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Seconds later, the door opened a fraction, just enough for her to poke her head through.
“I have to go out and help a rancher with a cow who has pinkeye,” he said, raising his voice above the music.
“Whatever.” She started to close the door.
“Why don’t you come along?” he asked. “It’s bound to be interesting.” And might help them bond.
She looked as if she’d rather eat worms. “What’s interesting about pinkeye?”
“In a cow, it can be dangerous. It hurts a lot more than it does in humans. An infected animal often keeps her eyes closed because of the pain. She avoids sunlight, too, and stops foraging for food and water. If she doesn’t get well quickly, she could die.”
“That’s not interesting at all.”
The door shut rudely in his face. Patience fraying, he bit back a frustrated oath. When he was in vet school, she’d loved watching him work with sick or injured animals. Not anymore. Since he’d taken Taylor in and they’d moved here, he’d made sure to invite her along on any call he made when she wasn’t in school. So far, she’d always turned him down.
“I should be back in an hour or so, but I’ll phone when I know for sure,” he said through the door. No reply. “If you want dinner while I’m gone, there’s leftover lasagna in the fridge,” he added.
Nothing but hostile silence.
His fraying patience snapped. This time he opened the door without knocking. “Did you hear what I said?”
“I didn’t say you could come in here.” Arms crossed, Taylor shot daggers out of her eyes.
“Tough. Did you hear me or not?”
“I heard.”
Seth nodded. “See you later. Get that homework done before you start texting or using FaceTime.”
“Yes, sir.” Sarcasm dripped from her words.
When he was through the door, she slammed it.
Irritated at himself for losing his cool, he scrubbed his hand over his face and headed back down the stairs. Living in the same house with an angry teenage girl was a lot tougher than he’d ever imagined.
Would she ever give him a break?
* * *
AFTER LOCKING THE shelter doors late Thursday afternoon, Emily drove toward Prosperity Park. Her mother and Bill lived on the edge of the park, and were lucky enough to have an impressive view of Prosperity Falls from their living room window. A view that had cost a bundle, but Bill was a partner in a large insurance company and could afford it.
He gave Emily’s mother whatever she wanted, and she wanted to travel. In two days, they would leave for six whole weeks, touring Spain, Portugal and France.
Emily was jealous, but in a good way. If she didn’t have the time or money to travel, at least they did. Tonight they’d invited her over for dinner and to say goodbye.
The sun was about to set and vivid pink streaks colored the paling sky. The usual rush-hour traffic filled the highway, but Emily didn’t mind. With beauty all around her and dinner plans, she couldn’t help but be happy.
Too happy for a ho-hum night with her mom and Bill. She really needed to get out more.
She parked in the driveway of the house, which was a stunning mixture of cream-colored brick, river stone and tempered glass. The landscaped yard was nothing like the trampled grass around the shelter grounds. Carrying a bottle of Spanish wine she’d picked up, she followed the flagstone walkway to the raised brick stoop, then opened the front door and let herself in.
The place was quiet. Leaving her jacket and purse in the entry, Emily headed for the living room, on the opposite side of the house. The huge space was only marginally smaller than her entire apartment, and decorated with beautiful, expensive furnishings.
Where were her mother and Bill? After stopping to admire the falls from the picture window, Emily checked the state-of-the-art kitchen. No one there, either. She peered out the sliding glass door that opened onto the back yard and patio. The grill was out and ready for action, but she didn’t see her mother or stepfather.
She set the wine she’d brought on the granite counter and returned to the living room. “Hello?” she called. “Mom? Bill? I’m here!”
“We’ll be right out!” Her mother’s muffled reply came from the direction of the master bedroom.
A long few minutes later, the couple appeared, with their arms around each other’s waists. Her mother looked slightly disheveled and radiant, and Bill wore a big grin. Emily didn’t want to think of what had put the glow in their faces. Some things were too gross to contemplate. Four years of marriage and they still acted like newlyweds.
They were insanely happy, which was wonderful. After Emily’s father had walked out and left her mom struggling to pay the bills and keep a roof over their heads, she deserved a loving man. She liked to say that Bill’s wealth was the icing on her happiness cake.
Emily didn’t care about Bill’s money. He was a good guy who really cared about her mother. She wanted a man like Bill. She’d thought she’d found him in Harvey. They’d discussed marriage and children multiple times, and she’d assumed that they would be together forever.
Then a well-known architecture firm on the East Coast had offered him a plum job. Emily hadn’t wanted to give up her beloved shelter, but she’d been ready to find her replacement so that she could go with him. Things hadn’t worked out the way she’d imagined, however. Harvey had taken his dog with him, but not Emily. She’d been single ever since.
Her mother came over to exchange cheek kisses with her. Bill gave her a hug.
