Hope surged through me at that statement, and I had to reel it in, trying my best not to read between the lines before we had a chance to talk.
I snatched Diego’s collar and led him to the door of the clinic, moving slow so he could walk on three legs. The dog went to sit by the exam table almost as soon as I opened the door as if he’d known exactly why he was there.
“Good boy,” I encouraged.
Luckily, Bri had offered to stay and help while I bandaged Diego up in case I needed an extra set of hands to keep him still. It only took a few minutes to clean the wounds and wrap his leg in gauze, and by the end of it, Diego was gently bumping his nose against my arm and giving me sad, pitiful eyes. He kept glancing at the door as if waiting for Kristin to come walking through there at any minute.
“He looks so lost,” my sister commented.
“They usually do when their owners aren’t around. Places like this scare them, and he’s had a pretty stressful evening.”
She rubbed his ears. “You’re in good hands, baby. My brother’s going to take good care of you until you can get back to your momma.”
As soon as he was treated, we made our way to the back room so I could get him settled in one of the overnight kennels. Opening the nearest one, I led Diego inside, pleased that a fresh blanket had already been placed on the bed. Bri filled a bowl with water and another one with dog food, then set them inside the kennel before wrapping her arms around herself. It took me a moment to realize she was trembling.
“You okay?” I asked.
“Yeah, just kinda shaken up, I guess. God, I don’t know how you do this,” she said.
“It’s not usually accidents on the side of the road,” I replied calmly, giving Diego one final pat before closing the door. “Still, though. Sometimes, it’s not easy, but I wouldn’t want to do anything else.”
Bri and I went to unload my things from her car, and after one last hug, I asked, “Sure you don’t want to stay? I have an extra room if you want to wait out the storm.”
She gave me a look. “Hopefully, you’ll have a reason to want me gone as soon as Alex is back, right?”
She kissed my cheek and got into the car, promising to let me know when she got home safely.
My feet were heavy as I made my way across the snow-covered yard, and the adrenaline of the last few hours was starting to wear off. I was suddenly positive I could sleep for days. When I entered the house, Noel wandered around, sniffing the floor. I half expected Roxy to come running around the corner to play with her, but the hall remained empty.
After dumping my travel bag straight into the laundry bin, I jumped into the shower and climbed into bed. I checked for a text from Bri, and after seeing that she’d made it home safely, powered it off and went to sleep.
***
I didn’t wake up again until the following morning. Groggy, I went to the window and peered out to see if any more snow had fallen. To my shock, there was at least another four inches. I called Grace and James right away, telling them not to bother coming in. We could keep the clinic closed another day.
I knew I wouldn’t be able to go back to bed after sleeping for nearly twelve hours straight, so I made my way down the hall to the kitchen to start a fresh pot of coffee. My heart jumped to my throat when I saw a stack of twenty-dollar bills on the counter near the coffee maker. On top of it was a note written in blocky crisp handwriting.
More coming soon. Alex
My heart thundered in my chest, and I felt bile surge up my throat. I had to grip the countertop just to keep the room from spinning from the sudden rage.What the fuck?
After yanking a pair of boots and a winter coat on, I rushed outside, relieved to see the red Ford parked by the building. Noel followed as I trudged through the snow across the yard, tearing open the side door to the clinic. My anger made it difficult to unlock the door separating his loft from our clinic, but once I finally managed, it crashed against the wall with a loudtwack.Roxy barked furiously at the intrusion, but her fear quickly morphed into joy when Noel reached the top of the stairs.
Alex was already awake, sitting on the edge of the bed in jeans and a sweatshirt as he tugged some socks on.
I tossed the money onto the bed. “What’s this?”
He glanced at the money, then blinked up at me. “What does it look like?”
“You don’t need to fucking pay me back for Roxy’s care! You worked your ass off for that!”
Roxy and Noel were dancing happy circles around each other on the floor, oblivious to the tension in the room.
Alex sighed. “For fuck’s sake, Vaughn. It’s not for Roxy’s bill.”
I blinked. “Then what’s it for?”
He reached for the pair of rain boots I’d loaned him a couple of weeks ago, which I realized were highly inadequate for this cold weather. “Rent,” he said simply.
