by Molly O'Hare
“Hey,” he protested. “It worked last time.” John lifted his chin as he glared at her.
“Oh, Ben, I think little Johnny here is defensive.”
“Settle down children.” Ben gave them both a look. “John, if you’re not here for some insane logic that only you have, then why are you here? I’m pretty positive people don’t hang out at the police station just for shits and giggles.”
John sighed loudly as he looked behind him at the front door. When he looked back at her and Ben he shook his head. There was this overwhelming sense of disappointment coming from him. “I had to take care of something.”
“Do I need to worry?” Ben asked looking him up and down.
In an instant, John’s demeanor changed and his signature boyish grin appeared back on his face. He then took off past them only looking back to shout, “Not yet. See ya later.” He waved.
What the hell?
Everything happened so fast, it almost gave Holly whiplash. They stood there in shock as John disappeared from sight. “Ben, what just happened?”
“I have absolutely no idea,” he answered. “I have a feeling we’ll find out soon.”
“Why is he strange?” Holly scrutinized her husband. “Better yet, why do you attract the strange ones? There’s me, you know, crazy dog, walking disaster, cannot tie my own shoes without falling over… And then there’s John? I don’t even have words to describe him. You must have this homing beacon for the weird ones.”
Ben’s eyes twinkled with amusement as he smirked at her. “I wish I had an answer for you, Grace. I stopped trying to make sense of it and decided I’d just roll with the punches. It’s safer that way.”
“Safer for who?”
“My sanity.” A ridiculously wide smile appeared on his face.
“Ehh, you’re probably right,” she agreed. “It’s probably better that way.” Holly looked back at the police station and her gut twisted. She took a deep breath trying to shake the feeling that something terrible was going to happen. Or, you know, that might have just been her heartburn coming back.
Right now, it was a crapshoot.
At least she now knew what was causing her constant indigestion.
Whoa. The thought hit her. I’m pregnant. Holy freakin’ crap on a cracker.
Ben squeezed her hand drawing her attention to him. “You okay, babe?” he asked, his brows knitted together in concern.
Even though inside she felt like she was a jumbled mess, knowing that Ben would be there through everything made her feel better. No matter what happened, they had each other.
She smiled warmly at him as she squeezed his hand. “Yeah, I think I’m just a little nervous. No one wants to come to a police station. Unless you’re John or something.” Then a new thought hit her sending a wave of ice down her back. “Oh, shit sticks.” Holly took a step back as her face paled. “What if Officer Jones is in there?”
Ben’s hand went to his stomach as he barked out a deep laugh. “What am I going to do with you?” He shook his head as he took a step pushing her toward the front door. I’m sure you’ll be fine. Just don’t speak to him and I think you’ll avoid him throwing you in handcuffs again.”
Holly pointed at her mouth as her eyes narrowed. “I can’t stop what comes out of here. You know that.”
“Try.” Ben leaned forward and kissed the top of her head. “You’re gonna have to start to learn to curb your word vomits anyway or our little peanut will pick them up.”
Peanut. She liked that. She placed the palm of her hand on her stomach. “Let’s hope Peanut doesn’t get any of my traits.”
Before Holly could register what was going on, Ben pulled her to face him. He brought his lips down to her in a possessive kiss taking her breath away. “Don’t say that,” he growled. “I want Peanut to have all the best parts of you.”
She loved this man more than anything.
A half-smile appeared on Holly’s face. “Just not the falling over part, right?”
“We might not be able to avoid it.” Ben playfully winked at her. “According to Henry, your mother was just like you.”
“True. If peanut gets my stumbling gene, you’re gonna have to ask my dad for some tips on how he dealt with two walking catastrophes.” Her eyes went round, as the thought hit her. “We need to tell my dad!” Holly started fumbling through her bag looking for her phone.
Ben grabbed her hand bringing it to his lips. “Let’s work on one thing at a time. What if Will’s gonna inform us everything is done and we can go on with our lives?”
“That would be nice.”