“How’s the packing coming along?” she asked.
“We were just working on that, only then we got a little distracted.” Her mother and Bill exchanged meaningful glances.
He chuckled. “We sure did.”
TMI—too much information, Emily thought. She cleared her throat. “I noticed you uncovered the grill out back.”
“We’re having steak tonight.” Bill licked his lips and patted his slight paunch. “Are you hungry, Em?”
“Starving.”
“Me, too. As soon as I fix the drinks, I’ll fix the steaks.”
In the kitchen, Emily’s mother and Bill kissed as if they were about to part for days before he stepped through the sliding glass door to the patio.
Her mother watched him go with a dreamy sigh. Emily shook her head. Sometimes the lovey-dovey stuff got old. “What can I do to help?” she asked.
“Set the table and open that bottle of wine so it can breathe. I’ll heat the rolls and empty the salad into a bowl.”
While they worked, they caught up on each other’s lives, just as they had when they’d lived in the one-bedroom apartment where Emily had grown up—on the rare occasions when her mother had been home in time to help with the evening meal. Usually, Emily had prepared it alone.
Before long, Bill returned with the sizzling steaks. They sat at the kitchen table and loaded their plates.
“Are you excited about your trip?” Emily asked as they ate.
“Just a little.” Bill’s lips twitched.
He and Emily’s suddenly gleeful mother exchanged brilliant grins, and then launched into a detailed itinerary of where they were going and when. Emily had already heard most of before, but didn’t mind hearing it again. In their excitement, the two finished each other’s sentences and occasionally interrupted one another. They were so involved in the back and forth that they seemed to forget she was there.
Emily felt like a third wheel. Melancholy crept in, and no longer hungry, she picked at her food. At times like this, she wished she was part of a couple.
But that would mean dating again, which she hadn’t done since Harvey. Emily’s wayward thoughts homed in on a certain sexy veterinarian. She quickly dismissed that idea. She’d had to resort to arm twisting to get Seth to take the volunteer job in the first place, and she wasn’t about to jeopardize that by going out with the man. If he was even interested. Because if they were to go out and then things between them soured... At any time, he could walk away from the shelter. Besides, between it and her website business, she was way too busy to date.
Which wasn’t exactly the full truth. The thing was, even though it had been more than fifteen months since Harvey had left, and even though Emily was totally over him, she wasn’t over what he’d done. Bad enough, breaking her heart. He wasn’t the first. But leaving her behind without a backward glance, the same as her father had? She wasn’t about to put herself in that position ever again, and she for sure wasn’t ready to start dating. Besides, the dogs at the shelter depended on her, and that was where her focus needed to be—on providing them with a temporary place to stay and finding them good homes.
Refusing to be ignored for one more minute, she changed the subject. “I had an unpleasant surprise this week.” That got her mother and Bill’s attention. “You remember Rich Addison, the veterinarian who’s volunteered at the shelter since I opened our doors? He decided to retire.”
Knowing what that meant, her mother frowned. “What are you going to do?”
“I think I’ve found a replacement.”
“Already? That’s great!” Bill looked pensive. “I’ve sold insurance policies to most of the animal docs in town. Who is it?”
“Actually, he’s new here, having recently moved back from California. His name is Seth Pettit and he works mostly with livestock.”
“I know Seth.” Bill nodded. “He phoned shortly after he arrived, and I set him up with the insurance he needs.”
Her mother frowned. “If Dr. Pettit works with livestock, why is he volunteering at the shelter?”
“He likes to be called by his first name,” Emily said. “His...” She paused. How to explain Taylor? “He’s guardian to a teenage girl who will be doing her community service at The Wagging Tail.”
“They’re volunteering together.” Bill gave a nod of approval. “I used to do that with Kara.” His daughter from his first marriage, now in her early forties. “It’s a good bonding experience.”
“They won’t exactly be doing their volunteer work at the same time,” Emily said.
“Still, it’s nice that they’ll both become familiar with the shelter. They’ll have something to talk about.”
She hadn’t thought of it that way, but Bill was right.
They were finishing their dessert when her “dog emergency” pager buzzed. The number of one of the volunteers who rescued abused animals showed on the screen. “I need to check this,” Emily said. “Excuse me.”
She stepped into the hallway and returned the call. Moments later, she reentered the kitchen. “Sorry to eat and run, but a new dog is coming in tonight, and I have to make some calls.”
First, to the couple who’d said they wanted the red setter, to make sure they picked him up in the morning, which would free up a slot for the new animal. Then, to Seth Pettit. Tonight she would quarantine the new arrival. Depending on what Seth found when he examined the dog, the animal would either move in with the others or stay in quarantine.
