“Nothing new to report. Just his annual checkup. We did have a scare a few weeks ago with an errant bullet, but it just missed him. He’s a lucky dude, though I almost had a heart attack.” Nick ruffled the fluffy fur on Buzz’s neck. Buzz turned towards him, his mouth opening and curling into what looked like a big smile.
“Well, he certainly loves you. But Buzz, I promise you if you just relax a little we’ll be the best of friends. Your ears aren’t as relaxed as they should be, but maybe you’re in work mode.” She knelt next to him, petting the soft fur behind his ears and speaking soothing words to him.
“He should be ready for his usual round of shots as well, but I can run through that with the doctor if you want.” Nick raised an eyebrow and smiled.
Karin paused, and then sat back on her stool. “That’d be me.”
Nick looked confused. “I’m sorry? What would be you?”
She sighed and fought not to roll her eyes. And here she’d thought such good things about a guy like Nick but, apparently, he was just like the rest - assuming that because she was a pretty face and wore a skirt, she was just some nurse or vet tech. She stuck out her hand. “Karin Boling, Veterinarian. Pleasure to meet you.”
To his credit, he got through his look of surprise relatively quickly and masked it with an embarrassed smile. “Sorry, I just assumed you were the tech.”
“No need to apologize, Mr. Cardwell. Happens all the time.” She jotted Buzz’s weight in the file along with a few other notes.
“It shouldn’t, though.”
She heard Nick’s response and paused, her pen stopping mid-word. “Excuse me?”
“That assumption shouldn’t happen all the time. I shouldn’t have thought just because you’re a female that you couldn’t be the vet. It isn’t the Stone Age. I’m well aware that women can be doctors.” He smiled charmingly, and that allowed her to forgive him instantly.
“It’s not a problem. I suppose it’s usually the techs who take down the information, but since this is our first meeting I wanted to do it myself.” She pushed away from the stainless steel desk. “Can you lift him onto the table?”
“Of course.” Nick leaned down to scratch behind Buzz’s ears. “Come on, bud. Let’s do this.”
With one lift, he heaved up the heavy dog onto the table. Karin couldn’t help salivating over his show of strength. He must work out. Like a lot.
“Every day, sometimes twice a day.”
Her face beet red, she realized that she’d said those words out loud. “I d-didn’t… um…”
He smiled and cocked his head. “Fitness is part of my job. It’s nice to see that someone appreciates it.”
She finished the exam quickly and efficiently, without any other blurt-outs. He was almost disappointed when she finished even earlier than he had been expecting.
While she was writing up her final notes and recommendations, his mind was racing. Was it weird if he asked her out? Between work and Buzz at home he didn’t have a lot of free time, and he definitely didn’t meet a lot of women who looked like or were as ambitious as Karin. He looked over at her and breathed a sigh of relief when he didn’t see a wedding ring on her finger, but then realized that she wasn’t wearing any other jewelry either. He supposed that in her line of work, just like his, jewelry wasn’t really the smartest idea.
Drawing in a breath, he knew he was just going to have to ask or he’d be kicking himself for the rest of the week. “Hey, are you married?”
She looked at him, surprised. “Why do you ask?”
Nick looked sheepish, an uncomfortable feeling for someone as used to being in a position of authority as he was. “I was wondering if you’d like to get dinner sometime, but obviously if you’re married that wouldn’t be such a good idea.”
Karin laughed out loud, trying to picture him as a player. “No, I’m not married. But I’m not really interested in dating right now. I’m still trying to get settled in Reno, and in my new job here. I don’t want to press my luck.”
“All right, then. Well, we should probably get out of your hair. Buzz has a date with a kindergarten class.”
“Oh, I meant to ask you about his name. I love it, by the way.” She looked at him intently. “Did you name him Buzz?”
“Nah, it was the little boy of the trainer who named him after his favorite cartoon character. Why do you ask?” He grabbed the leash from her, loosely wrapping it around his hand.
“I was more of a Woody fan myself. Buzz just took all the credit.”
He laughed all the way out to his police cruiser. Too bad she didn’t want to have dinner with him. He had a feeling he really would’ve liked Dr. Karin Boling.
* * *
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Hayley Wescott is a Christian. She’s also a story teller. When she can pull her faith into her stories, it makes them better.
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