Page 11 of Vow Of A Fox

“That’s actually a great idea. Smart,” I said, meaning it. “If you want, I could put some cards out at my clinic for you.”

She took another sip from her beer and then tossed me a grin. “That would be amazing, except I don’t have cards made up yet.”

I chuckled, shaking my head. “You’re really selling this business, aren’t you?”

“I know, I know,” she said, throwing her hands up in mock defeat. “I’m working on it. Just maybe not in the order I should be.”

Before I could say anything more, my phone buzzed in my pocket. I glanced at the screen and frowned. “Sorry, I need to take this,” I said, standing and making my way outside. “Hello, this is Dr. Andrews,” I answered once I stepped out into the parking lot.

“Dr. Andrews, it’s Donna Puglisi—my golden retriever, Bella. She went into labor a few hours ago, but something’s wrong. She’s panting hard, and I haven’t seen any puppies yet. I think she’s in trouble.”

“Okay,” I said, my mind shifting into problem-solving vet mode. “First, take a deep breath. Is she pushing, or does it look like she’s straining without anything happening?”

“She’s straining, but nothing’s coming out,” Donna said, her voice shaky. “I don’t know what to do.”

“All right,” I said, keeping my tone calm. “This could be a positioning issue or something more serious. I need you to check if you can see anything—like a sac or a puppy starting to crown.”

“Okay, hang on. No, I don’t see anything. She’s just straining.”

“Got it. Keep her calm, and make sure she’s in a comfortable, quiet space. Is she drinking water?”

“She’s ignoring it,” Donna said, her panic rising again. “Dr. Andrews, what if she?—”

The call abruptly cut off and my screen went black.

Damn it, my phone died.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I muttered, running a hand through my hair in frustration.

I quickly headed to my truck for a charger. After rummaging around, I realized I didn’t have one. Pulling in a deep breath, I remembered moving it to my desk at the clinic because my office charger had stopped working.

Shit.

I headed back inside the bar, prepared to let Sienna know what was going on, and that I needed to cut our night of fun short.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, her observant eyes noticing right away that something wasn’t right.

“That was one of my patients calling. Her golden retriever went into labor and there’s a complication,” I said. “I need to get over there, but I don’t have the address and my phone just died in the middle of the call.”

“Oh, no!” Concern tinged her words.

“I need to head to the clinic so I can pull up her file and get the address—and my phone charger, apparently.” The weight of the situation pressed down on me. “I’m so sorry. Can I get a raincheck on karaoke?”

“Of course. Do you need help?”

I blinked, caught off guard by her offer. “Actually, yeah. I could use an extra set of hands if you’re serious.”

“Let’s go,” she said, grabbing her bag. “Oh. Wait.” She rummaged through her purse and pulled out a charger.

I stared at her, surprised. “You carry a universal charger in there?”

“Let’s just say I know someone who’s good at making sure people have what they need.” She smirked.

It fit perfectly, of course, and once we got to my truck, I called Donna back. She gave me a quick update and then I got her address. Plugging the address into my GPS app, I glanced over at Sienna.

“Thanks for this. I owe you.”

“Don’t mention it,” she said, her smile genuine. “Thanks for letting me come along.”

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