Vet's Desire

by Angela Verdenius

  “You’re building a cattery?” Maddy’s eyes were wide.

  “No, you wally. To foster them, I’d have them in the home. They need to be used to living indoors amongst people, handled regularly, shown love. That way, when they go to their new homes, they’re used to all of that. And, of course, the kittens might need to be hand-reared.”

  “So where are these orphans and strays coming from?”

  “The vets. They get them in almost every day during kitten season.”

  “Wow, that’s a lot of work.”

  “Sure. But I’m not silly. I’m not taking in ten cats and kittens at a time. Just a litter of kittens if needed, and their Mum if she’s with them, or a couple of adult cats here and there. I can’t risk becoming over-run with them and not able to get homes, I’ll only take what I can handle, and won’t take on more until what I have are re-homed.”

  Maddy looked at her admiringly. “You’ve really thought about this.”

  “I did some research on-line, as well as visited the RSPCA shelter and animal havens. There’s a real need for foster homes and education. I’m not too good at talking to people, but you know, looking after Al has made me realise just how much I love it. Caring for something.”

  “You’re going to re-home Al later?”

  “What? No! Al is mine.”

  “You’ve got a soft heart, Cindy. You’ll cry when the kittens and cats you foster go to new homes,” Maddy pointed out practically.

  “Don’t I know it. But if it gives a couple of our feline friends a chance, isn’t it worth a few tears?”

  “It is.” Maddy shook her head. “Wow, Cindy the party-girl becomes Cindy the feline foster mum. Who would ever have guessed? But, honey, what about your work in the family?”

  Cindy smiled. “Thanks to the wily minds of my Dad and Mum, all our monies are invested wisely. I already work for the family business mostly from home anyway. That’s what computers are for.”

  “Well, yes but-”

  “Mads, it’s not like I’ll never travel again, or never leave the house for a party or a few hours at a club. I can still have fun, still work, but I’m fortunate enough to be able to work around whatever needs the feline foster kids have.” Cindy’s smile widened. “I’ll be doing something worthwhile, apart from helping fill the family coffers. Plus I know a lot people and contacts are a good thing to have when it comes to homeless animals.”

  Maddy nodded. “I know a lot of people from work, too, both workmates and clients. I can make some contacts for you and keep my ears open for anyone wanting a cat or kitten.”

  “You’re a pal.”

  “What are friends for?” Maddy gently nudged Yamaha with her foot as she slid around Maddy’s chair looking for a piece of biscuit. “After all, they’re worth it.”

  “Yeah.” Cindy looked down at Yamaha. “Still sleeping on Mike’s pillow?”

  “Yes, and we never discuss it.”

  “Of course not. Mike’s such a big, tough man. He’s not a push-over for an itty, bitty kitty.”

  They both laughed.

  Leaving Maddy’s house, Cindy felt a lot better than she had since her encounter with Tim, and she drove home to feed Al and spend some time with him before she got ready for the party that night.

  Entering the kitchen through the door connected to the garage, she was amused to see Sam holding Al in one hand and cooing to him, while holding his bottle steady with the other hand. As soon as he saw Cindy, he frowned and stopped cooing.

  “Spoiled,” he announced. “This kitten is becoming spoiled.”

  “Really?” she returned dryly.

  Ruth looked up from the stool she was perched on, a gardening magazine before her. She rolled her eyes before looking back down at the magazine.

  “Ruth has been treating it like a human baby.”

  “There’s not a whole lot of difference, you know. They both drink, poop, wee, cry and sleep.”

  “Humph. Anyway, I’m glad you’re back to take over this thing.”

  She noticed that he kept hold of Al, cradling him against his chest while the kitten sucked on the bottle. “Anytime soon, you think?”

  Ruth snickered.

  Sam scowled at her before switching the same scowl to Cindy. “You can’t just toss Al around from person to person while he’s drinking. You’ll give him gas.”

  “Then we can add farting to his repertoire as well.” Grinning hugely, Cindy walked past him to sit at the counter opposite Ruth. “What are you going to do on your days off without Al?”

  “Have a rest. My job description doesn’t include cat-sitting.” The way Sam’s thumb gently rubbed Al’s side as he spoke was a direct contradiction to his words.

