Cherishing Brianna [Fate Harbor 5] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour)

by Caitlyn O'Leary

  Brianna took deep breaths as she drove, just concentrating on the road and trying to tune out the sounds of the dog whimpering. She was happy that Chance didn’t try to make small talk.

  “I see the nursery.”

  “Do you see the white fence?”

  “Yeah, but I don’t see a road.”

  “It’s a dirt road. Their office is on a ranch, they handle large and small animals. Zac and Emily work there.”

  “Do they have a clinic? She’s not going to live without care.” Brianna heard the hitch in her voice, and she didn’t like it. Damn it, this place was not good for her, she was just spilling emotions all over the place and she did not like it.

  She pulled up to what looked like a red barn and a man was waiting for her. He was opening the back door of the large cab of the truck before she had even fully stopped the truck.

  “Good, you wrapped the dog in a tarp.” He had an English accent. It was the only thing she noticed as she jumped out of the driver’s door.

  “Her. I wrapped her in a tarp. She has a broken leg and I think her ribs are broken. I also think one of her lungs is punctured, she’s bleeding from her mouth, and I saw air bubbles in the blood.”

  His brown eyes seemed to bore into hers. “Very good. Very, very good.” He had the dog in his arms, and was walking carefully toward the barn. Brianna stood watching. He looked over his shoulder, and commanded, “Follow me. I need you.” She was following him before any conscious thought went through her mind.

  She could hear the dog whining, and she heard Zac humming a song. She felt herself take a deep breath. Inside she saw stalls to the left, and to the right she saw a door.

  “Miss, please open the door.” Brianna opened it, and was transported to a whole different environment. It was a state-of-the-art doctor’s office. She supposed it was a veterinary office, but it sure looked like a doctor’s office to her. She watched as he backed through double swinging doors.

  “Emily, my partner, is on a house call. My assistant is unavailable. I need your help. Can you be of assistance? I could really use your help, and you’ve done a wonderful job so far.”

  “I’m sorry, I can’t. Isn’t there someone else you can call?” She had a flash of blood on her hands. He looked at her, and his gaze softened.

  “There’s no time, and I need your help. I know you can do this. What’s even more important, you know you can do this.” Did she?

  He took the dog over to an X-ray machine. Brianna stood back, just watching Zac placing the dog onto the X-ray table. She was tired, and grateful that she could now just leave the dog in his care.

  “Did you hear me? I need your help.” Brianna felt the slight tremor in her hand and realized she was close to the end of her rope.

  “Anna, right? You know you can help, and you know you want to help.” The poor dog was whimpering in pain, and Brianna wanted to whimper, too. She put on her calm smile, the smile she always used when she just wasn’t capable of any other expression.

  “Tell me what to do, Zac. Of course I’ll help.” He gave her a thoughtful look, but then immediately looked down at the dog.

  He handed her a heavy covering. “Put this over your chest. Sling the straps over your shoulders.”

  “Got it.” She knew the drill. He shot the pictures quickly and efficiently. Before she knew it, he had them up on the computer screen.

  “A broken leg and two broken ribs. One rib that has punctured the lung. It’s bad. We need to operate.”

  “We?”

  “I’ll need you, Anna.” She should really correct him, but she just didn’t have the energy. All of her focus was on the dog. She appreciated the care that he took in transferring her from the one table to the pristine, stainless-steel operating table in the center of the room.

  “Go to her head, and keep her calm. I need to set up an IV. She’ll be scared, and uncomfortable. Don’t be false with her, she’ll know. Animals can always tell if a person genuinely cares or not.” Brianna frowned at the man, but he just smiled at her kindly. He had emphasized the word genuinely. He had realized that she had been using her false calm expression.

  Brianna went to her the dog’s head and bent down so she could look at her beautiful brown eyes. She started petting her forehead and muzzle. She saw the glimmer of recognition in the dog’s eyes, and she didn’t want to interrupt the connection with talk. She just kept looking, not blinking. She saw the dog give a small wince as Zac inserted a needle, but other than that, their connection continued.

