Playing for Love (Summer Beach Vets 1) - sweet vacation romance

by H. Y. Hanna

  Sara looked down at the magazine again and felt another surge of fury, to be used this way again. I’m not going to run away this time, she decided. She wasn’t going to crawl away, with her tail between her legs, to lick her wounds in misery. With Jeff, she had thought she was taking the high road, refusing to talk about the split, quietly cutting him out of her life. But it hadn’t stopped him talking about it everywhere he could and it hadn’t stopped the media writing about her, all based on Jeff’s biased account. Well, this time she was going to make sure that she damned well had her say!

  Grabbing the magazine, she whirled and headed for the front door.

  “Sara? Where are you going?” Ellie shouted after her.

  “To see Craig.”

  CHAPTER 14

  Sara stormed into the animal hospital and marched up to the reception counter.

  “Where’s Craig?” she demanded.

  Megan looked up with a harassed expression. “He’s been called out to deal with a whelping emergency at the home of a local breeder.”

  “When will he be back?”

  “I’m not sure. Soon, I hope. I’m waiting for him myself as we’re worried about the Beagle.”

  Her words stopped Sara in her tracks. “The Beagle? The one I brought in? Why? I thought his paw was healing nicely.”

  Megan nodded. “So did we. His paw seems to be healing up pretty well. But he’s been very listless today and now he’s running a high fever.”

  Sara’s stomach lurched. “What does that mean?”

  “It looks like he might have septicaemia. He’s just had a blood profile done which will hopefully give us more information.” Megan shrugged helplessly. “It’s usually pretty rare but it can happen, especially if a foreign body gets trapped in the wound. You said you found him on the beach, right? He could have gotten an oyster shell fragment in his paw. Craig gave some prophylactic amoxyllin when he treated the wound, but it doesn’t always cover the whole spectrum of bacteria and some may be resistant.”

  “But… he seemed fine when I last saw him!” Sara protested.

  “Septicaemia can come on really suddenly,” said Megan. “A lot depends on the dog’s own immune system.”

  Sara felt her heart clenching in her chest. “It’s… it’s not fatal, is it?” she whispered.

  Megan’s expression was grim. “It does have a fairly high mortality rate. Dogs often go into shock and then…”

  She didn’t finish the sentence, but Sara wasn’t listening anymore anyway. She was thinking that the Beagle hadn’t even been reunited with his family yet. He could die here, alone, and his family would never know. She thought of something happening to her own Coco, and her not knowing about it, and felt a wave of despair.

  “Can I see him?” she asked. “Please?”

  Megan hesitated, looking around. The waiting room was empty and the practice was closing for the day. “I guess so. He’s in the oxygen chamber in the ICU. Don’t touch him or anything, but you can sit with him for a bit if you like.”

  Sara made her way blindly to the hospital ward at the back of the building. She saw the Beagle as soon as she entered the room. He was huddled in a corner of the oxygen chamber, his head on his front paws, panting rapidly. He barely looked up as she approached him and there wasn’t even a flicker of a tail wag. Compared to all the previous times when she had come in to see him and he had jumped up, eyes shining and tail wagging, to greet her, this was a heart-breaking difference.

  Sara pulled a stool over and sat down next to the oxygen chamber. She wished she could reach through the glass sides of the chamber and stroke the Beagle’s head, but she could only watch as he fought for each breath.

  Please don’t die, she begged silently, staring at the limp shape behind the glass. I haven’t even had a chance to learn your name. You’ve got a family waiting for you somewhere. You’ve got so many holes still to dig, balls to chase, smells to follow… You’ve got to get better!

  Sara wasn’t sure how long she sat there. Her legs were starting to cramp from lack of movement when she heard the door to the ward open and shut behind her. She turned around. It was Craig, accompanied by a vet assistant. A sense of relief washed over her. All her feelings of anger and betrayal were pushed aside. Whatever else she thought about Craig, she knew he was a brilliant vet and he was the single best thing the Beagle could have right now.

  She moved aside to let him assess the dog. Craig worked swiftly and silently, giving the Beagle a quick examination, checking his temperature, monitoring his heart rate, pulse, and oxygen levels.

