Page 22 of Curve Balls and Second Chances (Pickwick Pirate Queens #1)

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

A cross town, Declan locked the door of the veterinary clinic, turning the brass key until the heavy click echoed through the empty reception area.

The day’s smells still lingered faintly.

Antiseptic and lavender floor cleaner, the faint musk of anxious dogs.

The clinic was quiet now, just the hum of the refrigerator in the back keeping vaccines cool, and the occasional settling groan of the old building.

He leaned his shoulder against the door for a moment, staring out at Main Street .

The sun had set completely, leaving the sky a soft wash of indigo, the streetlamps throwing hazy circles of light on the cracked sidewalk.

A couple of kids rode by on bikes, their laughter trailing behind them before fading into the quiet that always seemed to settle over Pickwick Bend after dark.

Declan slipped his stethoscope into the drawer, then sank into the chair behind his desk, letting the leather creak under him.

He should’ve been reviewing tomorrow’s cases.

Two spay surgeries, a dog with chronic allergies, a goat someone was hauling in from the edge of the county.

But his mind was a thousand miles away. Or , more precisely, across town.

Rose.

He rubbed a hand over his face, exhaling slowly.

He kept circling back to the conversation with Briana the night before.

She was slick. Confident . Every word she spoke had felt like it was chosen with the precision of a scalpel.

Sharp enough to cut, careful enough to leave him bleeding without realizing until too late.

She hadn’t needed to spell anything out.

That was the trick of it. She’d dropped just enough ambiguity into the air, like smoke curling between them, making it impossible to see clearly.

And it wasn’t just what she’d said. It was the way she carried herself. Like she was used to controlling the room. Like she could see the weak spots in people and press a thumb right against them.

Declan had met his fair share of confident people. Big city surgeons who strutted like gods, clients who thought money bought them knowledge. But Briana’s confidence was different. It wasn’t loud. It was coiled. Like she knew the right moment would come, and when it did, she’d strike.

And the worst part?

She clearly had a past with Rose .

One she wasn’t denying. One she wasn’t clarifying either.

Declan drummed his fingers on the desk, jaw tightening.

He didn’t like being used.

But what sat heavier in his chest was the way he kept thinking about Rose anyway.

The way her laughter carried just a little louder when she forgot to be careful with herself.

The way her whole face lit up when she talked about her team at the coffee shop.

Her second family, the thing she’d built with her own hands.

The way she always seemed perched right on the edge between punching someone and forgiving them, and how damn compelling that balance was.

He wasn’t the jealous type. Not normally.

Jealousy felt like wasted energy, like a younger man’s game.

But this wasn’t about jealousy, not exactly.

It was about territory. And belonging. And the strange pull that had taken root in him since he first set foot in this town and looked across the street to see Rose McAllister smiling at someone else.

He knew he was the newcomer, the outsider. That was a label stamped on him whether he liked it or not. But being the outsider didn’t mean he was just going to roll over and watch someone else swoop in.

Especially not someone with history and an apology smile.

Acen Wheeler .

Declan’s jaw ticked again.

History was powerful. Sometimes unfairly so.

And Declan couldn’t compete with the fact that Acen and Rose had grown up together, had a thousand little memories layered between them like bricks in a wall.

But he also knew that walls could trap as much as they protected.

And from the looks of Rose lately, she wasn’t sure whether to lean against Acen’s wall or start knocking bricks down with her bare fists.

Declan leaned back in his chair, staring up at the ceiling.

He had time.

And patience.

But he also had a hunch that this whole thing— Acen , Briana , Rose’s guarded hopefulness—was more tangled than it looked from the outside.

And tangled things?

Eventually snapped.

The rap of knuckles against the glass front door startled him out of his thoughts. Sharp , insistent. Declan glanced at the clock—just after seven. Too late for a client, and too early for trouble.

He pushed back his chair and walked out to the lobby, flicking on the small lamp near the counter before unlocking the door.

On the other side stood Luke Carter —broad-shouldered, ball cap pulled low, the kind of guy who carried himself with an ease that came from living in one place your whole life.

Declan had met him a few times since moving to Pickwick Bend —at the diner, during the softball game where Rose’s team had trounced the competition.

