When Love Matters Most

  “I’m sorry we’ve kept you waiting. Madison had a bit of a...an incident with a patient and had to clean up. She’ll see you and Sniff any minute now.” Her face sobered. “I’m so very sorry to hear about Jeff. Please give his family our condolences.”

  “Yeah. Thanks.” It hadn’t gotten easier to deal with Jeff’s death, despite the passage of several days.

  “What have you got there?” She gestured to the duffel he’d rested on the floor beside his feet.

  Rick felt the heat rise to his face. “Just stuff,” he mumbled. “So I understand Madison’s taking over from Jane for our dogs.”

  “Uh-huh,” Heather responded. She walked around the reception desk to return to her station.

  Rick leaned on the counter. He wasn’t at all perturbed about Madison’s being late. It gave him a chance to question Heather about the new vet. Heather obviously didn’t realize he and Madison had already met. There was no reason she would have, he reminded himself. Unless the part-time receptionist had told Heather he’d been in, she’d have no way of knowing that he was the one who’d brought Zeke. Even though he’d called about Zeke a few times, Heather must have assumed he was checking up on one of the unit’s dogs. Her not knowing gave him the advantage. “Has Madison worked with police dogs before?” he began.

  Heather sat down behind her desk. “You know, I’m not sure. She moved here a few months ago from Texas. She must have some experience. They wouldn’t have assigned her to care for the SDPD’s canines if she wasn’t qualified. Logan wouldn’t have approved, either,” she added. “You’d have to ask Madison about her experience.”

  “Is she good?” He’d concluded that she was, based on what she’d done for Zeke, but he was curious about what Heather had to say. Working with Madison would give her a different point of view. The more he’d thought about it, the more he recognized the skill and calm resolve it must have taken to save Zeke. He was anxious to see him, after Sniff’s examination.

  Before Heather had a chance to answer, he heard soft footsteps behind him.

  “I’ll let you be the judge of that.” Heather motioned toward the hallway. “Here’s Madison now.”

  “Great. Thank...” Rick looked over his shoulder, and whatever else he was going to say escaped him. He felt his mouth go dry. Sure, he’d met her before, but he must not have been seeing clearly at the time. He certainly hadn’t been thinking clearly. He’d remembered her as attractive but not drop-dead gorgeous. She was wearing a lab coat again, a blue one this time, yet her curves were evident. Today, she had her hair in a thick braid, hanging over one shoulder. Even braided, the mass of it hung well down toward her waist. Instead of greeting him, she stood still, her lips slightly parted, shock on her face. It was almost as if she hadn’t been expecting him—or had forgotten that she’d met him.

  He took a step forward, Sniff trailing him, and smiled. “Are you ready for us?”

  She gave a slight shake of her head, not so much to indicate no, but almost as if clearing her mind of whatever had preoccupied her. Before she could say anything, Heather filled the silence.

  “Madison, this is Sergeant Enrique Vasquez, aka Pitbull, and his canine partner, Sniff.”

  “Officer Rick,” Madison said with frost in her voice, and Rick’s smile faded. Apparently, she wasn’t inclined to let bygones be bygones.

  “You’ve met?” Heather asked, obviously confused.

  “Yes,” they responded in unison.

  Heather glanced from one stern face to the other and backed up. “Okay, then. I’ll just get back to work.”

  Madison gave Rick one more long, hard look before stepping forward and bending down to greet Sniff. Her features softened; the dog’s good nature must have won her over. By the time she straightened and extended a hand to Rick, the reserve had returned.

  “As you know, I’m Madison Long,” she said in a perfunctory manner, putting the emphasis on know, and flipped her braid over her shoulder. “Follow me, please.”

  Rick tapped his thigh, and had Sniff heeling next to him as he followed her. Madison’s braid swung across her back with each step she took. Glancing at Heather, he saw her bemused expression and wondered what had caused it. Then he noticed the duffel he’d forgotten and rushed back to grab it before joining Madison.

  “How’s Zeke?” was the first thing he asked when they were in the examination room.

