Page 8

Chapter Eight

Kit

“Sammy Sosa is in great shape, Mr. Herbert.” Sammy, named after the famous baseball player, is a twelve-year-old black American Shorthair cat here for his annual check-up. He’s one of the few cats who doesn’t try to scratch my eyes out when he comes for a visit. For that alone, he holds a soft spot in my heart. “All of his vitals are normal. When I get the blood work back from the lab, I’ll call you.”

A low, contented purr comes from Sammy as I stroke my hand down his back. When my hand reaches by his tail, his body arches, and I smile.

“He really does love you,” Tony Herbert says to me, but his smile is aimed at Sammy. One thing that will never get old is how much people love their animals. It’s one of the best parts of my job. “Come on, Sammy; it's time to go home.”

Mr. Herbert places Sammy’s carrier on the exam table, and Sammy prances on in, purring the entire way.

“Well, he can come and visit anytime,” I tease, but I’m completely serious. Most animals don’t like coming to see me, so it’s nice to have ones that do. Genevieve is working with me on how to get my patients to love their visits, but it’s still a work in progress.

I can’t say I blame them. I do my best to speak cat and dog, but I am merely a human.

Walking to the front, I sit down and get Mr. Herbert checked out. He puts the carrier on the desk, and Sammy rubs his head against the gate. I reach in and pet him. “I look forward to your next visit too, handsome.”

“No offense, but I hope we don’t need to see you until next year,” Mr. Herbert jokes with a small smile.

“Agreed.” I stand up and move out from behind the desk. “Tell Mrs. Herbert I said hello. It’s been a while since I’ve seen her. Hope she’s okay.”

“She’s fantastic.” His eyes soften as he talks about his wife. “She had her knitting group today. You know how those ladies are.”

I giggle and he winks at me. “Oh I know! I’ve been to a few of their meetings.” The smile still lingers on his face as I walk them to the door and hold it open. “Have a great day! Bye, Sammy.”

A soft ‘meeow’ echoes, and Mr. Herbert waves as they walk down the stairs.

Closing the door, I head back to the front desk and quickly check the calendar to see what my afternoon schedule is. It’s pretty open, which is usually not ideal, but it coincidentally works perfectly since Beau and Jack are coming today.

A rush sparks, knowing I’ll see Beau in a couple of hours. I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t started going on walks more frequently since I found out he lived around the corner. It’s something I’ve been meaning to do. Apparently I just needed some motivation to get it done.

Sadly, I haven’t ‘accidentally’ run into him on any of them.

A buzz from my phone grabs my attention, and I answer it without glancing at the number. “Starlight Vet Haven. How can I help you today?”

“Hello. My name is Paul Jeffries,” says a male voice I don’t recognize. “Is Christy Garrett available?”

“This is Dr. Christy Garrett.” I plaster a customer service smile on my face. Having a smile in your voice for potential new clients is a must. Or so I’ve been told.

“Hi, Christy. I’m Beau Matthews' attorney. Is now a good time to talk?” Immediately, the smile falls from my face at the realization he’s calling about the annulment. My reaction catches me off guard.

“Hi, Paul. Now is a great time.” Swallowing hard, I listen as he tells me he spoke with Beau and filed a petition with the court today.

“You’ll receive a copy of the petition, and the court will schedule a hearing date. The entire process should take anywhere from six weeks to a few months.” His voice is matter-of-fact and non-judgmental. “Do you have any questions about how it works?”

“Is there anything I need to do?” I pull my bottom lip between my teeth and fiddle with the stapler on my desk. I hear the jingling of the bells as the door to the clinic opens and I peek up to see Genevieve walking in.

“I’m on the phone.” I mouth just as she’s about to start talking. “Give me one sec.”

“You don’t,” Paul says. “The annulment can be granted with or without your participation. But if you do participate, it could potentially move things along faster. Potentially. No guarantees.”

“Great.” I force a cheerfulness I’m not feeling. Gen quirks an eyebrow and tilts her head, and I peer down at the desk and pick up a pencil. “Thank you so much for the update.”

“Of course. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask,” Paul tells me. “Beau said to ensure you know I’m here to assist you with any questions.”

“That was nice of him,” I force out, angry that he’s moving forward with this so quickly. It’s not rational, I know. Breathing in, I attempt to calm my racing pulse.

This is what you want. It’s the smart thing to do.

So why does it suddenly feel wrong?

