Be Mine

by N. J. Young

  Evernight Publishing ®

  www.evernightpublishing.com

  Copyright© 2016 N.J. Young

  ISBN: 978-1-77233-748-8

  Cover Artist: Jay Aheer

  Editor: Karyn White

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

  WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.

  This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, and places are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  DEDICATION

  For all of my Wellington friends. Your support means the world to me!

  BE MINE

  Love With a Price, 3

  N.J. Young

  Copyright © 2016

  Chapter One

  Dylan Price pulled his Range Rover into the parking lot of the twenty-four-hour MedVet. The rain poured down around him, so he doubted the place would be busy. After a string of late-night emergency calls, he and his partner Brian Turner had thought a twenty-four-hour service would be beneficial to the community. The addition of two new vets, Rob and Jennifer, to their clinic had helped them staff the overnight shift, but Dylan still groaned when it was his turn. He wasn’t much of a night person.

  He ran the short distance to the front door and rushed in to avoid getting any wetter than he had to.

  His partner was waiting for him, keys in hand. “You don’t know how much I appreciate this, man. I’m so sorry to call you in like this. Jen just came off three days of overnights, and Rob is out of town, so I couldn’t call them.”

  “No problem.” Dylan hung his coat on the hook by the door, exchanging it for a white lab coat. He took a stethoscope from the pocket and draped it over his neck. “How’s Lucy?”

  Brian practically vibrated with nervous energy. “She just called. Doctor said she’s dilated to a three.”

  Dylan grinned. Not that he had much experience with human babies, but from his limited knowledge, he’d guess Brian was in for a long night. “Well, what are you waiting for?” He reached out to shake his friend’s hand. “Go have a baby.”

  His partner’s face tinged with green. “Oh God, I’m going to have a baby.” The look he gave Dylan was a cross between excitement, nausea, and complete terror. Brian looked rooted to the floor, so Dylan smacked his arm and gave him a little push.

  “Go! Lucy needs you!”

  Snapping back to attention, Brian repeated, “Lucy needs me.” He headed for the door. “I’ll keep you posted, man,” he said as he ran out.

  “Good luck!” Dylan called after him. He chuckled to himself. Brian had better get a grip. Dylan had three older brothers and one younger sister. He remembered vividly how they’d terrified a couple of babysitters when they were younger. Yep, kids could smell fear.

  He walked over to the front desk and tossed his keys on it before running his fingers through his black hair. So many of his friends were married and having kids. On one hand, it seemed so bizarre, but on the other, he couldn’t help but feel jealous. He’d always wanted a big family. At twenty-eight years old, he’d planned to be started on it by now. Unfortunately, building a family required finding the right woman, and on that front, he’d had zero luck.

  He really thought he’d found a woman he could have a future with, but it didn’t take long before he’d discovered Julie was way more interested in his family’s money than she was in him.

  Rambo, the orange tabby who served as the clinic’s in-house cat, jumped up to nuzzle his hand, dragging him out of his thoughts.

  “Hey, Rambo, looks like it’s just you and me tonight.” He looked at the clock on the desk. Two AM. Right then, an extra loud clap of thunder caused the lights to flicker. Rambo stiffened for a moment then nuzzled closer to Dylan. “It’s okay, buddy.” He picked the cat up and held him close, immediately eliciting a purr. Rambo snuggled closer, burrowing his head under Dylan’s chin. “Aww, you don’t like storms, do you, little guy?”

  Rambo’s tail flicked in response. The warm softness of his fur and his rhythmic purring were better than any comfort food.

  Dylan stifled a yawn. “Wanna help me make some coffee? Maybe that will help keep me awake.” He’d only taken a few steps toward the back where the kitchenette was located behind two exam rooms when the bell jingled over the front door, followed by a woman’s frantic voice. “Hello! Hello! Is anyone here? We need help!”

