by Kat Mizera
“Check out the blonde who just walked in,” Logan said under his breath. “She’s smokin’.”
“All yours, my friend,” Sergei said with a grin. “I’m happy with my wife.”
“Ditto,” Kane grinned.
“Me too,” Jake added.
They all looked at Miika.
“Wanna flip for her?” Logan teased.
Miika blinked. “Flip?”
Kane pulled a quarter out of his pocket. “Flip a coin. Heads or tails?”
Miika frowned. “Head.”
Kane flipped the coin in the air, caught it and set it on the bar. “Heads it is.”
“Crap.” Logan shook his head. “Why don’t you buy her a drink, man? Her group keeps looking over here.”
Miika glanced in the blonde’s direction and then shook his head. “Is okay. You go.”
Logan cocked his head. “How come? You don’t think she’s hot?”
“Very hot, but…” His voice trailed off. “I speak bad English. Is hard to talk. Is okay. You go.” He motioned with his hand.
“You sure?”
“Go.” Miika winked.
Logan didn’t hesitate, getting to his feet and walking in the direction of the blonde and her friends. Miika looked so bummed Aaron felt a little sorry for him.
“We’ll practice some English on the plane, okay?” he said. “We’ll get you ready for some dating.”
“This is good,” Miika said, giving him a grin.
Aaron could probably use some dating, too, but all he’d been able to think about lately was Sara, and that was becoming a problem. He just didn’t know what the hell to do about it.
14
When Dr. Harjo had called and asked Sara to give him a hand today, she’d been so happy she almost cried. He needed to organize all the files and records from the clinic and that was something Sara could do sitting down. He’d picked her up at eleven and they’d been here for nearly five hours already. It was kind of sad sitting in the dark, empty office, but the damage was extensive and it wouldn’t be safe for employees or the patients.
“Have you heard from any of the places you applied to?” he asked her as they worked.
She shook her head. “Nothing.”
“Well, it’s still early. Just because you don’t get early admission doesn’t mean it’s not coming.”
“I know. It’s just hard to wait.”
“You know, a former colleague of mine works at the Flanders School in Minneapolis… That was your first choice, wasn’t it?”
“Yes. That’s my hometown and where my parents are. That would be the most affordable way for me to do it.”
“Let me reach out, see if she has any pull.”
“That would be great. Thank you.”
“Of course.” He pushed his glasses up on his nose and looked around. “I miss the hell out of this place. I just don’t know where I’m going to come up with twenty-five grand to make it safe again.”
“That’s a lot of money,” she said. “But you do a lot for free. Maybe if you charged more, you’d be able to get a loan and pay it back.”
“You know how I feel about that,” he said with a fond smile. “Many of my clients can’t afford it.”
“But you can’t afford not to. I mean, what are you doing now? Visiting a handful of farms every week? Your bread and butter is spaying and neutering, and now you can’t do it.”
“Well, maybe when you’ve got your degree you can come back to Anchorage and become my partner.” He grinned at her.
She laughed. “I’ll be drowning in debt, and anyway, I probably won’t come back here.”
“Why not?” he asked curiously. “You have friends, now you’re dating someone… Don’t you like your new young man?”
Sara hesitated. “I do. He’s just…” She wasn’t sure how to articulate what the problem was with Troy.
“He’s just…?” Dr. Harjo prompted.
“Boring?” She gave a little shrug. “I mean, we can talk about veterinary stuff and orthopedic stuff all day long. And we do. But sometimes I’d like to talk about sports, or travel, or my friends, and he’s not interested. It’s like medicine is all he knows.”
“That’s a dilemma, for sure. Have you mentioned it to him?”
“I don’t know what to say… Hey, you know, I love medicine and all, but can we talk about something else because you’re boring me?”
He laughed. “Perhaps not quite so direct. Maybe invite him to a Blizzard game?”
“He goes to all the games now that he’s going to be working with the team, but I don’t think he really enjoys it, even though he said he was a hockey fan. It’s just a business connection for him, not something he’s passionate about.”
“Personally, I think you’re wasting your time,” he said, handing her another stack of files. “You should be dating Aaron.”
She grimaced. “Unfortunately, he’s not down with that plan.”
“I find that hard to believe. I realize I’m old enough to be your father, but I was young once, and I recognize a man in denial when I see one. Maybe you need to make the first move.”
There was no way in hell she could tell him about their hook-up and how she had made the first move, so she just shrugged. “I’ve hinted but he puts me firmly in the friend zone.”
“Well, it’s his loss then, but don’t date this Troy guy just because Aaron isn’t available. Never settle, my dear. Never.”
She thought about that for the rest of the afternoon as they worked in companionable silence. They were packing up files and the rest of his equipment, getting ready to leave the building for good, unless Dr. Harjo found a way to pay for repairs, and it made her sadder than she’d thought she would be.
On the bright side, she and Aaron had plans tonight to just hang out. They hadn’t done that in a while, and though it was kind of like self-inflicted torture, she was kidding herself if she didn’t admit how much she’d missed spending time with him. Even if he didn’t return her feelings.