“It would, now let’s go find out.” Ben started walking up the stairs holding Holly’s hand.
The moment Ben opened the door, Holly saw one of the clinics regular clients. “You’re Bruce’s mom!” Holly exclaimed pulling out of Ben’s grasp. “It’s good to see you again.” Holly turned back to Ben. “Why didn’t you tell me she worked here?”
“Please, Mrs. Richman call me Emma.” Emma gave Holly a welcoming smile, which Holly returned.
“And you call me Holly.” She smiled brightly at her, however after a few seconds, Holly noticed Emma kept looking behind them.
To make sure she wasn’t missing anything Holly did the same. When she didn’t see anyone she turned back to Emma who was now looking at Ben.
“Is he with you again?” Emma asked as she looked behind them one more time.
“Is who with us?” Holly once again turned and saw no one.
Emma sent Ben a strained look as she worried her bottom lip.
“Wait, do you mean John?” Ben quirked a single brow at her.
Emma’s pale face colored as her gaze dropped. “Uh, yeah.” She then started fidgeting with her fingers. “I mean he just left, but when I saw you two come in I figured he might have snuck back in here.”
Holly’s mouth fell open. “John was kicked out of here?”
Emma looked back at her desk as she shyly placed a piece of her honey brown hair behind her ear. “Well, technically no. He wasn’t kicked out per se. I mean I’m sure if I did call one of the officers I could have gotten them to fill out the paperwork, but he doesn't need to know I didn’t really call them. I only fake called them.”
“Is John bothering you?” Ben asked.
“Not really, well kinda.” Emma snapped her attention to the computer screen in front of her. “Umm, hey, you know what? No need for us to talk about that. What can I do for both of you? I’m sure you two are here for something other than to talk about me.”
Uhh, say what? Holly looked around the room to see if she was missing something.
“Detective Bower called us not long ago and asked us to come see him,” Ben remarked distracting Holly from her search.
So, we are ignoring this? She looked at him.
“Oh, good good, that’s a good thing.” Emma looked back at Ben. “He must have more information on the case.” Then Emma started to ramble. “I still can’t believe someone would ever do that to Richman Veterinarian Hospital. I mean seriously you are the best vet in town, why would anyone want to do anything to you? And the poor animals. I’m just glad all of them turned out okay. If someone had done anything to even one of them, there would have been hell to pay.” Her face hardened as her nostrils flared. “Can you believe the audacity of some people? A poor defenseless animal has no chance when it comes to stupid assholes. I mean sometimes humans can’t defend themselves either but we can try. I guess animals can try too, but sometimes bad things happen to good people and it takes a long time, if ever, to get put back together again.” She took a deep breath. “And then, what if, when you’re trying to be put back together you end up with a dog that’s got all the same issues as you? I guess it’s funny how the universe works that way, right? You get a big dog to help make you feel safe, but it turns out he’s just like you so you both end up jumping at all the same things.” Emma’s eyes widened in shock.
“Emma?” Ben’s face softened.
&nbs
p; Holly darted her eyes to Ben trying to make any sense of the situation. What is going on? Holly looked back at Emma who now looked like she’d seen a ghost. At seeing the shame buried in her eyes, Holly’s heart twisted. Call it her newly found motherly instincts or what not, but all Holly wanted to do was pull Emma into her arms and tell her everything was going to be okay.
Ben glanced at Holly, his eyes telling her to leave it be and they’ll talk about it later.
She looked back at Emma and her heart broke.
“Detective Bower.” Emma interrupted Holly’s thought. “Yes, you are here to see him. Let me send him a quick message and let him know you’re on your way back.” She looked at Ben with the mask slipped over her face. “Do you remember where it is?”
Ben nodded. “I believe so, it’s down the hall, right?”
“Yep.” Emma turned back to her computer. However, Holly noticed Emma sunk deeper into her chair as if to make herself appear smaller.
Holly couldn’t take it anymore.
Ben must have known what she needed because he gave her a subtle nod and walked toward the back leaving her at the reception desk. “You okay, Emma?”
