Chapter 1
Chapter One
T he small pieces of kibble bounced and pinged against the metal bowl as Brielle poured Sparky’s evening ration into the spot. “Here ya go, boy,” she said, scooting the bowl a little closer to her furry companion.
Sparky licked her hand before stuffing his black wet nose into the bowl and crunching his dinner with extreme satisfaction.
Brielle smiled and straightened before heading to her kitchen. She opened her fridge and sighed, standing in the cool air, trying not to shiver as she studied the lack of food.
“Why is it so much easier to fix a dog’s dinner than a human’s?” she grumbled. Grabbing eggs, some cheese and a couple of vegetables, she set about making her standard omelet. If Brielle’s mother knew she made it four or five nights a week, Celeste Underwood would be appalled.
“What?” Brielle defended to the not-real argument going on in her head. “It’s high in protein and has vegetables, plus a little dairy. Nothing wrong with that.”
Maybe not, her mother would say, but don’t you want to expand your palette? Learn to make something a little more…exciting? Like your sister. Aurora knows how to eat in a classy way.
Brielle shrugged and pushed the image of her disappointed mother aside. Brielle had done it so many times in the past that it was old hat now. She used to feel guilty over these fake discussions, but now they seemed almost normal.
Brielle snorted. “Normal.” She poured her eggs in the hot pan. “Nothing about you is normal.” Before Brielle could continue arguing with herself, her phone buzzed, and she eyed her stovetop concoction before walking over to grab the device off the couch.
Do you have any openings tomorrow? I’ve got an emergency. - Erin
Brielle snorted again, this one from humor instead of frustration. She tucked the phone into her pocket and went back to the stove before her dinner burned. She could answer the question in a moment.
Once seated at the bar with her piping hot eggs, she pulled her phone out again.
I can slip you in at 2:30. Dare I ask what happened?
The three dots on the bottom of her screen pulsed while Brielle blew on a bite of food, waiting for the response.
Charlie.
There was no hiding the smile that accompanied that statement.
We’ll get Smoky taken care of. No worries.
Thank you! You’re a lifesaver!
Brielle shook her head, still smiling and set the phone aside. There wasn’t a good response to that. Being able to cut pet hair so that they didn’t look like they were homeless was far from being a lifesaver, but poor Smoky had been the victim of eight-year-old Charlie’s antics more than once. It was a wonder the labrador hadn’t run away from home yet.
Brielle’s eyes involuntarily slid toward her own pet. Sparky had finished eating and was now snoozing right next to his bowl. The white around his snout and paws let anyone paying attention know that the dog was getting older.
He’d been a gift during her middle school years, from Brielle’s father, a peace offering for the fact that Brielle tended to struggle making friends.
“Who doesn’t have trouble making friends in middle school?” Brielle grumbled while stabbing at her eggs. Mother and Aurora. Another very practiced push of those thoughts brought Brielle back to her beloved companion.
Brielle had loved the dog at first sight. Her parents, or more accurately her father, had been kind enough to keep taking care of Sparky while Brielle had tested out college, but after only one year, she’d felt like she couldn’t breathe and had come home.
It had taken a bit to get her dog grooming business off the ground, but once she’d been financially stable, Brielle had fled her parents’ home, leaving her mother and her sister’s smothering legacy behind while making her own way in the world.
Washing stinky pets wasn’t glamorous, but at least animals let Brielle know where she stood. They didn’t mince words or put a face on for the public. If they were grumpy, she knew. If they were scared, she knew. And if they adored her, she knew that too.
For the most part, Brielle had very little trouble with her patrons. She wasn’t one to brag often, but she had a bit of a knack for getting animals to like her.
“Now if only that went for people,” she whispered hoarsely. With a loud sigh, Brielle forced herself to finish the eggs. She not only needed the energy for her morning workout tomorrow, but she also hated waste.
After setting the dishes in the sink, she headed to her bedroom. Her little house wasn’t much, but it was hers and the jetted tub in her master was calling her name. Hopefully, it would help relax the pain in her quad before her trail run tomorrow.
Now was no time for her to be stuck with an injury when there was a race coming up. Her team would be counting on her, and Brielle wouldn’t even think of leaving them stranded.
She barely heard her phone ring over the sound of the running water, but Brielle managed to snag her phone right before it went to voicemail. “Hello?” she asked breathlessly. Her eyes squeezed shut, and her nose scrunched when she realized who she’d answered.
“Brielle,” her mother, Celeste, cooed. “How are you tonight?”
“Fine. Thanks, Mom.” Brielle eyed the bathroom. “I, uh, was just about to take a hot bath.”
“Oooh, I knew there was a reason you bought that little place.”
Brielle sighed and hung her head. “Yep. It’s a nice thing to have around.”
