She awoke out of a dream she was sure
involved Garrett. She looked at the clock and sat straight up. It
was almost noon! She hadn't slept in that late since she was in
high school. Clearly, she needed these days off, and it reiterated
the importance of finding another vet for the practice. She crawled
out of bed, dragging the jacket with her. She looked at it and
shrugged her shoulders. Deciding not to fight it, she slipped her
arms in and wrapped it around her. It was the most comforting thing
she'd felt in a long time.
Shaking her head at the delusion, she walked
into her office to write some emails to her past professors about
possible candidates. Next, she decided to make her weekly phone
call to her parents and finish some paperwork from Friday. She
logged into the online calendar to check out her schedule for the
following day. As it loaded, she gasped. There was an appointment
set for tomorrow at 11:00 with a new client, Garrett Forrester. She
didn't know if it was the same Garrett from Friday night or not,
but it seemed to be too close of a coincidence. She started
trembling, just thinking about seeing him again. She wasn't sure if
she could keep a clear enough head to do her job around him. She
looked down at the coat wrapped around her and sighed with regret.
She didn't want to lose the comfort of the coat. For some
inexplicable reason, it seemed to be her only link to sanity.
*
After leaving the theater, Garrett had to
figure out a way to see her again - with her knowing. When he
arrived home, he pulled out her card. A line read, "Make your
appointment today at www.drrileyvet.com". He booted up his computer
and opened her website. He took the first available appointment for
new clients - Monday at 11:00. It looked like she allotted an
entire hour with new patients. His mind boggled; a full hour in her
presence. He wasn't entirely sure he'd be able to handle it without
grabbing her and kissing her. He wanted to feel her soft body melt
into his, while he wrapped his arms around her and held her tight.
Garrett shook his head, he couldn't think about it right now, or
he'd be up all night long.
What he needed to do was find a dog. He sent
out a message to his work crew and asked if anyone had a dog he
could borrow for the day. He came up with the lame excuse that his
friend was doing practice exams for school. They were the only
humans he knew well enough to ask. There wasn't anyone in his pack
who had a pet of any kind, and for good reason. He prayed he wasn't
making a horrible mistake. Getting the dog to cooperate with him
was going to be another issue; he figured he'd deal with that when
the time came. He wasn't Alpha of his pack, but he was still more
dominant than most, hopefully he could use it to control the
dog.
Sunday morning dawned with rain in the
valleys and snow at his house. He climbed out of bed and ambled
outside to look over the white hilltops and green valley below.
Different dreams of Riley woke him up every hour on the hour the
night before. He was feeling anxious and decided to let his wolf
out and go for a run after breakfast; he hoped it'd wear him out a
bit, so he'd be easier to control. He ambled into the kitchen and
made a sausage and bacon omelet, toast, and coffee.
After he had his fill, he stripped down and
walked outside onto the snow. He called his wolf forward and
changed fluidly into his chocolate brown shift. As a wolf, his back
was about five foot tall, and his large paws were the size of
dinner plates. His head was about two sizes larger than a normal
wolf. They never let humans see them in their shift because of
their abnormal size; the last thing the pack needed was scientists
wandering around looking for a new species.
He ran down the hill, looking to flush some
rabbits or deer so he could have a good chase. He wasn't into the
kill as much as he was the chase; he liked a good workout. As he
was running, he smelled signs of hunters near his fence line that
backed up to the national park. He could smell gun cleaner and
metal in the air, along with about five individual human scents. He
tracked them for a while to see which way they headed, it appeared
they skirted his property and then veered further east into the
mountains. Satisfied they were away from his land, he returned to
his house and changed back to his human form.
As he walked inside, he heard the ping of a
text message. He slid into his jeans and grabbed his phone. The
message was from one of his crew, Dave, who had a dog, and said he
could bring it in tomorrow morning. He texted back to thank him and
make sure he brought the dog's medical records. Task one done. He
scrolled through his texts and found one from his Alpha, John,
asking him to call. He immediately dialed, hoping he'd have some
good news from the elders. As soon as John answered, Garrett fired
the one question burning a hole in his mind, "Did they say I could
tell her?"