  Rambo startled and jumped from his arms. Dylan was already responding before he turned around, pulling the stethoscope from around his neck. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

  When he turned, he saw a woman with a mass of dark, wet hair plastered to her forehead. The rest of her face was buried in the wet gray fur of a giant cat, one he’d guess was very fluffy when it didn’t look like an oversized drowned rat. Not only were they both dripping wet, but the cat looked very annoyed … and very pregnant.

  Dylan put the stethoscope in his ears and pressed the bell against the cat’s chest and tummy, ignoring the low growly noise it made.

  “It’s okay, Batman. The doctor’s going to help my sweet baby. Yes, he is.” The woman kissed the top of the cat’s head.

  Batman responded with a hiss.

  Dylan draped the stethoscope back over his neck and probed gently at the cat’s swollen belly.

  “I don’t know what’s wrong with him.” The woman spoke against the cat’s fur. “He’s usually so active and playful. But he’s put on so much weight recently, and tonight, I can’t get him to move. He won’t even stand up.” Her voice wobbled. “Please help him.”

  “Well, the problem is…” Dylan voice left him as he looked into the woman’s face. Watery blue eyes stared back at him. Those eyes were so full of emotion and so lovely that his breath caught.

  For the first time, he really looked at the woman standing in front of him. Her hair had looked black when he’d glanced at her, but now that he was closer, he could see it was more of a chestnut color, appearing darker because it was so wet, dripping onto her purple coat. The hair was bunched up around her collar, but he’d guess it fell somewhere around the middle of her back.

  Her skin was porcelain and flawless, and her chin quivered beneath full rosy lips. And those gorgeous blue eyes were now looking at him with confusion.

  Get a hold of yourself. It’s not the first time you’ve seen a beautiful woman. “Uh, the problem is that Batman is in labor. And by the way, Batman’s a she.”

  Her mouth dropped open. Then she closed it. Her brow furrowed, and then her mouth popped opened again.

  He couldn’t help but grin at her reaction. This wasn’t the first time he’d had to tell someone their beloved pet was of the opposite gender.

  “But—but the place where I got him told me Batman was a he.”

  Dylan shook his head. “I’m guessing you probably didn’t get her from Marnie. I’ve never known her to be wrong about a cat’s gender.”

  Marnie was a sweet lady who ran the local animal shelter, and Dylan helped by giving free medical care to the animals she took in. He didn’t remember ever seeing Batman.

  The woman’s face turned the loveliest shade of pink as she sighed. “No, I didn’t. I volunteered for an animal rescue in St. Louis up until a few weeks ago. Batman was a stray we took in.” A grimace crossed her mouth. “Crap, my mom is going to make so much fun of me when she finds out about this.”

  “Your mom? Who’s your—hey, wait a second.” Her fair skin and blue eyes had looked familiar, but he’d gotten too caught up in her beauty. His brain was finally starting to catch up to his libido. “You’re Marnie’s daughter. Oh my God. Ca
rly?”

  Vivid memories rushed back of Carly and his younger sister Becca having sleepovers and giggling so loud in the next room that Dylan couldn’t get any sleep. At two years older, he’d been so much more mature.

  She looked into his face and blinked a few times before it hit her, and then she broke into a huge smile. “Dylan?”

  “Does Becca know you’re back in town?”

  She shook her head. “I’ve only been in town about twenty-four hours. I’m looking after the shelter animals this weekend while Mom is in Minnesota. Wow, I didn’t know you were a vet. That’s awesome!”

  Dylan spoke as he motioned her back to an exam room. “So, you’re looking after animals, huh? You might want to brush up on your feline anatomy a little bit,” he teased.

  Carly cocked her head, stuck out her tongue out at him, and her mouth made the cutest little pout. He had to bite his lip to keep from grinning.

  As she walked into the exam room, Dylan thought about what she’d said and stopped. “Wait a second. Minnesota? Please don’t tell me Marnie is getting more animals at that huge rescue?” There was a massive rescue in Minnesota constantly looking for other shelters to take some of their animals. Marnie had brought back countless dogs and cats from there.

