‘Yeah,’ Amy muttered ruefully. ‘In acquiring a dog, not a girlfriend. A guy like that wouldn’t go for someone like me.’
‘I think you’re wrong,’ Denise carolled.
But Amy didn’t argue because she knew she was right. She didn’t have what it would take to attract a man of that calibre, neither the looks nor the stylish sophistication. Indeed, she thought it was absolutely typical that she had finally met a man who did attract her, only to discover that he was more interested in acquiring a pet. A man who was interested would simply have asked for her phone number, wouldn’t he?
CHAPTER TWO
AMYWENTHOMEafter her shift finished, the rain having stopped and business having picked up sufficiently for both her and her fellow waitress to have stayed on at work.
Harold, the vet for whom she worked, was just finishing up in theatre with the nurse, Leanne. Amy suppressed a sigh, knowing that she would have to do the post-operative clean-up required and she was already tired. Leanne was a pleasant woman but she never did any physical work when there was someone more junior on staff, particularly someone like Amy, who did not have the luxury of working set hours. Amy had been hoping to get the chance to tidy herself up a little before Sev arrived but, if he came early, that prospect was now unlikely.
An hour later, already wondering if he would visit at all or if he was simply another one of those random people who said they wanted a pet but never actually got around to getting one, she hurtled into the shower room, already reckoning that Sev would fail to appear. Why had she got so excited anyway? Even if he did come, he would only be looking at the dogs, not ather, she reminded herself in exasperation.
But what was it about him that had grabbed her interest so strongly that she had felt weirdly intoxicated when he’d actually spoken to her? So thrilled she could barely vocalise? So excited that she was embarrassed for herself? Obviously his sheer magnetic attraction had played an initial part in her reaction. But there had been something more, something she hadneverfelt before with a man, a deeper hunger to get to know who he was, how he functioned, how he thought...oh, just everything about him. Dumb, she told herself impatiently, because even if he did visit, it wasn’t her that he was interested in, was it? So, she was being childish and silly weaving dreams about the poor man, who for all she knew went home to a wife and a bunch of children after work, quite unaware that he had wowed the waitress out of her apparent single brain cell!
He hadn’t been wearing a wedding ring though, because she had somehow checked that out the instant she’d sat down at that table, but not all men chose to wear a ring, she reflected, thoroughly irritated with her thoughts and her one-track mind as she raced upstairs to her room to get dressed and apply a little make-up. Why? Well, miraclesdidhappen, she conceded with a rueful smile, because Cordy had been Amy’s very first miracle, entering her life again when it was a mess and bringing her into her cosy home andlovingher. Nobody had ever loved Amy before and Cordy’s love and support had been transformational for her in every way.
Attired in jeans and a blue sweater, she went downstairs to the shelter to feed the animals. Volunteers came in several days a week and cleaned the kennels and walked the dogs. Some animals at the shelter were old tenants, those deemed unlikely to be rehomed for various reasons. She let Hopper out of his cage, and he danced around her in rapturous welcome, his lack of a fourth leg not inhibiting him in any way, but he quietened down quite quickly because he was no longer a young animal.
For all intents and purposes, and only behind closed doors, Hopper had become Amy’s pet, who slept in her bed every night and loved her as much as she loved him. But practically speaking, Amy couldn’t take Hopper on officially because few landlords allowed pets and as soon as she completed her apprenticeship in four months’ time, she would have to find other accommodation. Her right to live above the surgery had been Harold’s solution to her completing her training on low wages but the surgerywouldneed the room restored to its former use.
Six o’clock had come and gone, and Amy had long since abandoned hope of Sev appearing when the downstairs bell rang. She blinked in surprise, wondering who it was, hoping it wasn’t an abandoned animal or anything that would prevent her going to the evening class she had to attend at seven. It wouldn’t be the first time someone had rung the bell and left a dog tied to a lamp post outside, and then she would have to phone Harold and stay behind to attend to the practicalities of a new arrival with him. She clattered back downstairs, wondering when on earth she was likely to get the time to eat.
The vision of Sev waiting outside knocked her for six because she had assumed he was a no-show, and suddenly being presented with him again when she had least expected it was unnerving. She took a harried brief glance at him, noting that he had changed into jeans and a dark green sweater, teamed with a jacket. ‘Er...you can come in but we’ll have to be quick because I have to go out,’ she warned awkwardly.
‘I’m sorry... I’m late. I had to stay on at the office to take a phone call,’ Sev told her truthfully, assuming that the explanation of her having to go out was merely an excuse of the face-saving variety and untrue.
‘Luckily, I’m still here for a little while,’ Amy told him cheerfully, leading him out through the back of the building to the kennels. ‘Well, meet the residents. Those three at the top end are not available for various reasons and the same goes for the lower four cages.’
‘What reasons?’
‘Kipper bites when he gets nervous, which is most of the time. Harley only responds to commands given in German—he’s very well trained but it puts people off—and Bozo, the bald one, is still receiving treatment for a skin complaint,’ she explained, standing back to watch Sev stroll down the path between the cages, viewing all the animals, a motley crew of bulldogs, terriers and cross-breeds.
Simultaneously, she was also taking in his broad shoulders and narrow waist while noting how his incredibly well-fitted jeans showcased lean hips, muscular thighs and long, long straight legs.
He had the strong, healthy physique of an athlete, she thought helplessly, conscious of the tight pulling sensation tugging at her core, which she had never felt before, and flushing pink as her nipples tightened almost painfully inside her bra. Surprise darted through her as Hopper trotted up to him and pushed against his knee. Sev stretched down an absent hand and massaged Hopper’s flyaway ear.
‘And this little chap?’
‘Oh, that’s Hopper, he’sreallyold,’ Amy muttered, knowing that Harold would be furious if he heard her say that to any patron seeking a pet because Hopper was as in need of a good home as any of the other inmates. ‘Well, he’s only ten, and the three legs don’t hold him back or give him any problems,’ she added in a guilty rush, inwardly praying that Hopper would not be chosen and loathing herself for that piece of selfishness.
She hovered at the entrance and was completely unprepared to hear Sev start talking to Harley in German. At least, it sounded like German to her because Harold knew a few basic words of the language and it sounded the same. She watched as Harley perked his ears up in pleasure and sat down, stood up, lay down, performed a circling excited motion and then completed his audition by sitting down again.
‘Harley and I seem to be a match. Can you let him out of the cage for a minute?’
In haste, Amy checked her watch. ‘It will only be for a minute. I have to leave soon,’ she reminded him.
‘To go where?’ Sev fenced.
‘I have a class to attend. It’s part of my apprenticeship. I usually attend day release every week, but this is a revision class for a final exam.’
‘That’s unfortunate because I was about to ask you to join me for dinner this evening,’ Sev advanced smoothly.
Disconcerted by that unexpected invitation, Amy tensed but Cordy’s careful lessons on self-discipline and focus kicked in. ‘I’m sorry. I would have liked that, but I can’t risk failing anything in my course. I have to complete it by the spring because my boss plans to retire then.’
The liquid-bronze eyes that were so stunningly set in his lean, hard-boned face narrowed in intensity as if he was surprised by her refusal. In the uneasy silence that fell, Amy crossed to Harley’s cage and unlocked the door. ‘Just a few minutes,’ she warned. ‘I’m afraid if you want Harley, you’ll have to come back to fill out the forms for him.’
Inside herself, some small part of herself was bouncing up and down with excitement that he had actuallyaskedher out. Her pale skin went pink and Harley’s boisterous greeting to his prospective new owner was a welcome icebreaker. With a couple of words, Harley was settled down again by Sev.