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He listened to the third ring on the phone
line. Where was she? He loosened his tie and unfastened his collar
button. If she didn't answer—

“Hello?”

He stopped pacing. The sound of Grace's
voice, soft and breathless, stirred desire that warred with his
anger.

God help him, he still wanted her.

“Grace. I have to see you. It's important.”
Connor sank into his leather office chair and toyed with the folder
on his desk.

“There's nothing more for us to talk
about.”

He picked up a pencil and tapped it on the
desk. “You've still got a key to the office and you left some
personal items in your desk. Let's meet for lunch and we can
exchange things.”

Silence met his ear.

“Grace?”

“I'll mail the key...anything I left in the
desk you can throw away.”

“It's just lunch, Grace. Nothing more. I'm
not going to try and talk you into coming back to work. I have
something important that I need to tell you, but I can't do it over
the phone. Meet me Toby's Diner. Twelve-thirty sharp.”

“No.”

“Grace—”

The dial tone hummed in his ear. He pressed
the off button and threw the cell phone onto his desk. He'd managed
to squelch the story on her police report. Thank goodness for his
connections. But he couldn't keep things buried forever. Not if she
kept showing up, creating speculations he couldn't afford. He
snatched his jacket from the back of his chair. If the bitch
wouldn't come to him, he'd go to her.

****

Grace stormed from the house with Tiffany on
her heels. How dare Connor order her around after telling her she
wasn't good enough for him? Connor was scum. Worse than a
bottom-feeding catfish.

She stomped along the path, each step fueling
her anger.

Tiffany sniffed and clawed at a rock, which
Grace picked up and flung into the woods.

“Come on, Tiff. Let's go see about a job.”
She hadn't seen the new clinic yet anyway. A week had passed since
the night she'd promised to think about the job offer, and she
hadn't found another job. So what if she found Tyler attractive? He
said he wasn't looking for a relationship either. Worse came to
worst, they'd have an affair. It wouldn't be the end of the world.
As long as neither of them expected more than that, no one would be
hurt.

Tiffany pushed her nose into the dirt, pulled
her snout back and sneezed.

Grace laughed and Tiffany lowered her front
legs into a playful crouch. Grace bent forward, hands extended.

Tiffany whirled and ran.

Grace followed for a few feet, and then
stopped.

Tiffany changed directions and zipped past
Grace, barking with playful glee. Grace ran after her, coming to a
breathless halt at the clinic. She placed her hands on her thighs
and leaned over to catch her breath.

The dog barked, tail wagging rapidly.

“Come on, Tiff.” Grace climbed the stairs and
opened the clinic door. A bell jangled, announcing their
arrival.

Tyler swiveled away from a computer to face
them, a frown pulling his eyebrows together. When he saw who'd
entered, he stood and a smile smoothed his face, igniting a flame
in the emerald depths of his eyes.

“Grace.” He walked toward her. “Are you here
to see the clinic, or is Tiffany sick?”

Tiffany leaped at the sound of her name and
placed her front paws on his chest, tongue flicking toward his
face.

Tyler wasn't fast enough to avoid a doggy
kiss.

“Down, Tiff,” Grace ordered. “I'm sorry. She
seems to have forgotten all her behavior training.”

Tiffany dropped to all fours, but her eyes
remained focused on Tyler.

Tyler stroked her head. “It's good to see you
too, girl.” He grinned at Grace. “She doesn't look sick. Does that
mean you came to see me?” He wiggled his eyebrows comically.

“We came to see the clinic. After all, when
it comes to Tiffany, I can't be too careful. I can't trust her care
to just any old veterinarian who shows up on my doorstep.”

He laughed. “Fair enough.” He glanced at his
watch. “Next patient is due in an hour. Let me give you a tour,
then maybe you'll take pity on me. If you hadn't shown up, I might
have thrown that damn computer out the back door.”

Grace followed Tyler into an examining room.
Her gaze took in the stainless steel monster scale Brad had
mentioned. “Brad wasn't kidding. That thing probably could weigh a
bear.”

“Tiff, hop up.” Tyler patted the scale.

Tiffany put her front paws on, then backed
off.

Grace laughed, beginning to feel more at
ease. “She's a true female. Doesn't want to reveal her weight.”

