He glanced down at her fingers clutching him and sending electrical charges up his arm. Or maybe that was the fact that she’d finally used his name and not some inane nickname.
“A chance like this won’t come along often,” she continued. “We have to find Savannah.”
“I’ll try calling.” He suddenly found it incredibly weird that not only didn’t he know where his ex was, right that minute he was having a hard time remembering what she looked like.
“And our next step is to meet with my father and Dr. Walker, the vet ophtha handling this. Dad wants to set up a dinner with the four of us to tell you everything about the procedure.”
He let out a breath, studying her. “Darcy.”
“What? Please don’t tell me that’s against some rule, because it’s not a da—”
“No.” He stopped her with one finger on her lips.
Her eyes widened, and she inched away from his touch. “It’s not a date,” she insisted. “You don’t have to worry.”
“That’s not what I was going to say.” He searched her face, looking into her eyes—falling into them, honestly—trying to figure out the last time he’d ever met anyone like her. Never. “I don’t know how to thank you.”
“Oh, that.” She gave a quick shrug. “Dogs are life to us, and this is what we do.”
“But you just swooped in and…” Gave him the first glimmer of hope he’d felt in a month. “I’m really grateful.”
“How grateful?” Her brows rose in a question, making him let out a nervous laugh. What did she want? Another lie? Another deal? Something better?
“Very grateful.” He hesitated and then had to ask, “Why?”
Once again, she looked around the half-demolished kitchen. “Are you grateful enough to help me transform a real estate office into a grooming salon?”
A mix of relief and disappointment rolled through him. “Of course. It’s the least I could do for what you’re offering my dog.”
“Your dog?” She gave him a playful poke in the arm. “Watch it, big guy. Potential attachment with heartache possibilities if you’re not careful.”
As much as he didn’t want to, he laughed. Because there was truth in all humor. And there certainly was potential attachment with heartache possibilities dead ahead.
Chapter Eight
Dad arranged the dinner meeting for that very night. A fact, Darcy figured out quickly, that made its way all around Waterford Farm by midafternoon. First, Shane came into the grooming studio to bring Stella in for a rest after training and peppered Darcy with so-not-subtle questions. Oh, sure, he had a report on Stella’s progress—slow—but mostly he was interested in the dinner…and Dad’s friend.
Liam was a little more open in his questioning, but after Darcy assured him this was strictly business, he spent the rest of his brief visit talking about Fiona. And yawning, since he got up with Andi every time the baby cried, so they were both sleep-deprived.
Garrett came in a few minutes later, bringing along a brand-new rescue named Boomer, a springer spaniel with a thick brown coat and white chest. Except the chest was currently as brown as the coat.
“Boo hit some mud down by the creek,” Garrett told her with a laugh. “Needs a Special Darcy Bath, fast.”
“Dip him and whip him…into shape?” she teased, already making room for him on her table. “I can do him right now before my next appointment.”
“Oh, great, Darce,” her brother said, hoisting up the dog. “I’ve got a family coming in late this afternoon to consider adoption, so make him gorgeous.”
“He is gorgeous.” She gave his head a scratch and got close to his face, gazing into sad green eyes. “Don’t worry, Boomer. You’re going to save someone real soon, I promise.”
Garrett smiled and headed toward the back, looking like every man did in here—out of place in her glittery, sparkly, pink grooming studio. “Oh, I didn’t know anyone was back here,” he said as he came upon the comfy crate where Stella slept.
At the sound of his voice, the dog got up and barked, backing away, then turning in a circle.
“That’s our Stella, blind and beautiful and terrified of the world.”
“Oh, this is the dog Shane was working with before. I was giving a class with a new group of trainees, so I missed her arrival.” Garrett opened the crate very slowly, easing closer to let Stella get a sniff.
“Then you haven’t heard the latest family gossip,” she said with a tease in her voice.
