Maybe lemurs could change that. She would really love to get him something he could be truly enthusiastic about. Sure, tourists would want to look at the lemurs and possibly feed and interact with them, but they would be for Griffin first and foremost.
“And yes, to answer your question,” Tori said to Charlie. “I do know someone who would know about how we could get a couple of lemurs.”
“Mitch is going to have to build an enclosure for that, right?” Zeke asked. “That would be cool.”
Charlie grinned at him. “Yes, it will be all hands on deck. As always.”
Zeke nodded, tossing another fry in his mouth and chewing. Then said, “Awesome.”
It was hard to do anything privately here, but that was awesome. Even the craziest ideas actually got considered, and when something was going to happen, everyone was willing to play a part.
“Let me make a phone call,” Tori said. “I’ll let you know later today.”
Charlie was excited. “Great. And no one says anything to Griffin.”
Owen chuckled. “Don’t worry. I’m not gonna be the one who tells him about this.”
* * *
Three days later, when the front door to the clinic opened, Charlie looked up, admittedly hoping it was Griffin. She was always hoping it was him. She had it bad.
It wasn’t him, though.
The woman was tiny, with lightly tanned skin, dark curly hair, and an instantly contagious grin. She was around Charlie’s age and walked in as if she was in exactly the right place.
“Hi,” Charlie greeted, getting to her feet. “Can I help you?”
“You’re Charlie, right?” the woman asked.
“I am.”
“Awesome!” The woman’s smile got even brighter as she approached the counter. She was dressed in blue jeans with a bright red tank top and red Converse on her feet. When she walked, she nearly bounced.
Energy seemed to radiate from her, and Charlie found herself grinning without even knowing why. “Have we met?”
The woman shook her head. “Tori called me. I’m Fiona.”
“Oh, if you’re meeting Tori, she isn’t here yet.”
“I’m sure she’s on her way. But I’m here for you,” Fiona told her and propped her elbows on the front counter.
The counter was high enough for her that she had to stretch slightly. She couldn’t have been more than five foot one, and Charlie noticed that everything about her seemed small. She had a cute turned-up nose, and her blue eyes practically twinkled. For just a moment, Charlie had the thought that Fiona reminded her of an elf. Or a sprite. Or something else with positive energy and maybe a magical touch.
“You’re here for me?” Charlie repeated. “What about?”
“I hear you’re in need of a lemur.”
Charlie’s eyes widened. “Yes, I’m interested in talking with someone who can tell me what it would take to care for a lemur at a place like ours and give more information about purchasing and licensing and all that.”
Fiona laughed, and the sound was light and happy, and Charlie found that contagious as well. She laughed too, without being really sure why.
“We’ll go over all of that when I introduce you to Larry.”
Charlie shook her head. “Who’s Larry?” Maybe Larry was the lemur expert who could help her decide if she should do this or not.
“Larry is one of the lemurs I brought you.”
Charlie stared at Fiona. “You brought me a lemur.”
“Three of them, actually. Larry, Curly, and Moe are outside just waiting to move into their new digs.”
Charlie let that sink in for a moment, then asked again, “You brought me a lemur?”
“Tori said you wanted to get some lemurs for Griffin. I am one thousand percent on board with that idea. So I brought you some.” Fiona said it as if it was the most obvious thing. Almost as if she had just brought Charlie a new pair of shoes to try on. Something simple and not at all crazy.
“You just brought them? I don’t know anything about lemurs.”
“But Griffin does,” Fiona said.
“Griffin doesn’t know that we’re getting lemurs,” Charlie said, feeling a tiny bubble of panic rising in her chest. She had intended to do a lot more homework. She never went into a presentation without being fully prepared. And presenting the idea of lemurs to Griffin seemed like something she needed to be very prepared for.
“Griffin Foster needs to be shaken up out of his boring, trying-to-be-a-normal-guy routine, and I think a hot blonde and lemurs are exactly what he needs,” Fiona told her.
“Wait, do you know Griffin?”
Fiona nodded. “Oh, sure. Griffin and I were in Zambia together.”
This woman had been in Zambia with Griffin? The place he loved so much? The place that had shown him what he wanted to do with his life?
Suddenly Charlie was completely jealous of the woman standing in front of her, and it had nothing to do with Fiona’s seemingly perfect hair or the fact that she clearly knew a lot about lemurs.
The stab of jealousy was strangely intense as well as completely surprising.
Charlie didn’t get jealous, and she really shouldn’t be jealous about Griffin.
But a cute brunette in possession of lemurs seemed much more like the type of woman Griffin should be with.
“You know that Griffin likes lemurs and knows a lot about them, so you think he’ll be okay with this?” Charlie asked, focusing on the situation at hand. She could deal with who Fiona was to Griffin later. Or never.
Griffin and Fiona’s relationship and history had nothing to do with her. Just because Charlie had been flirting with him, and even stealing kisses, and exchanging lots of innuendos over the past five days since their hot barn encounter, didn’t mean that Griffin was hers to be jealous over.
