Taking Heart

by T. J. Kline

  Cast out by her emotionally abusive soon-to-be ex-husband, A-list actress Alyssa Cole has learned the hard way not to trust first impressions, especially not in Hollywood. Yet, four hundred miles from her former life, the kindness of this small-town vet makes her willing to try again.

  But when the truth catches up to Alyssa, will Justin be willing to stand by her?

  Or will lies and deception tear them apart forever?

  Keep reading for a sneak peek at the sweet and sexy next installment in

  T. J. Kline’s Healing Harts series,

  Close to Heart.

  An Excerpt from

  CLOSE TO HEART

  JUSTIN HART ROLLED his neck from side to side, working out the stiffness as he stared at the computer screen in front of him. He wished this new accounting program his cousin, Bailey, had insisted he try was easier to learn. He knew she was right and it would make everything easier, eventually. Right now, it was just one more thing he didn’t have time to deal with on his already full plate. With a niece on the way and a holiday double wedding next month, he was trying to get as many items as possible eliminated from his to-do list before the end of the month. And since their accountant had been imprisoned for embezzling from his sister Jessie, that now included doing his own books until he found someone else. Just one more thing on his ever-lengthening to-do list.

  Justin rubbed his eyes and leaned back in the chair, flexing his hands before folding them behind his head. He should have let Nathan, his financial guru future brother-in-law, handle it. Nathan had offered to handle Justin’s finances until they found another accountant, but that would mean spending even more time on his sister’s part of the ranch than he already did. Not that he didn’t love Jessie and Julia, but they were both so busy finding a rhythm in their new relationships that, most of the time, he felt like a third wheel. It was frustrating trying to talk to either of them while they made lovey faces at Nathan and Dylan. Making it even harder to keep from punching either man, no matter how much he liked them, considering they were sleeping with his little sisters. In his eyes, it was still his job to protect both of them, the same way he always had.

  It would piss both of his sisters off if they heard him say that out loud. He couldn’t begin to count how many times they’d both told him to quit acting like their parent over the past year. But, now that Mom and Dad were gone, God rest their souls, he was the only one left to take care of the girls. That included Bailey, the youngest of their clan and, right now, the one frustrating him the most.

  She needed to grow up and settle down, but she’d always been the family “wild child.” It was obvious from their argument after he closed his veterinary clinic this evening and the way she’d spun her tires as she pulled out that she was getting more irritated with him. He should probably call and check that she got home okay. Justin rose from behind his desk and made his way to the front windows of the clinic, lifting the blinds to watch the snow that was now coming down heavily. If Bailey hadn’t headed straight home, or went to one of the local bars as she’d been doing more often lately . . .

  Hopefully she’d missed driving in this mess. The early snowstorm was unexpected and wet, quickly turning into sludge all over the roads. He was glad he didn’t have to walk more than a few feet out the back of the clinic to his house. It might not be ideal for some, but it sure made late-night emergencies convenient for him. Or nights, like tonight, when he just couldn’t shut his brain off enough to sleep, he could get his paperwork done.

  The wide swing of headlights coming around the bend toward his clinic caught his eye. It was late and, with weather like this, most locals would know to stay inside. Suddenly, the lights spun. He could see the taillights and flashing brake lights moving forward. It had to be someone traveling too fast on the icy stretch of highway. He hung up his call to Bailey and ran back to his desk to grab his jacket when he heard the screech of metal.

  Justin ran through the front door, barely noticing the dark shadow that ducked into the bushes by the driveway. He was too focused on the car pressed against the brick wall that lined the entrance to the clinic. He could vaguely make out that the driver was a woman as he ran to the side door. Somehow she had managed to do a complete spin, stopping with the headlights facing the correct direction again, but the front bumper of her very expensive luxury car was firmly planted into his brick wall. Banging on the driver’s side window, he saw a woman look his way. With eyes wide, looking scared and surprised in the light from his phone, she opened the car door.

