“So I’ll be more Griffin’s assistant than yours?” Charlie asked.
Tori nodded. “He’s the one here most of the time. I do a lot of house calls.”
“I’d guess most small town vets don’t get a chance to work with a whole bunch of otters or even alpacas regularly,” Charlie said. “He must enjoy that.”
Was she digging for information about Griffin Foster? Absolutely.
But Tori laughed. “Oh, I’m sure our goats and alpacas and even the otters seem like a demotion to him.”
“He doesn’t like goats and alpacas and otters?” How did someone not like otters?
“He likes them. They’re just not tigers and polar bears and penguins.”
“Oh, well…” That was true. “But he didn’t really think Autre would have penguins, did he?”
“No. But he worked for zoos before coming here. I think going from tigers to goats is still a little disheartening.”
“Zoos? No way.” Okay, that was cool. A zoo veterinarian? She didn’t run into one of those every day.
“Yes, he spent time in Omaha at the Henry Doorly Zoo. He worked with all of the animals there at one time or another. Then he moved to Washington, D.C,. and was actually head of the propagation program for the tigers at the National Zoo.”
Yes, very interesting. How often did a girl meet a hot guy who was great with animals and had been a veterinarian at the zoo? Accountants, lawyers, general businessmen, even mechanics and construction workers were a dime a dozen but zoo veterinarians?
“So how did he end up here? If he thinks all of this is a demotion, why did he leave D.C.?”
That wasn’t nosy. Surely anyone who heard that Griffin had worked at zoos before and was now taking care of the goats in Autre, Louisiana, would wonder how that transition had happened.
Tori would not meet Charlie’s eyes as she answered, “He just… needed a change of pace.”
A change of pace, huh?
“And he just happened to answer your Help Wanted ad?”
“Griffin and I know each other from vet school,” Tori said with a smile. “When I found out that he…” She seemed to consider her next words, “…needed a new job—” She winced a little as if that wasn’t exactly how she meant to phrase that. “I offered him a position here as my partner. Even before I was pregnant, I was getting busier, and as we added the otters, I had more work than I can really keep up with. Griffin is a great guy and an extraordinary veterinarian, and I’m always happy to help out friends and colleagues.”
Charlie put a hand on her hip. Tori Landry was a very sweet woman. Charlie liked her a lot. Tori was also not telling Charlie the whole story about Griffin. And she was very interested.
“Why did he need a new job?” Charlie asked.
Tori actually took a step backward, shaking her head. “Um… not my story to tell.”
So there was a story.
“But what are the chances Griffin’s going to tell me the story?”
“Probably not very good,” Tori admitted. “He keeps to himself.”
Dammit, now Charlie felt like this was a challenge. She wanted his story. And she wanted him to tell her.
There was very little Charlie liked more than a challenge. Chocolate croissants. A great cappuccino. A new pair of heels. And interestingly, just over the past two months, possibly baby goats.
No, she didn’t like goats more than a challenge, but she did like baby goats more than she would have expected.
“But—” Now Tori was studying Charlie closely. “Why do you need the story?”
Because I haven’t been this interested in a guy in a really long time. Or ever.
Charlie thought quickly. Did she need to be careful here? Would Tori not let her work here if she knew what had happened between her and Griffin two months ago? If so, why would Tori care about that?
Charlie realized at that moment that she wanted this job. Here. At the vet clinic with Griffin. But Maddie had mentioned her helping Boys of the Bayou out with some marketing ideas. Charlie was certain it had been Ellie’s suggestion initially, but she appreciated that her family would give her a job. Even if it was out of pity. And temporary. She needed to come up with ten grand to pay off Alan’s stupid paint job, so she couldn’t be picky at the moment.
She could probably find a marketing job in New Orleans if she looked. But she didn’t want a job in New Orleans. This was like every other trip she’d taken to the bayou—it was a break, a vacation, a short-term getaway. A chance to have some fun, kick back, not worry about anything for a little while.
But she had plans. Goals. Dreams, even. Watching her father build his business as she’d grown up had made her want to be a part of something like that. Where a company could be more than a business. Where it could become influential and make a real difference.
Autre was just a pit stop along that road, and no matter how creative she got about activities with swamp boats and goats and otters, it wasn’t the big, meaningful work she wanted to do.
Still, in the short term, putting together a marketing plan for her family would keep her busy, and it would help them out. That would definitely make her feel good. Plus, some of her ideas could be mutually beneficial if things went her way.
And things very often went her way.
“He’s my new boss. A friend of the family. I’m nosy.” Charlie lifted a shoulder after giving three very good excuses.
Tori looked suspicious, but she nodded. “Okay.”
“But you don’t have to tell me.”
“Good,” Tori said as if that hadn’t even been a possibility. “How about we head in, and I’ll show you around?” Tori stepped to the clinic door and pulled it open. “Then Griffin really might need you in on the surgery on Brownie.”
“Great.”
Charlie followed Tori back into the clinic and took mental notes as Tori showed her around the building.
They had the storage room, four examination rooms, two surgical rooms, and the large room where they kept the dogs, cats, and other critters kenneled for their hospital stays. There were also two offices—one for Tori and one for Griffin.