Chewing a bakery cupcake, her mother nodded.
“That’s okay, Em,” Bill said. “Between packing and other things, your mother and I have plenty to keep us busy.”
Once again, they exchanged a private, loving look. Brother.
Emily kissed and hugged them both. “I’ll miss you two,” she said. “Call and email when you can—and send pictures.”
“We will,” her mother said. “Good luck with the new vet. And the new dog.”
Before Emily even reached her car, she’d pulled out her phone.
Chapter Three (#ulink_6bf75ef2-ed18-59bf-84ae-6f2c6a396efc)
“Can I come with you to The Wagging Tail today?” Taylor asked Seth over breakfast Friday morning. They were sitting in the nook off the kitchen.
Since they’d moved here, this was a first. She’d never asked to go on a call, and for a moment, Seth wondered if she was finally accepting him and settling into her new life. Then his natural cynicism kicked in. Did she really want to watch him examine the shelter’s newest dog, or was this a ploy to get out of going to school? Likely the latter.
“If it wasn’t a school day, you could,” he said, “but I don’t want you missing any classes.”
His own words took him aback. Damned if he didn’t sound just like Sly had all those years ago, whenever Seth had tried to weasel his way out of going to school.
Would wonders never cease.
Taylor’s dirty look told him he’d guessed right. “I hate you and I hate Prosperity!”
Seth winced, but he’d heard it before, more times than he could count. You’d think he’d be used to that, but every time she used the H word, it stung. He’d be damned if he’d let on how badly. “Look,” he said. “You’ll probably see the dog Monday, when you go to the shelter for orientation.”
One skinny shoulder lifted, then dropped. She turned away from him and stared out the window that faced the raggedy backyard—who had time for yard work?—and the house behind them. The leaves on the trees scattered around the yard were starting to turn. Seth hadn’t lived through an autumn in Montana for a long time, but he remembered the intense reds and yellows that dressed up the landscape. He also remembered how quickly the weather could turn. Almost as quickly as Taylor’s moods.
In the tense silence he’d grown used to, he scraped the last of his Wheaties from his bowl and finished his coffee. After he and Taylor had been reunited, he’d tried hard to ease the transition by talking about his own life and asking questions about hers. When that had failed, he’d offered to take her to a movie or a concert of her choice here in Prosperity, or to drive her and any friends she made.
No luck with that, either. She’d turned him down and tuned him out. Out of sheer desperation, he’d asked her what did she want. She had a ready answer for that. She wanted him to take her back to San Diego, drop her off and let her live her life without him in it. Ouch.
If only she’d make friends at school. Even one would help. As far as Seth knew, it hadn’t happened. Taylor went to school downcast, and came home with the same dark cloud over her head. They’d been in Prosperity almost a month now, and he still had no idea how to help her adjust. Since she wouldn’t talk to a professional, he could only wait for her to settle in and accept that this was her new life.
The way things stood right now, he wondered if she ever would.
“It’s almost time for you to catch the bus,” he said. “I’m not sure when I’ll be home. After I leave The Wagging Tail, I have appointments at two ranches on opposite sides of town. One with a sick bull, and the other with a horse that won’t eat. Call me when you get home this afternoon.”
Taylor barely nodded.
Shortly after she trudged to the school bus and boarded—would she ever walk like a carefree teenage girl?—he grabbed his doctor bag, hopped into the pickup and headed for Emily’s.
The sun was already bright, with the Cascade Mountains in sharp relief against the clear blue sky. Today would be warm, more like summer than fall. That and a couple of paying appointments on the schedule boosted his spirits. Whistling softly, he cracked the window and slipped on his sunglasses.
He looked forward to seeing Emily this morning. He wouldn’t mind getting to know her...
As if he had time for that. Building his business, making amends with his brother and dealing with Taylor took up every minute—and then some.
She probably had a boyfriend, anyway. A beautiful woman like her would.
But if she didn’t?
Seth didn’t exactly have a good track record with women. With relationships, period. He wasn’t about to wreck Taylor’s community-service experience by getting involved with the woman who’d hired her. Because if he and Emily did get involved, it wouldn’t last. It never did.
He was almost at The Wagging Tail. Pushing his wayward thoughts aside, he signaled, slowed and turned into the driveway.
* * *
STANDING AT HER kitchen window Friday morning, which was directly above the shelter and faced the front door, Emily peered anxiously through the curtains. The dog that had arrived last night was skin and bones, with what looked like a bad case of mange, and she was anxious for Seth to check her out and put her on the road to a clean bill of health. He was due at eight, a few minutes from now.
Emily didn’t usually start the coffee downstairs until closer to nine, but today she went down and started it early, in case Seth wanted a cup. Then she returned to her apartment to make her lunch.
