Mending the Bear (3 page)

“You
okay?” Liam asked when he got back from walking Dane to his truck.

“Just
a bit woozy, that’s all.”

“Let’s
get you inside the house and you can sleep it off for an hour or so before we
eat.”

“I’m
fine.”

“Let
me be the judge of that,” Liam said, getting him to his feet.

“Oh
shit, I think I’m going to throw up.”

****

“Do
I smell salmon?” asked the doctor who’d introduced himself as Ash McWilliams
just a few minutes ago. He stepped inside Eve’s office and put his nose in the
air.

Her
raincoat was hanging on the back of the door and she’d forgotten that not only
was it covered in mud, but she’d also been wearing it when she’d fallen in the
supermarket. She couldn’t detect any odor, but now she hoped no one at the chamber
meeting had detected it. If they had, how embarrassing for her.

“Yes,
it’s actually some salmon fillets that I slipped on. Is it that obvious?”

Ash
shook his head. “I have a really sharp sense of smell. You want to take a seat
so I can look at your ankle?” he said.

Eve
pulled out her office chair and sat. Ash knelt in front of her.

He
pressed her ankle and then put his thumb on the bony outgrowth, and she
realized things were worse than she’d thought. “Ouch,” Eve said.

“Guess
I don’t have to ask you if that hurts or not. It’s not broken, but you probably
gave it a bad twist when you fell. I’ll bandage it up and I suggest you get
some rest for a day or two and put an ice pack on it.”

“I
don’t think that’s possible because I have to start interviewing people for the
receptionist job. I’ve already run the ad.”

“Receptionist
job. I mean, there’s an opening?”

“Sure
is. The former receptionist can only work two days now so I’m looking for
someone to work the other three days,” Eve said.

Ash
opened his bag and pulled out a bandage and some tape. “My wife Chloe is going
to be a vet. She’s taking a couple of classes at the local college and then
taking some online. She’s really motivated and I think this would be a good fit
for her to gain some experience and see how things run. Would you be willing to
interview her?”

“I
certainly would. In fact, I’ll give you an application for her to fill in. Can
she stop by tomorrow?”

“Sure,
that shouldn’t be a problem.” Ash secured the bandage with some tape. “How does
that feel?” he asked.

“Much
better already.”

“Great,
and even if you can’t keep off your feet for a few days, at least take some
over-the-counter painkillers and elevate your foot all night.”

“Don’t
worry. After I’m done here I’m going straight home after the day I’ve had. What
do I owe you?”

Ash
waved his hand. “I wouldn’t think of charging for such a quick doctor’s visit.
This one’s on the house.”

“Really?”

“You
were referred by Hannah who’s actually my cousin-in-law, so you qualify for the
family freebie.”

Eve
liked living in Kalispell already. Everyone was so nice to her, well apart from
the asshole on the motorbike. Maybe he was from out of town and had just been
passing through.

Eve
stood and gingerly put her foot to the ground as she made her way over to the
file cabinet, opened the top drawer, and pulled out a folder. “Here’s the job
application form and if she could stop by around 10 a.m. that would be great.”

Ash
put the paper under his arm. “That shouldn’t be a problem for Chloe. So when
does the practice formally open again?”

“Monday
at 8 a.m.” Eve was about to see Ash out when he stopped her and pointed to the
chair.

“Sit.
That’s doctor’s orders and I can see myself out. If the ankle gives you any
more trouble or the swelling gets worse, just give me a call,” he said, handing
her his card.

“Okay,
and tell your wife I’m looking forward to meeting her.”

“I
will and hope your evening’s better than your afternoon’s been.”

Eve
hoped so, too.

****

Ian
woke up, not by choice, but a woman’s voice had startled him.

“I
thought I’d pick up some salmon for dinner. I went into
Goodsen’s
and you’ll never guess what?”

It
was Lucy, Liam’s wife’s voice streaming in from their kitchen. “The place was a
total mess and Ned told me that Ian Mallory had been in there and thrown stuff
from the shelves and also thrown every piece of salmon onto the floor, so sorry,
honey, it’s off the menu tonight.”

Geez,
would this get on the evening news or what? And salmon, where had his brain
been at, wasting good salmon just to make his point. He probably should have
gone to the pet food aisle and thrown some kitty food around.

Ian
made his way to the kitchen as Lucy continued to rattle on about the incident.
Once again he saw Liam signaling that Ian was in the next room, or so he
thought. Both of them turned to see Ian leaning again the door jamb.

“I
had no idea you were here,” Lucy said.

“Sounds
like it,” Ian said.

At
least she was being honest, which was more than he could say about some people.

“Ian’s
staying for supper,” Liam said.

“No,
really, you don’t have to go to any trouble on my account, and it sounds like
you won’t be serving salmon,” Ian said. Had that sounded just a tad too
sarcastic?