  Carly sighed. “Yep. Not quite sure where she’s planning to put them, though.”

  Dylan sighed. The local shelter was already at capacity. What was Marnie thinking? He drew his attention back to the situation at hand. After a quick examination, he deemed Batman to be healthy and having a perfectly normal labor. Carly, on the other hand, looked scared to death.

  “Does that mean I can take him—her, I mean—home? What do I do? I don’t know how to deliver kittens!” Her voice had taken on a bit of a panicked tone.

  “It’s okay. We’ll get her set up here. She can stay here for the night so I can make sure she doesn’t have any problems.” It wasn’t something he would normally offer, but there was no harm in it since the clinic wasn’t busy. And seriously, wasn’t the real reason that it just gave him an excuse to spend more time with Carly?

  He needed to get a grip. He’d pretty much deemed there were no eligible women in town, so now he was jumping females as they entered the Oakville’s city boundaries? Besides, he wasn’t ready to get involved with anyone so soon after Julie. Not to mention the fact that Carly was his sister’s friend.

  That didn’t stop Ethan, said a voice in his head. Yeah, well, his brother Ethan had found a girl perfect for him in their sister’s best friend, Tori. She and Ethan were the perfect couple, so that was different. Dylan just needed to take a step back and regain a little control.

  Chapter Two

  The back of the clinic was bigger than it looked from the front. There was a large open area that Dylan explained they used for “doggie daycare”. It was lined with cages. A computer, phone, and various office supplies sat atop the counter that stood in between the dog runs and the cat cages. Wow. She was pretty impressed. She’d volunteered at many shelters, but she’d never seen one so clean. Dylan Price obviously took pride in his clinic.

  Carly helped get Batman settle into a mound of blankets. At least he’d stopped hissing at her. She, not he. Crap. Carly was probably going to have to rename her. It was no wonder she’d flunked out of school. She wouldn’t have made a very good veterinarian if she couldn’t even tell the difference between a male and female cat. The thought still made her a little sad. Her dream had been to work with animals. But here she was, twenty-six, no college degree, and she’d be lucky if she could even get a job as a waitress.

  She ran her fingers through Batman’s soft fur, shooting a glance at Dylan, who stood at the counter. She hadn’t seen him since high school, and the years sure had been good to him. He wore a lab coat over a rumpled blue button-down shirt and a pair of worn jeans. Carly found herself itching to slide the lab coat off his shoulders so she could get a better look at his physique. His apparel did nothing to hide the fact that he was perfectly cut, but she wanted to see for herself. She wanted to slide her hands down his arms and feel the muscles there. She thought of her arms circling around his waist and tilting her head up for his kiss as she cupped his muscular backside.

  Suddenly Dylan turned to her, and she realized she’d been staring at him. He smiled, revealing perfect white teeth. “Something wrong, sweetheart?”

  Blushing furiously, she turned back to her cat. “No, nothing,” she mumbled, but her pink parts were throbbing with need. Damn, she needed to get laid.

  Wow, when has that thought ever crossed my mind? She’d finally given in and had sex with her one serious college boyfriend, then wondered what all the fuss was about. Somehow, she’d bet Dylan could show her what it was about.

  When he walked slowly toward her, she realized she’d been staring at him again. She stood up straight and faced him, expecting him to stop within a couple of feet of her. But then she noticed his expression—his hooded eyes, his parted lips—and her heart sped up.

  Dylan backed her up against an empty cage, not touching her, but standing so close he trapped her nonetheless. “Carls, I’m trying to be a good boy, but it’s very hard when you keep looking at me like that.”

  She almost giggled at the double-entendre. Yes, sometimes she had the sense of humor of a twelve-year-old boy.

  Dylan smirked and raised one dark eyebrow, immediately catching her meaning. Her smile quickly disappeared as he pressed his lower half to hers. She gasped as she felt his erection. My God, he must have a monster in his pants. She lifted her hands, thinking she should push him away, but instead she fisted his shirt, pulling him closer. When he bent his head to kiss her, she let her eyes float shut.

