His nostrils flared and his face flushed. He didn’t like my line of questioning. “I want to speak to Cami.”
“Dr. Vaughn is in surgery by now. If you leave your number, I’ll have her call you at her earliest convenience.” Which would conveniently be never.
I relaxed my stance, leaned back with one elbow on the reception desk, and crossed one foot in front of the other. I was sending a subtle message that his lizard brain would track, even if his slightly more evolved frontal cortex missed it.I’m no longer on high alert because you don’t even rise to the level of a threat.
“If the dog isn’t chipped and you don’t have paperwork, I’m curious about what proof of ownership youdohave, Scott.”
He blustered for a minute, clearly thrown off-balance by the change in my demeanor. Easily owned fucking amateur. “If I find out anyone’s keeping my dog from me, I’m holding you personally responsible.”
“Now, why would anyone to want to keep your dog from you?”
He was really invested in that idea, which pointed to the possibility that he knew we had the dog. He hadn’t spotted Cami and me while we’d made our getaway, but there were other ways he could have picked up our trail. Amateur or not, maybe he’d been working with a partner who saw Cami leave the pet supply store. Maybe he had access to security camera footage. Or had a mole on Cami’s staff. None of those possibilities gave me the warm fuzzies.
“Tell Cami I’ll be expecting her call.” He narrowed his eyes and grinned. “She has my number. She probably still has me in her favorites.”
He was trying to get a rise out of me. He might have clocked my eyes lingering on her a second too long or read me putting myself bodily between them as proof that we were dating.
I decided to handle that one head-on to see if I could get a rise out ofhim. “Should that make me jealous? Because while I’m flattered that you think I’m too pretty for any woman to resist, Dr. Vaughn and I are colleagues.” I took another step toward him, and this time he wisely took a step back. “Is that what really brings you here today, checking up on Dr. Vaughn?” I narrowed my eyes and shook my head. “There isn’t really a dog, is there Scott?”
“Fuck you. Thereisa dog and she’s missing. The receptionist has my number. If you know what’s good for you, you’ll make sure Cami calls me.” He stalked out of the building.
I laughed aloud. This guy couldn’t keep up his bravado for more than a minute before he had to turn tail and run. He was all hat, no cattle as an old teammate of mine from Texas used to say. Only this asshole didn’t even have abroken-down horse he rode in on. He was a nuisance who would have to be watched, but not much more than that.
Except... That inner caveman was whispering something in the recesses of my brain that jacked up my alert system to the red zone. Scott’s lizard brain had messaged something to mine, warning me there was more to this story. I couldn’t decipher the details of the signal, but I knew for sure we would see that asshole again, and probably soon.
I lockedthe front door of the clinic, then opened the fire door and gave the all clear to the staff. Cami, Darla, Dr. Kramer, and the vet tech named Mike, rushed to the lobby. Gina, who was prepping Bella for surgery, stayed with the pup.
Bella. The name had flashed into my mind, and I knew it belonged to the sweet dog. It suited her. When she was out of surgery, I’d run it by her and if it got the tail wag of approval, she would be Bella from here on out.
In the meantime, I would do my part to keep her and the humans helping her safe. I’d assessed visible security measures, and I could get a full picture with a few more questions. I pointed to a button at the reception desk. “Is that a buzz-in system you can use for clients?”
“Yes,” Cami answered. “We installed it during the pandemic.” She was pale, possibly from her run-in with Scott, but her voice was stronger now.
I would ask questions about him later. My first order of business was securing the premises. “Any reason you couldn’t return to the buzz-in system, at least until we resolve the Scott situation?”
She and Dr. Kramer exchanged a glance.
“I think it’s a good idea,” the older man said, “but you’re the boss now, so it’s your call.”
“Dr. Vaughn bought the business from Doc last year,” Darla said.
Dr. Kramer smiled. “Allowing me to semi-retire, knowing the practice is in excellent hands.”
Cami touched his shoulder. “Thank you for saying that. And Doc—that’s what we all call Dr. Kramer—is right. The buzzer system isn’t ideal, but our priority has to be keeping our staff and clients safe. I’m sure we still have the instructions we can post on the front door.”
“I know where the sign is,” Darla said. “I’ll take care of it.”
“Should we close early today?” Dr Kramer posed the question to Cami. “It’s only an hour from regular closing time and I think the staff has had a bit of a scare.”
Cami agreed with him again.
I breathed a sigh of relief. I’d been prepared to go all “demanding alpha” to persuade her, but I hated guys who resorted to that. “Good. Can someone go over your security system with me? If you don’t mind some advice.”
“Kyle works for the security firm that’s headquartered in town,” Cami explained to the staff. “We have good security since we stock medications on site,” she told me, “but I wouldn’t mind an assessment from an expert. Darla, can you walk Kyle through our system?”
The receptionist smiled at me. “Hang out with the hunk? Sure, anything for the good of the business.”
I felt like blushing, but it was Cami who actually turned pink. I hoped that meant she’d had hunk thoughts about me as well. But she glossed over Darla’s comment as if she hadn’t heard it.