  “He’s becoming tachycardic and his oxygen saturation is borderline,” Craig said grimly to the assistant “Have we got the results of the cultures back yet? We need to speed up his IV fluids.”

  “The preliminary urine cultures are negative and the blood cultures should be back in the morning.”

  “Hmm…” Craig examined the Beagle’s eyes again. “Looks like conjunctival haemorrhage. Okay, let’s start him on cefazolin at a dose of 300 mg IV every four hours. And prep him for an X-ray. See what that shows. Might have to go to surgery once he’s stabilised, if there’s any indication of a foreign body still trapped in the wound.”

  Watching as Craig administered the antibiotic through the drip inserted in the Beagle’s front leg, Sara clenched her hands together and prayed. She would have given anything at that moment for the little dog to get better. Craig eased the Beagle gently back against the blankets, then carefully shut the oxygen chamber again.

  “Is he… will he be okay?” asked Sara.

  Craig sighed, running a hand through his hair. “I don’t know, Sara. We’ve done all we can for now. The rest is up to him. He might be able to fight off the infection but…” His mouth tightened. “To be honest, it’s not looking good.”

  No! Sara wanted to scream, to shout, to beat her fists against his chest, but all she could do was stand there and stare at him in horror.

  “Look…” Craig put a gentle hand on her arm. Despite everything that was happening, his touch still had the power to send a shudder of awareness through her. “I know this is hard, but the best thing would be for you to go home. I’ll be staying here with him overnight, and I promise I’ll let you know as soon as there’s any update to his condition.”

  Sara stared into his blue eyes for a moment longer, then nodded and turned for the door. Letting herself out of the clinic, she stood for a moment on the street. Twilight was falling and in the distance she could hear the roar and crash of the waves on the beach. It all seemed so idyllic and peaceful—and yet in the hospital behind her lay a dog fighting for its life.

  She got back to Ellie’s place and told her cousin what had happened. Despite not being a mad dog lover, Ellie looked genuinely upset. Sara went wearily to take a shower while her cousin rustled up something for dinner, then the two of them ate in a subdued silence. After the dishes were done, Ellie switched on the TV and they watched some forensic crime drama, but Sara couldn’t really keep her mind on the screen. When Ellie went to bed—she had an early start at work the next morning—Sara continued flicking listlessly through the TV channels. Finally, just after midnight, she gave up.

  Wandering into her bedroom, she propped herself up against the headboard and pulled out her cell phone. She looked at the clock on her bedside table, trying to calculate the time difference. It would be just after seven in the morning in L.A. Fern should be up—she was a pretty early riser. Sara took a deep breath and punched in her home number.

  “Hello?”

  “Sara! How nice to hear from you!” Fern’s voice was warm and familiar.

  For the first time since she had left the States, Sara felt a wave of homesickness.

  “How’s it going in the land of the kangaroos?”

  Sara swallowed past a lump in her throat. “Uh… fine. Fine. How’s it going with you?”

  “Oh, you know, the usual. Hang on a minute,” Fern laughed. “Coco is here. Down, Coco! Down! I swear, I think you
r dog is telepathic. As soon as my phone rang, she got all excited. It was like she knew it would be you calling. D’you want to say hello?”

  Sara heard a rustle and then the sound of soft snuffling in the receiver. Her heart squeezed inside her.

  “Coco? Are you there? It’s me!” Sara felt her voice getting choked up and had to clear her throat. “Hello Coco! Good girl! Can you hear me?”

  From the other end of the line came a couple of delighted barks. Sara laughed in spite of herself, blinking away tears. “Yes! It’s me, Coco! Good girl. Are you having a good time with Fern?”

  She knew it was stupid talking to a dog on the phone. As if Coco could understand anything she said! But right now—as she remembered the other Beagle lying weak and helpless in a hospital nearby—the thought of her own Beagle wagging her tail thousands of miles away made Sara feel better. And it gave her hope.

  “So what have you been up to?” asked Fern, coming back on the phone.

