Page 5 of Moore to Love

A few minutes later, Joshua buzzed the intercom on my desk phone to say, “Your one o’clock appointment is here.”

“Great, I’ll be out in a second.”

I refused to acknowledge the excitement in my veins as anything other than anticipation over hiring my newest team member. But I was smacked in my face with reality when I walked into the reception area and found Eloise bent over at the waist to pet a dog who had arrived early for their appointment. Her pert ass was the first thing I spotted, and the urge to reach out and pat one of the rounded globes was strong enough that I fisted my hands at my sides. Then I clenched them tight enough that my knuckles whitened when I noticed Rocky’s owner staring down the front of her blouse.

Clearing my throat to get Jim’s attention, I glared at him as the beautiful single mom straightened and shot me a shy smile. “Sorry, I got distracted by this cutie.”

Jim smirked until Eloise reached down to scratch behind Rocky’s ear. Then I was smiling because he was conceited enough to think she’d been referring to him when it was obvious she’d been talking about his two-year-old boxer. “No worries, I get distracted by the cuteness of my patients all the time.”

“We all do,” Joshua agreed, circling his desk to crouch next to Rocky. Stroking the dog’s back, he tilted his head to smile up at Eloise. “It’s one of the best perks of the job…all the unconditional love from our patients.”

Tucking her hands in the pockets of her black pants, she murmured, “I’ll definitely keep that in mind.”

Jim perked up at her response, and I gripped Eloise’s elbow to guide her to my office before he could ask the question I saw in his eyes. Hiring her took on a new level of complexity as I wondered how many of my patient’s owners were going to try to hit on her. With how often women pulled that shit with me, I had a feeling it was going to be way more often than I’d appreciate.

“Sorry about that,” I muttered as I circled my desk while she got settled on one of the guest chairs.

She tilted her head to the side and pursed those plush lips of hers. “I don’t understand. For what?”

Her pretty green eyes filled with confusion, and I realized there was a good chance she didn’t know Jim was interested in her as more than my potential employee. I sure as fuck wasn’t going to be the one who pointed it out to her, so I went with a bullshit—but equally true—reply. “The hecticness that is my waiting room.”

“Don’t apologize for that.” She beamed a smile at me that made her even more beautiful. “It’s a lucky thing for me that your clinic is so busy, or else you wouldn’t be looking for extra help.”

“I like how you think.”

Her cheeks turned pink at my compliment. “Thanks, always looking for the silver lining is probably one of my best character traits when it comes to working with a team.”

It also made her even more attractive, especially since she had every reason to be a pessimist after her divorce. “The rest of my team tends to have a positive outlook as well, so you’ll fit right in.”

“I should warn you that I have zero office experience. I was only a junior in college when I had Benjamin, and I was supposed to do an internship the next semester, but that obviously didn’t happen. And my availability is tricky since I have primary custody of my children. I can’t start too early because I need to drop them off at school first, and I can’t work too late because I need to pick them up in the afternoon. Plus, I’m taking college classes online so I can finally finish my degree. This semester, they’re all asynchronous, so I don’t have to be online at a specific time for lectures or anything. But there will be a couple times when I have to log in for an exam during the day. And it might change next semester, depending on how the classes I need are offered.” She bit her bottom lip and shook her head. “Sorry, I tend to babble when I’m nervous.”

“There’s no need for you to be anxious.” I aimed a reassuring smile at her. “You came with one of the best recommendations out there.”

“From Ryland?”

“Nah, his better half.” I chuckled. “Waverly had good things to say about you, but Ryland remained tight-lipped. He mumbled something about attorney-client privilege, but she mentioned that the woman who does her hair is a neighbor of yours.”

“Charlene means well, but she’s a bit of a blabbermouth.” She rolled her eyes with a shrug. “It works for her, though, since the flow of gossip in her shop is one of the things that makes her the most popular hairdresser in Mooreville.”

“If your hair is any indication of her skills, I can see why so many women go to her.”

She blushed again at my compliment, but this time, she ducked her head and fiddled with the sleeve of her blouse. Her voice was soft as she replied, “Thanks.”

We’d delved into territory that clearly made her uncomfortable, so I guided the conversation back to the reason she was here. “Joshua wants to become a vet tech. Bringing in some extra help will give him time to study, but his classes are at night, so your schedule would be as flexible as you’d like.”

Her pretty green eyes widened. “You created a whole position so that one of your employees can go back to school?”

Her question put me in a tough spot. Although I’d been considering bringing in extra help for Joshua before Waverly told me about Ellie’s situation, knowing that I could help her out of a jam had made the decision easy. “Joshua isn’t just any employee. He’s been with me since he graduated with his associates degree five years ago. Plus, when he’s licensed as a vet tech, he’s going to be a huge help around here. So there’s something in it for me, too.”

She shook her head with a laugh. “You can try to act like you’re being selfish, but I have too much experience with an egotistical man to fall for it.”

Realizing what she said, she pressed her lips together, her cheeks filling with a pretty color. Leaning forward, I held her gaze as I murmured, “The only person who should be embarrassed is your ex. Not you.”

“I can’t believe how nice you’re being. After everything your family has done for me…” She sniffled, twisting her hands in her lap. I struggled to remain in my seat while she pulled herself back together. “I can’t begin to thank you all enough.”

“I can think of one way.” I nudged the new employee paperwork toward her. “You could help me out by accepting the job.”

“Well, I guess if you put it that way…” She reached for the stack of papers. “Count me in.”

---