“Sit
yourself down because you’re staying to eat with us,” Liam said. “You need
something to soak up all that beer.”

Lucy
glanced at Liam and then lifted some grocery bags up onto the countertop. The
name
Goodsen’s
was splashed over the front of every
single one of them, but he was going to keep his cool.

“How
about I start by making us a salad?” said Liam, getting the lettuce from the
fridge.

The
puppy ran over to Ian. He wasn’t feeling very social, but he patted its head.

“It’s
probably best if you tell Lucy why you did all that damage in
Goodsen’s
,” Liam said as he began slicing tomatoes.

“My
mate betrayed me,” Ian said.

“Joanne,
no, I can’t believe she’d do that to you,” Lucy said, setting two packets of
chicken breasts down on the counter.

“Believe
it, because I caught her red-handed with Max
Goodsen
,”
Ian said. He so wanted another beer, but he’d already paid for his
overindulgence earlier that day. Maybe he’d just stick to soda for the rest of
the night.

“I
guess that explains why you chose the supermarket,” Lucy said.

“I
told him his true mate is out there somewhere,” Liam said, waving the paring
knife around.

“I
keep telling my brother the same thing. Speaking of which, Hannah tells me
there’s a new female vet who’s just taken over Ally’s husband’s practice and
Hannah thinks she might be perfect for him.”

Ian
quickly spotted Liam rolling his eyes as he poured the dressing onto the salad.

“And
don’t think I didn’t see that,” said Lucy.

Liam
reached across and slapped her on the butt. He and Joanne used to tease and kid
around with one another just like this. Shit, what was he going to do without
her? How was he going to make it through each day without her being part of it?

“I
can’t tell you how many women she’s tried to pair her poor brother with. I feel
real sorry for the guy,” Liam said.

“They’ve
not been all bad,” said Lucy.

Liam
burst out laughing. “Not all bad. The last one was a borderline psycho,” Liam
said.

“Sounds
like the lady vet is perfectly normal. She’s from Florida, cute, and by what Hannah
could figure out, newly divorced.”

“Worst
kind you could pair your brother with,” Liam said.

“Why
is that?” Lucy asked, setting the plates on the table.

“Do
I have to spell it out? People who are just getting over a bad relationship are
needy. Needy is never a good thing.”

They
both looked at Ian and then looked away. He hated the fact that people would
probably begin tiptoeing around him on certain issues and he wasn’t a pity case
by any means.

“You
know, I’m suddenly not that hungry. I think I’ll just head home,” Ian said.

“You
will park your ass on this chair and eat with us,” Liam said. “Or I’ll set my
dog on you.”

He
knew when Liam meant business, and he’d been good enough to listen to his sob
story and give him someplace to lie down after he’d thrown up. Least he could
do was eat with dinner with him. Ian nodded and sat as Lucy brought the grilled
chicken to the table. Ian took some salad and set it on his plate.

“How
about we introduce
you
to this lady
vet,” Liam said.

Ian
looked up mid-bite. He was joking right. “Me with a human?”

Lucy
glared at him. Liam quickly joined in with a look that said ‘I hope you didn’t
mean to insult my wife’.

“I
do not want to be introduced to anyone. I don’t want to date anyone, period.
And should anyone attempt to set me up with either a human or a fellow shifter,
or whatever, it will be the sorriest day of their life.”

Chapter Five

Was
she imaging things or did she see a blood stain on the floor by the dispensing
area? Eve squinted. She’d gotten a great deal on this place because the
previous owner had been shot and killed during a late night break in. His widow
had sold it immediately after the incident, but the new owner hadn’t stayed
around long. He’d put it up for sale and along Eve had come and snapped it up
for a rock bottom price. Now she was wondering if he’d felt the place was
cursed, haunted even, and hence his brief tenure as local vet.

She
hadn’t come out of her divorce a wealthy woman like some of her friends had,
and this seemed like a way for her to get a fresh start and back on her feet.

Yeah,
she was just being paranoid about the dark stain on the floor. She took a
closer look, not blood, more likely dog urine.

She
glanced at the clock on the wall. The first candidate for the job hadn’t shown
up. Maybe she’d had a change of heart about the job. Perhaps she was also
spooked about the building. At least Eve’s ankle was feeling a whole lot better
this morning.

The
buzzer rang, signaling someone had come into the front office. Eve walked along
the hallway and out to the reception area to see a young woman in her early
twenties standing there with one of the application forms in her hand.

“Hi.
Can I help you?” Eve asked.

“I’m
Chloe McWilliams.”

Eve
recognized the last name immediately. “Ash’s wife.”

Chloe
nodded. “He said you were interviewing for the receptionist job this morning
and to stop by around ten a.m.”

“And
you’re right on time which I love in an employee. If you want to come back to
my office, we can talk.”

“How’s
your ankle?” Chloe asked as she followed Eve to the back rooms.

