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Zayde smiled. “Is it that noticeable?”
“Only to those who are paying attention,” Marissa said with a wink. “But seriously, what’s going on? You’re usually so focused and composed.”
Zayde took a deep breath, trying to calm his racing heart. “It’s Denali. I miss him.”
Marissa’s eyes softened. “Ah, young love. It can be quite the distraction.”
“Stop talking like you’re an old lady,” Zayde said with a chuckle. “You’re young.” He studied her a little more closely. “Oh my god. You’re dating someone! You have to tell me all about him.”
Her blush was a dead giveaway. “I might have met someone,” she said. “I know how you feel being stuck at work. I’d love to be with Casey instead.”
“Casey, huh?” Zayde teased. “Do I know him?”
“He works as a mechanic,” she said. “Unless you’ve needed work on your car since you’ve been in town, I doubt you know him.”
“Why wouldn’t I?” Zayde asked.
“Because you never go out to socialize,” she reminded him.
Marissa had asked him to hang out after work plenty of times, but Zayde was a homebody and had gently turned her down. But Denali was changing Zayde’s mind.
So had Gage. Now Zayde looked forward to being in a super-secret club. He thought the name alone was a hoot.
“We could double date,” Marissa suggested. “I’d really like you to meet him.”
He squeezed her upper arm. “I’d love to.”
The two of them turned when they heard a loud commotion up front. Zayde had never heard Dr. Bell shouting before and wondered what in the blue blazes was going on.
Marissa put Socks in a cage, and then the two of them hurried toward the front of the clinic to see what the fuss was about.
Zayde’s brows shot up when he saw Mr. Alvis towering over the vet. The guy was red-faced, jamming a finger into Dr. Bell’s chest. “That amount is ridiculous. I’m not paying that bill. It’s flat-out extortion!”
“You left Dixon here for over ten days, Mr. Alvis.” Dr. Bell might have been a hell of a lot shorter than Mr. Alvis, and a lot skinnier, but to his credit, he wasn’t backing down. “I’ve tried calling over a dozen times, left voice mails, and even mailed a reminder to you that your pet was still here.”
“I had an emergency out of town,” Mr. Alvis argued. Zayde didn’t like the way the guy balled his hands into fists, as if he was going to strike the doctor.
Poor Dixon was on a leash, cowering close to the desk. That only told Zayde how frightened the dog was of his owner. From Dixon’s reaction, this wasn’t the first time Mr. Alvis had yelled in his presence.
What Zayde wouldn’t give to snatch that leash from the jerk and take Dixon away. Mr. Alvis didn’t deserve such a sweet dog.
“You’re gonna have to take me to court,” Mr. Alvis bellowed as he threw his arms out, like he was challenging the doctor. When his arms went out, the leash had to, and poor Dixon was yanked hard.
“Watch it!” Zayde had seen enough. He couldn’t just stand by while Mr. Alvis showed total disregard toward his pet.
He stepped forward, placing himself between Mr. Alvis and Dr. Bell. The guy was a foot taller and had at least fifty pounds on him, but Zayde didn’t care. Dixon deserved someone to speak up for him, and Zayde was not going to back down.
“Now, now,” Zayde said, his voice calm but firm. “Please settle down. We can sort this out.”
“Stay out of this,” Mr. Alvis growled, pointing a finger at Zayde.
“He’s right, Mr. Alvis,” Dr. Bell spoke up, clearly grateful for the help. “Let’s talk about this rationally.”
“Rationally?” Mr. Alvis snorted. “All you people want is money. You don’t care about animals. If you did, you’d be more reasonable with your charges.”
Zayde could feel his blood pressure rise, and he had to take a step back. Mr. Alvis wasn’t just being unreasonable. He was being downright cruel to Dixon as he yanked the leash, damn near choking the dog. The guy had nerve saying that the clinic didn’t care about animals. It was Mr. Alvis who didn’t care.
“That’s not true,” Zayde said, his voice trembling a bit. “We care about animals. But you also have to understand that veterinary care isn’t cheap. There are overhead costs, and the staff has to be paid.”
