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Aiden waves me off with a jaunty salute of his own before pulling back into traffic.

The store isn’t large by any means but it has a good selection. I grab a cart and start down the aisles. My stomach growls in a painful reminder of my mistreatment of it.

If Aiden wants to hand over his hard earned cash thenI’ll make sure I get a variety of items. No matter the state of their fridge, they are dudes with muscles in their mid-twenties. They have to eat a lot more than they’ve got at the cabin.

I grab a round of steaks from the meat counter at the back of the store and accompany it with fresh vegetables and some pantry staples like cornmeal and flour.

Plus honey, maple syrup, and everything I need to make a real cup of coffee.

The boys aren’t happy to have me. At least,Sorenisn’t happy. And since it’s his father’s property, and I need to stay, I have to find a way to smooth things over before they reach a boiling point.

Food is the way to the heart.

Not in my family, but in general, or so I’ve heard. In my family, the only thing we knew growing up was to crave food and hate ourselves for craving it.

Aiden isn’t outside when I finish. Juggling the groceries, the handles of the reusable bags cutting into my forearms, I head down the street toward the vet clinic I’d spied earlier.

A little peek to torment myself. To show me what I left behind and what I’d jeopardized.

My future, the one I’d worked so hard to get— I suck in a breath.

I’ll have it again. I’ll get to vet school come hell or high water. This is only a hurdle to get over and I’ll crash through it the same way I’ve crashed through everything else.

The expansive window of the clinic grants a perfect view of the entire reception area. It’s a cute setup, the same as everything else in this town.

Like the people here have gone out of their way to become the perfect postcard of small-town life.

A row of chairs sit in a straight line beneath the window, with another row at a ninety-degree angle to those. One seat’s occupied by a cat carrier, and a small poodle with a bow behind one ear claims another.

A long counter hides all but the top of the receptionist’s head from view.

It’s much smaller than my own clinic. There, we've got space for double the occupants in the waiting room and need three people to man the constantly ringing phones.

You get used to a certain kind of stress.

Day in and day out, you push through because you know you’re making a difference. Do the people who work here feel the same way?

The door to the back opens and out walks the tallest man I’ve ever seen. Lanky, well over six foot, his white lab coat clean and a bunch of files in his hand. He’s got dark brown hair, whiskey-colored eyes, neat goatee, and an easy smile when he greets the receptionist. Lines fan out around his eyes.

He’s got to be, what? In his thirties? Long fingers, big hands. One steamy doctor. Where have they been hiding him in a town this size?

Holly Brook is hiding some seriously hot men.

His frown is the kick in the pants I need to stop openly staring.

Instantly chastised, I rush off, suddenly unable to draw air deeper than halfway into my lungs.

I can’t even think about going inside, can’t even consider if they’d take me on as a volunteer, just to have something familiar to do. I’ve got to keep a low profile and stay out of sight until I figure this shit out or it blows over.

Holly Brook ismyhiding spot.

The worst thing to do would be to paint a bigger target on my back.

Chapter 7

Tase

My cell phone won’t stop fucking vibrating.