“I don’t want to take up much of your time,” Celeste began, letting Brielle know that her mother would absolutely be taking up a bunch of her time. “But I wanted to ask if you knew Sandy’s son? Trevor?”
Brielle clenched her jaw. “No. Can’t say that I do.”
“You remember? He was a couple grades ahead of you at college?”
“I was only there one year, Mom,” Brielle reminded her. “I didn’t really get to know the upperclassmen.”
“Well, I suppose it doesn’t really matter. Anyway, he’s going to be home for the next week, and I thought it might be a good chance for you to wear that dress I bought you last Christmas.”
Brielle didn’t respond. Instead, she walked to the bathroom and shut off the tub. Her fingers twitched toward the drain, but she forced herself not to give up on the bath completely. Her leg really would appreciate it. “I don’t think that’s a good idea,” she finally hedged.
“Why not? He’s single and handsome.”
“Did he play football in high school?”
Celeste huffed. “What does that have to do with anything?”
Brielle rolled her eyes, even knowing it was a juvenile response. Her mother meant well—at least Brielle was pretty sure she meant well—but the woman just couldn’t seem to give into the idea of letting Brielle be, well, Brielle.
Such is the problem with being born to a cheerleader and highschool quarterback pairing, Brielle thought darkly. Her mother was the epitome of elegant feminism. Slim with long flowing blonde hair that always looked styled, Celeste Underwood would never appear anything but perfect in public, and she expected her daughters to be the same.
Not that she’d ever been outright rude to Brielle, but at times it seemed like Celeste simply didn’t know what to do with Brielle. While Aurora had taken her mother’s elegance to a whole new level and competed in pageants around the country, Brielle was more like their father. Athletic, with a naturally muscular tone and a driving ambition to be at the head of the pack.
It gave her something to focus on in high school when her sister captured the attention of every male in existence and Brielle caught the attention of no one.
Well…not no one, she thought sarcastically. But does ten minutes of attention really count? Especially if he ended up being Aurora’s boyfriend for the rest of the year?
“Brielle?” Celeste’s inquiry brought Brielle out of her dark and troubled thoughts, forcing her back to the present.
“I’m really not into blind dates, Mom,” Brielle said quickly. “Thanks though. I’ll be in touch soon. My bath is getting cold.” Hanging up, Brielle threw the phone onto her bed before shutting the bathroom door.
She’d spent years having a pity party about her particular station in life, and Brielle was sick of it. She’d wasted too much time wishing to be like her mom and sister. No more. Absolutely no more.
The past was the past.
The future was the future.
Now was now.
And right now she was going to soak her muscles and relax before bed. Then tomorrow she would conquer another trail run and make herself the most useful person on her ragnar team. It wasn’t a perfect life, but it was hers and she was going to enjoy it.
Doctor Ryan Thatcher sighed as he locked up the clinic and walked to his car, his keys sliding into his pocket with a soft jangle. He winced at a foul smell. The kitten this morning had been cute…until fear had taken over her bodily functions.
“I really need to start bringing an extra set of clothes to work,” he grumbled, sliding into the driver’s seat. Hopefully, the smell wouldn’t stick around in the vehicle permanently.
He’d only been a full-time vet for a couple years, but already he was a bit weary. It wasn’t the animals, though there were days that were more difficult than others—such as kittens with bladder control issues—but sometimes life was just hard.
He was in the middle of one of those periods and had been for a long time.
He’d come out of high school on a high and raced toward college with ambition and drive in each step. Most of college had been amazing. He’d had friends, done well in his classes and dated the most popular girl on campus. But just as he was ready to take everything to the next level, Ryan had found his fiance with his roommate and he’d never quite come back from the blow.
Now he was going home to an empty apartment and an empty schedule. Well, not completely empty. He was booked from eight to five every day with patients. As the only vet in the middle of nowhere, he rarely had a break in his appointments. But it wasn’t quite the fulfilling drive that Ryan was looking for.
He pulled into his parking spot and stared up at the building. His townhouse was dark and empty looking. “Just like your life,” Ryan murmured. He paused and huffed. “Geez, dramatic much?” he responded to his own statement.
Shaking his head to try and clear out the melancholy feelings, he grabbed his bag, got out of the car, and marched up his front steps.
“Hey, neighbor.”
Ryan’s breath stuttered in his lungs. Stupid, stupid, stupid, he beat his brain with the phrase. If he hadn’t been so depressed with his current social status, he would’ve been diligent enough to pay attention to whether or not it was safe to get out of the car and be in the open. Slowly, Ryan spun, his key dangling in midair. “Oh! Hey, Staci. I didn’t see you there.”
She flipped her thick, blond hair over her shoulder in a move that Ryan had seen too many times to count. “I’ve been told I’m hard to miss,” she teased, her white teeth flashing. “You must have been thinking about something.”
Ryan spotted his way out and grabbed it with both hands. “Yeah, one of the kittens today left a nasty surprise on my pants, and I’m trying to hurry to go get changed.”
