“You’re also getting most of the soothing water.”
“And the best view.” He scooped handfuls of the scented, milky water over her glistening breasts. “I’m sorry for what happened. She isn’t going to be allowed to threaten our happiness.”
Brooke kissed him softly. “Tell me something good about your day.”
“I don’t know whether it’s totally good news or not, but I have my first prospective new employee coming in about a week. It’s Roy’s niece. She seems to have dropped out of veterinary school.” He gave a brief recap of their conversation.
“How strange,” Brooke murmured. “And Roy hasn’t a clue as to why she gave up? Maybe she failed a class? She might not want to admit as much to him.”
“She doesn’t sound like a quitter. She’s established a mobile pet-grooming business. I’ll give her points for not sitting around cashing a free government check. At least some of Roy’s genes must have rubbed off on her.”
“Is there enough of a market for her to make a go of her kind of work?” Brooke asked, admittedly clueless.
“We’ll find out. She’s coming in time for the BBQ on the Fourth. That should give her a chance to meet some people and give us a hint if we can find a good fit.”
“I thought you were going to hire another doctor?”
“I still plan to. This just came up.”
Wrapping her arms around his neck, Brooke rested her forehead against his. “What can I do?”
“Kiss me. Take me inside you.”
Slowly doing one, then the other, Brooke said on a sigh, “I meant...about your party.”
“What party?”
Brooke laughed softly, then her breath caught as Gage started to rock her against him, sending the water gently lapping against the sides of the tub. “You’re right, it is hard to focus on that when you’re doing this.”
And when he slipped his hand between them to stroke the nub at her core, that ended their conversation for several minutes as they focused only on reaching satisfaction.
* * *
“So I’ll ask again,” Brooke said, when they were in her bed, sharing a last glass of wine. “What can I do to help you with your party?”
“Be there. Help me make Rylie feel welcome.”
“How old is she?”
“Mid-twenties?”
“I wonder if Aunt Marsha will be well enough to come. It would give her a chance to spend a little time with Humphrey. Help her feel like things aren’t changing too fast.”
Her slightly preoccupied tone had Gage craning his neck to check her expression as she lay on his chest. “What aren’t you saying?”
“You know that ‘when it rains, it pours’ saying? I got a call from Andi this evening before you got here.”
Just the look on her face told Gage what was coming. “You have an offer on your house?”
She nodded. “That went fast, didn’t it?”
“It’s a great house. Andi told you as much.” When she rubbed her cheek against his chest, he sensed this was still a jolt to her. “You don’t have to take the offer.”
“They’re not challenging my price, and, barring something surfacing in the inspection, which I know isn’t going to happen, and which they’re paying for, they’re offering to pay all of the closing costs, too.” She made a subtle negative sound. “No, I can’t turn them down.”
“They really want the house.” Gage caressed her sleek back and kissed the top of her head. “Do you feel as though your freedom is being snatched from you?”
“Maybe a little.”
“Can you offset that with satisfaction that your aunt is doing so well and that the business is flourishing?”
“I’m not naturally a glass-half-full person, I’m too left brained and analytical, but I do know how to be grateful.”
Gage didn’t want her to be wrestling for gratitude. He wanted her to be saying, “None of it matters. I’m here with you.” “What will you do?” he asked instead.
Brooke stretched to kiss his chin. “Sleep on you.”
For a second, he thought he’d heard her say something else, then he relaxed and allowed himself to breathe. He worried for nothing. She was in his arms, and they were one step closer to forever.
* * *
“How long has it been since you’ve seen your uncle?” Brooke asked Rylie Quinn.
“Too long. Since my high school graduation.”
The Fourth of July party was in full swing. Brooke had liked the perky redhead with the gamine-style haircut from the moment they’d met yesterday. At the time, she’d been picking up Humphrey because Gage had arranged to have a working dinner with Rylie and Roy. The girl looked younger than twenty-five, partly due to her bright smile, sparkling gray-green eyes and sunny personality that matched the exotic-spice highlights in her hair. However, it was clear upon talking to her for a few minutes that she was bright and, considering how quickly she was directing Humphrey, adept with animals.