  “He’s coming along nicely.”

  “That’s terrific. Can I see him when we’re done here?”

  “Of course,” she said, gathering everything she needed for Sniff’s exam.

  She was being professional and courteous, but there was a distinct remoteness in her voice and demeanor. Conscious of the duffel in his right hand, he wondered how smart an idea that was. “The unit’s retiring Zeke,” he offered as an olive branch.

  Her hands stilled and she gave him a contemplative look before nodding, but her cool formality remained as she opened a cabinet to get additional supplies. There was something...out of character about her expression. The lines bracketing her mouth were a dead giveaway that she laughed more than she frowned. He shifted the duffel from one hand to the other, then placed it on a chair in the corner of the room. “Look, I’m sorry for the way I acted when we first met.”

  She turned back to him, and he saw the surprise on her face.

  “It was a hell of a day. Zeke being hurt wasn’t all of it.”

  “I heard on the news that an officer was shot...and that he passed away... I’m sorry...” Her voice rang with sincerity and compassion.

  “Yeah. Jeff didn’t make it.” Rick broke eye contact, reached down and stroked Sniff’s back. The grief was still too raw. The dog raised his head, tongue lolling, adoration in his eyes that never failed to melt Rick’s heart.

  “What will happen to Zeke?” Madison interrupted his thoughts.

  Rick’s eyes lifted to hers and he could see she was moved, too. The fact that she seemed to care about Jeff and about Zeke said a lot about her. “Jeff’s family—his wife and son—want to keep Zeke. Zeke mattered to Jeff and is therefore important to his family.” He cleared his throat with a small cough and changed the subject to a more practical matter. “SDPD will pick up the cost of Zeke’s treatment and rehabilitation. Whatever it takes, just do what’s best for him. We’ll help the family with some retraining so Zeke can adapt to being a pet. Jeff was a good cop...a good man. He’ll be missed and not just by his family.”

  “I’m so sorry,” Madison repeated in a whisper, and briefly rested a hand on his forearm.

  “Thanks.” The sense of loss and futility, the sudden rush of emotion, was threatening to strangle Rick. He coughed again to try to cover up his feelings, but the sorrow was backing up in his throat. He grabbed his duffel and held it out to her. “We got off on the wrong foot the other day. I brought you something. Sort of a peace offering.”

  Her gaze slid from his eyes to the black, well-worn bag and back. “You’re giving me a used gym bag?”

  His nervous, amused laughter burst forth. He wasn’t usually this awkward around women. But then he generally didn’t start out from such a deficit. “No. Of course not!” He chuckled and fumbled with the zipper before placing the bag on the chair and unzipping it. He reached in and handed her a brightly wrapped bunch of flowers. “These are for you.”

  Her eyebrows seemed to be stuck under her bangs, but at least the corners of her mouth had turned up. She took the bouquet from him. “You brought me flowers?”

  He shoved his hands into the pockets of his cargo pants. “Yeah. It’s a small token of apology. I was a jerk and I’m sorry.”

  “Thank you.” She raised the bouquet to her nose and took a deep breath. “I love freesia. They smell heavenly.”

  He had no idea which of the colorful flowers was freesia, but he’d have to remember the nam
e. It had evidently done the trick. He was surprised by and appreciative of the ease with which she’d put their awkward beginning behind her. No stalling. No making him grovel.

  She retrieved a jug from the cabinets and filled it with water. When she’d placed the flowers in it, she lifted them to her nose again, closing her eyes as she inhaled. She opened her eyes again, and her gaze locked with his. He could have sworn he heard the clock on the wall ticking the seconds away as they stared at each other. There was something unfathomable in the depths of her eyes. “Sniff...” he finally said.

  Madison smiled, took a treat out of her lab coat pocket and offered it to the dog.

  Sniff accepted it politely. She lowered to one knee beside the dog. “What brings you here today, my friend?” she asked while she checked Sniff’s eyes and heart rate.

