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A small howl made me fly out of the bed and land on the floor. I groaned in pain from my bruised rib. When I looked up, Hemi was staring down at me.
“Hemi?” I asked with a smile on my face. “What are you doing here, girl?”
She leapt off the tall bed and landed right in my arms. I hugged her close and kissed her on the head. I hadn’t been looking for a dog, but thanks to Chloe, I was the proud mother of a daredevil pup.
“I see she finally got you to wake up. Why are you on the floor?”
Tripp stood at the end of his bed, a glass of orange juice in his hand. His eyes swept over my naked body and I could see he was ready to take me again. My stomach growled and I felt my cheeks heat.
“Food. I need energy and I have a feeling I’m going to need a pain pill with the way you’re looking at me right now, Mr. Parker.”
His eyes turned sad. “You’re right. You do need food and your pain meds. Shit, I sort of forgot about your rib last night.”
Reaching down, he took Hemi and placed her next to me before taking my hands and pulling me up.
“Let me get a hot bath going for you. Then we need to talk.”
My breath caught and fear ripped through my body.
“Don’t look at me like that, Harley. I meant every word I said last night, you and I are forever now. This isn’t about us. It’s about the vet clinic. Karen sent me over something this morning from Gerald Harris’s attorney.”
“Oh,” I said, my shoulders sagging. From the look on Tripp’s face, it wasn’t good news.
“That bad?”
He nodded. “He is planning on tearing down the clinic. He plans on building something else on the land he owns.”
My mouth fell open. “Can he do that? I thought Doc said he had paid him back for the land!”
When his gaze fell to the floor, I had my answer.
I was about to lose my dream.
A few weeks later
I sat in my office looking over the paperwork. After trying to find a loophole, I came up with nothing. There was no proof to show that Doc Harris had paid his brother back for the land that the Oak Springs vet clinic sat on. Harley owned the clinic, and Gerald owned the land the clinic sat on. It was a fucked-up situation to say the least.
Karen knocked on the door, and I looked up. “Don’t forget, you have lunch plans with your brothers today.”
“Right,” I said with a nod. “Thanks, Karen.”
She started to leave but stopped. Clearing her throat, she took a few steps back into my office. When I looked up at her, I gave her a questioning look. “I only wanted to say that I’m so happy for you, boss. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you so happy.”
My chest tightened. “I don’t think I’ve been this happy in a very long time, Karen.”
A large smile appeared on her face. “You’ll make beautiful babies.”
I laughed. “Thank you? I think.”
She blushed. “Now, go to lunch. You know how cranky Cord gets when he has to wait for his food.”
“True. I’m leaving now.”
I reached for my phone and sent two texts. One to Cord, and one to Harley.
Me: I’m on my way. Order if everyone is there.
Cord’s response was almost immediate.
Cord: Trevor just walked in. We’re waiting on you, so get a move on!
Rolling my eyes, I ignored his text and typed to Harley.
Me: I can’t stop thinking about you this morning.
Her reply didn’t come, and I figured she was busy with patients. Glancing down, I shook my head. Hemi had crashed on the giant ass dog bed Harley had bought when we had made a trip to PetSmart in San Antonio.
“Spoiled ass dog.”
Hemi lifted one eye at me. I tried to hide my smile. This damn dog had somehow managed to wrap me around her little paw. I pretended I didn’t care, but the little stinker knew I was falling for her.
“I’m going to meet your uncles for lunch.”
She lifted up and watched me get my suit jacket on.
“Do not tear up anything or I will throw your ass outside tonight. Got it? Remember, I’m the boss.”
Hemi howled in argument, then did a little whimper that made me roll my eyes. She didn’t do it very often, but when she did, Harley melted and usually gave her a treat. I, on the other hand, wasn’t as affected by her cuteness. The last thing I wanted was for her to start howling to get a damn treat.
“Behave, mutt,” I called out.
Hemi didn’t bother to answer. She simply laid her head back on the bed and pretended she would sleep the entire time. Both of us knew that was not going to happen.