“Of course, I’m fine.” Emma forced a fake smile on her lips. “Sorry about that, it’s been a little bit of a difficult morning.”
“Is John bothering you, Emma?” Holly tried her best to sound comforting without pity. “He’s a pain in the ass but he’s a good guy.” Deciding to lighten the mood Holly winked at her. “If he’s done anything to upset you, I’ve got a friend that has connections. You say the word, and I’ll make him go away.”
Emma’s face paled. “What? Oh, god no. John’s fine. You don’t have to do anything.”
“Good.” Holly let out a dramatic breath. “To tell you the truth, she scares me, and even though I’m not one hundred percent certain if she really does have connections or not. I really don’t want to find out. Then there’s the fact, John is Ben’s best friend. He might be a pain in the ass but I don’t think Ben wants to break in someone else.”
Emma stared at her for a second before a smile spread across her face. “Oh, I get it, you’re joking with me.” Emma sat back in her chair. “You had me going there for a minute.”
“Sure, we’ll say it as a joke.” Holly smiled. No need to scare the poor girl any further and tell her about Mildred. Yet.
“Besides, I think this was all a little misunderstanding,” Emma remarked. “John is a nice guy, and he’s not really bothering me per se. He’s just uhh, I don’t really have the right word for it.”
“I think what you are looking for is, ‘much’. John’s a little much.”
Emma threw her pointer finger in the air. “Yes, that’s a perfect way to describe it. Let’s go with much.”
Holly watched Emma relax.
There was something about Emma that Holly really liked. She’d always thought that. Anytime her and Bruce had come into the clinic while Holly was there, she’d always gotten a good feeling about her, even if she was standoffish. “How’s Bruce?”
Emma’s whole face brightened at the mention of her dog. “He’s good. He’s Bruce, that’s all I can really say about him. How’s your Corgi?”
Holly shrugged. “Ehh, he’s still plotting his world domination.”
“He does have that kind of aura about him, doesn’t he?”
“That’s an understatement, Emma.” Holly laughed. She liked Emma. A lot. Without thinking Holly reached over the side of the desk and grabbed a pen from a cup, she then grabbed the notepad that was lying on top. She scribbled her phone number down before handing it back to Emma. “Here, take this. Maybe we can do lunch or something?”
“Oh, well, I-”
Holly cut her off. “We can spend the time gossiping at how insane John is. I’ve got lots of stories.”
A sad smile appeared on Emma’s face. “That’s very kind of you, but I don’t need to know anything about John. I’m sure in a couple of weeks he’ll forget all about me and trying to ask me on a date.”
“That’s why John was here!” Holly squealed causing Emma to jump.
“No, no, I said that wrong. I mean to say he was-”
“No takie backie,” Holly laughed. “Ben and I were trying to figure out why he was here. Now we have to have lunch.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“Why not?” Holly arched her brow. “You’ve got the perfect inside scoop right here.” She pointed at herself. “What’s better than having the wife of his best friend at your disposal?”
Emma held up her hands. “Whoa, umm let’s take a step back here.”
“Plus,” Holly continued ignoring Emma’s worried expression. “I’m gonna need girl talk. Real honest to god girl talk. I spent most of my time taking care of my dad, so all I’ve got is this two-hundred-year-old woman that makes overly inappropriate comments all the time. Sure, I love her but I need someone my age to help me through all of this.” She pointed at her belly.
“All of what, do you have a stomach ache?” Emma’s face scrunched.
“We just found out I’m pregnant.” She placed her hand on her stomach before snapping her eyes back to Emma. “Whoa, now you have to have lunch with me. You’re the first person I’ve told.”
“I am?” Emma’s brows shot up in shock before she recovered. “Congratulations!” She jumped from her seat causing the chair to hit the wall. Emma then ran around the desk pulling Holly into her arms. “A baby is amazing news. I’ve always wanted one.”
Emma jumped back from their embrace. “I’m sorry that was inappropriate of me.”