Tyler hoisted the dog to the scale and
adjusted the weights on the balance bar. “Ninety pounds on the
nose.”

Tiffany wagged her tail and barked.

Grace and Tyler laughed in unison.

“She's a great dog,” Tyler said.

“She's my best friend.”

Tyler rested a hand on Grace's shoulder and
squeezed gently. “She's lucky.”

A tingle ran down her arm. So much for hoping
she could remain distant from this man. He turned her on.

Tiffany put her nose to the crack at the
bottom of a closed door and whined. A paw snuck under the door and
tapped against Tiffany's nose.

“How's Tiffany with cats?” he asked.

“Cats?” Grace didn't have much experience
with felines, but she supposed she'd have to get used to them if
she worked here.

Tyler nodded at the furry paw stretched
beneath the door. “That's Muffin. She walked in about a week ago
and made herself at home. I advertised, but no one's claimed her
yet.”

He opened the door and a fat, fluffy,
amber-striped cat pranced in, head held high, tail straight in the
air. A little crook at the end resembled a fishhook. Muffin rubbed
between Tiffany's front legs, weaving a figure eight.

The dog scrambled backwards.

Muffin appeared bored and jumped to the
examination table. She began to groom away the dog germs.

Grace ran her hand down the cat's back,
marveling at the silky thickness. Muffin stopped, tongue poking
out, one paw raised. She stared deeply into Grace's eyes for a
moment and then returned to the task of grooming. It left Grace
with a strange feeling. Almost as if the cat could read her
mind.

Tiffany leaned heavily against Grace's legs,
begging for attention.

“Are you jealous?” Grace asked. She rubbed
the dog's ears and looked at Tyler. “I'm surprised she's being so
calm. She loves to chase animals outside.”

“Ah, but Muffin isn't an animal. She's a
queen reborn. Can't you tell?”

Muffin leaped to the counter, then to the top
of the supply cabinets. She gazed down at them, then curled into a
ball and tucked her golden eyes behind one paw.

“See what I mean? She acts like she owns the
place.”

“Wonder where she came from?”

Tyler shrugged. “Beats me.”

Grace looked through the open door at the
cages lined against the wall in the room behind them.

“Come on.” Tyler led them into the large
area. “This is the boarding room. Not for sick animals, but for
those whose families are out of town for a few days. Of course, the
cages are just to keep them safe at night. There's an open fenced
area behind the house where they can run and play during the
day.”

“So you plan on boarding animals, too?”

“Absolutely. If you can't trust your vet, who
can you trust?” He winked boldly. “Come on, I'll show you my
apartment.”

Her mind screamed danger, but her legs
carried her up the stairs behind him. The warmth of Tyler's
apartment surprised and pleased Grace. He'd taken care to make the
rooms a home, not just a place to sleep. She'd expected buttery
soft leather furniture, not the deep blue sofa with throw pillows
piled high. Pictures of mountain scenery graced the newly painted
ivory walls.

He opened the door to his bedroom, where she
spied a hand-stitched quilt in shades of green covering the massive
wooden bed. She could imagine falling into the softness of the
mattress with him beside her. She felt her face flame when his
glance caught hers.

“Like it?” he asked.

She backed out of the door and into the
living room. “It's...nice,” she squeaked out. She cleared her
throat. “We'd better get back and check on Tiffany. That cat might
decide to have her for lunch.”

Tyler's expression told her he wasn't fooled.
He knew what she'd been thinking.

He finished the tour by showing her the
converted garage that had been turned into a care unit, complete
with a sick bay area and two incubator-type units on wheels. They
ended back in the reception area.

“And this,” Tyler pointed at a computer, “is
the piece of junk that's driving me insane.” He scratched his head.
“I've been trying to get the billing set up for two blasted days.
The program said it was user-friendly, but I don't think it likes
me.” He shook his head. “I'm writing patient bills on pieces of
notebook paper.”

“Maybe I can help. I know a little about
software programs. Do you want me to try?”

“If you can get the damn billing program to
work, you'll earn the biggest and juiciest steak money can
buy.”

