The receptionist at Hana Vet Clinic wanted to be chatty, asking him if he had any plans for the day, but he wasn’t in the mood to play nice. He answered her questions with clipped answers while looking at his phone, knowing he was being rude and not caring.
“I’ve entered you in the system,” she said, sounding cross. “It should be a short wait.”
He wasn’t seated for five minutes before the door openedand a woman in scrubs poked her head into the waiting room. “Mr. Beaucroft, wasn’t it? I’m Dr. Jennifer. You had that charity dinner last year, didn’t you? For the city?”
“I just sign the checks,” he said, standing to follow her into the examining room.
She lifted her ponytail to loop her stethoscope around her neck. “Don’t be so modest. Some of that money got us new surgery lights and an ultrasonic scale. We’re very grateful.” When he didn’t reply, Dr. Jennifer bent down to the crate. “Who’s this handsome little fellow?”
“Maynard.”
“What an unusual name.”
“Mhm.” He looked away from her hunching backside, walking over to examine a sign on the wall that said,CAN DOGS EAT HUMAN FOODS? No nightshades, it said underneath.No xylitol.
“Is it French?”
“No idea.” Nicholas looked over his shoulder. The vet was looking into the twitching ears, the nose. Even lifted the tail for a quick look. “Is he all right?”
“He’s a healthy boy.” She ruffled the dog’s ears. “It looks like he’s already been neutered and chipped but his coat suggests he’s a little malnourished. Was he a rescue?”
“I found him in some shrubs.” He paused. “That is, my girlfriend did.”
“Oh.” Her smile dimmed a little as she gave the puppy another pat. “Well, that’s not uncommon, I’m sorry to say. Sometimes people fall in love with the idea of a puppy more than they do with the actual dog. Then it grows up and becomes too much of a handful. Especially with big breeds like this.”
Nicholas thought again of Jay’s mother. His jaw tightened. “What breed is he?”
The vet glanced at the dog. “Without genetic testing, it’s hard to be certain, but at a glance, I’d guess he’s a king shepherd, or a mix.”
“Does he need any shots? I’d like to get him all taken care of today, as well as a new chip.”
Dr. Jennifer seemed a little taken aback. “Generally, you’d need to set up another appointment for that. This is just a check-up.”
“I’m sure other parts of the building could use new surgery lights,” Nicholas said.
An hour later, and a few grand lighter, Maynard was back in his crate, a little dopey from his chipping, and Nicholas was back behind the wheel of his car. He stopped by the Afghan place again to pick up some takeout before their hike. Thankfully, the nosy owner hadn’t been there.
Knowing Jay, she was only just starting to get up.
He thought of how cross she’d been in her apartment, how it colored her cheeks and gave her eyes a vicious glint, and made her stand just a little taller when she faced up to him.
Grumpy little bird.
A satisfied smile curled his mouth.
He was looking forward to it.
Chapter Twelve
???????
It was getting harder to remember why she wanted to push him away.
Last night, when she heard the creak of his footsteps outside her door while she was getting herself off to the memory of his touch on her skin, she had decided that maybe she didn’t care if he heard her. Maybe she even wanted to moan a little louder, so that he would hear.
The footsteps stopped and Jay had waited, but he hadn’t come in.
She knew he was listening, though, and no, she hadn’t been quiet.
