Page 10 of A Love Like Pumpkin Spice
“Am I okay?” I repeat through tears and take a step back, gingerly setting down Chaos’s lifeless head on the sterile steel table. For one last time, I run my fingers over her tiny, soft forehead. “What a great question, Mr. Vet.” I don’t know what to do with my hands, until finally, I clutch the hem of my shirt.
“No. No, I’m not okay. My whole life is going to shit and this little creature dying just became the tip of the shitshow fate is throwing my way.” I start pacing the cramped little room, everything breaking out of me.
“You know, one second, I had a good life. Then I caught my fiancé cheating with my sister, and now I get to pick up the pieces. And I thought she was it.” I point at the lifeless Chaos on the table, more tears falling from my eyes. “She was well on her way to becoming my living, breathing omen that everything would be all right. I believed so strongly in her recovery, I already imagined how we would navigate this new life together. Hoped some cosmic, I don’t know, entity sent her specifically for me, a sign that there was hope. The universe saying, ‘Welcome, weary traveler. You’ve made it to Wayward Hollow, and life here will be good.’ She was going to be thefirst new friend I made here—the adorable sidekick to this new life.”
I wipe tears off my cheeks while the rant continues to bubble out of me.
“And now she’s dead. Actually dead. I haven’t even seen my new house yet, not unpacked a single box, and my sign from the universe is just … gone. This tiny glimmer of hope, yanked away like ‘Whoops, sorry, never meant to get your hopes up!’ And if my hypothetical good omen is now lying dead on this table”—I take a deep breath and turn to face him, all the fight and hope I had, falling from me as my voice breaks—“what does that mean for me?
“Everything is a mess, and I can’t think of anything to make it worse—I know saying that out loud is daring the universe to one-up itself, but I don’t get it. Was she a sign that things would get better or that I still have a way to go to rock bottom?”
I stop, breathing heavily, my eyes burning with even more unshed tears.
“Fuck. I’m sorry, I don’t know what I’m saying!” I sob, and my eyes jump to little Chaos on the table once more. “Ignore me. Please, for the love of God, pretend you didn’t hear that.” I take another deep breath and square my shoulders, wiping my face before facing him. “So, what now?”
“Eh …” I finally truly look at the man, and it takes everything in me to contain a gasp.
Why is every man in this town so goddamn attractive? First the Sheriff and now the vet?
Obviously, I noticed that he was roughly my age. But in my panic, I never realized he appeared to be fresh out of a fashion magazine. His dark green shirt stretches slightly over his muscular shoulders, the sleeves rolled up to just below his elbows. He's got a jaw that looks sharper than the scalpels I can see in the corner of the exam room. But what makes my cheeks turn red are his eyes.
Beautiful blue eyes that radiate kindness and calm, even though the rest of his face is marked by worry.
His tousled dark blond hair seems intentionally imperfect, every strand laid down with the right precision to make it appear effortless, like he ran his fingers through his hair.
And here I am, probably with mascara running down my face and definitely wearing clothes covered in Chaos’s blood. Because that’s just me and the perfect first impression I intended to make on my future neighbors. All part of my plan. Obviously.
“Would you like to … bury her?” he asks, and my eyes dart back to the table, more tears gathering in my eyes. God, I can’t take my eyes off her. Poor little Chaos.
“You know what?” I clear my throat and blink a few times before I continue. “I think I would like that.” Then I sigh and deflate. “But I wouldn’t even know where, I haven’t even—”
“Been to your house, I know.” My eyes jump back to him, and I open my mouth to apologize again for my earlier rant when his warm hand on my shoulder makes me shut up.
“Don’t worry about it. You had a rough day. Get to your new place and have a warm cocoa.” He tilts his head, then softly shakes it, giving my shoulder a soft, reassuring squeeze. “Maybe a spiked one. I can keep her until tomorrow if you’d rather come to collect her then?”
“That—” I pause as my emotions well up again. “I—”
“You’re welcome. Now, I have to fill out some paperwork. Why don’t you stay with her a bit longer? I have one of the best cuddlers to keep you company.”
“And then he brought me to the waiting room and told me to stay put for a minute, promising he had something to make my day better. And,yes, I know how that sounds, Lauren, but he did not whip his dick out. Nope, he sent in his dog, an adorable husky with the most striking blue eyes,” I tell Lauren, words tumbling over each other.
I’m not doing great by any means. But I can at least pretend to myself that I have a grip on my emotions again.
She appeared at my place only minutes after I pulled into the driveway, quicker than a raccoon sensing an unattended snack. And now, she’s helping me carry the rest of my boxes into my new home.
They hold the kind of mementos I wouldn’t dare trust a moving company with. My electronics, my movie collection, and some photo albums from my childhood I couldn’t bring myself to sort through and burn yet.
“And he didn’t lie. That dog provided peak emotional support. Soft fur, face-licking, the whole nine yards. Definitely made me feel better. I should have asked for its name,” I continue as we walk outside to grab the rest.
“Better consolation than any man could offer,” Lauren says approvingly and snickers. “I’m glad you’re better now. That sounds like a rollercoaster of a day.” She opens the trunk to take another box. “I never knew you had such a big heart for animals, though.” She steps aside so I can grab the last one. “And you already met the town’s hotties.”
“If I had a free hand, I’d fan myself,” I admit sheepishly, my cheeks burning. “You should have seen them. With the current quota, this little town must be full of hot guys. It’s two for two. How did you find this town again? A magazine pointing out a single’s dream destination?”
“Swear to God, I was only checking out for cute houses far away from big cities, and the lake was a bonus. Now stop acting as if meeting hot guys is some kind of punishment.”
A deep sigh falls from my lips as I kick the front door to my new home open. “It’s not. And, I mean, they’re nice too. I can’t imagine dating so soon again after …”
“Those who shall not be named?” Lauren sets down her box in the living room, then shoots me a scrutinizing stare. “I get it. For now. Let’s revisit this conversation in a few months.”
