The Vet's Secret Son

by Annie O'Neil

  ‘Excellent.’ He lifted his pint glass and Drew raised his soft drink. ‘Cheers to that, mate. To new beginnings.’

  Drew pulled his glass back an inch. ‘Aren’t you getting a bit ahead of yourself?’

  ‘Maybe,’ Lucas agreed. ‘But you can’t blame a man for wanting to be part of one of the best clinics in the land, can you?’

  ‘Not for a second, mate,’ Drew said, letting his glass clink against Lucas’s. ‘Not for a second.’

  * * *

  ‘One...two...three...go!’

  Ellie, Lucas and Maverick started cheering and calling their puppies.

  ‘C’mon, little one! You can do it!’

  ‘Here, Mr Purple! Come to me. No! Not Mummy, me! Mav!’

  ‘Come to Papa, Miss Green!’

  Ellie shot Lucas a glance. Come to Papa? She snorted as the little golden Lab pranced towards him then veered off to climb up the slide.

  When the little chocolate Lab she’d chosen for the race, landed on Ellie’s lap first, Lucas pronounced them the winners. She was a gorgeous little thing. Getting big. She was also astonishingly obedient for a young pup. She gave her head a little stroke. Perhaps Drew might like—

  ‘Mum!’

  She looked up and realised Lucas and Maverick were both staring at her. ‘Sorry. Yes?’

  ‘Can I take Lucas to the petting zoo? I want to introduce him to Barnacle. Maybe we could take him for a swim?’

  Lucas raised his eyebrows and gave her an inquisitive look. ‘Barnacle?’

  ‘He’s our resident buck goat. He should also be a contender for the Olympic swimming team. He loves it.’ She nodded at his untucked shirt. ‘You’ll want to watch that. He eats anything. And by anything I mean anything.’

  Maverick nodded intensely. ‘She’s not lying. The reason we have him is because where he used to live he ate all of their laundry.’

  Ellie smiled and ruffled her son’s hair. ‘Maybe not all of the laundry, but let’s say Barnacle’s former owners would’ve been wise not to keep him in the back garden.’

  Maverick put his hand in hers. ‘Will Lucas be coming to school with us next week?’

  ‘Oh!’ She glanced across at Lucas, who suddenly busied himself with getting the puppies back into their pen. ‘Well...’ Most of the villagers had figured out Lucas and Maverick’s relationship as the pair of them looked so similar and her mother refusing to confirm or deny whenever people nipped into the pub to ‘casually enquire’.

  ‘Would you like him to come?’

  ‘Yes,’ Maverick said. ‘And you, too,’ he added, his little forehead crinkling as he waited for her answer.

  Lucas cleared his throat then turned to them. ‘I’d be honoured. As long as you’re happy.’ The last part was obviously for Ellie.

  ‘Sure,’ she said, in a much higher voice than her normal one. ‘That’d be great!’

  ‘And can he come to the Christmas play, too? Last year I was a star and this year I want to be a sheep. Or a donkey!’

  Lucas laughed, but Ellie could see the questions in his eyes. The same ones she was asking herself. Would he be here in December? Would she want him here?

  ‘C’mon! Let’s go get Barnacle,’ Maverick tugged on Lucas’s hand, the topic clearly not important enough to decide upon now. Thank goodness.

  She waved the pair of them off after Lucas promised he’d be back after dropping Mav off with her parents for the afternoon so he could get to the surgery.

  As she watched them head off to the small petting zoo, two blond heads, one big hand holding one little hand, Mav skip-running to keep up with his father’s long strides, her heart near enough burst. As much as she was loth to admit it, she loved having Lucas here, watching him with Mav. He was brilliant with him—surprise, surprise.

  A soft smile hit her lips as she remembered the way he’d run into the ocean with all of his clothes on the other day when Maverick had come off his boogie board and given himself a proper friction burn. Never mind the fact she’d been a nanosecond ahead of him. Knowing Lucas’s instincts when it came to Mav were the same as hers made her feel complete in a way she’d never felt before. As if having both parents there to look after her boy had filled an emptiness she hadn’t realised needed filling.

