Ford noticed that he didn’t open a menu and asked why.
David smiled. “I always get the same thing.”
“Hey, David,” a slight girl with a thick accent said as she stepped up to the table. “You want tea?”
David nodded. “Thanks, Lucy. This is Ford, the new vet that’s helping me out.”
Lucky looked at him, raking her gaze over him before smiling. “Nice to meet ya. What can I get ya to drink?”
“I’ll take a sweet tea too.”
Lucy twirled around and walked over to the drink station. While they waited, Ford quickly perused the menu and settled on a burger and fries for lunch.
They placed their orders and were left alone once again.
“So, what are your thoughts so far?” David asked.
Ford sipped his tea, enjoying the sweet flavor as it coated his tongue, before answering. “It was bonkers.”
David nodded. “Most days are. Want to fill me in on what happened with Bertie?”
Ford sighed and dropped his gaze to the table. Now that he’d had some time to think about what happened earlier, he felt bad about wanting to immediately fire Bertie. They were overwhelmed, and she was probably used to people being pushy to get what they wanted out of David and their visits to him.
He told David what happened and then quickly said, “I think we just need to see about retraining or hiring another tech to help with the load, that way Bertie and Heather aren’t divided between duties.”
David nodded. “I’ve wanted to get someone for a while, but finding the time…”
Ford chuckled. “Not easy, I’m sure.”
“You got that right,” David muttered.
Lucy came by and dropped off their food and Ford’s mouth watered at the sight of the large hamburger in front of him. He couldn’t wait to dig in.
“So, tell me about yourself,” David said.
Ford sighed internally. He knew he’d be telling his story quite a bit over the coming days and weeks, but that didn’t mean he was any less ready to repeat it. He just wanted to start his life over and forget why he’d left Raleigh. He’d have to pay his dues first, though. And that started by telling David a little about himself.
Five
Kat
Kat smiled as she walked into Over Easy Diner. She spied her brother at the back, sitting in the booth with someone else. She’d use this as her opportunity to tease him a little.
She stopped by the counter to place the lunch order for her and the hands before weaving through the tables, coming to stand next to David.
“I see you’ve escaped your captivity,” she said drolly, keeping her gaze on her brother. She wasn’t purposefully ignoring the stranger, but the glimpse she got of him when she walked in told her that he was handsome.
David rolled his eyes as he looked at her. “I did. What are you doing here?”
She sat down next to her brother, hip-checking him to get him to scoot over, which he did while glaring at her.
“I had to come get some feed and said I’d get everyone lunch at the same time.”
She finally looked at the man sitting across the table and was glad she’d waited. She wasn’t sure she’d have been able to come over here if she’d gotten a good look at him beforehand.
He was handsome, that was a fact, so she hadn’t been wrong there. But handsome didn’t quite cover how good-looking this guy was. With ink black hair, brown eyes, and what looked like a few days of stubble, he was rugged looking without being sloppy.
Her heart skipped a beat as their eyes met across the table. She had the urge to stand up and move to the other side of the table to be closer to him. She hadn’t reacted to a guy like that in years.
“Kat, this is my new partner, Ford Mathers. Ford, this is my sister, Kat.”
Ford held a hand out for her to shake, which she took. She tried not to think about how warm his hand was or how it felt like her hand fit perfectly in his.
Once he released her hand from their shake, she stuck her hand under the table and carefully wiped it on the jeans she was wearing. It was tingling, and she wanted to get her mind off it.
“You got here a little earlier than we were expecting,” Kat said with a smile as Lucy stopped by with a sweet tea for her.
Ford nodded. “I woke up early and decided to come out to town. No need to wait around till later. Good thing I did too,” he said, looking at David, who laughed.
“You got that right. I was slammed this morning, so Ford showing when he did was a God-send.”
“How behind were you?”
“Only thirty minutes,” David said, “but that would have extended with some of the patients I had.”
She arched a brow as she glanced at Ford, who was looking between her and David. “Good timing then.”
She turned her full attention to Ford. “Do you need anything to get settled?”
He shook his head and shifted in his seat. “No, I think I’m good. My house is already moved in minus the little I have in a trailer and I plan to get groceries later today or tomorrow.”
Kat nodded. “Good. Shouldn’t be too hard to find where you need to go, either. Most things are located right here on the main strip or right off it.”
Ford chuckled. “I realized that earlier when we walked here. David gave me a little background. He didn’t tell me about you, though. What do you do?”
Kat’s eyes narrowed slightly, trying to determine if he was low-key flirting with her or if he was just curious. He stared at her with wide eyes and she couldn’t see anything but genuine curiosity there. A small part of her was disappointed, which she didn’t want to dwell on too much. “I run Alpha Dog Kennels and Training with our dad.”
“Alpha Dog? You’re one of the owners?” Ford asked, looking intrigued.
She nodded. “Yeah. Why?”
Ford leaned forward. “I’ve never met you, but I’ve seen some of the dogs you’ve trained in the field. I’ve been really impressed with what I saw. I’ve been meaning to reach out to you about possibly helping some or getting to know y’all better.”