“Well, from what I hear, Roy has been almost giddy with excitement since he learned that you were coming,” Brooke assured the younger woman.
“He’s been an advocate for me since I told my parents that I wanted to be a vet on my ninth birthday. My mother wanted me to act and sing, so I could try out for Annie on Broadway, and my father bet that the best I could hope for was a day care or kindergarten teacher.” Catching herself, she added, “Not that I don’t respect what an admirable job that is.”
“You don’t have to explain,” Brooke assured her. “Even parents with the most accomplished children often still wish for a bonus.”
“I’m sure your parents think you’re perfect,” Rylie added.
“My father refuses to give up hope for a Nobel Prize in economics,” Brooke replied with proper solemnity.
Rylie laughed and looked back over her shoulder. “I like your aunt. She’s a sweetheart.”
“She is.” Brooke had kept one eye on Aunt Marsha since she’d brought her here to make sure she wasn’t get overly tired. “I have to take her back to the assisted living center in a few minutes. She’s still recuperating, and she’ll weaken fast in this heat.”
“Would you like company? I could help you get your aunt situated, and then I’d like to check out the clinic to find out how they feel about canine wellness visits. Do you know if they do anything like that?”
“I honestly don’t,” Brooke replied. “The center is still establishing itself, and I’ve only been back in Sweet Springs for a month.”
“Wow,” Rylie gushed. “I thought you and Dr. Sullivan had been together for ages. You seem so in tune with each other.”
Brooke thought that was endearing, but quipped, “Gage could probably get along with a rabid pit bull. But thanks. You’re more than welcome to join us.” Gently turning the conversation around so that Rylie was answering the questions, she added, “I was startled by the size of your RV. You’re only an inch taller than me, and you can actually drive that thing?”
Rylie rolled her eyes. “Well, no more than I have to. For the most part, it was parked at the last place of my employment. The real benefit of something like that thing is having all of the creature comforts of a home, an environment to do my work and being able to keep clients as calm as their pets. But Dr. Sullivan told me that I should use the clinic during regular hours.”
“It makes sense to me,” Brooke told her. “And I know your uncle has been as swamped with work as Gage has, so if you’re able to offer an extra pair of hands, I’m sure they’ll be grateful.”
“We talked about that,” Rylie said, nodding. “I’ll be in heaven.”
Hearing raucous laughter around the picnic table, Brooke nodded to the old-timers. “What do you think of the coffee club in the corner of the reception room?”
R
ylie followed her gaze and chuckled. “I’ve started calling them the four musketeers. Mr. Atwood reminds me of a very reserved and intellectual Aramis. Mr. Ogilvie is a tough, lusty, yet sad Athos. Mr. Walsh is Porthos, the life of any party and Jerry Platt has to be D’Artagnan.”
Nodding, Brooke said, “So you’re a reader, too.”
“We didn’t have a lot growing up, but we had our adventures, and that book stuck with me.”
“Well, if those four rascals hear what you call them, they’ll adopt you for sure.” Brooke gestured toward her aunt. “If you’re ready to go, let’s get Aunt Marsha.”
Minutes later, after quietly letting Gage know they were heading off for a few minutes and to watch Humphrey, they took off. The moment they pulled into the center’s circular driveway, Aunt Marsha was announcing, “Home sweet home.”
Brooke smiled as she eyed her aunt in the backseat. “You don’t have to sound so cheerful.”
“The male residents are probably lined up at the door waiting for your return, Mrs. Newman,” Rylie said.
Although she blossomed under the flattery, Marsha demurred. “Not yet, but my girlfriends are. We’re playing poker tonight.”
“She’s a pistol, all right,” Rylie said to Brooke.