She’d texted him a few hours ago to tell him to pick her up from the clinic on his way home from the airport, but they probably hadn’t landed yet. She grabbed her phone to see if she’d missed any messages and saw one from Dani.
DANI: Hey, can you call me?
SARA: Aren’t you on the plane?
DANI: No. I’m still in Dallas.
Confused, Sara immediately dialed Dani’s number.
“Hey.” Dani sounded tired.
“Hey, what’s going on? Why are you still in Dallas?”
“I, um…” Dani’s voice broke. “I had a miscarriage.”
“Oh, honey. I’m so sorry.” Sara’s heart squeezed painfully for her friend. Dani and Sergei wanted another baby so badly. Dani loved Niko but they wanted at least one more, if not two, and they were undoubtedly heartbroken. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I mean, the doctor said it’s really common… Something like twenty percent of all pregnancies end in miscarriage, especially early on.”
“So, something specific didn’t happen? Like a fall or something?”
“No. It’s just one of those things.”
“Is Sergei with you?”
“Yes. We’ll fly home tomorrow because the doctor said to wait a day.”
“Are you in the hospital?”
“Not anymore. We’re back at the hotel now.”
“How’s Sergei taking it?”
“I think it scared him to see me…bleeding and stuff. He didn’t say so, but it had to remind him of his late wife, you know?” Sergei’s wife had died in his arms after being shot.
“Oh, that’s awful. Geez, I hate that you’re so far away. Is there anything I can do?”
“No. Just don’t tell anyone, okay? I don’t know if we’re going to tell anyone.”
“Does Aaron know?”
“Yeah, most of the guys know, but not the general public.”
“Okay. Call me when you get home and I’ll come over.”
&nb
sp; “Okay. Thanks.”
“Love you.”
“Love you too.”
Sara put down the phone sadly. She felt terrible for her friends, and more than that, she felt helpless, which wasn’t a good feeling.
Aaron arrived not too long after she spoke to Dani, and he and Dr. Harjo greeted each other like old friends.
“This place really took a beating,” Aaron said, looking around. “Did you get any estimates for the repairs?”
Dr. Harjo nodded. “Close to thirty thousand, which is more than I have.”
“Do you own the building?”
He nodded. “Yes, but there’s still a mortgage, and I can’t pay that and do the repairs.”
“What about insurance?”
“The deductible is almost as much as the repairs. Either way, I can’t do it.”
“A loan?”
“The business makes just enough to pay the mortgage, utilities, and employees. Veterinary medicine isn’t a career you get into for the money.”
“You’d make more money if you’d listen to me,” Sara muttered. “You can still take care of patients if you’d make them actually pay you something. There’s a stack foot high of outstanding bills from people who can totally pay.”
Dr. Harjo sighed. “Business was never my forte, but it’s too late now. I’ll be taking care of larger animals for now, until I figure out what to do next. I’m going to try to put it up for sale—the clinic itself is worthless but the land should at least get me out of the mortgage.”
Aaron shook his head. “Well, I’m sorry to hear that. Good luck.”
“Thanks.” Dr. Harjo smiled at Sara. “Thank you, my dear. We’ll talk soon, yes?”
“Yes, of course.” She hugged him and grabbed her crutches, following Aaron out to his Jeep.
“You hungry?” he asked her. “I’m starving.”
“I could eat.”
“You want to get takeout or go out somewhere?”
“Let’s just go home,” she said. “I kind of overdid it today and my leg is killing me.”
“Sure. We can order in.”
“Okay.”
He helped her into his Jeep and then pulled onto the street.
“I’m guessing you heard about Dani?” he asked.
“Yeah, we talked a little while ago. She sounds so sad.”
“Sergei was pretty freaked.”
“Were you with him?”
“Well, we were having a few beers at the bar and she texted him that she needed him to come up to their room. Ten minutes later, he texted Jake and asked him to get them a cab, because he needed to get her to a hospital. He wanted to keep it on the down-low and we didn’t know anything for a few hours, but Coach told us on the plane.”
“They’re coming home tomorrow. I guess Sergei stayed with her.”
“Well, yeah, of course.”
“It’s nice. I mean, you almost never see a professional athlete miss a game or something team-related for anything other than a death in the family. Half the time, you guys don’t even get there in time for the births of your babies.”
“I would,” he said quietly. “I mean, if I ever find the right woman and settle down, my family will be a priority. Not for every little thing, I still have to play and make money, but I’d never miss something big like my kids being born.”
“I think it’s hard to know what you’d do until you’re in the situation. I’m just glad Sergei stayed with her because it’s a long way home from Dallas.”
He nodded. “That’s for sure.”
They rode in silence the rest of the way, each lost in their respective thoughts. He drove into the underground parking garage of his building, which had luckily fared well in the earthquake, and pulled into his spot. He parked the Jeep, got out, grabbed his bag and her crutches and then went to the passenger side to help her. He handed her the crutches and waited as she steadied herself enough to follow him.
“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to these things,” she muttered, following him toward the elevator bank.
“I’ve only been on crutches once,” he said, “and it sucked. But four weeks down, and hopefully only two more to go.”
“And I’m counting the minutes,” she said. She paused by the elevators and then cocked her head. “Do you hear that?”