  Brianna was transported to a time in Dallas when she had held a toddler who had needed care. Zac then did something that caused the dog a lot of pain, and she yipped and her head turned to look at Zac.

  “Baby, he has to do it. I’m so sorry, oh baby, I’m so sorry. He’s doing his best to help you. Beautiful girl, can you come back to me, can you come and look at me?” Brianna kept raking her fingers through the fur of the shepherd, trying to massage and soothe. The way the dog leaned into the caress, Brianna assumed she was doing it correctly.

  Finally she felt the dog begin to relax, and then her eyes closed. “No! Baby, no!”

  “Anna, it’s okay. It’s the anesthesia.” Brianna whipped her head around, her red curls flying, and really saw the man in front of her for the first time. He was smiling at her as gently as he had carried the dog.

  Brianna swallowed. This was a really tough day. Not enough sleep, her family, soon a hell of a lot more family. But she could pull this off. She gave a calm smile, and watched as bronze eyes narrowed. His black hair swung around his jaw.

  “Look at me.” His voice was commanding. It must be the accent, she thought groggily. “I don’t need you to placate me. I can tell you’re tired, that this was overwhelming for you. Can we make a pact? I’ll be genuine with you, if you’ll return the favor. We have a lot to accomplish.”

  Brianna thought about the countless times that she had used just that expression with people and no one had been the wiser. Maybe it was because he worked with animals, and he was used to creatures that weren’t disingenuous, but he was right, she was being false. She finally really looked at him, not just as a healer of animals. “Yes, of course, you’re right.”

  He showed her how to scrub up and put on the surgical gloves. He had an excellent way of communicating that made it easy for her to provide him the instruments he needed when he needed them. Brianna was surprised she wasn’t squeamish during the surgery.

  She watched his hands. His fingers were long and competent. Everything about him just oozed calm and confidence. Not her kind of calm and confidence, but a real, soul-deep caring and serenity. It was almost as if he was mirroring the same kind of connection she and the dog had just experienced.

  She found herself breathing a sigh of relief as he began stitching up the incision.

  “So she’s going to be all right?”

  “Barring infection, she should be right as rain, and up chasing rabbits in a week or so. Not that she’ll be in shape to catch any.” He tipped his chin and she followed him over to the sink where they washed up. He then put on clean gloves so that he could carry the dog over to another room, where he put her into a large cage with a soft bed. He then put a cone around her head.

  “Do you have to do that?”

  “She’ll be gnawing at those incisions if I don’t.” He stripped off his gloves, threw them into a nearby trash bin, and turned that knowing gaze onto her. “I know you want her to be comfortable, but this is best.” He moved toward her. Just a half step closer and he would be pressed against her. “You did well, Anna.”

  She swallowed, his eyes, she couldn’t turn away from those brown eyes that seemed to have gold reflecting behind them. She shook her head. “Brianna. My name is Brianna.”

  “Zac Carmichael. It is good to meet you, Brianna…” He waited as he held out his hand for her to shake it.

  “Brianna Spencer.” She looked down. His hand was…was…well, they were a good representation of him. Cap
able, attractive, and compelling. She reached out and grasped it, unsurprised when a shock of attraction reverberated up her arm. She pulled back her hand, and he immediately released it, with one of those calm smiles that she knew were real. Damn it!

  Brianna yawned. And suddenly her eyes decided that they didn’t want to stay open. As a matter of fact her entire body didn’t want to stand upright.

  “Anna! I mean Brianna!” His arms were around her in an instant. She felt so dizzy, and somehow she was in a chair with her head between her knees. “Breathe, just take a few deep breaths.” She tried, but she found herself sinking forward. She realized that this wasn’t just dizziness, she was done for. She had done this a few times before, no sleep, not eating, and she’d lose consciousness and just sleep for hours.

  “Going to pass out.” Her words came out slurred. She looked at those soft brown eyes, and that was the last thing she saw.