  But would this be enough for him? It was summer in Cornwall. What wasn’t to love? Sun, sand, surf...the odd foray between the sheets with an ex-lover... But what about when the rains came? Lambing season. A cranky little boy refusing to get up on dark mornings for an early start at school. Summertime in Dolphin Cove was ‘bed of roses’ territory. Not reality. Even the sleeping-together part. That was the pair of them caught up in some absurd lust bubble that would no doubt pop when the clocks went back and Lucas headed off to whatever it was he was going to do next.

  And that was the crux of it. Instead of believing he’d be around for ever as Mav was, there was a part of her still wondering when he would pack his bags and go.

  She gave the pup a final cuddle then made a solemn vow.

  Until Lucas told her what he was going to do after his stint here, she needed to keep her heart firmly under control.

  * * *

  ‘So this is your big plan?’ Ellie looked across at Lucas, who had just finished drawing on the Bernese mountain dog’s X-rays. When she saw his big ear-to-ear smile, she couldn’t help but grin, too.

  ‘Yup!’ Lucas was excited. Kid in a sweet shop excited. ‘Drew likes it, too.’

  Ellie swotted at his arm. ‘You told Drew before you told me?’

  ‘Well...’ He slipped an arm along her waist and lowered his voice and his lips until they were brushing against her ear. ‘I would’ve told you last night after I got back from seeing him, but someone was feeling a little bit naughty.’

  ‘It takes two to tango, mate,’ she said primly, then, unable to resist, gave his bum a quick squeeze as she glanced over her shoulder at the door.

  You never knew when one of the surgical nurses would pop in to check up on things. Ever since Lucas had arrived there had been quite a lot of spontaneous ‘popping in to check on things’. Something they’d learnt to be hyper-vigilant about once sneaking the odd kiss had appeared on the agenda. She knew it wasn’t really the best way to steel her heart against him but...once he left who knew how long it would be until she had sex again?

  Because of that, each morning after they untangled themselves from one another she would remind herself. This doesn’t mean anything...nothing definite anyway.

  Either way, for the time being, she felt happy. Warily happy but... Work. Play. They were all melding into one and it felt lovely after so much stress with getting the business up and running and then poor Drew’s accident. When she was being really, properly honest with herself, she knew that the past couple of weeks had been just like...her breath caught in her throat...falling in love.

  ‘Ells...’ Lucas’s tone had changed. ‘I want to talk about something.’

  ‘What? Is everything all right at home?’

  ‘Yes, fine.’

  Adrenaline charged through her. ‘Has Mav’s surf school rung?’

  ‘No, no. Don’t worry, he’s fine. It’s Drew.’

  ‘Drew?’ Her hands flew to her heart. ‘Has something happened?’

  ‘He’s worried about you.’

  ‘What? Why? I’m the one who should be worried about him.’ She started hammering Lucas with questions about Drew, his emotional state, his eating habits, his leg. Lucas answered them the best he could, but Ellie persisted. She should’ve seen him more. Made more of an effort to pull him out of this funk. ‘Did you get the impression he was walking as much as he should? Whenever Mav and I have gone over, he’s never mentioned it.’ An idea struck. ‘I was thinking of giving him one of Esmerelda’s puppies. The chocolate one.’

  ‘What? Are you sure he could handle a puppy? He’s going t
o be on crutches for weeks yet.’

  Ellie waved his concerns away. ‘The pups are almost ready to leave their mother now. In fact...’ She did a quick tot up on her fingers. ‘This is perfect. It gives Drew time to develop a bond with his puppy and will mean he has a chance to get out and about with her before he’s threatening to come back at the end of September.’ And you’re due to leave.

  ‘Desk duty?’ Lucas checked.

  ‘Desk duty,’ Ellie confirmed, then dared to voice a deepening concern. ‘He shouldn’t even be coming back then, but I thought I’d better have a plan in place if he showed up. No way am I letting him anywhere near the surgical unit.’ They spoke for a while longer about ensuring they visited him more, sending Mav over with a basket of some of his favourite things from the bakery and the pub—he’d always been a sucker for Wyn’s fishfinger sandwiches—and, of course, to play board games. Cool Uncle Drew was the only human on earth who had enough patience to play games with Maverick for hours on end.