  “No, I’m fine, thank you. I don’t need anything but the tow,” he heard her say just before she pressed a button to disconnect a call over the speakers in the car. She hurried to the front of the car, looking past the bright lights into the bushes before turning back toward him. “Did you see it?”

  “See what? Are you okay? Do I need to call an ambulance?” The airbags in her car hadn’t even deployed, so she couldn’t have been going too fast, and she didn’t appear to be injured, although she seemed frantic as she searched the darkness.

  “I’m fine. I wasn’t going fast because of the snow, but there was a dog. Where is it? I know I hit it. We have to find it.”

  The soft thump of the windshield wipers was the only sound in the darkness as she moved toward the driveway. Had this woman lost her mind? She was out in the middle of a snowstorm, in a car that cost a small fortune, without chains on her tires, at night with nothing more than a sweater on, looking for a dog that may or may not exist.

  “Ma’am, let’s get you inside. We can wait inside for the tow truck to come get your car, and you can get warm.”

  “No, I know I hit a dog. I felt it when the car spun.”

  “Are you sure it wasn’t just you hitting the wall?” She turned back toward him, her body silhouetted by the headlights.

  Holy crap, she’s pregnant!

  He ran to her side, yanking his jacket down his arms and wrapping it around her shoulders. “Okay, let’s just get you inside, and then I’ll come back out and look for the dog.”

  She narrowed her gaze at him warily. Even in the limited amount of light they had, he could easily read the distrust in them. Or maybe it was the jaunty lift to her chin and stiff shoulders. Either way, she didn’t believe him for a second.

  He sighed loudly. “Fine, you go inside and sit down. I’ll stay and find the dog.”

  She looked as if she was about to refuse again, but she nodded once, turning off the car and grabbing her purse from the passenger seat before hurrying into the warmth of his clinic. Justin let out a low growl, wishing he could ignore his father’s voice in his head reminding him he had to keep his word. He wanted nothing more than to follow her back inside, where he could change into dry clothes. He went back to her car and, moving to the other side of the vehicle, inspected the damage. It wasn’t as bad as it could have been, but the bumper was bent forward to the point of scraping against the tire. She wasn’t going to be able to drive it until it was fixed.

  “That’s a damn shame,” he muttered. That BMW cost twice what he’d paid for his 4x4 pickup. And her car was brand-new. It was going to cost a small fortune to fix it, if they could even get the parts all the way out here. The headlights turned off automatically, and Justin looked back toward the clinic. He could see her silhouetted against the window, watching to see if he really searched for the dog. “Seriously?” he muttered to himself.

  Wandering slowly up the driveway, Justin let his eyes scan over the wet shrubs, looking for the mysterious stray dog that, if it existed, was likely long gone. He tried not to think about any worse scenarios. The snow had turned to icy rain, pelting him mercilessly as he tried to use the light from his cell phone to look for the animal. After several minutes of freezing torment, he concluded there was nothing to see. If she had even hit a dog, it had probably crawled off to die. It wasn’t pretty but it was common, and there was little he was going to be able to do to save it. He was a veterinarian, not a miracle worker. There was n
o point in staying out here, freezing, any longer while snow and icy rain slid down the collar of his flannel shirt. He almost regretted giving up his jacket.

  Justin turned off his phone and tucked it into his pocket, turning back toward the clinic to see her still watching through the window. He remembered her desperate eyes and how she’d been ready to search for the dog herself. He hated the disappointment he imagined he would see in her face and felt guilty for not finding the dog.

  What the hell?

  He turned back toward the shrubs and pulled out his phone again. This time, as the light swept over the base of a large pine, he saw the unmistakable glow of eyes. He slowly crept toward the tree, cautious of making any sudden moves that might frighten what could be a dangerous animal.

  “Come here, buddy. Are you hurt?” Justin held his hand out slightly, praying that it wasn’t a coyote. “It’s okay,” he said, using a falsetto tone.

  He heard the soft whine of an injured dog and saw the wet paws move toward him from under the shrub just before the unmistakable blocky head of a black Lab followed. “Damn it,” he muttered.

