looked at me and I held out my arms. “Be gentle with him.”
“I will, Blue.”
Pico trembled and stared at me with his big brown puppy dog eyes, and my god, he looked scared, and my own chest got tight. “It’s all right, little guy. You’ll be fine.” I ran my hand over his head and over his back. “You’re okay.”
Sarah led us to two gray plastic chairs and she filled out the information so fast, her handwriting was almost illegible. “He doing okay?”
“Shaking like a leaf.” I held him tighter against my chest and he rested his little head on me, and I almost melted inside. “Poor Pico.”
Sarah looked up from the forms and stared at me, lips parted and a slight blush to her cheeks. She was so damn pretty. She sucked in a breath, bit her lip and shook her head as she continued filling out the forms. “You would flirt with me here.”
“I would do no such thing. This is serious.”
“Brigham, you damn well know you’re a flirting machine.” She giggled and got the last page, signing a bunch of things before walking up to the counter. She returned and sat down so her entire body pressed against mine. She stroked Pico’s fur and kissed the top of his head. “He looks comfortable with you.”
“I think he is.” I stared down at her freckles and blue hair, and a crazy feeling took root in my gut. The notion that I would do anything for her, ever. She rested her head on my shoulder while petting Pico, her breath hitting my neck with each little sigh, and I needed to tell her this overwhelming feeling I had for her. “Listen, Blue—”
“Pico?” a vet tech said, pushing open the swinging door. “Pico?”
“Oh! Yes. Us.” She stood, took him from my arms and frowned. “Uh, do you…should you come back?”
“I’ll stay right here. You go.” I smiled, hoping to reassure her, and she nodded before disappearing with the tech. The girl wore simple shorts and a tank top. She never changed, and for some reason, that made me want her more.
* * * *
Two hours later, Sarah and Pico returned through the door, both wearing smiles. Pico had light back in his eyes and was wagging his tail so much his entire body moved with him. “He’s okay,” I said, standing from the uncomfortable chair and bending down to pet him. “Thank the lord.”
“They found a tiny piece of a bone in his throat that caused this entire thing. I don’t even know how or when he got one. I certainly never gave him a bone,” she said, yawning and making her way to the counter. “I need to check out and pay. Sorry you have to wait more.”
“Don’t apologize, Blue.” I continued petting Pico while she pulled a credit card from her phone.Six hundred dollars, for the visit, and while I knew she had money for the business, I wasn’t sure if she had enough to cover this. I tried to study her reaction for the payment, but nothing seemed tense, and I forced myself not to offer. She’d made it clear money could be an issue for us since we were so different, and I really wanted her to not think about anything that would push me away.
“Okay. All set. I’ll have to call Alexandre in the morning. That won’t be fun.” She stopped walking, paled and went all wide-eyed. “The event. Tomorrow. Oh my god. I have to start setting up in…seven hours!”
It was already one in the morning. “Let’s get you home, then, to rest.”
“I’ll be a mess tomorrow. But then again, it’s not like I would sleep well anyway, you know? My mind is a mess, but thank god Pico is okay. Thank you for taking us,” she said, her conversation bouncing all over the place. We got into the car and made the short drive back, Sarah lost in her own thoughts, and we walked together to let Pico pee on some rocks before heading inside. “Brigham,” she said once we got into the elevator.
“Blue Bell.” I couldn’t stop myself from smiling at her.
“What if tomorrow fails?”
The doors opened and as we walked down the hallway, I took her hand and kissed the back of it. “It won’t.”
“What if it does?”
“Let’s talk through it.” She let us into the apartment, greeting Cassie for a minute before setting her keys and the leash on the counter. “What makes you relax?” I asked.
“I don’t know. Nothing right now.”