And even if he did have a relationship with this woman, Charlie still wanted him to have lemurs.
“Oh, lemurs are the perfect thing for Griffin,” Fiona said.
Good. That was good. Charlie frowned. “You said that he’s got this boring thing where he’s trying to be a normal guy?”
Fiona nodded. “Yeah, after what happened in D.C., he decided he was going to just be a regular vet. Which, of course, he’s great at, but he’s got a passion for bigger things. More meaningful things. Not that being a small-town veterinarian can’t be meaningful,” she said quickly. “It’s very meaningful. Especially to the animals and families of those animals that he’s taking care of. Tori is completely content doing that kind of work. And God bless her for it. It’s just that Griffin has a… wilder streak.” She grinned. “Of course, that sounds funny, considering Griffin is one of the most solid and steadfast people I know. He’s just got a heart for wild animals.”
Solid and steadfast. Charlie thought about that. That did seem to be Griffin. He definitely had things he felt strongly about, and he wasn’t shy about expressing his opinions and feelings, but he was very consistent. It was easy to know where Griffin stood on most topics. And she really liked that.
Autre and the Landry family had given her the chance to express her wild side and be herself, but anyone who wanted to spread their wings and push boundaries needed a steady foundation under them. Griffin was that type of man. He was someone who could be counted on. If she were going to take a chance on staying in Autre and trying to build an animal park—something very outside her bubble of experience—she would need the Landrys telling her she could do whatever she wanted and get on board with her crazy ideas. But she also needed someone like Griffin, who would pull her back when it got too crazy and would give her the blunt, honest truth about what could and could not be done.
She felt excitement bubbling up from her stomach into her chest, like bubbles fizzing up out of a glass of soda. This could happen. She had everything she needed to make this happen. No, it wasn’t a big international company with an office in Paris, but this was starting to feel like exactly where she should be and what she should be doi
ng.
“So the lemurs will help him feel a little more excited about this plan, right?” Charlie asked Fiona. Fiona was a stranger. They’d literally met minutes ago. But the fact that they both knew—and clearly cared about—Griffin made Charlie ask.
Fiona nodded. “What Griffin needs is to do amazing work with a variety of animals and feel like he’s making an impact, while not answering to bosses who know less than he does and without being beholden to donors. If he can be his own boss and in charge of the care of the animals, Griffin will be very happy and will be able to make a big difference.”
“A big difference?” Charlie asked.
“When he was in Zambia, he wanted to do all kinds of teaching. About the animals and what was going on with their populations and their ecosystems. He wanted to help people understand how they could get involved and why they should get involved. He was very passionate about conservation efforts and anti-poaching laws, and environmental issues that threatened various groups of animals. He was ready to be a huge fundraiser and to go to D.C. to lobby Congress and all kinds of other things. And even after he got back to the states, he really tried to make the best of it by going to vet school and hoped to move up the ranks at zoos where he could have even more influence over his zoo as well as networking with others.”
Charlie stared at her. Griffin Foster had wanted to do public presentations and lobby Congress and grow his influence over zoos so that he could positively impact how animals were treated in captivity?
If that were true, all of her reasons for going into marketing would have resonated deeply with him.
It seemed they were even more alike.
“So, what kind of things can he do if he is in charge of a tiny animal park in a small town in Louisiana?”
“Education, possible propagation programs, public awareness, fundraising, helping other animal parks, and petting zoos with their care standards,” Fiona shrugged. “Whatever he wants to do. He certainly has the credentials and the passion. He just needs a place to apply those. Something to get excited about.”
“I want to help make that place,” Charlie said.
Had she just committed to staying in Autre and building the park—for Griffin no less—to a near stranger?
“I like you,” Fiona said. “I mean, I like anyone who’s interested in lemurs. But someone who’s willing to work at pulling Griffin back to where he needs to be in this world? Oh yeah, you’re going to be one of my favorite people.”
Yes, it seemed she had just made such a commitment.
Charlie felt her heart flutter in her chest. “Well, I’m creating a job for myself as well.”
Fiona gave her a knowing smile. “Sure,” Fiona said. “But I think you could make a lot more money somewhere else. A lot more guaranteed money.”
Charlie shrugged. “I like a challenge.”
“Well, Griffin is definitely a challenge.”
Charlie just gave a little nod with a smile.
“And you like Griffin.”
The flutter in her chest got more intense. “Yes,” she admitted. “I really like Griffin.”
“That shows impeccable taste,” Fiona told her.
“How much do you like Griffin?” Charlie couldn’t help but ask. Fiona struck her as a straightforward type of woman.
“A lot,” Fiona said. “He’s like a brother to me. Except that he’s a lot smarter and more responsible than my brothers.”
Like a brother. Charlie took a deep breath and blew it out. She could deal with Griffin and Fiona being close friends. Definitely. She was starting to like Fiona quite a lot as well.
“Just so you know, I would want Griffin to have this even if I hadn’t decided to stay.”
Fiona nodded. “Yeah, that’s how love works. You want the other person happy no matter what’s going on with you.”
Love.