  The dog crawled toward him, low to the ground, and nudged his outstretched hand. “Are you going to let me carry you inside?” he asked the dog.

  He was rewarded with a warm lick on his fingers, as if the dog understood and was happy to comply. He moved toward the animal and circled his arms around its soaked body. Justin could feel the poor thing shivering against him, though he was unsure whether from fear, injury, or the cold, and he hurried toward the clinic.

  The woman opened the door as he reached it. “You found it!” She rubbed the dog’s face. “I’m so sorry, baby.” She followed closely as he took the dog into one of the exam rooms.

  Justin immediately palpated the animal, looking for blood and broken bones. He immediately noticed a scrape on her hip, and his fingers trailed over the animal’s rounded belly. He snatched a stethoscope from one of the drawers and pressed it against the wet dog, under its ribs.

  Crap!

  “She’s pregnant.” He should have realized as soon as he picked the dog up, but he’d been too busy trying to get inside that he hadn’t paid attention.

  “What?” The woman’s hands instinctively touched her own rounded abdomen before covering her mouth. “Oh my goodness, is she okay?”

  He took the dog’s temperature and glanced at the thermometer. It was only slightly lower than normal, but her gums were too red for his liking and she was panting faster than he would like to see. The dog rolled her chocolate brown eyes up at him. There was a good chance she was going into either labor or shock. Maybe both.

  He met the woman’s gaze and could see the worry in her green eyes, tears forming in the corners. Most of the women around here didn’t cry after hitting a stray dog in a snowstorm. They were far too worried about their own well-being or what happened to the car. She moved toward the dog’s head, stroking the animal’s silky wet ears, apologizing as if the dog could understand her words.

  “I’m going to take her to the back. My guess is that she’s far enough along to deliver these pups, but I want to see what I’m dealing with. You can’t go back there.” She remained silent but her eyes flicked up to meet his, and he could read the distrust again.

  “I can’t have you exposed to the X-rays in your condition. I’m going to do everything I can to keep this dog and her babies safe.” He reached for her hand. It was meant to be reassuring, something he’d done with dozens of patients, but the jolt of desire that shot through him took him by surprise. “I . . . I promise,” he stammered, trying to ignore the foreign emotion.

  Justin shoved the feeling aside. Sure the woman was beautiful, but it wasn’t as if he was lacking beautiful women right now. He knew there were plenty of them in town who’d been trying to nab his attention for more than one or two dates. He didn’t need romantic complications now, so he’d made sure to stick with women who wanted the same thing he did—no stress, no ties, friendships with benefits. He scooped the dog in his arms before carrying her into the back room to take the X-rays, wondering if the stress of having too much to plan and his late nights were responsible for his momentary lapse of logic and oversensitized response to the woman in his lobby. As Justin prepped the dog for sedation, he pulled his phone from his pocket and dialed Bailey’s number again. He needed her here to help him with this.

  No answer and his call went directly to voice mail.

  “Bailey, I need you to come back. I have an emergency. A pregnant Lab came in and I need to deliver these puppies by C-section. She’s going into shock.” He took a deep breath, wondering how he was going to manage this alone. “Get your ass back here now.”

  Justin disconnected the call and shoved his phone into his pocket. Was she really so pissed at him that she wouldn’t answer the phone? Or was it just his shitty luck? Either way, he was screwed.

  He looked down at the now-sedated dog lying on the table. He couldn’t waste any time if he was going to try to save her and the puppies. He’d seen the proof on the X-rays. The puppies were viable, but she had a small internal hemorrhage he had to control. He was going to have to recruit the only hands he had available.

  “I NEED YOU to help me deliver these puppies.”

  Alyssa stared at him and wondered if he’d lost his mind. She couldn’t deliver puppies. She didn’t know anything about animals. She hadn’t even been around any since she’d moved away from home and her mother’s yapping shih tzu. “I thought you said I couldn’t come back here,” she pointed out.