Charlie lingered in the doorway to Griffin’s office, taking in as many details as she could without seeming overly interested. The room was cluttered, with stacks of folders and papers all over his desk and in piles on the floor between the desk and window. There were also magazines and books, along with a couple of t-shirts draped over one chair and a jacket on the back of another. But that was as personal as it got. There were no photos or any other personal touches. She didn’t even see a coffee cup.
The clutter with the lack of personal touches surprised her for some reason. She had no idea why. She didn’t know the guy very well.
She knew that he was an amazing kisser. She knew that she really liked having his hands in her panties—well, technically, she hadn’t had panties on when his hands had been where she really liked having them—and she loved the way he responded to blowjobs.
And that was it.
Except that he had a soft spot for animals, was good with little kids, and was funny and charming.
A funny, charming animal lover should at least have a mug that said This Probably Has Dog Hair In It.
She’d seen that mug online when she’d been scrolling for something else. She’d thought it was funny at the time, but it was weird that it came to mind now.
But yeah, she was going to get him that mug.
She liked the guy. What could she say?
“We’ll go over several of the supplies, but I just wanted to show you around for now,” Tori said. “A lot of the job is just answering the phone and assisting patients as they come in. We’re not crazy busy all the time, so Griffin will obviously handle most of the actual work, but it’s nice to have an extra pair of hands sometimes.”
“I’m game for whatever,” Charlie said. “I’m happy to help if I can.”
“Well, it’s great for me to know someone’s here with Griff
in,” Tori said. “He is such a hard worker, and he’s an amazing vet, but sometimes…”
Charlie gave Tori a little grin. There were few different ways Tori could probably fill in that blank, and Charlie was curious about all of them. “But sometimes?” she prompted.
“Customer service isn’t Griffin’s strong suit.” Tori gave her a little smile that said she was trying to be diplomatic.
Charlie nodded. “Got it. So I will be handling the customer service?”
“Please.”
Charlie laughed and followed Tori through the rest of the clinic.
“Feel free to poke around, so you know where things are, but you won’t be doing anything with the animals without Griffin. The surgical suites will need to be cleaned up after procedures though. I’ll show you all of that.”
Tori turned to the left and led Charlie toward the front of the clinic. “And this is our lobby and waiting area.”
Charlie was listening. She really was. She heard something about cleaning up and that she should go in and look around. But she was definitely distracted.
She could hear Griffin’s voice coming from one of the examination rooms. The door wasn’t shut, and Griffin was inside with Andre and Michael, and Brownie.
She couldn’t hear everything they were saying, but she could hear Griffin’s low voice and soothing tone. It did funny things to her insides. He’d been charming, sexy, dirty, and funny with her. She very much liked all of those characteristics. But something about him being soothing and reassuring made her want to get closer to that room and listen in. She took a step in that direction.
“So you promise he’ll be okay in time for my birthday?” she heard Andre ask.
“I promise that if he’s not okay to come home for your birthday,” Griffin said, “you can come here and visit him, and we’ll have a little party right here. I would hate to think that your best friend in the world wouldn’t be at your birthday party.”
Charlie wanted to take her clothes off.
It was that simple. Listening to Griffin talk to the little boy about his birthday party and his best friend, the puppy, made her want him in a way that shocked her.
She was not exactly excited to be in Autre. She loved the town and being with her family, of course, but Autre was just a place for her to rest and re-set. She also wasn’t excited to be jobless. She definitely wasn’t excited to have her mother think that she had been majorly demoted and was now begging her family for charity. But if part of her time in Autre was going to be spent around Dr. Griffin Foster, things were going to be just fine.
“Charlie?” Tori asked, turning back
Charlie shook herself and looked at Tori.
“You okay?” Tori asked.
“Yeah. Sure.” Stupidly horny, but actually, suddenly delighted to be here.
Charlie grinned to herself as she followed Tori into the front of the clinic.
“Welcome home,” her cousin Sawyer said, straightening away from the counter where he’d been leaning. He was a big guy. Six-four and broad. He was wearing a black t-shirt with a Boys of the Bayou logo and faded blue jeans that she was sure had seen many a swamp boat tour. He had a jagged scar that ran down the one side of his face from an accident on the bayou, but he was still very handsome, especially with the big grin he gave Charlie as she stepped into the lobby.
“Hey, Sawyer!” Charlie rounded the corner of the tall front counter.
Her oldest cousin pulled her into a big hug. “I hear you’ve been causing trouble.”
Charlie nodded. “As always.”
“Glad some things never change.” Sawyer patted her on the head. “You didn’t have to use the right hook I taught you?”
“I would have if I’d thought it would hurt him as much as keying his Porsche did.”
Sawyer laughed, a deep rumbling sound. “That’s my girl.”
“But, lucky for you, now that I’m here for a while, I’m going to make Boys of the Bayou bigger and better than ever.”
“You don’t have to sell us,” Sawyer said. “Anything you do will be more than we’re doing now.”
“Hey,” Maddie protested. “I’ve been doing stuff since I got back. We didn’t even have much of a website when I showed up. And we’ve got alligator cookies and much better t-shirts now.”
