“That’s pretty awful. What will happen to her? Paws isn’t a rescue.”
A grin broke out over Harlow’s face. “Well, for the next few days she’s going to be staying with Jimmy.” Harlow chuckled. “He’s a persistent one. He showed up at Paws with his parents to check in on Thelma.”
“Thelma?” Nick asked. “Wait. Did I miss something?”
Harlow laughed. “Not only did Jimmy name her on the spot, but he made his intentions to adopt her pretty clear. I have to say, Jimmy’s love for Thelma threw me for a loop. I want to start up an official dog rescue here in town. Now I’m more determined than ever to open one up and help abandoned dogs.”
“I think a dog rescue would be great for Mistletoe. There’s a lot of Jimmy’s out there.” Nick took two wineglasses from the cupboard and placed them down on the table. “Wine or iced tea?” he asked.
“I’ll take the wine now and maybe the iced tea later,” Harlow answered. Within seconds he’d filled her glass.
He began taking ingredients out of the fridge—shrimp, lemons, shallots, garlic, cheddar cheese, and milk. “So tell me. What inspired you to become a veterinarian? Do you have some sad animal story from childhood?”
Harlow chuckled. The sound of her laugher was a relief. The awkwardness of Miles’s behavior had lingered in the air between them. He was happy to see that Harlow was able to shake it off. “No poignant stories. It was the opposite, in fact. Taking care of animals was a way of feeling good about myself when I was growing up. Malcolm was a brilliant artist, but I didn’t have a lane to run in. There wasn’t anything I was particularly good at.” A smile stretched across her face. “However, I was fascinated by patching up turtles and broken-winged birds. Animals were my passion, and I began to realize that it could become my future. I walked neighbors’ dogs for free until I realized that I was missing out on a golden opportunity to make major bank.”
“Sounds like you were an enterprising young girl,” Nick said. “I’m impressed.”
“Tossing it back to you. What made you go into search and rescue?” Harlow asked, taking a lengthy sip of her wine.
He took out a cutting board and began slicing and dicing. “I’ve never liked sitting on the sidelines. Back when I was in fifth grade a kid in my class went missing. Tommy Hicks. The entire town was in a panic. We all saw ourselves in him and imagined being snatched up by some mysterious visitor to Mistletoe.”
“Of course,” Harlow said dryly. “Blame the outsider.”
Nick rolled his eyes. “Well, the entire town formed a search team in order to find Tommy before he met with a terrible fate.”
Harlow wrinkled her nose. “Does this story have a happy ending?” she asked. She seemed to be hanging on to his every word.
He felt a smile twitching at his lips. “This is the good part. Turns out Tommy wasn’t missing at all. He was hiding in his family’s attic the whole time. He was a little bit of a drama queen. He’d gotten in trouble at school, and he thought by going missing it would divert attention from his antics.”
Harlow burst out laughing. “Wow. That’s unbelievable. I’m guessing this stunt got him in way more trouble than whatever he’d originally done.”
“Not really,” Nick said, quirking his mouth. “Everyone was so happy he hadn’t been snatched that he got a pass for everything.”
Harlow’s jaw dropped. “Seriously? That is so wrong.”
“Tell me about it. But, seeing everyone band together in a crisis really lit a fire in me. For the first time in my life, I was able to see how a community works together for the common good. Corny, right?”
“Not at all. It sounds like the Mistletoe I’m experiencing.” She bit her lip. “I’m ashamed to admit that small towns haven’t always been my thing.”
“And why is that?” Nick asked, pausing in his cutting duties to learn more about this fascinating woman.
“Let me help,” Harlow offered, reaching for the knife and the cutting board. “I can’t cook, but I can chop.” Nick slid the vegetables over to Harlow, who immediately began to slice and dice.
She shook her head, causing dark tendrils to swirl around her shoulders. “I don’t want to get too heavy tonight. My family wasn’t exactly treated well in Chestnut Ridge. We ended up leaving after my father died. Let’s just say I don’t look too fondly on that period of my life. It was pretty painful.”
Nick didn’t want to press any further. Clearly Harlow was carrying around some issues related to her childhood and her father’s death. If he pushed, she might shut down on him, and that was the last thing Nick wanted. He wanted every moment spent with Harlow to shine.
“By the way, how’s your mom doing?” Nick asked.
Harlow looked down at the board, focusing on her cutting job. “She’s been better, honestly. I really need to visit her soon and see for myself how she is. I get daily reports from the facility, but it’s not the same as seeing her face-to-face and looking in her eyes. Maybe I’m afraid that I won’t be able to see myself reflected there anymore. That look of recognition is fading, Nick, and it’s heart-wrenching to experience.” She swung her gaze up, and he could see moisture pooling in her eyes. “My mom was the best storyteller. She used to tell Malcolm and me all about her grandparents and her childhood on Cape Cod. After my father died, she made a point to tell us about their courtship and all the sweet moments they had shared. I keep thinking how cruel it is that she doesn’t have those memories to sustain her.”
“I’m so sorry,” Nick said. “It isn’t fair.”
“It isn’t,” she said with a shake of her head.
“Don’t wait, Harlow. You don’t want to ever regret not seeing her as much as you possibly can, especially if time is of the essence.” He held up his hands. “That’s my piece of advice for the day.”
“Thanks, Nick. I appreciate it. I’m going to make plans to fly to Cape Cod soon.” She placed the knife down on the chopping board. “It’s time for me to face the situation head-on instead of burying my head in the sand.” She locked gazes with him across the kitchen island. “I’ve got to put on my big-girl panties and woman up.”