Staci stepped back, her nose wrinkling as if she could smell him, which couldn’t actually be the case or she would have said so from the beginning. “Are you serious?” she asked. “The cat…”
“Urinated on me,” Ryan finished for her. “Yeah.” He shrugged and used the excuse to go back to his door, shoving in the key in the wrong way. He almost cursed out loud when he had to pull it out and try again. “Happens all the time,” he said dramatically, mentally snickering at the look on Staci’s face.
“Oh,” she responded, her brows pulled together as if she wasn’t sure if she believed him or not. “Don’t you have staff that deal with that or something?”
“Sure,” Ryan said, throwing his door open a little too hard. He winced when it hit the wall. “But why let them have all the fun, right?”
Staci didn’t respond, just stared as if he’d grown a second head.
“Anyway, I should probably go make sure these pants end up in the washer.” He forced a chuckle and began to step inside, praying she would let him go without a struggle. “I’ve learned the hard way that if you leave these kinds of stains too long, the smell almost never comes out.”
Staci still didn’t speak, but she didn’t stop him either.
Success!
“See ya!” Ryan finished leaping inside and slammed the door, locking it for good measure. He blew out a breath, resting his forehead against the door. “We don’t repeat stupid mistakes,” he muttered, slowly shaking his head. Staci was far too much like Ryan’s old fiance. He’d seen the type a thousand times and he knew it was best to stay away. Cheating exes taught harsh lessons.
Another long sigh escaped his lips as he headed to the kitchen. His dinners seemed to be getting later and later, not to mention more and more meager.
It wasn’t the money. He could afford groceries just fine. But what was the point of spending his few precious hours off in the middle of a grocery store, trying to come up with a menu that he would inevitably be too tired to follow?
Grabbing a protein shake from the fridge, Ryan sat down on his couch and turned on the television. He was through with the drink before he managed to find anything worth watching.
Another shake of his head and growl of his stomach sent him back to the kitchen where he was reminded of his malodorous state. “Shoot,” he muttered. Dropping the empty drink container in the garbage, he hurried up the flight of stairs to his bedroom and stripped out of his clothes, jumping in for a quick five-minute shower. The point was simply to wash off the animals, since he’d need to shower again after his workout in the morning.
But no one wanted a stinky bed, even single men.
Clomping back down the stairs in shorts and a t-shirt, Ryan rummaged through his kitchen until he decided that a sandwich would be enough to tide him over until morning.
Fifteen minutes later, his stomach was mostly full, but his life still felt empty. “You’re an idiot,” he growled while rinsing the dishes and tossing them in the dishwasher. “You chose this life. Now deal with it.”
The problem was, he hadn’t realized just how boring and lonely his life would be in his self imposed exile. He’d never struggled socially. At least not to anyone’s knowledge. He was one of the popular guys in high school and had only been rejected once.
Ryan rubbed at his sternum when he thought of Brielle. He could still see her flaming red hair and pert nose stuck in the air. She was a challenge and a gorgeous one at that. That was probably most of what had driven his teenage hormone addled brain in her direction all those years ago.
But after spending a little time getting to know her and watching her beat others on the cross-country track, he’d been star struck. She was a little loud and a little rough around the edges, but she was also fun, fiercely loyal and made him want to up his game.
Ryan closed his eyes and let his head fall back against the couch cushions. He could still remember their kiss, even though it had been years ago. It had taken him a year to work up the courage to lay his lips on the feisty competitor, but the moment had been absolutely magic.
At least, that was how he remembered it. The fire of her hair had nothing on the fire that had lit him from the inside out when he’d managed to hold her without getting punched in the face. Brielle would never have been the type to cheat on him, but most of the girls he’d hung out in high school would have.
And the way Brielle returned the kiss?
Every daydream was still measured against that moment in his life.
But like many momentous moments there was a before and after.
Before he’d kissed Brielle, Ryan hadn’t truly lived. After? Well, afterward, he’d never truly lived again, either, though he’d tried awfully hard.
But this time, it wasn’t because he didn’t know what living was. It was because he’d discovered the life he’d created was a lie. But he’d tried. Too many times to count actually, and that was what led to his dating hiatus. He could get a date if he wanted, but they were all the same.
Beautiful women, some nice, some not so nice, but all of them were too much like his ex and not enough like his memory of Brielle. None of them gave him the same adrenaline rush or even had interests in common with him for it to go beyond a couple of initial dates.
Now he was steady in his career and lonelier than he’d ever thought possible. Blowing out a harsh breath, he forced himself up the stairs and fell into bed. Work might be tedious, but at least it made him tired. He had no trouble falling asleep that night, and if his thoughts were filled with visions of a stunning redhead who taunted and teased until he didn’t know up from down? He had to admit that was about as good as it got these days.