  “Oh… um… a bit of sightseeing, walking on the beach, lazing around in the sun,” said Sara lightly. “How about you? How did the Open Day go at the shelter?”

  “Oh, awesome! We had three times the number of people attend and the raffle raised more than…”

  Sara let Fern talk on. She made the appropriate replies in the right places, but she wasn’t really listening. Still, it was soothing just hearing her friend’s voice and hearing about something completely unrelated to what was going on here, on this side of the Pacific. When they finally said goodbye, Sara leaned back against the pillows and sighed. She glanced at the clock on her bedside table. It was nearly 2 a.m. now. Still no news from Craig.

  Sara wandered if she should try calling him. Or even go back to the hospital? Her eyes felt gritty and sore. She would just shut them for a moment, she thought. Just rest them for a while, and then she would get up and make herself another cup of coffee…

  CHAPTER 15

  Sara woke with a start. There was bright sunshine streaming in through her bedroom windows. She sat up in bed, grimacing as she realised that she had fallen asleep still fully dressed on top of the bedclothes. She stood up stiffly and stretched. Then her eyes fell on the clock on her bedside table. 7:46 a.m.

  The Beagle! What had happened to him? Was he still hanging on? Why hadn’t Craig called? Did it mean…?

  Sara flung the door of her bedroom open and ran out. In the kitchen, she found a note from Ellie who had left for work earlier than usual. It was just a smiley face and the word “Hugs”. Sara glanced at the wall clock. She couldn’t just keep on waiting. She had to find out.

  Rushing into the bathroom, she hurriedly brushed her teeth, splashed some cold water on her face, and ran a comb through her hair. Then she dressed in fresh clothes and, grabbing the spare keys, let herself out of the house.

  Sara entered the vet clinic and glanced around. Morning consults hadn’t started yet—the waiting room was still empty. There was nobody behind the reception counter. Frowning, Sara made her way down the hallway to the back of the building. As she approached the hospital ward, she could hear the sound of animated conversation coming from behind the door. It sounded like there were several people in there. Sara strained her ears, then her heart gave a sudden jerk.

  Was that the sound of someone crying?

  She pushed the door open, her heart in her mouth. She found herself looking at a crowd of people gathered around the oxygen chamber. She recognised Craig’s tall frame instantly. Standing next to him was a middle-aged man talking excitedly to Craig. And in his arms, wagging his tail and wriggling with joy, was the Beagle.

  He had recovered!

  Sara felt a smile break out over her face. Craig looked up at that moment and his deep blue eyes met hers.

  “Sara!” He drew her into the crowd. “Come and meet Happy—all recovered and as good as new! And this is Rob McDonald, Happy’s owner.”

  The middle-aged man grabbed Sara’s hand and pumped it up and down. “Nice to meet you. You’re the young lady who found my Happy, is that right? Really grateful, really grateful.”

  “We finally managed to track Rob down this morning,” explained Craig. “He’s holidaying here with his wife. They’ve driven down from Queensland. I was rapt to be able to tell him that Happy was making a good recovery. We didn’t need to do surgery in the end.” Craig smiled and put a hand out to pat the Beagle on the head. “I think seeing Rob was probably the best medicine Happy could get.”

  Sara reached out to pat the dog too. The floppy ears were velvety soft beneath her fingers and she laughed as Happy wriggled eagerly towards her, his pink tongue lolling out. She felt a wet slurp on her cheek.

  “I dunno about that,” said Rob, grinning. “Seems to me that Happy really perked up when Sara came in the room. Look at him now—he loves you, he does.”

  He beamed at Sara, offering the dog towards her. Sara took Happy in her arms, hugging the warm body close. He licked her chin enthusiastically and she laughed again. She bent her head and buried her face in his fur, inhaling the warm, doggie smell.

  Finally, she put the wriggling Beagle down and let the others fuss over him. Aside from Craig and Rob, there was also Megan and the vet assistant, plus two other people in scrubs and white coats. They must be the other vets at the practice, thought Sara, eyeing the big, good-looking man with the athletic body and the pretty girl with her blonde hair bunched up in a messy ponytail.