  Rick noted the tender, caring way Madison touched and manipulated Sniff’s joints. She immediately eased up when he flinched as she moved his hind left leg. She raised her eyes, a hand on Sniff’s back. “Cruciate ligament acting up?”

  Rick nodded. She’d obviously checked the file. “I know he’s not that old, but I want his policing days behind him soon.”

  Madison had a thoughtful expression on her face. “He’s more than a tool to you, isn’t he?”

  Through her work, she must have discovered that very few handlers were able to maintain the detachment from their dogs to consider them “tools.” Rick and Sniff were a team. He cared about Sniff as much as he cared about his two-legged colleagues. He nodded again, slowly.

  As he watched Madison continue her exam, he felt a peculiar churning in his gut. Yeah, he’d had breakfast at six, grabbed a quick sandwich for lunch and it was almost five now, but he didn’t think the sensation had anything to do with being hungry.

  Rick shifted his weight from one foot to the other. He thrust his hands back into his pants pockets. He didn’t want to dwell on the reason he’d done it—the fact that all of a sudden he was tempted to reach out and discover the texture of Madison’s springy red hair or how smooth her complexion really was. He liked women. Sure. Too much sometimes. But this felt different somehow, and he’d just met her. He considered how gentle she was with his dog.

  That’s it! It was Sniff, he rationalized. Anyone who loved his dog was okay by him. That was all. He cleared his throat, wondering if he was coming down with a bug, and tried to ignore the strange sensation in his stomach.

  Madison cocked her head slightly and shone a light into Sniff’s right ear. “You would’ve initiated the process to retire Zeke, even if I hadn’t bullied you into it,” she said, switching the light to the dog’s other ear.

  Rick laughed. The thought that she’d be able to bully him into anything struck him as ludicrous—but judging by the look on her face, she wasn’t amused. “Yeah,” he said, sobering. “Of course. Zeke’s earned retirement.” Seeing that she was about to give Sniff a cortisone injection for the pain in his leg, he bent down to soothe and distract his dog.

  Rick’s head was only a foot or so from hers, and her scent swirled around him. It was something subtle and musky. It caused an uncomfortable itch at the back of his neck. He reached behind him to scratch at it. “So has Sniff,” he went on. “And I don’t want him getting injured to earn it.”

  Madison looked up at him again, and he noticed that her green eyes were specked with gold, the irises rimmed with it. “Sorry,” he murmured, “what was that?” He’d entirely missed what she’d said.

  She smiled again. “I asked what the SDPD usually does with service dogs when they retire. You told me what’s going to happen with Zeke. Is that typical? And what’ll happen to Sniff once he retires?” she asked while uncapping the hypodermic needle.

  He shrugged. “In most cases, if a dog’s handler is able to, he or she will generally keep the dog. Sniff will live out his life with me.”

  Madison gave Sniff his shot, the dog barely noticing the pinprick sensation. Seeing the look of understanding and concern in her eyes, Rick felt even more drawn to her.

  “Jagger—our captain—he’s having a barbecue for the unit this weekend. On Sunday.” The words tumbled out before he realized he’d said them. Her eyes were questioning. She was no doubt trying to figure out what his declaration had to do with her. Before he could question his own sanity, he barreled on. “You’ve met Jagger and most of the unit already?”

  She nodded, uncertainty still evident on her face.

  “Why don’t you come with me?” he suggested. They both rose, and Sniff danced between them, knowing the routine well enough that he expected a dog treat after an exam. Madison didn’t disappoint him and offered him a biscuit she extracted from a glass jar on the counter, slipping some extras in her pocket.

  “Why?” she asked.

  “Why what?” He must have missed part of the conversation again. He didn’t understand the question.

  “Why are you asking me to go with you?”

  What was she expecting? It was just a spontaneous thing. Did she have to analyze it?

  She must have sensed his confusion and clarified. “Are you inviting me so you can introduce me to the whole unit? To help me fit in?”

  He laughed. “No. I’m asking you as...as my date.” He grinned, hoping it would seal the deal. He really wanted to get to know her better. The more he saw of her, the more he liked her.