“Much
better thanks to your husband.”

Eve
pulled out a chair for Chloe. She sat and then handed Eve the application form.
Eve sat opposite her and took a quick look over the form.

“I
don’t know if Ash told you, but I’m currently doing my undergraduate degree
before I do my veterinary courses,” Chloe said

“Yes,
he did mention it.”

“It
might seem like I wouldn’t have time for a part time job, but a lot of my
classes I take are online and I do my assignments in the evenings when Ash gets
home to look after our daughter.”

“Oh,
so you have a family, too, and you’re volunteering at the wildlife center,” Eve
said.

“Yes,
some of Ash’s friends are on the board there and Ally Herbert, well, she’s
actually Ally Huxley now, is one of the directors. Her husband owned this
practice.”

“That’s
right. Dr. Herbert was the vet who was killed last year. And are you interested
in domestic animals or wildlife?”

“I’m
thinking of specializing in bears,” Chloe said.

“Bears.
Why bears?” Eve asked.

“I
sort of have a soft spot for them.”

“Well,
we won’t have any bear patients coming through here, well, at least I don’t
think so.”

Chloe
smiled. “You never know around here.”

“That’s
true because I did hear
it’s
prime bear territory.”
She looked at the application one more time, knowing she’d already found her
new employee. “The job would be eight to five Monday, Thursday, and Friday. The
former receptionist is staying on for the other two days. Would that work for
you?”

“It
would be perfect because my parents just moved here and they’ll be able to
babysit Sophie and drive her to her therapy class on Fridays. Sophie’s our baby
girl.”

“Sophie.
That’s such a pretty name.”

Ironic
that it was one of the names she’d wanted to give to her daughter one day.
Didn’t look like she’d been getting one of those now. “I’m very family
orientated and like to give employees flexibility, so anytime you need to bring
her to work, that’s fine with me.”

“That’s
great to hear, and I know Sophie would love seeing all the animals.”

“The
job pays fifteen dollars an hour, but unfortunately I can’t offer any benefits
right now, well, other than free vet care for any pet you have.”

“That
works for me.”

Chloe
seemed eager for the job, she had some background in the topic of veterinary
science, and Eve had taken an instant liking to her. She was outgoing and
friendly, and in a way, she reminded her of herself when she was of college
age. She wasn’t going to bother interviewing anyone else because she’d found
her ideal candidate. “The job’s yours if you want it,” Eve said.

“Really?”

“Yes,
really. Can you start on Monday?”

“I
sure can,” Chloe said. “And I have to call Ash straightaway to tell him the
news.”

Eve
smiled as Chloe dug out her cellphone.

****

You are hereby
summoned to a disciplinary hearing.
What the fuck? If he didn’t already have
enough shit going on in his life, now he had to go before a board of shifters
today at noon.

Ian
tapped his fingers on the countertop as he looked at the text message on his
phone. He was guessing that the
Goodsen
brothers had
made a formal complaint about his bad bear behavior.

Okay,
he might have stepped a tiny bit over the line by trashing their store, but
surely the board members would know that losing a mate was enough to make any
bear go crazy. That was if today’s board consisted of fellow bears. Sometimes
it was the luck of the draw and lately fortune had not shone upon him.

Ian
could choose to ignore the hearing, but that would land him in more trouble.
Trouble wasn’t what he needed right now. One thing the shifter community hated
was a bad member who drew attention to them in any way. Trashing a supermarket
that was also frequented by humans had certainly done that. He’d go along,
plead his case, and hopefully get off with a warning.

He
checked the rest of his e-mails and messages. No new clients. Even his business
was slower than usual. Maybe he’d have to look farther afield. Maybe he’d even
move to another state, someplace he wouldn’t be constantly reminded of Joanne.

He
walked into his bedroom and opened up his closet door. What did one wear to
this sort of thing? Certainly not a shirt and tie. Not that he had many of
those. Maybe he should leave the jeans and his leather jacket at home today. He
pushed the hangers along on the rack and suddenly came across one of Joanne’s
dresses. She’d worn that to the last wedding they’d attended. He took it down
and held it in his hand, picking up the lingering scent of her odor and the
perfume she’d worn that day. He put it to his nose. And yes, the scent of their
lovemaking was still evident, too. They both gotten a little drunk and couldn’t
wait to get home to have sex and they’d fucked in the back of her car.

Ian
squeezed his eyes tightly shut, hoping that would stop his tears from forming.
Liam had told him that’s what he’d done when he’d heard about Danny being
killed that night, and losing a brother had to be a lot worse than losing a
mate, but still Ian couldn’t help himself.

He
sat on the bed with the dress draped across his lap. The eyes shut tight wasn’t
working for him.
 