“That Dad’s seeing Dr. Walker?” He kept his voice soft and modulated, knowing Stella’s hearing would be hypersensitive because of the blindness. “And you’re tagging along with the landlord that Dad thinks you should marry?”
“Or maybe you have heard the latest family gossip.”
“Bits and pieces,” he admitted.
She clipped Boomer into the bath harness. “I’m hoping that this new project will take Dad’s mind off fixing me up for a while.”
“He won’t.” Garrett laughed. “The man has issues.”
“Huge.”
“Well, maybe he’ll be so into Judy Walker that he forgets you.” He added a sly grin. “Jessie’s put her money on Judy for the betting pool, so of course I have a vested interest.”
Darcy rolled her eyes. “If Dad finds out there’s an actual pool, he won’t be happy.”
“Only ’cause he’s not in it.” Garrett managed to get Stella to calm down, reaching into the crate to pet her with a magical touch all the Kilcannon men had in spades with dogs.
“I’m hoping he gets mad enough to see that all this matchmaking should stop for any of the single people in the family.”
“That would be you, him, and Gramma.”
“If you don’t count the Mahoneys and the next generation.”
He laughed easily. “Oh, yeah, his grandkids. He has four now. By the time he’s Gramma Finnie’s age, it could be a full-time job.”
She frowned as she brushed some knots out of Boomer’s coat before turning on the spray. “Four? Pru, Christian, and Fiona make…” Her voice faded as she looked over the dog’s head to meet her brother’s horrified expression.
“Whoops,” he said. “Wasn’t supposed to mention that yet.”
“Garrett!”
“Darcy!” he echoed, laughing as he slid Stella back into her crate, knowing that he was about to get smooshed in a sisterly hug.
“Oh my God!” She abandoned the dog on the table and rushed to her brother. “Jessie’s pregnant?”
“Shhh.” He hugged her back, adding a squeeze. “It’s a secret until Sunday. She wanted to tell everyone at the same time, at dinner. I blew it, probably because I can’t think about anything else.”
“This is so wonderful. Jessie Curtis used to practically live here, and now you guys are having a baby.” She pressed her hands to her face. “I’m so happy for you.”
“Why are you so happy for him? Jessie’s the one having the baby.” Molly’s voice came from the hall, making Darcy slap her hand over her own mouth as she realized she’d let out Garrett’s secret. “Sorry,” she muttered.
“Don’t be,” Molly answered for him, coming into the studio. “Do you forget that Jessie was my best friend before she was yours, Garrett?”
“Of course not.”
“Congrats, my darling brother.” She slipped one arm around Darcy and one around Garrett. “I had lunch with your wife today, and she blew it. And I don’t mean the secret, I mean lunch. Barely made it to the bathroom.”
“She got sick?” Garrett drew back, concern all over his handsome face. “Why didn’t she call me?”
“Because you were teaching a class, and she gets sick every single day because she’s…” She leaned in close and whispered, “Pregnant!”
Garrett laughed as Darcy and Molly gave each other congratulatory hugs for being aunts again.
“Between this and the blind dog, I’d say you’re in the clear for a while with Dad,” Garrett said to Darcy.
&
nbsp; “Except Gramma told me there’s a double date tonight,” Molly added. “She’s now officially betting on ‘Dr. Judy.’”
Darcy dropped her head back with a grunt. “This family is cray.”
Garrett backed away. “Couldn’t agree more, so please, you two, at least let Dad be surprised on Sunday. Jessie wants us to tell the whole family together.”
“Promise,” Molly said.
“Cross my heart,” Darcy agreed. “Now, go and make sure the kennels are sparkling so you can impress Boomer’s adoptive family. I’ll make him handsome.”
He gave each of them a quick kiss on the cheek and started out, then stopped and turned. “My kid’s really lucky being born into this family, isn’t he?”
“She,” they replied in perfect unison, making him laugh.
“And yes,” Darcy added.
After he left, Darcy and Molly shared another happy embrace.
“More babies!” Darcy cooed with glee. “Think you and Trace could squeeze out one more?”