  “Sara, meet Dan and Charlie, two of the other vets here at the practice,” said Craig, confirming her guess. She smiled and shook hands with them, then he drew her gently away to the other side of the ward, away from the others, so they could talk in privacy.

  “You said you’d let me know as soon as there was any change,” Sara said half-accusingly.

  “I did ring early this morning—Ellie answered the phone and said that you were still sleeping. I told her about the good news—didn’t she pass it on?”

  “No, I guess not,” said Sara. “She had an early meeting—maybe she was in a rush. Or she might have thought that since Happy was out of danger, it didn’t really matter and I would find out later anyway. Ellie can be really ‘practical’ like that.” She rolled her eyes.

  “I wanted to speak to you anyway,” said Craig, his face serious. He indicated something on the counter next to them. “I wanted to apologise.”

  Sara followed his gaze and saw the gossip magazine with the picture of her and Craig on the cover. She must have left it here last night when she had come in to see Happy and completely forgotten about it. The sight of the magazine brought all the bitterness and anger surging back.

  “Oh, yeah… I guess I should be congratulating you on getting that sponsorship deal,” said Sara, unable to keep the hostility out of her voice. “All this extra publicity with dating a ‘Hollywood babe’ really helped your rating, just like Wendy said.”

  Craig stiffened. “Sara, you know I would never have approved anything like this.”

  “I heard you!” said Sara. “You were talking to Wendy just before lunch and you told her to go ahead—”

  “That was for something else entirely. She was talking about an interview with the Sydney Morning Herald. I wasn’t telling her to go ahead with this!” Craig’s face was dark with anger. “Bloody hell, did you think that I’d be the type of bloke to sanction this? Is that what you really take me for?”

  Across the room, the others were starting to look at them curiously. Sara shifted uncomfortably, wishing they could be somewhere else.

  “I… I don’t know what to think,” she said. “When we saw Wendy and—”

  “I’ve fired Wendy,” said Craig. “She’s no longer my agent.”

  Sara stared at him. “Oh.”

  He sighed. “You were right, Sara. I’m sorry I didn’t believe you when you complained about Wendy’s behaviour. I guess I never thought she could be that devious. I’ve always just taken everything she said at face value.”

  Sara gave a small smile. “Yeah, I think m
aybe that’s a guy thing.”

  “A stupid guy thing,” said Craig wryly. “But I’ve learnt my lesson. And I really am sorry.” He leaned close and said, his voice low, “Will you give me another chance?”

  Sara knew she shouldn’t do it; she knew that this still had no future, that she was being stupid to even contemplate it, but somehow she couldn’t make herself say the words. She was no match for the tender plea in his deep blue eyes.

  She nodded. “I’m only going to be here for eight more days though,” she felt compelled to add.

  “Then we’d better make sure they’re bloody good ones,” said Craig with a grin. “Have you ever been kayaking?”

  Sara shook her head.

  “How would you like to go kayaking with me? We’ll head down the Hawkesbury River, take a picnic, maybe even look for that mirreeulla monster. What do you think?”

  Sara smiled, her eyes sparkling. “I think that sounds ripper.”

  CHAPTER 16

  The week that followed was the most magical seven days of Sara’s life. Craig took some time off from work just so he could spend his days with her and show her some of the beautiful spots on the New South Wales Central Coast.

  They climbed the Skillion, a famous local outcrop with wonderful 180-degree views of the Pacific Ocean, followed by an exhilarating roll down the grassy slope afterwards. They visited the Norah Head Lighthouse where Sara huffed and puffed all the way up the ninety-six steps to the top and was thrilled to catch a glimpse of a humpback whale out at sea, on its southern migration.

  On Sunday, Craig took her to the Avoca Beachside Markets where they soaked up the sunshine as they listened to local bands, wandered past the colourful stalls, and enjoyed some gourmet treats. Sara got to sample more Australian cuisine—and she finally tasted a yabby—although her favourite meal remained a long, lazy lunch at Fisherman’s Wharf in Woy Woy, where they shared a seafood platter and Craig introduced her to some local boutique beers.