Chapter Nine
“Time for a Drink or Two”
“Thing is, my friend, I’m not surprised that you kissed her,” Henry was saying. “I’m just surprised you stopped.”
Cal glanced sideways at his friend and resisted the urge to smack himself in the forehead. Sighing, he shook his head and lifted his glass to his lips, closing his eyes as the whiskey hit his throat. He set it back onto the polished counter, half empty, and regarded Henry again.
“I’m serious,” the other man went on. “I could practically smell the tension between you and Dr. Kinley the day she showed up at the sanctuary. Figured it was only a matter of time before something happened.” He frowned at his own glass for a second, then grinned at his friend.
“So, how’d it feel to kiss your ex-fiancée after so long? ”
Cal punched him in the shoulder.
“Easy, Cal,” Henry said.
“You’re not taking this seriously, Henry,” he said.
But even as he spoke, he couldn’t help wondering about the kiss.
He hadn’t been able to think of much else since Melissa left the sanctuary hours ago.
He’d come down to Rubicon Valley with Henry to distract himself, even if for just a while.
But thoughts of Melissa occupied his mind, popping up every few seconds, like a game of whack-a-mole.
Henry massaged his shoulder, shifting slightly on his stool. “That’s because I don’t think it is a serious issue. You’re both obviously still into each other. And look on the bright side: Regardless of how things go with her, there are still other fish in the pond.”
“I think you mean the sea.”
“Sylva’s a small town. Still, plenty of fish available. Just look around.”
Cal obliged, gazing around him. Rubicon Valley was lively this evening, with customers seated at the bar.
Neon lights lined the walls and ceiling, and rock music played from a hidden speaker.
In the corner, a bunch of men in their thirties were gathered around the pool table, talking and laughing about something he couldn’t make out.
The booths were mostly taken by a few men and women enjoying beers and fries.
A couple of women caught his eye and smiled. He didn’t respond.
“See what I mean?” Henry asked.
Cal rolled his eyes. “I’m not interested in them.”
“Interested in who?” said a voice.
They both glanced up at the sound. A woman stood behind the counter, wearing a bright blue crop top over denim shorts. She was beautiful, with frizzy red hair and deep brown eyes, her dark skin glowed under the neon lights.
“You guys need a refill?” she asked, pointing to their glasses.
“Sure thing, Angelica,” Henry said with an enthusiastic nod.
The barmaid shifted her gaze to Cal, and her shiny lips curved into a smile. “What about you, Cal?”
“I guess I’ll have another,” came his response. “It’s good whiskey.”
Her eyes fluttered slightly. “Well, I get off work at nine. If you’re still here, maybe I could show you a bottle of our best stuff. We could share it.”
Her tone was suggestive, her gaze lingering on him for longer than it needed to. Cal tried for a smile, unable to shake the discomfort stirring in his gut.
“Thanks for the offer,” he said, “but I’m fine with regular whiskey.”
Angelica looked as though she’d been slapped. “Oh. Uh, I guess that’s alright.”
She proceeded to refill their glasses. Then, without another glance in Cal’s direction, she moved to attend to other customers.
“What is up with you?” Henry wanted to know.
Cal shrugged. “What?”
“She was practically throwing herself at you. I can’t believe you. What exactly is the problem? Is she too young?”
Angelica was in her thirties. Not too young. She was an attractive woman—half the men in this bar would jump at a chance to get in bed with her. The problem was, Cal wasn’t one of those men. Right now, there was only one woman he could think of getting involved with, and it wasn’t her.
His mind strayed back to that moment in the kitchen, replaying the kiss he’d shared with Melissa.
He hadn’t had time to think. She’d come too close to him, and what was left of his self-restraint had disappeared.
The next thing he knew, he’d had his arm wrapped around her, his lips glued to hers. And she’d kissed him back.
It’s not like you’re thinking of getting back together with me, he’d told her.
But did he want to get back together? The easy answer was no.
Then again, kissing the ex who broke your heart wasn’t exactly the best way to communicate that you wanted nothing to do with them.
It was a good thing he pulled away when he had, otherwise...
The possibilities of what might have happened in the kitchen if he’d continued kissing Melissa flooded his mind, and he felt a twitch in his groin in response. With a sigh, he took another sip of whiskey.
Seeing the ring on her finger had been a real shocker. He’d figured she must have gotten rid of it after she took off a decade ago. But she’d kept it. What’s more, it was still on her finger. Cal’s heart had leaped a little at the sight of it.
“...what it’s worth, I’m just glad we were able to save that foal.” Henry’s voice broke through his thoughts. “And the vet’s only been around a few hours. Think of how many more animals we could save now that we’ve got her.”
“She’s not working at the sanctuary,” Cal told him. “Not really.”
“Huh?”
“She already found another job. Walking a dog, apparently. She only agreed to help us temporarily.”
