Page 5 of Lucky in Love

The cans of yellow paint are calling my name and when I pry the lid off the first can, I sigh with pleasure. “Ooh, it’s so buttery and yummy.” I pour some paint into a tray, slide theroller through and roll a swath of yellow onto the wood paneling, like they do in those HGTV shows.

“Oh yeah. That’s nice,” Fiona says, grinning.

A few hours later, we’ve got the first coat on and my vision of a bright and sunny waiting room is materializing, when the big black rotary phone on the desk rings.

I raise an eyebrow at Fiona and shrug. “I guess after this morning, I shouldn’t be surprised. Apparently, everyone in town knows I’m here.”

“Hello? Evergreen Animal Clinic,” I say into the heavy receiver.

“I need your help,” a woman says, her voice low.

“Ok.” I shuffle through the drawer and grab a pencil and a pad of paper. “We’ll be seeing patients starting Monday. When did you want to come in?”

“No, I don’t need an appointment. Umm… I have some horses.”

“Ok. I am doing mobile equine visits–”

“No,” the woman interrupts. “Listen, my boyfriend is not very nice to me and he’s even worse to my horses. He’s out of town and I’m leaving him before he gets back, but I can’t take my horses with me.”

“I don’t understand.”

“I need you to rescue my horses,” her voice breaks. “I need to go somewhere that he can’t find me. And I need to know that my horses are going to be ok. I can’t leave them here with him.” Ragged sobs fill my ears and my heart breaks.

“How many horses?”

“Three.”

I have no idea what I’m going to do with three horses. I don’t have stables on site. But I have to help her. I put my hand over the receiver and whisper to Fiona, “Do you know anyone who could board some horses for a few days?”

She nods.

The woman shares the condition of the horses, her address and phone number, but she still won’t give me her name.

After I hang up the phone, I turn to Fiona and explain the situation. “That’s awful. That poor woman!” she exclaims.

“She sounded so distraught. You could tell it just destroyed her to think about leaving her horses.”

“I can imagine,” Fiona said.

“Where are the stables?” I ask.

“Ross Ranch.”

FOUR

Baylor

The white gelding that I’m brushing nuzzles my pocket to investigate the vibration of my phone. I chuckle to myself. It wasn’t very long ago that Chancer wouldn’t let me touch him. I fish my phone out of the pocket of my jeans and nearly drop it when the name Paige O’Brien appears on the screen.

Ice water flows through my veins. Why is she calling me? Maybe it’s a follow-up to the exam yesterday. She’s probably checking on Stella. Or maybe it’s a personal call. Heat flashes over my face as the phone keeps vibrating. That’s idiotic. What, like she’s calling me for a date? I laugh out loud at how ridiculous I’m being just as the phone goes silent. I lean my head against Chancer’s neck, close my eyes and breathe out a long, slow stream of air.

The relief that washes over me when the phone stops ringing tells me what I need to do. I can’t live the rest of my life refusing to interact with people. I need to man up, face my fears and call her back. My stomach churns as I press the call back icon and wait for her to answer.

“Hey, ummm. I had a missed call from you,” I say, trying not to let my voice shake.

“Yeah, I’m glad you called me back. I have a dilemma that I think you might be able to help me with.”

She pauses like she’s waiting for me to say something, but my brain can’t think of a reasonable reply.

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