“No, it wasn’t.” Holly pulled her back into a hug.
That was it, Emma might not have known it yet, but she just sealed her fate in joining their weird club. She’d fit in perfectly, though, she had a dog that was different add that in with Holly’s pets and it was like a friendship made in heaven.
“Congratulations again,” Emma said pulling out of Holly’s arms.
“Thank you, it’s still kinda unreal. We only just found out before Will called.” A daze washed over Holly’s face before remembering why they were there. “Oh crap. Ben’s probably waiting for me.”
“You’re right,” Emma step behind the front desk. “It’s right down the hall on the left.”
Holly smiled at her before she started walking towards the back. However, Emma stopped her, holding out a piece of paper. “Uhh, here’s my number. I’d really like to have lunch one day.”
Holly took it with a wide smile. “Consider it done.” She placed the paper into her back pocket and with an extra pep in her step, she started walking down the hall. She could see her and Emma forming a friendship. Plus, it’d be fun to hear more about this whole John thing.
However, the moment Holly turned the corner she paled. There right in front of her was Officer Jones.
Oh shit.
Chapter Twelve
Ben sat in Will’s office as they waited for Holly. This had been the second time Emma had rambled on about her past. Even though Ben could only speculate, he had a pretty good idea what was going on. Maybe Emma needed someone to talk to? And taking one look at his wife, he knew Holly was on the same page as him.
Ben’s brows drew together as he thought about it. On second thought, maybe leaving her with Emma was a bad thing. Holly did tend to get a little overprotective at times.
Yeah, this was a bad idea.
The moment he was about to go look for her, Holly came charging into the room. Her face pale and her eyes were wide. So wide you’d have thought she’d seen a ghost.
“You okay, babe?” Ben jumped up from his seat. Maybe something was wrong with her or the baby. Did she fall? Run into a wall? They were two solid possibilities.
“Yeah, yeah.” Holly brushed her shirt down avoiding eye contact with him. “I’m fine. Just ran into someone I was hoping to avoid,” she answered as she pushed her hair out of her face giving him a forced smile. “But I’m here now.”
Ben cocked his brow. Well, okay then, at least she didn’t hurt herself. That I know of…
“It’s good to see you again, Holly,” Will remarked standing to shake her hand. “Ben was telling me you two have been quite worried about the break-in.”
Holly’s eyebrows shot to the ceiling in surprise. “Did he also tell you he wants to add on a room to the house and bring home his patients at night?”
“No, he left that out.” Will’s eyes studied Ben.
“I was only contemplating it. I didn’t say it was a done deal.” Ben snapped his attention to his wife. I’ll remember this. When all she did was shrug, Ben’s eyes narrowed. Oh, feisty again today I see.
“Nope, I don’t think that’s quite right,” Holly stated, with that mischievous look she always got when she wanted to rile him. Why she was doing it, he had no idea. But he was going to use it to his advantage later. “Ben, you were drawing up blueprints.”
“Hey.” Ben shrugged. “Can you blame me?”
Ben moved to the seat next to her where Holly placed her hand in his. “Never. It’s actually quite endearing you care so much about your patients. I’m just giving you a hard time. I’m nervous, so I’m rambling.”
Ben leaned over and kissed her cheek. “This just means instead of one room I get to build two now.”
One point for Ben.
Holly’s lips thinned.
Zero for Holly.
Will sat back in his chair scrutinizing both of them. “Truthfully, I’m not all that surprised you’re considering other alternatives. We’ve seen this before. Especially, when the break-in had no rhyme or reason. You feel like you need a new sense of security. It’s very common.”
“It doesn’t make any sense. If someone broke in to steal something as fucked up as it sounds, I would at least feel more at ease,” Ben replied shrugging at Holly’s swat to his arm at his language. It clearly didn’t faze him since he continued, “You know, when someone gets their house broken into, it’s usually for somebody to steal their stuff. This is a mystery even after weeks, we still can’t find anything missing.”