Molly laughed, her hazel eyes dancing. “Well, we do have to get married first, and that’s not until December.”
“Oh please. Pru’s two months shy of fourteen. You sure didn’t get married first that time.”
Molly let out a sigh. “You know, God had other plans.”
“Which worked out perfectly.” But it hadn’t been easy. When Trace showed up after being in prison for almost fourteen years only to find out Molly had had a baby, there were some dicey days. Molly had shared many of the details with Darcy.
“So, can I see Stella?” Molly asked after giving Boomer some love. “I’ve had quite a few SARDS patients, so I’m interested to see the lucky girl who’ll get the treatment.”
“Who might get the treatment,” Darcy corrected. “If Hot Landlord can track down his wayward missing ex-girlfriend.”
Molly snorted at the nickname. “How hot?”
“Ask Dad. He’s the one who set me up with him.”
“Oh, Dad,” Molly said on a laugh, but then her expression grew serious as she reached the cage and Stella let out a terrified bark and growl. “But, wait. You mean this guy is watching someone’s dog and might not be able to reach her?”
“It’s a long story.”
“As if that ever stopped us.”
“Truth, Sister. Hold that dog for a few minutes and I’ll tell you everything.”
While Molly calmed Stella down with a rest in the rocker and Boomer submitted to a bath, Darcy relayed the entire story, omitting nothing, not even their cousin’s suggestion that they fool Dad to get him to back off.
“Can I just say that really sounds like an Ella Mahoney Dumb Idea?” Molly rolled her eyes. “One I’m sure you rushed to implement.”
“Oh yes. And failed completely. He wanted no part of this scheme.”
“Good for him.” Her sister rocked the dog, slow and steady, the way she probably had held Pru all those years ago when Molly was a young, single mother. “It shows integrity and a strict moral compass for a man to refuse to lie.”
“It also shows he’s not the least bit interested in me,” Darcy mumbled, a little surprised that she dug that feeling out, but then, Molly always got her to be completely honest.
“And how do you feel about that?”
“I couldn’t care less.” As she lathered Boomer’s fur into a froth, she looked over his head at Molly, who smiled like she could read Darcy’s mind. Which, of course, she could.
“Okay, I suppose if I tried really hard, I could care a little less,” Darcy admitted.
Molly’s grin grew.
“Well, you should see him, Molls. He’s big and strong and so stinking good-looking. He has these incredible brown eyes, and he’s got to be six-two, and did I mention he’s big?”
“You’re not usually taken by a guy’s looks,” Molly mused.
“I don’t usually get handed looks like these,” she quipped. “Plus, he really adores Stella, and he’s funny and sweet, but man, he got burned in his last relationship.” She angled her head and remembered shreds of conversations. “Not to mention he’s a rule follower and I’m a free spirit. It can’t possibly work.”
“I guess it depends on what ‘it’ is that you want to work.”
“I don’t want anything,” Darcy replied, grabbing the sprayer to rinse Boomer. “Nothing at all.”
Molly chuckled. “Then why are you whipping that hose around and gnawing on your lip and wallowing in denial?”
“Molly!” She turned off the water to give her sister all her attention. “I’m not in denial. I don’t want anything. I mean, not anything serious. Not anything like my lunatic matchmaking father wants.”
“I thank him every day for being a lunatic matchmaker,” Molly said on a sigh. “If he hadn’t urged Trace to come here and have me do surgery on Meatball…”
“You’d be free and single.”
“Who wants that?”
Darcy stared at her.
“Oh, Darce. You’ll get through this phase.”
Irritation spiked up her back, making her straighten. “It’s not a phase, Molly. It’s a lifestyle. It’s a choice. It’s called not depending on a man for happiness, or anyone, at least not while I figure out who I am and what I can do on my own.”
For a long time, her sister rocked and looked at her, while Darcy hosed off Boomer with maybe a little more enthusiasm than was necessary.