“Thank you again, Paul. I’ll call if I have any questions. Have a great day.”

“Sounds good. You too!”

I scowl as I put the phone on my desk.

“Paul?” Genevieve asks.

“Beau’s attorney.” I don’t meet her gaze when I answer. Instead, I pretend to be doing something on the computer. “He was calling with an update on the annulment process.”

“Oh,” Gen’s voice lifts at the end. “Isn’t that a good thing?”

When I glance up at her, her eyes are dancing. “Why are you staring at me like that?”

“What do you mean?” She huffs out a laugh and sits in one of the chairs lined against the wall, a smirk on her face.

“That look.” I stare at her pointedly and circle my face with my hand. “What’s with that look?”

“Nothing.” She snorts.

“Sure,” I scoff and shake my head. Even though I know exactly what she’s thinking, there’s no way I’m going to talk about this situation with her. “What brings you by today?”

“Oh no, you don’t!” Gen stands up and moves to sit on the desk. “We’re not changing the subject.”

“I thought we were done with the subject?” I heave out a sigh. “We got married. Soon, we won’t be. End of story.”

“End of story? End of story?!”

“Yes. End of story. It’s simple. Why does it need to be complicated?”

“Because nothing about you and Beau is simple,” Genevieve insists. “I mean, c’mon, Kit! The first time you see him in years—YEARS—you get married. Then you come home to find he’s living around the corner.” Her eyes are so large they resemble saucers.

“It’s not fate, Gen. He called his attorney.” I roll the pencil on the desk, not picking my head up. My shoulders slump. “It’s obvious this is what he wants.”

“The only obvious thing is that he did what you asked.” She jams a finger in my arm.

Standing up, the chair slides across the wood floor. I walk to the treatment room with Genevieve close on my heels. “Can we not talk about this right now?” Grabbing the disinfectant, I spray the table Sammy Sosa was on and wipe it down.

When I glance over at Gen, she’s leaning against the door frame with her arms crossed. A gleam in her eyes. “Sure. What are your plans for this afternoon?”

Well, that question brings us full circle. Not making eye contact with Genevieve, I let her know that Beau and his mentee, Jack Samuels, will be coming by in a little bit. She doesn’t say a word, but her quirked eyebrow and crooked grin say it all.

“Jack likes animals, so I mentioned you might be willing to help show him the ropes of dog training.” Her eyes are burning a hole in my face. Luckily, she doesn’t say what she’s really thinking.

“Of course.” Her answer is straightforward, but a tinge of humor is lacing it. “Just tell Beau to reach out to me, and we can arrange something.”

A tinkling sound from up front can be heard, and my head whips in the direction of the door. Gen notices it, wiggling her eyebrows. “Or maybe I can just let him know myself.”

Chuckling, I follow behind her, fighting to hold back a goofy grin that wants to creep upon my face.

“Ugh,” Genevieve groans, and immediately, I know the person out front is not Beau. “What are you doing here?”

My gut twists when I notice Scott standing by my desk, his hands shoved in his pockets.

“Nice to see you too, Genevieve.” Scott has the dignity to appear somewhat ashamed as he responds. “I wanted to talk to Kit.”

Genevieve turns to me, and I can see the anger glittering in her eyes. “Do you want me to stay?”

“I’m good,” I respond, shaking my head. As I head to the door with her, she turns and kisses me on the cheek.

“I can’t wait to hear more about this new man.” Her eyes sparkle. I clear my throat and scratch my head, trying not to laugh aloud. Then she peers over my shoulder and stares at Scott. “From what you’ve told me, he’s amazing. Bye, Scott.” She smirks, and wiggles her fingers as she waves goodbye.

Not wanting to be anywhere alone with him, I follow Gen out onto the porch and wave as she gets into her car.

“New man?” Scott says, standing close behind me. My skin crawls, and I step forward before turning around to face him. His gaze burns with anger.

“From how you left me at the altar in Vegas, I’m pretty sure I don’t owe you any explanations.” I cross my arms and glare at him.

Scott’s head drops, and he blows out a breath. For a second, I think he might actually regret how he treated me, but when his gaze meets mine, all I see is annoyance.

“Who’s the new guy?” He asks bitterly, and my stomach swirls.

How did I never see that the only person Scott cares about is Scott?

Behind me, a car door slams. I turn and there’s Beau getting out of his car, striding toward us like he’s exactly where he belongs. And just like that, the tension in my chest finally breaks.