  Ruth winked at Cindy.

  “I am forever in your debt for taking on such a horrendous chore,” Cindy told him gravely.

  “And don’t you forget it.” Sam looked down at Al as the kitten released the teat. When the kitten refused to take it anymore, he set the bottle down on the counter and cradled the kitten in his big, work-roughed hand, one finger gently rubbing the tiny back.

  “Burping him?” Cindy queried.

  Sam cast her a narrow-eyed look.

  “Or not.” Cindy looked at Ruth. “How’s the gardening going? Anything we need?”

  Ruth closed the magazine. “I’ve sprayed the roses for aphids. This heat is burning the leaves, but I think they’ll be fine. The rest of the garden is good.”

  “Okay.” Knowing that Ruth was more than content to take care of the garden and tell her when they needed anything, Cindy was happy with the report. “Got plans for tomorrow?”

  “Seeing the grandkids,” Ruth replied. “They’re coming over for lunch.”

  “Messy and noisy as usual,” Sam grumped.

  Knowing perfectly well how much he looked forward to the visits from his grandchildren, Cindy sighed. “It’s a harsh life, Sam, gotta take the good with the bad.”

  “Yeah, well, someone’s got to make sure those kids get brought up right.”

  Ruth rolled her eyes again.

  Sam placed Al in his carrier and tucked him in, his sharp gaze switching to Cindy in warning.

  Miming zipping her mouth closed, she locked the imaginary lock and tossed the imaginary key away.

  Getting off the stool, Ruth rolled up the magazine and tucked it into the back pocket of her old work pants. Sam gathered his car keys and wallet from the drawer that he and Ruth used for themselves and after bidding Cindy and Al goodnight, they headed out to their car.

  Smiling, Cindy picked up Al’s carrier and took it upstairs with her, placing it on the floor beside the bed while she went to the shower.

  Afterwards, clad only in bra, panties, and a thin pink dressing gown which reached mid-thigh and was almost transparent, Cindy slipped on the kitten-heeled slippers and went downstairs for a drink. Choosing a snack of biscuits and dip, she went back upstairs to sit in the deep armchair that stood in a small alcove off her bedroom. Switching on the TV before it, she leaned back and lifted her legs to rest on the footstool. Placing the saucer of biscuits on a little table beside the chair, she took a sip of the drink and sighed in contentment.

  This was the life.

  Everyone thought they knew her so well. Cindy the party girl. Cindy who lived fast, played hard, and was a good-time girl. She wondered what they’d think if they knew that sometimes, when she was supposedly out partying, she was actually tucked up here in her little alcove, enjoying some peace and quiet.

  Yeah, she loved to party, loved to dance, but she loved time alone as well. Time to reflect on her life, her day, to just sit and enjoy some alone time.

  It had been during this time alone, nursing Al, that she’d come up with the idea of being a foster home for cats and kittens. It was up here that she’d phoned her old vet clinic and had a word to the staff there, and then phoned Lara at Tim’s clinic and spoken to her. Then she’d phoned up the RSPCA and the cat havens and spoken to them. There was a huge need
for foster homes. Good, reliable foster homes.

  Choosing to be a private foster home, doing it on her own initiative, Cindy had spoken again to Lara and her old vet and had decided that in a couple of weeks, when Al was old enough, she’d take in the next cat or kitten that needed fostering. Maybe later she’d extend to the RSPCA and the cat havens, but for now she’d start small.

  Stretching luxuriously, Cindy glanced at the clock and sighed. Time to get ready. More than comfortable, she’d have been happy to stay in her little alcove, but she’d accepted the invitation awhile ago and one thing she did take seriously was keeping her word.

  Besides, she hadn’t been out for at least a week.

  “Poor, deprived me,” she informed a sleeping Al with a grin.

  Dressing in a long, flowing, sleeveless, dark red gown with gold threads at the cleavage and shot through the skirt, she nodded her satisfaction. It framed her bosom, flowed inward at the waist and then draped over her hips to shimmer down to the floor.

  To complement the gown, she slid on gold stilettos, fastened a gold chain with a ruby tear-drop on it around her throat, snapped on a matching cuff around her wrist studded with rubies, and picked up a gold clutch.