  Chapter 4

  Before she had a chance to slip to the floor, Zac grabbed her.

  “Brianna? Wake up.” There was no response. She was gone. He pushed her back against the chair and took her pulse. It was good. She had done a remarkable job in the operating room. This couldn’t be shock. He picked her up. He was surprised how light she was considering she was at least five foot ten, and a dead weight in his arms. He took her into one of the exam rooms. Even though the tables were set up for a dog as large as a St. Bernard, they still were too small for a fully grown adult.

  He settled her into the fetal position, pulled out a stethoscope, and checked her heart. It was fine. When he pulled back her eyelids and checked her pupils, they were fine as well. She just seemed to be in a deep sleep. He pulled out his cell phone and redialed the number of the man who had called to alert him that she had been coming with an injured dog.

  “Hello.”

  “Hi, this is Zac Carmichael, the veterinarian you called earlier.”

  “How’s the dog doing?”

  “Who’s this?”

  “This is Sam Booth. Is everything okay?” Zac felt relieved when he heard the man instantly go from casual to focused.

  “Anna, I mean Brianna, has passed out. She was fine. In fact, she had been doing wonderfully. She assisted me with the surgery. Then she got dizzy, and I got her to a chair and she passed out. All of her vitals check out. It’s like she’s in a deep sleep.” The pause on the other end of the line lengthened, and Zac took a deep breath, reminding himself that with pauses often came answers.

  “Let me guess, the dog came out of the surgery fine, everything had settled down?” Sam asked.

  “Exactly.” Good, he was talking to someone who understood the situation.

  “She had a really rough night, and I don’t know that she’s eaten either yesterday or today. I’m almost positive it’s exhaustion. Give me thirty minutes and I’ll come pick her up. What’s your—” There was another pause. “Damn it, she has my truck. Make that an hour.”

  “There’s really no need. If all she needs is rest and food, I have a spare bedroom. She can sleep here, and I can make sure she eats. Then after she eats she can drive back, and I’ll follow her.” There was something about her that just called to him, and he didn’t want to let her out of his sight so quickly. Actually, if he were really honest, he knew exactly what it was, but he thought he was past the point of believing in visions.

  Looking down at Brianna now that she was asleep, she looked so vulnerable, and now he was worried that there could be more to the story than just food and sleep. He was going to insist she see Dr. Linden in town, and get a full blood workup. At the very least, she was likely anemic. Again he waited while there was a pause on the other line. This time he realized the phone had been muted.

  “Zac, this is Chance. I hear you have my baby sister there, and she passed out.”

  “Yes, she did.”

  “Look, she does that sometimes, she just runs and runs, and then drops where she’s standing. Sam says you’re okay to have her stay there? We can be there in forty-five minutes.” Zac looked down at the sleeping woman. He didn’t mistake her for a girl, even though her face was finally relaxed into a natural state, her defenses down.

  “I already suggested to Sam that she stay with me for a few hours. I’ll check on her, make sure she’s all right, and then feed her when she gets up.” Zac would swear he could hear Chance thinking. “If there is a problem, remember I do have medical training.” And with that, Zac knew that Chance would acquiesce.

  “I think that would be a good idea. We’re going to have a house full and I think the peace and quiet would do her some good.”

  “I’ll call you when she wakes up.”

  “This is Sam’s phone. Let me give you my number, you can call either one of us.” Chance gave his number, and after he hung up, Zac plugged it into his phone. After he made sure that Brianna was secure on the table he left the exam room at a fast clip. As soon as he opened the door he saw Chaos waiting patiently for him across the drive between the barn that housed the veterinarian clinic and his house. He gave the release sign as he ran toward the house, and Chaos was immediately by his side.

  The only bedroom on the bottom floor was his. He’d changed the sheets yesterday. When he got to his room, he pulled back the comforter then left the door to the house open as he jogged back to the clinic. He left that door open as well as he made his way back to Brianna.