  His lips had barely brushed hers when a bell from the front room of the clinic jingled. “Doctor!” someone yelled. “Is anyone here?”

  Carly’s eyes popped open as Dylan muttered a low curse. After a moment’s hesitation, he released her and turned to go deal with his newest patient.

  A few deep breaths later, Carly was able to steady herself. She ruffled Batman’s fur one last time, then went out to the front. Dylan was directing a middle-aged couple to an exam room in the back. The woman was holding a tired-looking puppy. “I’ll be right there, Mr. and Mrs. Turner,” Dylan said before walking over to her.

  “You’re busy,” she began. “I’m just going to go ahead and—”

  “Carly,” he cut her off. “I need to apologize. That was unprofessional of me, and I’m sorry.”

  “Oh. I-uh…” She trailed off. Sorry? Out of all the things she thought he might say, that wasn’t one of them. She’d made a fool of herself, hadn’t she? Looking down, she shook her head. “No, no, I’m the one who’s sorry. I shouldn’t have uh … I’m just going to go.” Since the ground wouldn’t swallow her up as she hoped it would, she turned and ran out the door to her car with Dylan staring after her.

  ****

  As she drove home, Carly tried to focus on the road rather than the rhythmic swish of the windshield wipers. She still wasn’t quite sure what she’d done wrong. Dylan had been so warm and friendly when she’d walked in, but then it was almost as though a wall had gone up in between them. After their near-kiss, she’d wanted to ask him out for coffee when he’d taken on different demeanor. Sorry? She really hated that clipped, professional tone he’d used.

  What are you thinking, Carly? He’s rich, successful, and gorgeous. You’re a college dropout who just moved back in with your mom. Her phone rang on the seat next to her, and she tried to shift her mind to something other than Dylan Price as she reached to answer it. She knew only one person would call her at three o’clock in the morning on a Friday night … well, technically a Saturday morning.

  “Hi, Mom,” she answered. “Please don’t tell me you’re on your way back in the middle of the night.”

  “Well, it’s not like I could check into a hotel with ten dogs now, could I?”

  Carly’s eyes grew wide. “Ten? Mom, where the heck are we going
to put ten more dogs?” The shelter was already packed to the gills. What was her mom thinking?

  “Oh, calm down. Five of them are Chihuahua puppies. They don’t take up much room.”

  She had to resist the urge to rest her head against the steering wheel and groan.

  “Carly, it sounds like you’re driving. You should be in bed,” Marnie said in a chastising tone.

  Her eyes rolled. “Really, Mom? You call me at three in the morning, and now you’re going to reprimand me for not being in bed? I had to take Batman to the vet.”

  When she related the problem, her mom whooped with laughter. “I knew it! When you told me that cat’s symptoms, I knew she sounded pregnant. I’ll bet Dylan had a laugh.”

  Oh yes, his eyes had lit with mirth. Those eyes that were the same color as the ocean on a clear blue day. A couple of lines were already starting to form at the corner of those eyes, which told Carly he liked to laugh. And when he had laughed, he’d revealed perfect teeth beneath those full lips. She imagined those teeth nibbling on her neck. Her toes began to tingle.

  “Carly? Carly? Are you still there?”

  “What? Oh sorry, Mom.” She tried to focus. “I guess I’m just tired.”

  “And you’re driving? That’s not safe, young lady.”

  She almost laughed at the term her mom had always used when she was in trouble. “It’s okay, Mom, I’m almost home. I’ll let the dogs out into the run one last time before I go to bed.” She said good-bye to her mom and turned into the long drive leading up to the ranch.

  A big sign over the road was lit up to read “Marnie’s Ranch”. The sign had been the construction of Sam Torrance, a local builder who’d adopted three rescue pugs from Marnie’s shelter. He’d been the person who had also helped originally construct the shelter behind Marnie’s big ranch house. He was now the person her mom had dinner with at least two nights a week. Marnie insisted they were just friends, but Carly knew better.