“I understand,” Molly finally said. “I don’t know what ‘freedom’ is like, either, since I had a child before I started my second year of college.”
Darcy conceded that with a shrug.
“But I fully understand you wanting to move out and start your own business.”
“That’s not what we’re talking about,” Darcy said. “This is about a man.”
“This is about fear. And control.”
“And here I thought you were a vet, not a shrink.”
Molly stood slowly, careful not to scare the pupper she held. “You know what, Darcy? Having a man in your life doesn’t mean you give up control or freedom. In some ways, you have so much more.”
Her poor deluded madly-in-love sister. “Mmmm.”
Molly laughed. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means I want to figure this all out for myself, okay?”
“Fair enough. If you ever have any questions or want to talk, I know I’m not Mom, but I’m always here for you.”
The offer touched her, surprising her with a sudden burn behind her eyelids and making Darcy press a warm towel against Boomer with the same ferocity she wanted to hug her sister.
“Don’t sell yourself short, Molls. Mom would be so proud of your ability to give advice and rock a dog and make me laugh and cry all in one ten-minute visit. You’re cut from the same beautiful cloth she was.”
Molly’s eyes filled at the compliment, and she somehow managed to wrap Darcy, Boomer, and Stella in her arms. “She sure did leave big shoes for us to fill.”
“But you’ve done it, Molly. Pru’s amazing, and you’re running two vet offices, and now you’re marrying a great guy.”
“And now you’re going to strike out on your own, live alone, and start your own business.”
“I know.” Darcy sighed, giving in to a wave of grief that was so rare these days, but still came, unexpected and strong. “I wish I had her here to encourage me. To root me on. To listen to me and understand, because while you’re every bit as good at it, I’d still love to hear from her, too.”
“I know you and Mom had a very special relationship, Darcy. And she is rooting you on and encouraging you. She is.”
“Wish I could hear her, you know? I wish I could hear her voice again.”
“She’d tell you to follow your heart.”
“Would she tell me to follow any other parts? ’Cause this guy makes me feel…” She blew out a quick breath. “Have I mentioned that Hot Landlord is hot?”
Molly laughed. “Yeah. A few times.”
&nb
sp; “What would Mom say about that?”
“She’d tell you to be very careful, because she had six kids and I got pregnant from a one-night stand. Hot Landlord might be hot, but Kilcannon women are fertile.”
Darcy gasped, horrified. “I’m not…I won’t…I’m smarter than that and older than you were, and I could never…” She couldn’t finish, the thought was so awful.
“Hey, you asked what Mom would say, and that’s what she’d say.”
At the sound of Garrett’s footsteps in the hall, they ended the conversation right there. But Darcy filed it as one more reason to keep her heart—and other parts—away from Hot Landlord.
* * *
Josh hung up the phone after leaving another voice mail for Savannah when he heard a soft tap on his front door.
“Special delivery,” Darcy called out. “One very happy little pooch.”
But that wasn’t the special delivery that made him take a steadying breath as he rose to answer her siren call.
He needed half an hour to focus after spending five minutes with her. And another hour to stop inhaling the garden of fragrance she left behind. And two more hours to forget the sound of her laugh or the warm touch of her fingertips. Add some time to shake off the occasional strand of long blond hair he found, and bam, there she was again and he had to start all over.
He opened the door slowly, not at all sure what to expect from either female on the other side.
Pink. There was lots and lots of pink. Darcy in a soft pink dress with skinny straps and silky bare shoulders. She held up a wire crate with pink fur and a pillow making a soft throne for Stella, who perched on the cushion wrapped in a pink…thing.
“What is she wearing?”
“An anxiety jacket,” Darcy said as she carefully handed over the crate and followed him back in. “We discovered how much and how tightly this dog needs to be held. An anxiety jacket works wonders. See how calm she is?”
“Incredible.” He slowly set the crate on the coffee table, but Darcy put her hand on his arm to stop him. And there was that warm touch he’d need two hours to forget.