  Madison bent down to scratch Sniff behind the ears, pulling out another treat from her pocket and presenting it to him.

  The fact that she seemed to be thinking about his invitation wasn’t a good sign. At least she hadn’t given him an outright no. But the “no” was coming. Rick could feel it. He was seldom wrong about women’s reactions to him. He supposed it would be understandable if she declined. They hadn’t had the smoothest of introductions, and he had to accept responsibility for that. He assumed his customary stance of hands in pockets, anticipating rejection.

  Madison held his gaze for a long moment, until a smile spread across her face. “Sure. Why not?”

  “Great. That’s great. Are we done here with Sniff?” It seemed he’d been wrong this time, and he was glad of it.

  “Yes. Other than the cruciate, he’s in good health and obviously happy, but I agree that you should think about retiring him. His hind legs will only get worse with age and strenuous use. You want him home as a pet, enjoying a well-deserved retirement, before he injures himself and perhaps does permanent damage.”

  “That’s the plan. Can I see Zeke now?”

  Madison nodded and took him to the recovery area.

  Zeke looked good, considering everything he’d been through. Madison explained that he was coming along nicely and could go to Jeff’s family in a few days.

  When they’d finished with Zeke, Rick paused by the door. “I’ll pick you up at five on Sunday. Does that work for you?”

  She nodded. “Yes, that’s fine.”

  “All right.” He was about to exit when he saw her grin. “I guess I’d better get your home address, right?”

  “I guess.” She took a pen out of her pocket, scribbled an address and phone number on a sheet of paper and handed it to him. “See you Sunday.”

  He folded the paper and tucked it in his shirt pocket, then gave her a jaunty little salute. “Yeah. I’m looking forward to it. Grab your leash,” he instructed Sniff. Tapping the side of his thigh, he had Sniff heeling again as he walked through the reception area.

  “Everything okay?” Heather asked when he passed the reception counter.

  Rick raised his eyes to the ceiling, and his expression made Heather giggle.

  “Don’t worry about it. You’re not the first man and you certainly won’t be the last to come in here and react to Madison like that.”

  * * *

  MADISON CLEANED UP the exam room. Since there were no patients wait
ing for her, she walked over to Heather and leaned on the reception counter.

  “How’d it go with Enrique?” Heather asked with a smirk.

  “Fine. Why do you call him that?”

  “What? Enrique?”

  “Uh-huh.”

  Heather shrugged. “I think Enrique suits him better than Rick—too common. So does Pitbull.”

  “What kind of alias is Pitbull anyway? Why do they call him that?”

  “Logan told me it’s because he’s tenacious. About his work. About what matters to him.”

  Oh, yes, Madison could see that. She could see him being very determined and stubborn, depending on the circumstances.

  “You two met before?” Heather interrupted her thoughts. “And you didn’t remember him?”

  “Oh, I remembered, all right,” Madison said.

  “But you let me go on about him...”

  “First, I didn’t know he was the sergeant. I thought his dog was Zeke, not Sniff. Also, you called him Enrique. I was introduced to him by Angela as Rick. No last name.”

  Heather grinned. “Well, I really do think Enrique suits him better. He’s not keen on it... I like it, though. I think it actually amuses him when I call him that. The aka suits him, too, but in a different way. Pitbull fits his personality. Enrique... Well, he’s got that whole sexy Latino thing going for him, and that appeals to me!”

  Madison chuckled.

  “What can I say? I’m attracted to tall, dark, good-looking men.”

  Madison felt her eyes widen. It occurred to her that she might be treading on Heather’s territory by having accepted a date with Rick. “Are you...together?”

  Heather laughed, as well. “No! We’re not.” She got up and walked to the printer. Flicking her hair over her shoulder, she retorted, “But a girl can dream, can’t she?” She grabbed a printout and left the reception area, her laughter drifting over to Madison.

  Madison watched Heather walk away, but her thoughts were on a tall, dark and decidedly handsome cop. Yeah, a girl could dream.