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Henry shake his head. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“Not one bit.” Cal raised his glass to eye level, staring at its contents. “After that kiss, I doubt I’ll ever see her face again.”
“You sure about that?”
“Yeah, why?”
Henry tapped his arm. “Because she just walked in.”
Cal’s head snapped around so suddenly, it was a miracle it didn’t fall off his shoulders. Sure enough, Melissa stood by the entrance, wearing a t-shirt over sweatpants, her expression somewhat glum. She swept her gaze around the bar, freezing as it landed on Cal.
“I should give you two lovebirds some space,” Henry said, sounding like he was barely holding back a chuckle.
He grabbed his drink and rose, patting Cal on the shoulder as he walked off to one of the booths. Rolling his eyes, Cal glanced again toward Melissa.
She was walking toward him.
Oh, crap. She’d been upset when she left the kitchen earlier. What was she doing here?
Melissa reached the table in half a dozen strides. “I’m guessing this stool isn’t taken?”
Without waiting for a response, she settled onto it, waving to Angelica to bring her a drink. A moment later, she had a glass just like his cradled in her hands. For the next minute or so, they both sat sipping their whiskey. A heavy awkwardness settled in the air between them.
“Is it just me, or is that barmaid giving me the evil eye?” Melissa said.
Cal nearly choked on his drink. He set his glass down, turning to face her. “How’d you know to find me here?”
She looked at him like he’d lost his marbles. “I didn’t come here looking for you.”
“Oh.” His relief was fleeting, replaced with mild concern. “What did you come here for, then?”
She shrugged, but said nothing for a moment.
Cal stared at her, feeling his stomach tighten.
The memory of her lips caressing his filled his mind.
He could still feel her sighing against him, her breasts crushed against his chest, her body practically melded with his.
His gaze shifted to her bangs, and he almost reached out to brush them out of her face.
He brought his eyes even lower, staring at her hands. The engagement was still there, the ruby gleaming in the soft overhead light. Looking at it, Cal felt a tickle of excitement in his gut. He pushed it aside before it could linger.
What was going on in her head? She was the last person he’d expected to come in here this evening, much less take a seat next to him. He could still remember the way she’d looked at him when he said those words: It was a mistake. He’d seen the flash of surprise and hurt in her eyes.
The next thing he knew, she’d all but flounced out of the kitchen.
Now that he thought about it, though, it made little sense for her to take offense.
He hadn’t meant to kiss her, after all, and he’d pulled away because it was the sensible thing to do if he wanted to avoid getting hurt again.
It wasn’t like she was in much of a position to take offense. Not after the way she’d hurt him.
“Had to find a way to drown my sorrows, I guess,” Melissa finally said.
Huh? “Sorrows?”
“I got fired today, Cal. Dale fired me.”
“Oh.” He’d suspected her presence here had something to do with their kiss. This? This was... “What happened?”
“I didn’t feed his dog on time, and he decided I wasn’t fit to work for him. So he let me go.” She took another sip from her glass. “Now I’m once again out of a job. Figured it was time for a drink or two.”
“I’m sorry,” Cal said, feeling guilt grip his insides. It was his fault she’d lost her job, after all. If he hadn’t asked her to come with him to the sanctuary...
A thought occurred to him then. “Well...Green Sanctuary still has an opening if you want it. My offer from this morning still stands.”
She glanced at him, her green eyes widening slightly. “Are you sure? I mean—”
“It’s the logical solution to our problems. We saved a foal today because of you. As our vet, you’d be helping us save so many more animals.” He gave a shrug. “You were supposed to work full-time with us, anyway.”
A gleam appeared in her eyes, and a small smile tugged at her lips. “Thank you, Cal.”
“Don’t mention it.” He stared at his glass, wondering if he hadn’t just made matters worse for himself. Sure, a vet was just what the sanctuary needed right now. But after what happened earlier today, he couldn’t help but wonder about the possible consequences.
They’d already failed to keep their hands off each other, and she’d only been at the sanctuary for a couple of hours this morning.
What if it happened again? What if he found himself kissing her like he had earlier?
And what if, this time, he couldn’t stop himself?
Things were already complicated enough, without sex being thrown into the equation.
It wasn’t enough to remind himself that she’d broken his heart. It didn’t put out the desire burning him from the inside out. It certainly hadn’t kept him away from her. There was only one logical solution to their problems.
Was that why she’d moved after she left their wedding?
Had she been trying to put distance between them to keep something like this from happening?
They had their problems with each other.
His true nature was revolting to her, and she’d broken his heart.
They shouldn’t be together, shouldn’t even be speaking to each other.
Yet ever since she moved to Sylva, they’d kept running into each other.
Working together sounded like a recipe for disaster.
Cal smiled back, holding up his glass, and she did the same, clinking hers against it.
“Welcome aboard, Dr. Kinley,” he said.