  A last inspection of her hair, which she’d left loose, and she decided that she’d fasten back the side pieces after all. Several minuets later, she nodded in satisfaction and picked up Al’s carrier.

  Downstairs she got his bag ready, putting into it his clean bottle, teat, formula and a clean, soft cloth.

  The doorbell played its merry tune and picking up the bag and carrier as well as her clutch, she strode through and opened the front door.

  “Hey.” Marty peered at the carrier. “Al's going to the party? Isn’t he a little young to drink?”

  “No. I can’t trust him to hold his liquor,” Cindy replied. “He’s going to a baby-sitter.”

  Marty perked up. “Baby-sitter as in female baby-sitter?”

  “Female as in Lara, the vet nurse.”

  “Lara.” He pursed his lips, thinking, and then his eyes brightened. “Oh yeah, cute little vet nurse at that playboy vet’s clinic.”

  Playboy vet was right. “That’d be the one.”

  “Tim. Met him there when I picked up Al’s formula.” Marty opened the taxi door for her and took the carrier while she sat inside. Handing it back to her, he added, “Lara is cute. Wonder if she’s single?”

  “I don’t think she has a death wish, so it might pay you to stay away from her.”

  “Every woman likes a little danger in her life.” Closing the door, he went around the other side and slid in. “And I’m that little bit of danger.” He winked at her. “In fact, I’m a whole lotta danger, but I promise to just give her a taste. Maybe.”

  “That makes me feel so much better.”

  The taxi driver glanced at Marty in the rear-view mirror but kept his thoughts to himself.

  Cindy gave him Lara’s address and settled back in the seat.

  Marty proceeded to fill her in on what he’d been discussing with their father for future plans for the Bellacross Restaurant they all held equal shares in, and they threw ideas back and forth, arguing and agreeing until the taxi drew to a stop in front of Lara’s house.

  Cindy speared her brother with a narrow-eyed look. “Stay.”

  “I’m hurt.” Marty placed one hand on his chest. “What if you get attacked between the gate and her front door? How can I protect you?”

  “You’re the only danger around here, remember?”

  “I’m hurt.”

  Getting out of the taxi, Cindy took the bag and Al’s carrier up the garden path to the front door. Knocking on it, she waited.

  It opened within seconds and Lara smiled out at her. “Hi, Cindy. Wow, you look great.”

  “Thanks. And thanks for agreeing to baby-sit Al.” Cindy held out the carrier. “I’d have gotten Maddy to baby-sit him, but she has to get up early for work and my family are at this party.”

  “No problem.” Lara took the carrier carefully as well as the bag. “He won’t be the first kitten I’ve bottle-fed, and he won’t be the last.”

  “I promise to be back by midnight.” She looked wistfully at the carrier. “This is the first time Al has left home since I got him.”

  “He’ll be fine,” Lara assured her. “I’m staying up watching movies and he can snooze beside me on the sofa.”

  “Thanks again. If there’s anything I can do in return, let me know.”

  “Hey, you’re offering to help us with our abandoned kittens and cats, least I can do is help you out.” Lara grinned. “Plus, I’m dying to see how much Al has grown.”

  Cindy took a step back. “You have my phone number.”

  “On the pad by the phone.” Lara’s eyes twinkled.

  “If he needs me-”

  “I’ll ring straight away.”

  “If you think he looks a little peaky-”

  “Don’t worry, I have some training.” Lara laughed and flapped her hand at Cindy. “Go. He’ll be fine. I’ll see you in about four hours.”

  Cripes, who’d have thought the little fur ball would have crawled so thoroughly into her heart already?

  Cindy sat back down in the taxi and Martin looked at her as the taxi pulled out onto the road. “You all right?”

  “Fine.” She cleared her throat. “Lara’s a vet nurse. Al is in good hands.”

  “That’s right. Now, did you notice if she had a man in her house?”

  “Marty, I was only at the front door.”

  “Did you look over her shoulder?”

  “You are such a hound dog.”

  “Woof woof.”

  Cindy punched him in the arm.

  “I’m telling Mum,” he said.

  “Tell-tale-tit.”

  He laughed.