Kat said nothing at first and cut her eyes to David, who looked like the cat who ate the canary. He had said that Ford was in the field trial world, but she hadn’t been willing to believe him.
“You go to field trials?”
Ford nodded and relaxed back. “Yeah. I judge occasionally and I do some handling for some friends if they need me to.”
Kat tilted her head to the side as she turned his words over in her mind. “I’m surprised we’ve never met then.”
“I’m not,” he said with a bitter tone. “It’s been a while since I’ve been on the circuit. The last trial I went to was in Tennessee three years ago.”
Kat had a feeling there was a story there, and while she wanted to know what it was, it wasn’t her place to ask someone she’d just met to spill his secrets.
“Here ya go, Kat,” Lucy said, dropping off three plastic bags filled with Styrofoam to-go containers.
Kat smiled her thanks.
Lucy nodded and trotted off to help other tables.
Kat glanced at David and Ford as she slid out of the booth, gathering the handles of the bags together. “Well, it was nice to meet you, Ford. David will come out next week for our yearly stuff, you should tag along if you can. Stay for dinner.”
Not giving either her brother or Ford a chance to respond, she turned and hurried through the restaurant, not slowing down until she reached her truck and had to unlock the doors. She carefully put the bags on the floorboard so they wouldn’t slide before hauling herself up into the driver’s seat.
Once the door was shut, she blew out a loud breath, realizing her hands were shaking a little. She was thankful for tinted windows as she sat there for a few moments thinking about Ford Mathers. That was one hot man. Denise would be so happy that was the case, which meant she’d be on Kat’s case about getting out there.
Kat would seriously consider putting herself back ou
t there if Ford was the guy to help her date again. Since returning home ten years before, she hadn’t looked twice at most of the guys in town and the ones she had? They hadn’t affected her nearly as much as Ford did.
What was it about him that sent her heart racing and made her hands clammy?
A part of Kat wanted to consider pursuing something with Ford if he seemed interested. But the other part of her, her more rational side, screamed that she couldn’t; she shouldn’t. Memories of her last relationship still haunted her almost ten years later, so it was unlikely that she’d be doing anything with Ford besides being friendly.
She saw her brother and Ford step out of the diner and start walking her way. She was parked on the corner by where they’d turn to go back to the clinic.
She used the opportunity that tinted windows afforded and stared at Ford unashamedly.
He’d put a jacket on, so she couldn’t tell what his torso looked like, but he was wearing a pair of jeans that looked well-worn and when they turned the corner to head back to the vet clinic, she could see that Ford had a very nice ass.
She tilted her head to the side as she stared, moving so she could continue looking at it.
“Ow!” Her head knocked into the driver’s side window, startling her out of her staring. “Jesus,” she muttered as she rubbed her head and finally turned her truck on.
Ford was someone that she would enjoy looking at, that was for sure. But she couldn’t get ahead of herself. He worked with her brother, which automatically made him off-limits. On top of that, she doubted he’d be too interested in a homebody that was more interested in interacting with dogs than with other people.
She didn’t stand a chance.
Six
Kat
Kat was able to push Ford from her mind over the next week, throwing herself into work more so than normal. With the cold creeping in, they were making sure that everything outside was protected before any bad weather hit while also making sure things were ready for the fair at the house.
She was outside, bundled into a down jacket with a beanie pulled low over her ears checking an inventory list when she heard crunching gravel. She glanced up to see David’s truck coming down the drive.
She glanced at her watch and saw that it was time for him to be there for his official visit. She quickly finished what she was doing, putting the clipboard down on a porch railing. She walked over to his truck, her steps stuttering when she saw the passenger getting out.
She’d forgotten that she’d invited Ford to come with David today.
“Shit.” She swore under her breath as her face heated. She plastered a smiled on her face as David turned to face her.
“Right on time. I’m impressed,” she teased as she hugged him.
“I try sometimes, you know.”
She pulled back and laughed. “How are things?” she asked, flicking her eyes to Ford, who was closing the passenger door.
“Not too bad,” David said as he walked to his tailgate, lowering it.
“We’re still slammed,” Ford said, joining David at the back of the truck. “But it’s not as bad as it was.”
“Thank God,” David said, shaking his head. “I didn’t realize how much I was doing until Ford came and took some cases off my hands. It’s amazing how much free time I seem to have now.”
Kat laughed. “I’m glad you got help then.”
She watched as Ford and David worked together to get the things they’d need for this visit together.
David checked what was in his little cooler while Ford grabbed a clipboard thick with papers. “Ready?” David asked.
“Let’s go.”
She led them to the horse barn first, calling for Cal, the main horse trainer as they stepped inside.
“Hey, David. I’ve got all the horses in their stalls.”
“Thanks, man. Makes it a little easier.”
Cal led David and Ford toward the first stall and Kat leaned against the wall just inside the door, sinking further down into her jacket as she watched them work.