  ‘Sounds like a plan,’ Ellie said, pleased someone else was helping her lure Drew out of his man cave. She glanced over at the wall clock. ‘I’d better get back to the main building. There’s a list of patients as long as my arm coming in for afternoon clinic.’ She stifled a yawn. She’d never admit it, but she couldn’t wait for Drew to come back. And maybe a locum. If they could afford it.

  ‘Ellie.’ Lucas stopped her. ‘Drew and I also talked about the fact that I think you—and by “you” I mean the clinic—need more help. There’s too much work for the two of you and definitely too much for one.’

  She rolled her eyes. ‘More help’ had been a recurring theme in her life for the last six years. ‘And where exactly are we going to get the money to pay for this much-needed help?’

  He gave her one of his cheesy Uber-Vet grins. ‘You’re looking at it, baby.’

  What? Was he offering to stay?

  ‘Oh, Lucas...it’s a big commitment.’

  ‘Yes, I know. And along the same lines we need to discuss Maverick.’

  She stiffened. ‘What about him?’

  ‘I know we haven’t discussed visits or anything, but...’

  Here it was. The request for joint custody.

  ‘I’d like to move here. Permanently.’

  Her hearing began to feel fuzzy. ‘Where, here?’ Like...into her flat here?

  ‘Dolphin Cove. I’d like to buy into the partnership.’

  Her heart didn’t know what to do with itself. Squeeze tight. Sink. Pound with joy?

  It wasn’t a marriage proposal. It was a business proposal. It was Lucas playing it safe.

  Just like she’d asked him to.

  So why did she feel sad?

  Because maybe a little bit she did want him to ask her to marry him?

  Would that be enough? Working together? Sharing Mav’s care? Raising him together, but...no relationship? Not a romantic one anyway.

  She instantly regretted the regular habit of lovemaking they’d fallen into far too easily. If he lived here permanently, she didn’t want him as a friend with benefits. It was too intimate if something went wrong. So what did she want him to be? Her husband? Really? After all they’d been through?

  She stared at him. Hard.

  And then it hit her.

  When it came to Lucas Williams she wanted the whole package or nothing at all. But now that he knew about Maverick, Lucas would have to be in her life. One way or another. And it looked as though he wanted it to be on the business end of things. She swore under her breath. Guess that lust bubble had well and truly popped.

  ‘Ells?’

  ‘I don’t know, Lucas.’ She looked anywhere but at him.

  ‘Don’t give me an answer yet.’ He ducked down to try and catch her eye. Intimate contact she really wanted to avoid right now. ‘It’s a lot to think about. Why don’t you take the next couple of weeks and if you need more time, I’ll hang on as long as you need?’

  She didn’t need two weeks. Having him here on a daily basis, believing they’d grown closer than ever, it had all been a lie she’d told herself. A stupid dream she’d clung to all these years.

  ‘We don’t have the funding for that, Lucas. Once Drew comes back, the insurance—’

  ‘I’ll work free. And Caro will as well. For the project on Moose anyway.’

  She finally met his gaze, utterly confused. ‘Who?’

  ‘Caro Barnes. The inventor who drew up these plans.’ He pointed at the roll of sheets they’d just been poring over. ‘Remember? My contact from the Uber-Vet days.’

  Ellie glanced at them, the complications doubling as she did so.

  Of course she wanted him to do the surgery. Moose deserved nothing less than the very best. She also wanted Lucas to stay on at the clinic. Her brain did anyway. It more than made sense, but her gut? It wanted to send Lucas packing right now so she could go back to life the way it had been before Drew’s horrid accident.

  ‘I don’t know...’

  ‘Oh, c’mon, Ells,’ Lucas persisted, clearly oblivious to her emotional turmoil. ‘How is this any different from the students you’ve had down from uni or having Henry here? The Dolphin Cove Veterinary Clinic already has a great reputation for pushing the envelope. You should be pulling in the big guns and, let me tell you, Caro is one of them.’

  It’s not about her, you idiot. It’s about you.

  ‘How do you know her again?’