Luke had a quick smile, easy humor, and the kind of handshake that made you feel like you’d known him longer than five minutes.

“Evening,” Declan said, pulling the door open. “ Everything okay? Don’t tell me your hound found another porcupine.”

Luke chuckled, stepping inside. “ No , not this time. Daisy’s keeping her nose clean lately. Figured I’d stop by since I saw your light on. Didn’t want to interrupt if you were busy, though.”

“Busy is a strong word.” Declan motioned toward the chairs by the counter. “ Have a seat.”

Luke sat, stretching his long legs out. He glanced around the clinic, taking in the tidy reception area, the freshly painted walls, the little bulletin board with flyers about pet adoption and obedience classes.

“ You’ve done a good job fixing this place up.

Old Doc Bradley let it go the last few years. ”

“Thanks,” Declan said. He rubbed the back of his neck, hesitating before asking, “ Can I be straight with you about something?”

Luke raised an eyebrow. “ That sounds serious. Go on.”

Declan sat across from him, leaning forward. “ You’ve lived here a long time. You know people. You know the… dynamics.”

“Meaning?” Luke asked, though the corner of his mouth tugged up like he already knew.

“Meaning Rose . Acen . Briana . And me. The newcomer who apparently walked into the middle of a story already half-written.”

Luke let out a low whistle. “ Yeah , that about sums it up. That what’s got you burning the late evening oil here in the office? Hiding out?”

Declan sighed. “ I don’t like being manipulated. Briana was at the Pickwick Inn last night and we talked.”

Luke raised an eyebrow but said nothing.

“She made sure I knew she and Rose had history, hinted at things but didn’t spell them out. Left me with more questions than answers. Meanwhile , Acen’s back in town, and everyone keeps looking at him like he’s the prodigal son. And then there’s Rose , who… well, she’s Rose .”

Luke chuckled, but his gaze was steady. “ And you want to know where you fit in?”

“Exactly.”

For a moment, Luke didn’t answer. He leaned back in the chair, crossing his arms, looking like a man who’d seen this dance a dozen times before.

“ Here’s the thing about Pickwick Bend ,” he said finally.

“ We’ve got long memories. Folks here don’t forget who you were in high school, who you dated, who you broke up with.

Who your folks are all the way back generations.

It sticks, like gum on your shoe. Acen and Rose ?

That’s a story most of us thought was finished years ago.

Now he’s back, and people are curious. Maybe hopeful. ”

Declan nodded slowly.

“As for Briana ,” Luke went on, “she’s always been… ambitious. Smart , sure, but the kind of smart that wants leverage. If she’s sniffing around, it’s not because she cares about Rose or Acen . It’s because she sees a way to tilt the board in her favor.”

Declan’s mouth curved grimly. “ That tracks.”

“And you,” Luke said, pointing a finger at him, “are the outsider. Which ain’t a bad thing, but it means you’re playing catch-up. Folks don’t quite know what to make of you yet. Some think you’re good for the town. Others are waiting to see if you pack up and leave after a year.”

Declan absorbed that, then asked quietly, “ And Rose ? What does she want?”

Luke’s expression softened. “ Rose wants to be happy. Trouble is, she doesn’t trust it when it shows up on her porch. Not after what happened before.”

Declan sat with that for a long moment.

Luke leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees.

“ If you want my advice? Don’t let Briana bait you, and don’t waste time trying to measure yourself against Acen .

You’ll lose every time, because he’s got the weight of history on his side.

What you’ve got is different. You’re new.

Fresh . Rose might need that more than she knows. ”

Declan exhaled slowly, tension easing from his shoulders. “ Appreciate the honesty.”

“Anytime,” Luke said, standing. “ And for what it’s worth, Doc , sometimes being the outsider gives you the clearest view of what’s really going on. Don’t discount that.”

Declan walked him to the door, the night air cool when it swept in.

After Luke left, Declan stood in the doorway a long time, staring out at Main Street again. The lamps still burned steady, the town as quiet as before. But inside him, something had shifted.

He wasn’t na?ve. He knew this was a mess of old scars and new wounds. But maybe, just maybe, being the one who hadn’t caused any of those scars gave him the chance to be something different.

And different might be exactly what Rose needed.