As they parked and Brooke wheeled her aunt inside, they parted ways. Rylie went to the main desk and Brooke brought her aunt to her suite. “Did you have a good time?” she asked her.
“I did, dear. It was also good to see Humphrey getting good exercise, and you and Gage enjoying each other so much. When do you close on your house?”
“The thirty-first,” she reminded her.
“Just checking that was still on schedule.”
Brooke locked the wheels, once she stopped the chair beside her aunt’s recliner. “You’re a little sneak. I’m not about to hold back on you.”
“So if there had been talk about an engagement, you’d tell me?”
Heaven help her, Brooke thought. “Aunt Marsha, we’ve known each other for a whole month. Don’t rush things.”
Unperturbed, her aunt said wistfully, “I fell in love with your uncle at first sight.”
It was probably the twenty-sixth time Brooke had heard that. “Yes, and he said to his friend, who was with him at the time, that you were the girl he was going to marry. I remember.”
Brooke couldn’t have gotten through these past weeks without Gage’s help and support, and she knew she was falling in love with him—had fallen in love with him. But she didn’t want to jinx the precious feelings between them. Part of her knew Gage was it for her. Another part wondered why, for all of his passion, he hadn’t said the words yet.
I love you.
Marry me.
“Do you want to lie down before you meet your friends?” she asked her aunt, determinedly thrusting away her doubts.
“No, no. The kitchen is preparing a few refreshments, and all I need to do is freshen up. That I can manage. You go on, dear, and get back to the party. Thank you so much for the lovely afternoon.”
Brooke kissed her again and promised to check in the following morning. By the time she returned to the front where Rylie was, the young woman was just finishing up talking to Susan Freese, the administrator of the facility. Susan looked pleased with the conversation and waved to Brooke. Brooke found that another good sign. So far, everyone seemed to react positively to Rylie. Maybe Gage had, indeed, found one of the answers to his employment needs.
Once outside, Brooke asked, “So how did it go?”
“Super,” Rylie said, as upbeat as ever. “They’ve had the police department’s drug-sniffing canine there for a visit, but you don’t encourage those dogs to get touchy-feely. My MG has been with me for three years, and she’s definitely the opposite of them.”
Brooke had been officially introduced to the long-haired retriever mix at the party. The sleek, shiny-haired black mongrel had the incredibly wise, penetrating brown gaze of an ape. It was so uncanny that Brooke had found herself transfixed by the dog several times.
“She’s beautiful and so sweet tempered,” she told Rylie. “How did you come to have her?”
“She was someone’s throwaway. I happened to spot her alongside the road. There was a jerk driving ahead of me, and he aimed for her, so she threw herself into the ditch. She not only wrenched her shoulder badly, it took me a year to break her fear of being in a vehicle, let alone walking near a road. But if ever there was a dog meant to socialize on virtually any level, it’s her.”
“MG... I meant to ask you what that stands for.”
“Mommy’s Girl.” Rylie laughed, the sound bubbly and joyful. “This will sound crazy, but she picked up on what I was doing with animals from day one, and when I’ve been busy with another animal, she would automatically entertain whoever else is around, whether they have two legs or four. She’s a doll.”
So was Rylie, Brooke thought. “I was impressed when you told her to stay and she lay down by the table you’d been sitting at. She won’t get worried and start looking for you? That’s a problem that we had with Humphrey.”
“She might if something went wrong, or the weather turned bad, but I know I can rely on Uncle Roy and Doc to keep an eye on her, as they are with your aunt’s dog.” Ryle sent her an impish look. “I suspect when we get back, they’ll tell you that the minute Humph tried to mosey around, she ordered him to set his cute self back beside her.”
“I would pay to know that really happened,” Brooke quipped. “So did Susan arrange for a day for you to try out things with MG?”
With a nod, Rylie said, “Our interview is set for next Wednesday.”
“Really? Dogs can be interviewed?”
