Veterinarian's Date with a Billionaire

by Amelia Addler

  James felt extraordinarily annoyed that she would try to pin this on him. Technically everyone played a role in the parrot getting out. Rose took him out of his cage, the husband opened the door, Juliet showed up to film the bird – and sure, James had the camera, but he didn’t launch at the bird with the camera or anything. It wasn’t his fault that Deno didn’t understand video cameras or doors!

  James had a lot of time to replay Deno’s escape in his head, because he had to squat behind that bush for the next hour. He had varying degrees of numbness from his hips down. Squatting was not a good position.

  Rose continued calling to Deno, but he did not move, not even by an inch.

  Finally, Juliet got back up and approached Rose with a new idea.

  “Is Deno jealous of anyone? Like maybe your husband?”

  She shook her head. “No, not really.”

  “How about your dog? Does he get jealous when you pay attention to the dog over him?”

  “No, I can’t say that he does. Sometimes he’ll fly over and bite his tail, but it’s not when I’m paying attention to him.”

  Juliet frowned. “Is there anything that you can think of that you do that makes him act out to get your attention?”

  Rose paused, her line of sight with Deno unbroken. “He doesn’t like when I’m on the phone for too long. He’ll keep repeating ‘goodbye’ and start making police siren noises.”

  “Ah,” said Juliet. “Okay, here’s what I want you to do. I’m going to go back and hide in the bushes so I can keep an eye on him. I want you to pull out your phone and pretend like you’re having a conversation. I want you to walk away, slowly, and go back into the house.”

  “I can’t leave him out here!” Rose protested.

  “I know. But I think he’s afraid of the height and afraid to come down. As long as he knows that you’re nearby, he feels safe. But we can’t sit here much longer, he’s going to freeze. We have to get him moving.”

  Rose stood for a moment, considering it. Finally she agreed to try. Juliet ran back to hide. Rose’s husband, who was stationed in the front yard, found himself a hiding spot as well. James made sure not to move, even though he felt like his spine was going to break.

  Rose took a deep breath and pulled out her cell phone. “Hello? Hi, thanks for calling. What am I doing? Oh, you know, just trying to convince a stubborn bird to come back in the house…” She turned and started walking away.

  At first, Deno didn’t flinch. But then, he stooped low, trying to get a better look at Rose. He stood up really straight and stretched out his wings. He flapped a few times as though to get her attention. She kept walking.

  Finally, when she was almost to the house, he let out a shrill squawk before leaping from the tree, flying directly towards Rose.

  She turned and saw him coming before quickly sticking out her arm. He landed gracefully on her hand. Without another word, she darted into the house.

  Chapter 7

  Finally, something worked.

  Juliet stood up from behind the bush. Her hands and feet were freezing, but it felt like they might finally be getting some blood flow again.

  She kept telling Rose that there was nothing to worry about, though that wasn’t entirely true. A lot could have gone wrong and sent Deno flying into the distance never to be seen again. Juliet took a deep breath – thank goodness that didn’t happen.

  Rose’s husband approached. “Thank you so much, I don’t know what we would’ve done without you.”

  Juliet cringed. “If we hadn’t come in the first place, this never would’ve happened. I’m so sorry. We’ll go now.”

  “No.” He shook his head. “Please, come inside and warm up.”

  “I’m sure that Rose would prefer to never see us again,” Juliet said, rubbing her forehead.

  “Just wait here,” he said. “I’ll go inside and check on them and see what the mood is like.”

  “Appreciate it!” yelled James.

  Juliet closed her eyes. As much as she needed James for a ride, she couldn’t bring him along if he was going to endanger the life of every pet they met along the way. She couldn’t yell at him in front of everyone, but she also didn’t know how long she could keep it in. She waited until Rose’s husband disappeared into the house before she turned to James.

  “Could you act even a little bit sorry about what happened?”

  “What!” he protested. “I feel really bad that the bird escaped. It’s not like I wanted that to happen.”

  “But it doesn’t matter to you that it happened, does it?”

  “How is this my fault?”

  Juliet sighed and walked away from him. “Nothing is ever your fault, is it James?”

  Before he could respond, Rose’s husband came back outside. “Juliet, would you mind taking a look at Deno to make sure that he’s okay?”

  “Of course,” she said, following him to the house.

  Juliet was very careful when she opened and closed the door behind her – so careful that James wasn’t able to make it inside with her. She turned and gave him a dirty look through the window, motioning that he should go back to the car. He eventually relented.

  She found Deno in the kitchen with his feet wrapped around the sink faucet.

  “I’m running the hot water to warm him up,” said Rose. “Do you think he’s going to be okay? He’s not supposed to be out in the cold.”

  Juliet slowly walked towards him. “I think so. Has he been acting normally?”

  Rose nodded. “Yes, but his feet were freezing. I cut up some of his favorite fruits to see if he wants to eat.”

  She handed him a slice of apple. He immediately reached out to take it and started devouring it.

  Juliet took a few minutes to examine him. “Even though it felt like an eternity, we weren’t out there that long. He had some cover from the trees, plus he puffed up his feathers to keep himself warm. I don’t see anything wrong with him and I think he’s going to be okay. I’m glad that it wasn’t colder today and the sun was out.”