  Eventually the taxi pulled up in front of the mansion belonging to Dr Margaret Clarke. Marty held the door open for Cindy and she walked beside him up the marble steps.

  Lights spilled from the windows and music filled the air. Sophisticated music, subtle orchestra. Men and women dressed in clothes that clearly cost a lot of money entered ahead and behind them.

  “Wow, Dr Clarke still has her hooks into Martin Shaw, poor bastard.” Marty looked across to where Dr Margaret Clarke stood greeting the guests with a neatly dressed man by her side.

  “Maybe he’s here for keeps?” Cindy smiled at a woman who passed nearby, her expensive perfume thick in the air. “Hi, Maryanne.”

  “Cindy.” She beamed at them, and then her smile dimmed as she saw Marty. “Martin.”

  “Maryanne.” Marty smiled widely. “Looking good, sweetheart.”

  Her gaze turned sour and she walked off.

  “Oh, well done,” Cindy said. “Another conquest of yours that bit the dust?”

  “Her choice, not mine.”

  “Because you’re such a hound dog. Did you cheat on her?”

  “Nah. She was just too snooty for my tastes.” Marty steered her over to where Dr Clarke stood. “You’re looking hot, Dr Clarke, as always.”

  Margaret Clarke’s cold gaze swept over him. “Martin.”

  “Thanks for inviting us.” He held his hand out to Martin Shaw. “Same name as me, eh? Dr Clarke does love her Martins.”

  Martin Shaw shook his hand with polite amusement.

  Dr Clarke looked at Cindy, her gaze assessing her clothes. “Cindy, glad you could come.” There was a touch of frost to her tone, and a glint in her eyes that was a clear indication that she didn’t think it was appropriate for Cindy to wear such a tight-fitted bodice that showed off her ample bosom.

  Cindy smiled widely. “Dr Clarke, a pleasure to be here. Place looks lovely as always.”

  The almost-smile Dr Clarke bestowed upon her was as much approval as she’d ever show anyone.

  “So, where’s the birthday girl?” Marty inquired.

  “Right here,” a new voice replied.

  Turning, Cindy saw Dr Clarke’s siste
r-in-law, Hannah Harding, approach in a cloud of chiffon and perfume.

  “Marty, Cindy, so glad you could both come.” She enveloped them in a shared hug before gesturing to another door. “Eat, drink, and be merry.”

  “You may place your gift upon the table to the side of the room,” Dr Clarke instructed.

  “Nah,” Marty replied. “We’d rather give it now.” And so saying, he whipped a small wrapped box from his pocket and grabbed Hannah around the waist, dipped her into a laughing and shrieking bend backwards, gave her a smacking kiss on the lips and straightened her up again, steadying her with his hands until she got her balance.

  Hannah giggled in delight, cheeks flushed as she patted her white hair and pulled her dress a little straighter.

  Dr Clarke’s eyes went a little colder and Cindy nudged her brother in the ribs with her elbow. “Come on, lover boy.”

  “Save a dance for me,” Marty told Hannah before taking Cindy’s elbow and hustling her through into the big ballroom. “Now where’s the food? The drink? The tarty babes?”

  “The decorum?”

  “Where’s the fun in that?”

  “Trust me,” said a deep voice behind them, “There’s no fun if you upset your mother.”

  They both turned around to face the tall, thin, slightly stooped man standing behind them, his lined face kind, his brown eyes shrewd, and his short blonde hair liberally touched with grey.

  “Hi, Dad.” Cindy went up on tip toe to kiss him on the cheek.

  “Sweetheart, you look amazing.” Mr Lawson turned his gaze to his son. “And you look good, too.”

  “Thanks.”

  “But as wild as ever.”

  “I’m the picture of a sophisticated man.”

  “And I’m a dumb blonde.”

  “I don’t dare answer that.”

  “Wise move.” Taking Cindy’s arm, Mr Lawson ushered her across the large ballroom. “Your mother is over here.”

  Marty obediently followed. All the Lawson siblings knew not to scatter and find their own amusement at parties until they’d greeted their parents.

  Stopping just behind four women chatting to each other, Mr Lawson waited politely.

  The tallest and plumpest of the women glanced up, her blue eyes brightening upon seeing Marty and Cindy. “Darlings!”