He’d never see her in
his dress again, well, maybe he would, but she’d no longer be his. He wouldn’t
kiss her again. Wouldn’t flick a stray hair away from her face. He wouldn’t be
around to stop her chewing on the end of her pen. Would never hold in his arms again,
never feel her arms around him as they rode along on his bike. He’d never make
love to her again, never have his cock buried deep inside her, hearing her sigh
and groan in way only she could do it.

“I
want a bigger wedding than that.”

Now
he remembered her going on and on about the wedding and the bride’s dress, but
it hadn’t registered with him that she was hinting, prodding him to ask her to
marry him. But he hadn’t been ready.

He
fingered the flower pattern on the bodice of the dress. Shit, she’d caught the
bouquet when the bride had thrown it. He hadn’t even realized the significance
of that until now.

And
now he recalled how she’d gone out of her way to point out who was pregnant and
how cute all the babies were. He swallowed the lump in his throat. He hadn’t
been ready for all this and she had. She’d no longer thought of him as her
mate.

The
dress, should he return it?

No,
he couldn’t stand to see her again. That would break his heart. Well, at least
for now it would. He stood and hung it back on the rail. When his heart healed,
if it ever did, he’d give it to her then.

****

Eve
knew she’d chosen the right person for the job. She peeked out to the front
desk and saw Chloe organizing the notepads and magnets with the practice’s
contact information on them. Eve had given her instructions to hand every patient
one when they paid for the services.

Business
was a little slow, but she had every confidence things would be picking up once
word got around the practice was up and running again. All bad things were in
the past, and this was a new era for vet and patients alike.

“Hello,
Glacier Pet Clinic. How can I help you?” she heard Chloe saying into the phone.

“We
do have an opening on that day. Would you prefer morning or afternoon?”

Eve
watched as Chloe’s finger tapped on the keys.

“Would
10.30 a.m. work for you?”

“Perfect.
I have Molly scheduled for her rabies shot on Thursday the eleventh.”

Eve
walked out into the reception and smiled at Chloe. “You settling in okay?” she
asked her.

“Yes,
I’m loving it already. Oh, and I’ve sent messages to all the
shif
—all my friends and you’ll be getting some of their
pets as clients.”

“That’s
great, thank you.”

“Sure,
and I’ve already booked Barney for his rabies and distemper booster shot.
You’ll love him. He belongs to one of our friends and he’s so cute.”

“You
have any pets?” Eve asked.

“No,
but we’re thinking we should now that Sophie’s isn’t a tiny baby anymore.”

“And
this is Sophie,” Eve said, picking up a photo Chloe had placed on the desk. “My
cousin’s son has Down syndrome,” Eve said. She hoped that Chloe didn’t mind her
mentioning it.

“She’s
doing really well and we go to a support group every Saturday so it’s nice to
chat with other parents and get tips” Chloe said.

“I
hope I can meet her one day.”

“She
loves meeting new people. Maybe you’d like to come for dinner one night.”

“I’d
love that” Eve said.

“We
do have lots of single friends we could also invite along.”

“That’s
fine. I’m sort of enjoying being single again.”

****

Ian
sat opposite five of his fellow shifters who had been chosen randomly to sit on
the hearing for today. Lucky for him two were fellow bear shifters.

Brady
Walsh looked over at Ian. “You do realize that what you did was stupid and
irresponsible,” he said.

“I
do now, but Tuesday was a shitty day. You’ve probably already heard Joanne and
Max
Goodsen
have decided to become mates.”

Brady
nodded and looked over at him one more time “I know how you feel, but we have
to put the group before our own needs. You know those are our rules.”

He
did. He really did.

“Ned
said one lady was about to call the police, but he stopped her in time,” Simon
said, a wolf shifter. “Luckily no one got hurt, well besides a human who
slipped in the store.”

Shit,
he didn’t know about that.

“She
hurt her ankle, but luckily Hannah stepped in and got Ash to go check her out.
Which brings me to your punishment,” Brady said.

Punishment.
Yeah, he hadn’t counted on that but he guessed he deserved it.

“It’s
sort of punishment and a job all rolled into one,” continued Brady.

“First
of all you need to go along to
Goodsen’s
and do some
cleaning up as well as apologize.”

Now
he’d have to eat humble pie and it wasn’t going to taste that great.

“Second
thing is the job part and the remaining punishment. The woman who slipped has
taken over the vet practice of Ally Huxley’s husband.”

Ian
knew about that. He’d been murdered, and she’d sold the place and was now
married to wolf shifter Kent. In fact, they were going to have a baby. And this
had to be the vet that Lucy was talking about.

“Chloe
has just accepted the job of receptionist there, Sophie, my sprit child, will
be spending time there and we’re all a little worried for their safety, plus
this new vet, should a similar incident happen again. And the whole area where
the practice is located has had a number of thefts and break-ins for some
unknown reason. Lots of shifters have stores there so it’s up to us to keep everyone
safe.”