  Rose let out a big sigh. “Thank goodness.”

  Juliet continued. “I cannot tell you how sorry I am that this happened. I will – ”

  Rose held up a hand to stop her. “Please, don’t worry. This isn’t the first time that he’s gotten out. But it was the coldest and longest trip that he’s had. Last time, it was my son that opened the window and scared him. This time it was my husband. These men are going to kill my bird!”

  Rose and Juliet burst into laughter.

  “I have to remember that trick about the phone in case he gets out again,” said Rose. “That was perfect. He can’t stand me being on the phone.”

  “Yeah,” Juliet said with a smile. “That really motivated him. I’m so relieved that he flew down. And again, I’m so sorry.”

  Rose smiled. “Everything’s okay. Can I give you some tea to warm you up?”

  Juliet waved a hand. “No, thank you. We should get going.”

  “Alright,” said Rose. “But be sure to send me the video when it’s done! My Deno is going to be famous!”

  “He certainly is!”

  Juliet thanked her again and headed out to the car. James was there, listening to music.

  “I’m guessing you don’t want to listen to Adele right now?” he said.

  “You guessed right. Please take me back to Lansing.”

  He scrunched his eyebrows together. “I thought we were going to Dayton tomorrow?”

  “We are not going anywhere. I’m going home.”

  Even as she said the words, she knew they didn’t make sense. She had no way of getting herself to Dayton, but she couldn’t stand spending another minute with him.

  “Oh come on,” he said. “Driving back to Lansing today will take an hour. Then tomorrow, we’ll have to come back this exact same way and it’ll just add an hour to our time.”

  “You don’t have to worry about it,” she said. “Because from here on out, I’m going to rent a car and
do the rest of this trip myself.”

  “Is this because of the bird?”

  “What do you think?” Her voice rose. “And he’s not a bird, he’s a parrot!”

  “He’s a bird, he’s a parrot, he’s a little feathery dragon – whatever you want to call him,” said James. “And I’m sorry. I’m sorry that he got outside and almost froze to death. I’m sorry that he almost turned into a parrot popsicle.”

  “That’s not funny,” said Juliet, even as she felt a smile tugging at the corner of her mouth.

  “You’re right, it wouldn’t have been funny if it happened, but it didn’t happen. So we can joke about it.”

  Juliet let out a frustrated sigh as she replayed Deno’s escape in her head. “Why did you lunge at him with the camera? You knew he was afraid of it.”

  “I didn’t lunge at him!”

  “Yes you did. I’ll play the video and show you.”

  James frowned. “I don’t know that we need to review the evidence here.”

  “Yes we do, because you never admit that you’re wrong.”

  She sat there, arms crossed, awaiting his response. This was a fight they often had when they were dating. James never fully took the blame for anything.

  Finally, he spoke up.

  “I’m sorry that Deno got out. I was genuinely afraid of him, but when I saw how great the footage was of him out of his cage, I got a little too excited. I admit that I stepped towards him and that spooked him into flying. Unfortunately, at that same moment, Rose’s husband opened the door. It was a recipe for disaster, and yes, I played a big role. I’m very sorry that I wasn’t more careful.”

  Juliet kept glaring at him. Was he actually apologizing? This was very unlike him. Was this a part of his ploy?

  “I didn’t mean for it to happen,” he continued. “But you were amazing! You knew exactly what to do to save him. I’m a dunce when it comes to birds, but you saved the day. Will you please let me make it up to you?”

  She shifted in her seat. “I don’t know. You almost killed him!”

  “Please don’t make me go back to Lansing today,” he pleaded.

  Juliet laughed. “What’s wrong with Lansing?”

  “Nothing,” he said. “But it’s one hour in the wrong direction. How about you let me formally apologize for my role in Deno’s great escape? It’s getting pretty late, we can get a nice dinner, and I would happily pay for a hotel so we can start fresh from Ann Arbor in the morning.”

  Juliet opened her mouth to protest, but James cut her off. “Obviously we would get separate hotel rooms.”

  “Good,” she said. “Because – ”

  “I know!” He flashed a smile at her. “I have a really important question for you, though.”

  Oh no, was this it? Was he going to ask for whatever he was after now?

  “What?”

  “What do you think is going to happen to Rose’s husband? I mean, he’s the one who actually opened the door, and I’m guessing that they’re still not speaking. Should I get him a room, too?”

  Juliet giggled, rubbing her face with her hands. “I do feel bad for the guy. Deno is clearly a one-woman kind of bird.”

  James nodded. “There’s no room for the husband in that relationship.”

  “No, there isn’t,” she agreed.

  “So what do you say? I admit that I’m an idiot and I’m afraid of little parrots. You can enjoy a nice dinner at a restaurant of your choice and not make me drive back to Lansing today.”

  It was tempting. Plus it would save them a lot of time. Even though she threatened to rent a car, her credit card was almost maxed out, so that wasn’t a real option. If she wanted to make this video and potentially save the clinic, James was her best bet.

  At least he admitted that he messed up, which James from five years ago never would’ve done.