Was that what she was feeling for Griffin? She was definitely in lust with him. She also liked him a lot. And she would even go so far as to say it was infatuation. But love?
It had only been a couple of weeks. That shouldn’t be enough time to fall in love. But she could almost hear her grandma Ellie’s voice in her head asking, well, how long should it take then?
In the Landry family, there were very few rules when it came to love. They just did it. They just loved. Big and loud and fiercely. And they didn’t get hung up on things like it not making sense or it being too fast or two people seemingly not fitting together. Love was love. If you felt it, you felt it. And if you were a Landry, you embraced it, and you celebrated it, and you fought for it.
The Landry family tree had many amazing, crazy love stories. There wasn’t one person currently residing in Autre, Louisiana, who would tell her that it was bonkers to think she was in love with Griffin Foster after only two weeks.
Except maybe Griffin Foster.
But she had no intention of telling him that she thought she was in love with him.
“Fiona!”
Charlie swung around at the sound of Griffin’s voice. He’d evidently come in through the back of the clinic.
“Hey, Griff!”
A moment later, Griffin had his arms wrapped around Fiona and her feet dangling several inches off the floor.
“Saw that huge purple truck in front of the clinic,” Griffin told her, setting her back on her feet. “You can’t really surprise anyone with that thing, you know.”
“It does make me a bit conspicuous,” Fiona agreed. “But it also makes me feel like a badass, so I’m going to keep driving it.”
“Not to mention that you need a huge old truck to pull those animal trailers you’re always hauling all over.”
Oh great, her surprise was ruined. He knew Fiona was here with animals?
He glanced at Charlie, and she felt her stomach flip at the warmth in his gaze when their eyes met. “You didn’t ruin my surprise, did you?” he asked Fiona.
“Nope, we were just having some girl talk.”
Wait, surprise? He had a surprise?
“Girl talk?” Griffin looked back and forth between them.
“Yeah, heard all about this hot guy Charlie is falling for,” Fiona said.
Charlie’s eyes went wide as Griffin’s gaze clashed with hers.
“Is that right?” he asked, his voice almost nearing drawl-level. Hot and slow and full of isn’t-that-interesting.
She didn’t know which of them he was talking to exactly, so she simply swallowed hard and stayed quiet.
Fiona was happy to jump in. “Yeah, apparently he’s super smart and really dedicated and passionate about his work and good looking and has a huge…”
Charlie’s mouth dropped open, and she made a little squeaking sound.
Fiona gave her a sly smile as Griffin’s brows shot up.
“…heart,” Fiona finished.
Charlie snorted, and Griffin even grinned.
“Well, maybe I should leave since you haven’t had a chance to talk about all of my other huge parts.”
He was staring right at her when he said it, and Charlie felt her mouth drop open even wider. He always caught her off guard when he flirted, but he’d never done it in front of someone else and never so blatantly.
She looked at Fiona, who was grinning broadly.
Yeah, she liked Fiona too. Griffin was clearly very comfortable with the other woman, and seeing her made him happy. Anyone who could make Griffin smile like that was someone Charlie could like.
Especially if they were more like brother and sister.
“Yeah, I haven’t had a chance to tell her about your huge ego or your huge negative attitude toward sloths,” Charlie said.
Fiona gasped. “Don’t tell me he turned you down about getting a sloth.”
Charlie nodded, propping a hand on her hip. “Yep. Shot it right down.”
Griffin groaned. “The last thing I need in my life is the two of you conspiring against me.”
“Too late,” Fiona said. “We’ve met, we’ve fallen in
love, we’re going to be BFFs. And just remember, Foster,” she added. “You invited me here first.”
“He did?” Charlie asked.
“First?” Griffin asked on top of Charlie’s question.
Fiona just gave them both a sly smile.
They looked at one another.
“You invited her here?” Charlie asked.
“Yeah. So, did you?”
Charlie shook her head and looked at Fiona again. “No, actually I didn’t know she was coming but… She brought something I need.” She said those last five words slowly.
Griffin turned narrowed eyes to Fiona. “Who called you besides me?”
“Tori,” Fiona answered.
“To bring something Charlie needs?” Griffin asked.
“Yes.”
“Something for Charlie besides what I asked you to bring?” Griffin pressed.
Charlie looked at him quickly. “You had her bring something for me?”
Fiona shook her head. “Wouldn’t this be easier if we just went outside and looked at everything?”
Charlie figured that hiding a bunch of lemurs would probably be difficult, so she might as well show them to Griffin now.
Griffin nodded. “Oh, I definitely need to see this.”
Charlie snuck a glance at Griffin as they followed Fiona out to the parking lot.
He met her gaze and gave her a half smile. “I would’ve warned you about Fiona, but I wanted this to be a surprise.”
“Fiona needs a warning?”
He chuckled. “Um… Yes. She can be a lot.” They stopped at the doorway together and turned to face one another. “Fiona is one of my favorite people in the world. One of my best friends.”
Charlie nodded. “She told me you were in Zambia together.”
Fall in Love Book Bundle: Small Town Romance Box Set Page 244