Maddie and her husband, Owen, another of Charlie’s cousins, owned Boys of the Bayou with Sawyer, Josh, and Bennett Baxter, Kennedy Landry-Baxter’s husband.
“Great. We can build on all of those ideas,” Charlie told Maddie. “But I have a few other things that we can try while I’m here. And if you hate them, or they don’t work by the time I leave, I’ll take my ideas with me. But if you love them and it’s going great, then I can easily help you guys keep the plan going even when I’m not here.”
Maddie nodded. “Sounds good. I don’t have a lot of time to devote to the stuff anymore because I’m helping with tours since we’re getting busier. Which is a good problem to have.”
Sawyer chuckled. “You love doing the tours,” he said. “We would’ve hired somebody else to do the tours a long time ago or talked Mitch into taking some of them over. You’re the one who wants to keep doing them.”
Maddie grinned. “I really do.”
Charlie nodded. “Then there’s no reason for you to not keep doing them. I love marketing, and I’m great at it, so I am very happy to take this on right now, and we’ll see where we’re at in a couple of months.”
“That’s how long you’re planning to stay?” Sawyer asked. “Just a couple of months?”
Charlie lifted a shoulder. She was officially in take-this-one-day-at-a-time mode. She’d been shopping on Avenue Montaigne just a few days ago and could still taste the socca. After her boss had fired her, she’d simply gotten on a plane, landed in New Orleans, and driven to Autre.
She’d known she could figure things out once she was back on the bayou.
Her short-term plan was to pay off the ten-thousand-dollar paint job.
And to make a better plan.
She was looking for jobs, but until something came along, she was going to work as a veterinary assistant and help build the Boys of the Bayou.
At least she wouldn’t have a gap on her marketing resume.
“So what do you think? New website design? Maybe we add some tote bags to those t-shirts?” Sawyer asked.
Charlie laughed. “Oh, Sawyer, you have no idea what I have in store.”
Sawyer looked at Maddie again, then back to Charlie. “What’s that mean?”
“It’s much easier to show you than just tell you.” Charlie moved behind the front desk and pulled out a large leather portfolio.
She unzipped it and laid it open on the top of the front counter. She had to move a small lamp, a potted plant, and a pencil holder out of the way. She pointed to the first page with a big smile.
Sawyer’s eyes were wide as he took in the bright green, yellow, white, and black graphics that read Boys of the Bayou Marketing Plan.
“When did you have time to do all of that?” he asked, looking at the portfolio like it might bite him. “We just decided to talk about this.” He glanced at Maddie. “Didn’t we?”
She simply shrugged.
“Ellie told me we should talk,” Charlie said. “And it’s a long trip from Paris to New Orleans.” And she’d been in first class with plenty of room and resources to work. She’d simply needed a printer when she’d landed, and those were easy enough to find.
Sawyer and Maddie both still looked a little stunned.
Well, they’d learn to go with it. Charlie was an idea factory. She didn’t need a lot of time to pull concepts together. In fact, they often came in avalanches, flooding her imagination faster than she could write them down.
“Let’s start on page one.” Charlie flipped the first page of the portfolio, showing Maddie and Sawyer the initial new design of their logo. Now that the swamp boat tour company was also taking on the animal park and the otter enclosure, they ne
eded a second logo for the animal portion of the business.
Maddie looked to Tori as if for help.
Tori just grinned and shook her head. “I’m thinking of hiring her for our marketing too.”
Maddie took a deep breath and focused on the portfolio again. “We’re getting a new logo for the Gone Wild stuff?” she asked.
“Yes, to start.” Charlie watched their faces.
Along with being very good at judging how customers responded to marketing ideas, she was also great at reading body language. A lot of times, when she came into the picture, she was the first one to introduce clients to big, exciting marketing plans, and they could get overwhelmed easily. Her cousins were definitely going to fall into that category.
The Boys of the Bayou swamp boat tour company had been started years ago by her grandfather and his best friend, Maddie’s grandfather, Kenny. It had started off as a couple of guys who would take occasional visitors out on the bayou to look around and fish and hunt. They quickly realized that people would pay them for the experience, and it had evolved over the years into a tour company they had passed down to their grandsons.
Sawyer, Josh, Owen, and Maddie’s brother, Tommy, had kept doing what they’d been doing and just slowly built the company off of their reputation as charming, fun guys with a great knowledge and love for the bayou. After Tommy had been killed on the bayou and Maddie had come back to take over her portion of the tour company, things started to evolve.
They had been having some money trouble at that point, and Maddie had brought in another partner, Bennett Baxter, the first non-Landry to ever be involved with the swamp boat tour company. Of course, now he was a pseudo-Landry because he was married to Kennedy, Josh and Sawyer’s sister. So the tour company had definitely stayed in the family.
However, thanks to Bennett’s influx of cash, Maddie’s initial marketing ideas, and just the general enthusiasm the family brought to the company, the business had continued to grow slowly over the past year.
But there was so much potential here. While this wasn’t the big, exciting opportunity that Charlie was looking for in her long-term career, she was excited to help them out.
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