“Hear what?”
“Listen.” She turned in the direction of the sound.
“What is that?” He looked around. “Sounds like a feral cat or something.”
“No…” She shook her head. “It’s a dog. It sounds like it’s in distress.” She went to the side of the elevator bank and looked around.
“Sara, the elevator’s here.”
“Will you just help me look? It might be nothing, but this is a gated building so how would a stray have gotten in here?”
“Okay.” He came around the corner.
“There. Behind the dumpster.” She pointed.
He frowned but walked in that direction. “If I get bit, this is on you,” he called over his shoulder.
“Don’t approach it if it’s hurt, just tell me what you see.”
“It’s a dog and…it looks sick. It’s panting and pacing behind the dumpster.”
“Panting?” Sara moved closer. “Can I get close enough to look?”
“It seems to be burrowing in the corner… Sara, I think she might be in labor.”
“Oh, no.” Sara took Aaron’s arm for support and leaned over. From what she could see, it was a yellow Lab, and she did appear to be in labor. “Hey, sweet girl, what are you doing back here by yourself?”
The dog whimpered a little, staring at her with big brown eyes.
“I should call Dr. Harjo, see if he can come get her,” Sara said, reaching for her phone. She waited impatiently for him to answer. “Dr. H—are you busy? I’ve got—”
“Sara, my dear, I’m delivering a foal,” he said. “Is everything okay?”
“I’ve found a stray dog and she’s in labor.”
“Well, she’s probably perfectly capable of taking care of that herself, but you know what to do if you need to.”
“But—”
“Have to run, Sara. I’ll check in with you later.” He disconnected and she stared at the phone. “He can’t come,” she said to Aaron.
“So…what are we supposed to do? Do you boil water or something?”
Sara laughed. “No. But if she’s friendly, maybe we can move her up to the apartment. It seems sad to leave her down here by herself.”
Aaron sighed. “What if she’s not friendly?”
Sara made a face. “Well, let’s find out.” She moved past him and leaned down, holding out her hand. “Hey, sweet mama, do you have a collar? Can I see?”
The dog looked up at her and tentatively sniffed her hand.
“You’re going to fall,” Aaron said, holding one of Sara’s arms.
“She’s sweet, look.” Sara gently pet the dog. “Come on, girl, you want to come with us?”
The dog wagged her tail for a few seconds before starting to pace again.
“Aaron, can you carry her?” She turned to him pleadingly.
He sighed. “Yeah, yeah.” He squatted down on his haunches and held out a hand to the dog. “Come here, girl. Let’s get you someplace warm to have your babies.”
The dog hesitated, sniffing his hand and then wagging her tail again. He reached out to scratch her head, talking to her in a soft, soothing voice. She seemed to relax, lying down at his feet.
“Okay, let’s go.” He lifted the relatively large dog and walked to the elevator.
15
Aaron had never seen a dog give birth before, and he was equal parts repulsed and fascinated. He’d also had no idea dogs could give birth to so many puppies at once. They’d set her up on a bunch of old beach towels lined with a couple of garbage bags to protect the floor, and the moment they’d finished, the sweet yellow Lab they’d started calling Mama had settled right in. The first puppy came within ha
lf an hour, and Aaron had never seen anything much cooler than watching it be born. It was messy and kind of gross, but he couldn’t look away.
By the time she’d had the tenth, he’d figured they would be done, but now they were up to fourteen and Sara thought there were more. Dr. Harjo hadn’t shown up, texting that the mare and her foal were in distress, so it was just the two of them and poor Mama.
“How many more?” he asked Sara after puppy number fifteen had been delivered.
“I’m not sure,” she responded. She looked almost as exhausted as Mama since this had been going on for a long time. It was late and normally he would’ve been in bed long before this, but he didn’t feel right leaving her to handle it on her own. Especially since Dr. Harjo couldn’t come. Not that Aaron could help in a medical emergency, but he could offer moral support or drive her somewhere should she need it.
“She’s so tired,” Sara said, rubbing her hand over Mama’s head. “But she’s doing a great job.”
“Is this normal?” Aaron asked.
“Labs can have big litters. This is the biggest I’ve ever seen though.”
“And the mom can take care of them all?”
“Mother Nature is pretty awesome. She cleans them up, eats up the mess—”
“She eats…all that?” Aaron was horrified.
“It’s what they do and natural for them. You can’t compare it to human birth.”
He nodded, though he was confused. “And then she’ll feed all of them?”
“She’ll have to feed them in shifts; she doesn’t have enough teats for all of them.”
“Like…breastfeeding?”
“Exactly.” Sara scooped up the most recent puppy and frowned. “He’s not breathing. Shit.” She grabbed a towel and began vigorously rubbing the puppy’s body, her hands working with confidence.
“Is he dead?” Aaron whispered, his eyes wide.
“Not if I can help it,” she muttered, continuing to rub the puppy as she held it against her.
Neither of them spoke and then Sara smiled, stroking the puppy’s little head. “There he goes. You’re a good boy, aren’t you? That’s a good boy,” she crooned softly, holding the tiny puppy.