“You're on.” She sat in front of the computer
and began to tap the keyboard. She felt his gaze fastened on her,
but she managed to ignore the urge to turn and look at him.
Finally, he left her alone. She studied the instruction booklet and
soon lost herself in the work.

She had the program functioning when the
doorbell jangled. She spared a quick glance as Tyler came from the
back room and greeted a woman with a pet carrier. He led her to the
examination room. The door shut behind them and their voices
faded.

Grace looked through the appointment book and
entered the names of the clients he'd penciled in. She tested the
program by printing a bogus bill and shot her fist in the air when
it worked. She loved the feeling of success.

A few minutes later, the elderly woman came
out. She placed a carrier on the counter. Inside was one of the
biggest cats Grace had ever seen.

“Tinkerbell's good for another year, Mrs.
Engleworth.” Tyler handed Grace a folder.

Grace snatched it, trying to hide her smile.
Tinkerbell?

“How much do I owe you, Tyler?” Mrs.
Engleworth fluttered her eyelashes in a shameless display that
brought Grace one step closer to dissolving in laughter. The woman
was older than Brad, for crying out loud.

Tyler, however, winked at the woman and then
grinned at Grace. “Seventeen for the booster shots and twenty for
the exam.”

“Got it,” Grace said. She printed out an
invoice and handed it to Mrs. Engleworth.

Tyler's eyes widened with appreciative
surprise, and Grace suppressed a grin.

The woman wrote out a check while the mean
looking tomcat, so inappropriately named, glared at Grace with
feral green eyes. Its tiger-striped fur dusted the air as it swung
its tail, flicking the sides of the cage.

Tiffany pushed to her feet, stretched and
grunted, then trotted over and lifted her nose toward the
carrier.

A long paw extended through the bars, baring
long needle-sharp claws. The cat hissed.

“No, Tiff,” Grace admonished. The dog gave a
sorrowful look and went back to her spot on the floor. Muffin
jumped onto the counter and the two cats began a slapping
match.

“Sorry,” Grace said. She lifted Muffin and
placed her on the floor.

Tyler winked, then walked Mrs. Engleworth to
the door. “Thanks for bringing Tinkerbell in.” He opened the
door.

“Thank you, Doctor.”

“You're welcome. So long, Tinkerbell.” He
closed the door and turned a beaming smile on Grace. “You're
hired.”

“What about the steak?” she teased.

“You earned it, and I always keep my
promises. I'm also offering you a job as my office manager, slash
receptionist, slash billing clerk. The pay's not great, but the
boss is a great guy.”

“Not so fast. What are you willing to
pay?”

His grin stretched his cheeks. “We can work
it out. If you don't like the salary, maybe we can work out some
additional benefits.”

“Only if you're talking about health
insurance,” Grace countered. She knew he was flirting with her, and
it felt good, like she was a normal person with no dark
secrets.

He laughed. “Grace, it's going to be a lot of
fun working with you.”

“Salary?” she prompted.

“How about twelve dollars an hour to start
with a raise when business picks up.”

“Deal.” She held out her hand. “When do I get
the steak?”

Tyler sandwiched her hand between his,
sending warm currents up her arm and into her stomach. “Tonight.
I'll pick you up at six. And dress casual.” He gave a lop-sided
grin.

Muffin pranced into the room and leaped
gracefully into the chair Grace had vacated.

They laughed when Tiffany, who’d been lying
on the floor, scrambled to get out of her way.

Grace left the clinic floating on a cloud of
euphoria, but it took a nosedive when she noticed the car in her
driveway. The dark blue Jaguar looked out of place and so did the
angry face of the man behind the wheel.

Connor.

Chapter Five

“We need to talk, Grace.” Connor slammed the
door on the Jaguar and walked toward her.

Tiffany growled and the hair bristled on her
neck.

He stopped. “Keep the dog away from me.”

“You're trespassing. She's protecting
me.”

Connor threw up his hands. “Protecting you?
God, Grace, I'd never hurt you. You know that.”

He took another step in her direction, and
Grace grabbed Tiffany's collar. “You'd better stay back, Connor.
She's trained to attack and I'm not sure I can control her.”

Connor's face blanched. He glanced uneasily
at the growling dog. “Look, can we go inside and talk for a few
minutes?”