"I spoke with the head elder, Jeremiah, and
he hasn't heard of anything like this before. He'd like us to fly
to headquarters in Maine on Tuesday to meet with them. Jeremiah is
calling all the elders in for the meeting. Garrett... this is big.
I think Jeremiah is spooked about what this could mean."
"Is there anything I can do to sway their
vote in my favor? I need to be able to tell her about our Kismet.
I'm controlling my wolf right now, but I'm not sure how long I can
keep it from her." Garrett pleaded.
John replied in his alpha tone, "Garrett,
I'll do everything I can to help you. I know how hard it must be,
but we need to follow the rules right now. Don't do anything hasty.
I'll arrange our plane tickets and text you with the
itinerary."
"Thanks John, I trust you to help me through
this. I'll be ready to go when you need me. Thank you." Garrett
hung up the phone and felt sick. He couldn't help but feel John was
sending a larger warning than what he said, as if he should be
reading between the lines. If the entire council is meeting for
this, it can't be good. He knew they were ruthless when judging
lawbreakers. They had a very large population to keep hidden, so he
understood their strictness. He hoped they'd find a way to allow
him to claim his Kismet, or else their lives could be at stake.
He knew he wouldn't be able to sleep after
that phone call, and thoughts of seeing Riley again tomorrow had
his mind spinning. Garrett headed for his truck, knowing he'd have
a sleepless night in front of Riley's house.
Riley woke up with butterflies in her stomach before her alarm
clock rang. She was hoping Garrett Forrester was her Garrett.
Her Garrett? Where did that come from, since when did he become
her Garrett?
This was definitely going to be a long morning.
Since she was up early, she decided to give Wolf his walk before
work.
She slipped on her jeans, sweatshirt, and
running shoes while a hot cup of coffee perked. With coffee in
hand, she leashed up a happy Wolf and headed for the door. Instead
of grabbing her coat, she snatched up Garrett's and snuggled into
it; she was becoming more and more comfortable about having it's
warmth around her. Outside her breath fogged from the crisp morning
air. She looked up to see naked tree branches silhouetted by the
early dawn light of the sky, and birds were chirping and flitting
about from branch to branch. Riley felt the prickle at the nape of
her neck and hunched further into Garrett's jacket as she sipped
her coffee and lead Wolf down the street.
She was still wearing his jacket as she drove
into the clinic. Removing it as she walked inside, making sure none
of the girls saw her wearing it. Three more hours and she'd find
out if her hopes would be dashed. Lyla confirmed her schedule as
normal and gave Riley a knowing smile when she mentioned the new
client, Garrett. Riley tried to ignore it, but felt the heat of a
blush on her cheeks.
As soon as she walked into her office, Sam
came in and shut the door. Riley inwardly groaned about the
impending conversation.
"I knew that Garrett guy was into you. He
took the first available slot. You
will
go out with him if
he asks, right?" Sam fixed her with a gimlet eye, prodding her to
acquiesce.
Riley threw her arms up in the air. "Sam!
First, we don't know if it's the same Garrett. Second, he is not
going to ask me out, he's looking for a vet. I'm going to take care
of his pet in a professional manner. Please don't do anything to
embarrass me if he comes in. I know how you like to meddle." Riley
was terrified Sam would say something to him. She was always so fun
loving; she sometimes didn't realize she could be overly
forward.
Sam smirked, "Whatever, Ri. First, I know it
is Garrett Garrett and second, I know he'll be asking you out. We
have a little wager going. I say he'll ask you out during the exam.
Lyla says immediately after he pays, and Jennifer says he'll call
back after he leaves and ask you out. Hey, at least you'll win the
ten dollars from Jennifer, he clearly has a dog."
Riley let out an aggravated sigh and said,
"Yep! See, you guys have already been wrong about him. I'm going to
check emails and review our charts for the first few appointments.