  When he reached her, she hadn’t moved a muscle. He picked her up and went through all of the open doors, then gently placed her on his bed. He was taken aback by the visceral response he had at the sight of her red hair spread out on his pillows. She didn’t even stir, and one arm was placed awkwardly underneath her. He repositioned her so that she would rest more comfortably, and tucked the comforter around her. He went to the window and pulled the curtains shut so only a little of the late afternoon sun sparkled through.

  He glanced over his shoulder and paused, noting how a shaft of light made Brianna’s skin look pearlescent. Zac smiled as he leaned over and placed a kiss on her forehead, hoping that even in her unconscious state she would feel the warmth of affection. Even though he had talked to two overprotective brothers today, he still got the sense that this was a woman who could do with more affection in her life, and perhaps protection. Zac found himself pondering this thought as he went back through the house and clinic, shutting doors and checking on animals.

  Chapter 5

  “Can you wake up, Angel?”

  Her eyes popped open, and she immediately found herself looking into the concerned amber eyes.

  “Zac,” he reminded her. He was the vet, and he somehow knew that she couldn’t pull his name out of her fuzzy mind. She pushed up, but flopped back down, her head hitting soft pillows. “Damn it.” She slammed her eyes shut as she felt tears of frustration welling. She hated feeling this vulnerable. She knew down to the instant the last time she had pushed herself to the breaking point, but at least she had woken up in her apartment. It had been Dallas, five months ago.

  “Zac. I remember. You helped me. I mean the dog.” It was still unclear, and she was dizzy. The sleep had helped some, but not enough. He woke her up. Why?

  “Yes…” Such a gentle voice. He was talking to her like she was sick or injured. She hated that. She wasn’t. He needed to stop.

  “Zac,” she snarled, but it didn’t come out right. It came out soft, and there was a definite hitch in her voice.

  “You’re here in my house. It’s next to the clinic. I brought you some soup. You really need just a little bit of food, and then you can go back to sleep.” She let out a deep breath. He wasn’t talking in that nice tone anymore. It was more matter-of-fact. She slowly opened her eyes and saw that his expression was the one she remembered before, from the clinic, the real calm expression. That expression that she knew went soul deep, and frightened her for some reason.

  “Brianna, you need to eat. Just a little bit, then you can go back to sleep.” She had watched him carefully. No pity. Th
at was good. Zac put his arm around her back, and easily lifted her into a seated position as he placed pillows behind her to prop her up. So strong. He smelled good.

  He picked up a mug from the nightstand and lifted it to his lips and took a sip. “It’s not too hot.” He gave a slight smile. He pulled her hands into his then placed the cup into them, holding his around hers until he assured himself that she had a good grip. At all times, it was extremely clear that he was in charge. It rankled. It felt good. Her eyes widened in shock. Where had that thought come from? She stared down in her soup so he couldn’t see her face.

  “Drink, Brianna.” She lifted the cup to her lips, before she even consciously thought it through. It was tomato, her favorite. After four sips, he stilled her hand before she lifted the mug again.

  “There’s buttered toast and water.” Her stomach rumbled before she had a chance to reject the offering. “I’ll take that as a yes,” he said, his tone amused. He took the soup from her, put a napkin down on her lap, and set down the plate with the toast. She grimaced when her hand trembled as she brought the bread to her mouth, but then the buttery goodness took away all concerns, and she savored the smooth flavors as she finished the first half and greedily grabbed the second. She ignored his chuckle.

  “Water?” Who did she have to kill? He handed her the icy-cold bottle, the lid already off, and she gulped down three swallows only to have the water tugged gently from her hands. “Not so fast, Angel.” She gave him a glare and tried to pull back the bottle but found that she didn’t have the strength to win.

  “Brianna, when was the last time you ate? Rested?” She looked up at him. His dark skin looked warm and inviting in the lamp light. He was looking at her expectantly. “Answer me.” His voice was implacable like a river running through a canyon, and she knew he would continue to ask until she answered.

  “I don’t remember. I might have slept an hour or two last night.”