  She squinted at him. “Can we get Chinese food?”

  “I thought you’d never ask.”

  Juliet found a nearby restaurant online and James started driving. She still didn’t know what he was up to, but at least he was being nice.

  There was no harm in being civil with him. For now.

  Chapter 8

  They made it to the restaurant in fifteen minutes. James was glad to see that Juliet’s mood improved; he thought that he was about to get the boot there for a minute.

  He didn’t know what saved it – was it the thought of dinner, or a warm bed to sleep in? Or was it the fact that he took the blame for his role in Deno’s escape? Whatever it was, James was happy. He just got her to start speaking to him. He needed more than one day to get her to fall in love with him again.

  The restaurant was packed and buzzing with activity. They were seated at a high table right in the middle of all the action. It made it a bit hard to talk, but James was undeterred.

  He squared himself away in his seat. “Alright, I’m going to guess what you’re going to order.”

  “I’d like to see you try.” Juliet crossed her arms.

  James smiled. He liked the challenge – and he liked to think he still knew Juliet pretty well.

  “What do I get if I’m right?”

  “You get to brag that you were right about something.”

  “Fair enough.” He picked up the menu and scanned the options. On second thought, this might not be the best restaurant for this game. The menu had five pages of stuff.

  “Are you ready?” she asked.

  He flipped back a page and studied a few options before making his decision. “Yes. You’re going to order…the Amazing Chicken.”

  “Nope.”

  He narrowed his eyes. “How do I know that you didn’t just change your mind last minute so that I couldn’t be right?”

  “Look at your phone,” she said.

  James pulled his cell phone out of his pocket. There was a text from her that read, “Szechuan tofu.”

  He shook his head. “When did you go vegetarian?”

  She laughed. “I’m not vegetarian, I just try to eat tofu sometimes. I…feel bad for the chickens.”

  “What about cows?”

  “Definitely feel bad about cows, too.” She cleared her throat. “I know what you’re going to order.”

  “Oh yeah? Try me.”

  “First text me so you can’t cheat.”

  He typed out his meal and hit send.

  Juliet didn’t break eye contact. “Pad Thai.”

  “How did you know that?” he exclaimed.

  She laughed. “You always order that. I had a feeling you hadn’t changed.”

  He crossed his arms. “What do you mean? You think I haven’t changed at all in the last five years?”

  “Honestly?” She sat back and studied him for a moment. “No.”

  He opened his mouth in mock outrage. “I resent that. I’ll have you know that I memorized the opening lines to Law and Order SVU, plus my doctor said I have arthritis in my right knee. Those are some big changes if I do say so myself.”

  “Sure,” she said. “And you’re still ordering Pad Thai everywhere you go.”

  “What’s wrong with Pad Thai? It’s a great meal.”

  “Nothing,” she said. “You just never get to experience anything new.”

  “What’s so great about new things? I usually work at least 60 hours a week. If I have the chance to relax and have a nice dinner, I can’t risk ordering something weird. My life is too tumultuous to risk something like that.”

  She laughed heartily. “Seriously?”

  “Alright,” he said, “I’m going to order something different today.”

  “Like what?”

  “Well,” he reopened the menu. “I’m not going to tell you so that you can’t make fun of me.”

  “Okay.”

  She looked away at her cell phone. James had a hard time focusing on the menu; he kept staring at her. How he missed that smile all of this time. James would happily try a new meal if it would show her that he was different than before.

>   They placed their orders, James getting something with scallops in it, and their food came out surprisingly quickly.

  “Do you think they just have it ready back there?” asked James. “Do people only order like three revolving things?”

  “If the restaurant patrons are anything like you, then yes,” she replied.

  They were both hungry and finished their meals quickly. James thought his choice was pretty good, but not as good as the Pad Thai would’ve been. He decided not to mention that to her.

  He managed to pay for the tab when she went to use the restroom. Even though he didn’t know how much money he had in his bank account, he knew that it was more than she had in hers. She was on another level, getting verbally attacked by her landlord. The least he could do was pay for things here and there.

  When she returned, he excused himself to use the restroom. Really what he wanted to do was call a hotel and book two rooms under his name before she could protest.

  He knew that she wouldn’t like that he paid for dinner and then paid for the hotel rooms, but this was part of his apology, so it had to be allowed.

  He had to break the news to her when he got back to the table. She was already sitting there, arms crossed.

  “You didn’t have to pay for my meal,” she said. “This isn’t a date, you know.”

  He put his hands up, as if to surrender. “Yes, don’t attack! I know this isn’t a date, but this is my apology for scaring the parrot into a near death experience. Remember?”

  She gave a begrudging shrug.

  “And because I’m the one who doesn’t want to drive back to Lansing, I also took the liberty to book our rooms at The Tiffany Suites.”

  “James!” she said. “That place is crazy expensive.”

  “Again,” he said with a wince, “this is part of my apology. I travel a lot for work, actually I travel most weeks during the year. So I have a lot of rewards points with them. The rooms were practically free. And you’re going to have a really comfortable bed, and everything in the mini fridge is complementary.”

  This piqued her interest. “Really? They never do that. It’s always like six dollars for a candy bar.”