  ‘She used to work for a really innovative robotics company out in California. They helped us with a couple of tricky cases on the show.’

  She tuned in a bit more. Relationship problems aside, Lucas did have some amazing contacts. If he could persuade more of them to come down for special cases like Moose’s, the clinic’s reputation would grow.

  ‘Did the robotics work?’

  ‘Absolutely. There was some trial and error, but if you want someone who thrives on burning the midnight oil to see an idea through, Caro’s your girl. And, double bonus, she’s right down the road.’

  ‘In Cornwall? Why’s she here?’

  Lucas shook his head. ‘Not sure. Something about breaking free to work on her own ideas outside the corporate machine, I think. She’s not exactly super-chatty. Neither is she asking for a pay cheque.’

  Weird. ‘Doesn’t she need money?’

  ‘Eventually. But for now Caro wants to see if this will work. She’s an inventor. Trialling something experimental is a key step in making those giant leaps.’

  Ellie nodded. Bringing Caro on board for trial treatments would be a real boon for them. More to the point, having Lucas Williams—aka the Uber-Vet—at the surgery would be about a hundred times more amazing. Famous or not, he was a brilliant vet. Always had been. He’d always been able to put two things together other veterinarians didn’t have the guts for. He was a thinker, whereas she was a reactor, which was why emergencies were her forte. So...if she was coming at this whole ‘I want to be a partner’ thing from Drew’s perspective? It’d be stupid to send him packing. At this point anyway. Especially if Moose had a chance at a normal life. Drew would go mad for that type of surgery.

  ‘Okay. I’m happy to give the go-ahead for Caro. Start small, aim high, right?’

  Lucas grinned. ‘It’s how the best dreams come true.’ He pulled a few sheaves out of the drawings tube and handed them to her. ‘Let’s take another look at these, shall we?’

  Ah. The clinic.

  Despite her muddied emotions, she was drawn into the fascinating proposal.

  ‘They look like architectural drawings.’

  ‘They are in a way.’ Lucas helped her spread the large papers out on the surgical table.

  ‘It’s all very modern.’

  ‘Robotic legs usually are.’

  Ellie shot him a goofy smile. ‘I don’t mean that, it’s just...there aren’t th
at many dogs wandering round the planet with robotic legs.’

  ‘Good point. Although there is a Rottweiler over in the States who’s got four.’

  ‘He had four leg amputations?’ Caro was shocked. ‘What happened to him?’

  ‘Frostbite. His owner kept him outside in sub-zero temperatures and—’

  Ellie stopped him. ‘Don’t. I can’t even imagine a dog being treated that way.’

  They spent a few minutes poring over the details and when she finally felt she had her head wrapped around the concept she stretched and grinned. ‘I think it’ll be brilliant. Do you want to call Moose’s owners or shall I?’

  ‘Your clinic...’

  ‘Your patient,’ she countered, knowing she would have to make a decision soon as to whether or not she’d like it to be his clinic, too.

  Maybe she did need those couple of weeks to think about it after all.

  * * *

  A couple of days later Lucas found himself being dragged to the whelping pen for some puppy time with Maverick. Willingly escorted was a better description, Lucas thought as Maverick pushed through the swinging doors into the puppy unit. He had a million things to do to prep for the robotic leg surgery the following week, but if he’d learnt anything over the past few weeks, it was that time was precious and if his son wanted him to spend ten minutes playing with puppies he’d find that ten minutes come hell or high water.

  As for the surgical prep, that’s what coffee was for.

  ‘Which one’s your favourite?’ Maverick asked.

  Lucas, who was sitting in the middle of the pen and being used as a climbing frame by the rambunctious pups, gave the puppies a considered scan. ‘Depends on what you want the puppy for, I guess. Most of these are going to be trained to be therapy dogs, right?’

  Maverick nodded, his face very earnest, as if he took responsibility for the dogs and their futures himself. ‘Hearing dogs. Therapy dogs. They do all sorts.’

  ‘Esmerelda’s an amazing mummy to have all these lovely puppies, isn’t she?’

  Maverick nodded happily. ‘Esmerelda’s the best. She’s going to come and live up in the flat again soon.’