“Sure. You have to find out how social they are, how they respond to strangers in various environments. They can’t panic if something is dropped or there’s a siren.”
“You’ve probably been asked this a dozen times already today, but have you always wanted to work with animals?” Brooke wryly admitted, “I’m only just getting where I almost think of Humphrey as family.”
“Aw,” Rylie murmured. “That’s a huge accomplishment, good for you! Me? For as long as I can remember. My first pet was a baby rabbit that the mother had ejected from the nest in our backyard. I wasn’t in kindergarten yet, so I didn’t realize that if she’d done that, there was something wrong with the poor thing. It died later that night. Then came birds falling out of nests—some I actually nursed to adulthood—squirrels, cats, dogs, turtles, raccoons.... My parents did draw the line at baby skunks. That’s saying a lot when you realize that I’m the only daughter, and my older brother is adopted.”
Amused, Brooke asked, “So you’re saying you were spoiled?”
Leaning over, Rylie confided, “To this day, when I hear applause, I have to lock my knees to keep from taking a bow.” She grew serious and added, “My folks tried for several years to have kids with no luck, so they adopted my brother, and before his next birthday, they discovered I was on the way.”
They talked easily the rest of the way back to the party, and once there, MG, Rylie’s dog, came running with Humphrey bringing up the rear. Brooke was delighted when the hound came to her and grinned at her.
“Good to see you, too,” Brooke said, stooping to love on him.
Looking proud, Gage came to them. After kissing her gently, he asked, “Everything okay?”
“Aunt Marsha is ready for a big evening with her gal pals, and Rylie has an in with Susan to bring MG as a prospective therapy dog.”
“Hey, that’s a good idea.” Gage hugged the glossy retriever. “This is the most loving dog I’ve met in a while. And sharp.... I can even tell she’s rubbing off on Humph. While you two were gone, he was content to lay beside her—until a squirrel caught his attention. He glanced at her, as though looking for permission, and she li
terally laid her paw over his and he rolled on to his side and took a nap.”
Getting an I-told-you-so look from Rylie, Brooke replied, “Well, it sounds as though this is the start of a beautiful friendship.”
People had been coming and going all afternoon, so when a silver pickup truck pulled into Gage’s driveway, that didn’t immediately draw attention until Liz Hooper slid out of the passenger side of Jerry Platt’s truck.
Brooke barely managed to stifle a groan. “Is that still going on?”
“Actually, he said he was trying to nip that in the bud,” Gage assured her. “She must have really manipulated things.”
To get to you, Brooke thought sourly.
Giving Brooke a look of entreaty, Gage said, “You know he’s welcome here, and she could be a great customer for Rylie.”
“I take it that she can be a handful?” Rylie asked.
“Enough to make me wish I’d stayed longer with Aunt Marsha,” Brooke replied. But she added to Rylie, “I’m wrong to say even that. You need to meet her. She’s part of local society—a former Miss Sweet Springs, and Miss Cherokee County.”
“I can tell by the hair,” Rylie said, slowly nodding.
Seeing Gage’s worried look, Brooke said, “And now I’m off to help clean up and refill things, and if the opportunity arises, volunteer for an overseas deployment.”
Rylie threw back her head and laughed. “I like you, Brooke.”
As they parted ways, Brooke grabbed up empty platters and carried them inside. Once she had them refilled, she brought them back out. There was no missing that Liz had Rylie—and Gage—cornered, and that Jerry had wandered over to his old cohorts sitting by the picnic table. But before she could respond to Gage’s look of appeal, a sleek black limousine pulled up in front of her aunt’s house.
There was only one person who would make such an appearance—unannounced, no less—and that had Brooke hurrying next door. The doorbell was on its second series of eight chimes when she sprinted through the house and yanked open the door.
“Dad. This is a surprise.”
He was carrying a bottle of champagne. In her shock, she hadn’t noticed that earlier. Now what? she wondered.
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