You are making a mountain out of a mole hill on this one." Riley
crossed her fingers, hoping she was wrong. If he showed up and
asked her out, she would most definitely go against her rule of
never dating a client. She was a bit chagrinned that she would cave
on the rule with the first chance, but she hadn't been able to stop
thinking of him all weekend. She could imagine how good it would
feel to have his arms wrapped around her; his jacket alone made her
feel more safe and secure than anything else she'd experienced. Sam
winked at her and sauntered out of the office as if she knew
something Riley didn't.
An email from one of her past professors was
waiting in her inbox. She opened it, hoping there was good news.
Apparently, there was a candidate named Ryan whom the professor
believed would make a good fit. She emailed back, asking if he'd
have Ryan send in a resume and letters of recommendation. Pleased,
she turned away from the email and started reviewing her charts.
The morning seemed to drag by and fly by simultaneously. She
couldn't seem to figure out if she was excited or fearful for the
clock to strike eleven. At 10:45 her heart was beating as if she
were sprinting around a track. She had just finished her final
appointment before the mysterious Garrett was to make his
appearance. She was in the back room with the boarded animals,
giving them some TLC and trying to attain some calmness from the
act when she heard the ding of the front door. Five seconds later,
all hell broke loose.
*
Garrett woke up suddenly. He had a crick in
his neck from falling asleep in the driver's seat. While rubbing
his neck, he looked around for what disturbed his catnap. Ah ha, it
must have been his cute little Kismet; she was walking out of her
home with a cup of coffee in one hand and her dog's leash in the
other. He felt like a lovesick puppy when he saw her wearing his
jacket again. It warmed him all the way through to know it was
giving her comfort. She paired it with skinny jeans and running
shoes. Her hair was up in her usual messy ponytail. She stopped at
the side of the road and looked up into the trees, her breath
crystallizing in the cold morning air. He'd never seen anything
more beautiful. As she walked down the road, he started his truck
and drove to a local diner to grab some breakfast before heading to
the jobsite.
Jason was waiting for him in the trailer as
he walked in. "Hey Garrett, I have to ask - why did you send a text
looking for a dog?"
"Ummm, well." Garrett wasn't sure how to
proceed. Jason had always been his best friend. When he lost Sarah,
he had emotionally shut down and in the process turned all
friendships away. He wasn't sure if Jason would ever forgive him
for that and he didn't want to be an opportunistic friend.
Although, he could really use Jason's support right now, but he'd
shut him down for so long it didn't seem fair to expect friendship
only when he needed it. He scuffed his boot on the linoleum and
tried to figure out what to say.
"Look Garrett, I know you haven't been keen
on sharing since you lost Sarah." Jason cringed as he said her
name. He hated the haunted look Garrett always had when anyone
mentioned her name. However, this time Garrett showed sadness in
his eyes, but not the cold, empty look usually seen there. He
plunged on, hoping Garrett was ready to hear what he had to say. "I
can't understand the pain you went through... are going through,
since I've never found a mate, but please know I've never stopped
being your friend, and I'm here anytime you need a sounding board.
It seems like you've had a stressful time lately. We're pack and we
all need each other's support at some point. Besides, I heard you
went out with Sonya the other night, how'd that go?" Jason stopped
his speech and waited expectantly, hoping he didn't push Garrett
further away. Male shifters were not the touchy feely type.
Sonya? Garrett snorted. If Jason only
knew, ha ha ha.
His friend's loyalty awed him, especially after
pushing him away and turning his back on him for the past few
years. His Kismet must be thawing his heart, because for the first
time he did feel like having someone to talk with. He sat down in
his chair and motioned for Jason to take the one across from
him.
He figured the only way to start was with the
main point, "I found my Kismet. And no, it's not Sonya." He let
that soak in for a second and followed up with the clincher, "She's
human".
Jason's eyes bugged out of his head. "What!
How is that even possible?"
"I don't know man. I ran into her on Friday
night and I've not been the same since. She's a vet and I made up a
stupid story that I had a new dog so I could get her card. I have
an appointment today at 11:00 to take "my” dog in."