Once in the car, I settle Chanel in my lap and start the engine, then back out of the garage and race down the driveway. The vet Kali mentioned is on the other side of town and I drive way faster than I usually do, desperate to get my poor bunny some help. Tears well in my eyes every time she starts to hack.
“Hang on, baby,” I plead with her as I finally pull into the parking lot of the emergency vet.
Cradling my beloved bunny, I jump out of the car and race in to the small brightly colored building. The lobby is empty and I make a beeline for the counter. Unlike the regular vet where Kali, Sutton, and I always take our fur babies, there isn’t a receptionist sitting behind it.
“Hello!” I call desperately. “Hello, is anyone in here? My bunny is sick and I need help! Please!”
The words are barely out of my mouth when the door behind the counter opens and a man rushes over to me.
I blink.
Cash?
CHAPTER FIVE
Even through the hot tears blurring my vision, I’d recognize his broad-shouldered figure anywhere. Despite the fact that he’s dressed entirely different than he was at Franco’s, the man is still unmistakable.
Instead of faded jeans and a T-shirt, the bad-boy biker is dressed in a blue button-down, black slacks, and a fitted white coat, his sleeves pushed up to reveal his tattooed forearms. I’ve never in my life thought a lab coat could be sexy, but Cash is definitely wearing that jacket and not the other way around. Then again, his body is so chiseled that he could make a potato sack look amazing.
In my arms, Chanel lets out a weak cough and I desperately hold her out toward the handsome, green-eyed veterinarian.
“She’s been coughing like this the whole way over here. Please tell me you can do something for her!” I beg.
Cash quickly takes Chanel from me, cradling my tiny baby to his broad chest with a delicate care that should be impossible for such a big, rugged man. He runs his hand over her head and down her long, silky ears, then looks at me, his green gaze blazing into mine so intensely that my tears dry in my eyes.
“Take a deep breath,” he instructs gently. There isn’t an ounce of impatience or belittlement in his husky, calm tone, and his earnest expression conveys nothing more than sincere concern. “I’m going to take care of her. Everything will be all right. Let’s go into an exam room and I’ll take a look.”
For some reason, I find myself believing Cash implicitly. I manage to take a few shallow breaths, but my heart keeps pounding hard against my ribs as I hurry around the counter and follow him into one of the smaller rooms off the short hallway.
Cash’s rough fingertips are exceptionally tender as he probes Chanel’s tiny tummy and peeks into her eyes and mouth. When he’s finished, he listens to her chest using the stethoscope draped around his shoulders.
“Is she going to be okay?” I ask as he scoops her into his arms again.
I move closer, putting my hand on his sleeve to turn him toward me a little so I can study my fluffy rabbit’s sweet face. Even though we’re at a vet’s office—which is her least favorite place in the entire world—she looks surprisingly content in Cash’s muscled arms. She’s relaxed a lot since our frantic drive here, and her black nose twitches contentedly.
“She’s going to be fine, Liv,” he assures me with a small, sideways smile that makes my heart skip a beat.
I blink, caught off guard that Cash even remembers my name. We’d only chatted for a few minutes and I’d just assumed that the meeting would be entirely forgettable. Or does he remember me because I made such a big fool of myself?
When I continue to gape at him in stunned silence, he chuckles. “You don’t recognize me, do you? I’m Cash—Franco’s son. We met the other day.”
I don’t know what’s more shocking. The fact that he’s a biker by night and a veterinarian by day, or that he would even suggest I forgot him and not the other way around.
Face flushing, I brush my long, auburn hair behind my ear.
“Of course, I remember you,” I say hurriedly. “I just didn’t expect to see you here.”
He winks, his grin broadening to reveal a set of perfectly straight white teeth that would make a supermodel envious.
“This might be a shock to you, but I don’t flip burgers with my dad. After high school, I went to college to become a veterinarian. I work at a veterinary hospital in Bel Air, but I volunteer here a couple Sundays a month.”
I’m speechless again. Not only does he love animals, but gives up his free time to volunteer at an urgent care clinic on the weekends. Could this guy be any more perfect?
“Do you know what was wrong with Chanel?” I ask.
It’s only then that I realize I’m still clinging to his white jacket. I release my hold on him slowly, feeling my face burn hotter. Thankfully, Cash doesn’t mention that.
He softly caresses one of Chanel’s long, fuzzy ears and she nuzzles against his touch, then lets out a tiny yawn that makes a chuckle rumble through Cash’s chest.
