“A few fingers, how many times?”
Nathan debated that. “A few?”
“Yeah, I figured. There’s a local construction crew here that’s mostly bobcat shifters.”
A strangled sound escaped Nathan. “Bobcat shifters. Because, of course that’s a thing.”
“Liam, not helping,” Naomi sing-songed from the kitchen.
Liam just laughed, unrepentant. “Our blacksmith at the clinic is a wolf shifter.”
“Arrgghhh!” Nathan dropped his head into his hands, fingers clutching his hair.
Unable to stifle her laughter, Naomi hunted through cupboards for coffee, filters, and cups. Getting the coffee brewing, she glanced around. It was a nice kitchen of a respectable size, with lots of wide counter space and a large side-by-side refrigerator and freezer. The dining room sat at one end, opening into the living room. In one corner of the dining room, a litter box bore evidence that Jill’s litter training was in progress and, at least initially, successful.
Once the coffeepot was full, Naomi filled a cup with the hot brew and padded into the living room. She sat beside Nathan, holding the cup to his lips, not quite trusting him to hold it steady on his own.
“Drink some of this,” she encouraged. “I thought black would be best.” She skewered Liam with a look. “You can get your own.”
“Remember, we’re just regular people,” she told Nathan, patting his shoulder gently as his hands came up to clasp the steaming cup. “With a little something extra is all.”
A knock on the door heralded the arrival of a delivery truck that dropped off, as expected, a large roll of chicken wire (galvanized steel), wire cutters, a leveler (a leveler?huh?Naomi thought), two hammers, a bunch of 2x4 lumber of varying lengths, and a variety of nails. Liam took charge, having the delivery guys carry everything to the back yard. He came back into the house after seeing the men off, dusting his hands.
“You could practically build a bunker with all that stuff,” he grumbled.
Naomi grinned at him. “I think you need cement for that.”
Now on his way to being reasonably sober, Nathan said, “Thanks, Naomi, Liam. I appreciate it.”
“No problem.” Liam checked his phone as it pinged with a text. “Some of the guys will be here in a few minutes. They’ll take a look at what you’ve got, and come up with something workable that’ll keep her safe, with plenty of room for her to move around but still stay confined.”
The slamming of truck doors outside had Liam standing, heading for the front door. A moment later the living room was full of men, all clad in jeans, flannel shirts, and heavy boots. Liam greeted Joe, the only one of the crew he knew.
“Hey, Joe. Glad you all could come.”
“Are you kidding? A jackalope? You couldn’t pay us to stay away.”
“Joe’s our blacksmith,” Liam explained.
Nathan stared, gulping. “Uh, the wolf guy?”
Joe just grinned, nodding, then turned to the man beside him, a compact man in his fifties with a weatherbeaten face and grizzled hair. “This is Paul, the foreman. Paul, this is Liam, our new veterinarian/doctor.”
“Hey, good to meet you.” Paul reached out one hand and they shook. “Been looking forward to you setting up shop here. And you must be Naomi,” he said, turning to her. “Been looking forward to meeting you, too. Welcome you to the family, so to speak.”
A little surprised, Naomi ventured a smile. “It’s nice to meet you,” she said with automatic courtesy, not quite sure how else to respond.
Paul turned to gesture to the others crowding the entrance. “This is most of my crew, Greg, Bob and Alex.”
“Bobcats,” Nathan nodded sagely.
One of the men grinned. “Actually, I’m a Canadian lynx.”
Liam just laughed. “Nathan here is the one who found the jackalope. He’s ordered a bunch of lumber and wire and other stuff to build some kind of enclosure for her. We’re just not sure what to build.”
“It needs to be spacious,” Nathan said, having apparently sobered up even more. “She’s a wild animal, she shouldn’t be cooped up in a hutch or anything like that.”
“Not to mention, the antlers,” Liam added. “So it has to have a bit of a high ceiling.”