  “That was while I doing the X-rays.” He pointed to a door off to one side of the room. “I need another set of hands, and we can’t waste a lot of time talking about this. I’m going to open her up. When I get the puppies out, I’ll hand them to you, and I need you to wipe them down with those towels. You just need to make sure they’re all breathing, then put them over there, so that the mask blows oxygen on them.”

  She looked where he pointed at what looked like a small nest of bedding with an oxygen mask to one side of it. She looked back at the man in front of her. He was doing everything he could to help this dog, and he could have just walked away. She had been the one who caused the damage, after all.

  The dog lay on the table, completely covered with sterile blue paper, except for the exposed section the vet had wiped down with what looked like iodine. Alyssa ran her hand through her loose hair and twisted it into a makeshift knot at the back of her head and squared her shoulders, resolving herself to do this. “Okay, just tell me what you need me to do.”

  “Take these,” he said, surprised by her quick acquiescence, and handed her a pair of latex gloves. He glanced up at her as he set the scalpel against the shaved belly of the Lab. “I’m Justin Hart, by the way.” His blue eyes searched hers intensely, making her insides flutter oddly.

  “Alyssa.”

  She heard the breathless quality of her voice and cleared her throat. The corner of his lips curved up on one side as a dimple sunk deep in one cheek. Attraction slammed into her, jolting her more than when her car hit the wall outside.

  “Well, Alyssa, hold up that towel in both hands and we’ll get started. You’re about to have a litter of puppies.”

  She tried not to study him, from the rugged squared jaw to the too-broad shoulders that looked massive in the gray Henley he wore and his penetrating blue eyes. But it was his voice that drew her attention. It was deep and smooth, reminding her of rich wine and dark chocolate, and, just like those things, it was a luxury she couldn’t allow herself to enjoy too much. Not with everything that had just happened in the past twenty-four hours. She needed to keep her focus on her future, and this side trip in the middle of nowhere had already delayed her.

  As he made the first incision, her blood went cold and her stomach rolled. She didn’t think she’d made any noise, but Justin looked up at her, his eyes searching her face.

  “You okay?”

  Hold it together, Alyssa. This is no differ
ent from biology class.

  The scent of antiseptic was all around her, and she felt suddenly queasy. Unable to speak, she nodded. He dabbed at the blood that oozed with gauze, quickly but carefully working his way through the layers of skin before pulling some unrecognizable part of the dog’s insides to the outside of her body. Alyssa was surprised to find that instead of being repulsed, her curiosity got the better of her, and she watched him make another incision, revealing the first puppy. Reaching for the tray of equipment beside him, he plucked another piece of gauze from a pile and pulled open the amniotic sac encasing a small black puppy. He pulled the membrane from the puppy’s face before clamping, then clipping the umbilical cord and tipping the puppy upside down.

  “Okay, we’re going to move quickly. Here’s the first one. Just rub him really good and make sure he’s breathing.” He watched her for a moment as she ran the towel over the sides of the puppy. “Don’t forget to move over his face and neck, too. That will help work the fluid out.”

  She tried to follow his instructions, but the puppy gave a gurgled yip. Alyssa froze midstep, her gaze shooting toward his in fear. “What did I do?”

  He glanced up and chuckled at her discomfort. “Nothing. That just means he’s alive and ready to meet his mom. Get ready, I’ve got another for you.”

  She set the puppy on the towels of the makeshift bed, surprised to find them warm. Hurrying back to the operating table, she reached for a clean towel to receive the next puppy. He laid another puppy into her hands, and she began rubbing him as she walked toward the bedding.

  “Why is the bed warm?”

  “It’s enough of a shock being born without worrying about getting them sick,” he replied as he continued to work, barely glancing her way. “This way, it’s a gradual adjustment and it helps regulate their body temperature until they can do it themselves.”

  They repeated the process in silence while the squirming pile of puppies grew. Some black, some almost white-blond, but all of them grunting now, nudging one another in the pile.