They quickly found a rhythm that involved Cal opening the stall to get the horse while David prepped the shots for the animals and Ford handled the paperwork aspect of everything.
When it didn’t look like Ford was struggling to keep up with the paperwork, she realized her brother must have organized it in the order they were doing things. They didn’t change up their pattern when he came, using the most efficient way to make sure all the animals got their shots and that David didn’t have to linger longer than necessary.
Once the horses were done, she pushed off from the wall. “Dogs?” she asked.
David nodded, and she led them to the kennel. As they walked closer, the dogs starting barking, and she smiled when she saw their excited faces.
“Hey there, Hank,” she said as she opened his kennel to get him first.
He came right to her and she looped her fingers through his collar, getting a good hold on him. She put his body between her legs, trying to calm his wiggling so David could quickly work.
“Hey, buddy,” David said as he crouched down.
Kat ran her hands over Hank’s short fur, trying to sooth him as David gave him his yearly shots.
Once he was done, she slipped Hank a treat that she’d stashed in her jacket pocket and they moved on to Pepper to repeat the process.
Once they finished with the dogs, David went back to the barn to get the cats in there, leaving her and Ford alone.
“Nice setup,” Ford said, nodding toward the kennels and feed shed.
She glanced at the structure and smiled. “Thanks. We upgraded it a few years ago. It used to be attached to the horse barn, but we needed more space for expansion, so we ripped it off and built something new.”
Ford nodded, but said nothing. She watched him as he looked around their property. They were hemmed in on most sides by the forest, but they had a decent spread that had their house, the horse barn, the feed shed, and kennels, plus another building where they did their obedience classes.
“Do you do all your training here?” he asked, looking back at her.
She nodded. “For the most part. We have a location in town for some of our obedience trainings, but most everything happens here. We own a lot of the surrounding forest also, so it’s perfect when we want to test the hunting dogs.”
Ford turned to face her fully. “Do you train elsewhere?”
“Dad used to go to South Dakota for several weeks in the summer with some dogs, but it’s been years since he’s been there.”
Kat cleared her throat at the ball of emotion that was suddenly clogging her throat. Her dad hadn’t been back to South Dakota since her mom had gotten sick. That was when she was ten, so it had been two decades since he’d left the state for training.
She’d asked him once about it, wondering if he wanted to go again, but he’d waved her off and she’d never brought it up again.
“Think you’ll make it back?” Ford asked, breaking her from her thoughts.
“Who knows? We’re happy with the set-up. We’d have to get more help to make that trip and I’m not sure we’re at a place we can.”
Ford nodded. There was a beat of silence before he said, “I was hoping to talk to you about helping, actually.”
She arched a brow at his words. “Oh?”
He nodded and looked away briefly before looking at her again. “As you know, I used to be involved in field trials and dog handling.”
Kat nodded. She remembered him mentioning it.
He continued. “I would love to help with some training, not necessarily with the hunting dogs. The regular obedience classes are fine. I’d help with that in Raleigh every so often and really enjoyed it.”
Kat pursed her lips as she thought over what he was saying. “What were you paid in Raleigh?”
“I did it for free on a volunteer basis.”
Kat arched a brow at those words. “Are you saying you’ll do that here?”
; She didn’t mind paying him since he’d be doing a service to the community and helping her out at the same time, but she needed to be certain.
“I would.”
She was a little surprised. She ran her eyes over his face, trying to determine if he had an angle with this request. His face was open and the only thing that gave her pause was the darkening of his cheeks. He’d been rosy because of the cold, but this was a deeper red and she idly wondered if he was embarrassed about something.
She snapped herself out of her thoughts when she remembered he was waiting for her to say something. “Our classes usually run for four weeks with varying meeting times. You can pretty much set your own schedule. I’ll pay you a flat rate per class based on enrollments and how often you’re meeting. How’s that sound?”
“Sounds good to me,” he said as a smile spread across his face.
She held her hand out for him to shake and she tried to suppress the shiver she felt when their hands touched. She shouldn’t be feeling anything like this toward a man she barely knew.
“I’ll be in touch soon. We have a class starting up in a few weeks that’ll meet in town.”
“Great.”
David jogged back over to them. “All done. Why don’t you head inside to finish up dinner while Ford and I feed the dogs for you?”
Kat arched a brow and flicked her gaze to Ford. “Do you even remember how to do it?”
David rolled his eyes. “Please, I could do it in my sleep.”
She shook her head and looked at Ford while David jogged to his truck to put his things away. “Make sure you watch him. He has a tendency to overfeed. The food amounts are posted by the barrel in the feed shed.”
Ford nodded. “You got it.”
David rejoined them and gave her a small push. “Head inside. Relax a little.”
“Thanks,” she called over her shoulder as she turned back to the house.
She scurried up the steps, snagging the clipboard she’d had earlier, and pulled the door open. Before going inside, she glanced over her shoulder and saw that David and Ford were just getting the feed shed open.
Hometown Christmas Page 3