Copyright 2008
Chapter Two
Jenny’s truck was in the drive when Mitch pulled up. He was relieved she was home. He wanted this night to be better than the previous. He and Panyon walked in the front door, this time greeted by the cool air he expected.
Matthew toddled across the living room, arms up, “Daddy!”
“Hey, Little Man,” Mitch picked him up and they kissed. “How’s my boy tonight?”
“Tay,” he grinned and hugged his neck.
He could smell dinner in the kitchen, so he carried Matt in with him to find his wife. Jenny was stirring a pot on the stove, but she put the spoon down and reached up to kiss him.
“Hi, Princess,” he wrapped his free arm around her. “Something smells good.”
“It’ll be ready in a few minutes,” she told him. “How was your day?”
“Interesting,” he chuckled, putting Matt down in his highchair. “I had a visitor today.”
“So I heard.”
“You heard?” Mitch raised his brows at her.
She nodded, “Tell me about it.”
He started putting Matt’s bib on him and getting his plate out, “How did you hear…? Oh, let me guess. Your mom called you?”
“Yep.”
Mitch let out a breath and shook his head, “I’m sorry, Jen. I was gonna tell you tonight. I didn’t want to tell you about it over the phone. Did she think I wouldn’t tell you about it?”
She shrugged and started putting dinner on the table, “I don’t know. It’s OK, Mitch. I’m not upset with you over it. She called me while you were still in your office with her. There’s no way you could have gotten to me before she did.”
“Why does she do stuff like that, Jen?” He poured them tea from the pitcher in the fridge. “It’s like she’s trying to make you mad at me.”
She reached up and kissed him, “It’s not working. Besides, you do a fine job of making me mad all on your own.”
He raised his brow and she giggled. He let out a sigh, “Anyway, yes, I had a visitor today. I about fell over when I saw who it was. Last person I expected to see walk into my clinic.”
Jenny sat down in her chair opposite him, the highchair between them. “So what did she want?”
He sighed again, “My help.”
She stopped dishing out the food and looked at him, “I think we should say the blessing before I get mad.”
He chuckled and reached across to take her hand in his, then bowed his head to say Grace.
“Men!” Matthew announced after the prayer, as had become his custom.
Jenny couldn’t keep from giggling every time he did it. She took a bite, then asked, “OK, so what kind of help?”
“It’s a long story, Jen,” he looked up, “and I will tell you all of it, but the short version is that she messed up, married the vet she went to work for, he beat her up, and now she’s out of the marriage, out of a job, and out of a home.”
“Oh, Mitch,” she shook her head, “please tell me you didn’t.”
“Didn’t what?”
“Mitch,” she gave him that look.
“I had to, Jen,” he gave her a pleading look. “And she is a good vet. I know that. It’ll help us out.”
“Help us out? How do you figure that?”
“Jen,” he shook his head, “I’m tired. I need a day off now and then. Bruce is great help, but I can’t just go off and leave him alone one day a week. I’ll be able to do that with Kim. She can work every other Saturday and help with the after hours calls. And I can start taking an afternoon off during the week or even a whole day sometimes. You and I can actually spend some time together without me getting called in on emergency.”
She was looking at him like he was nuts.
“Jen,” he reached for her hand again, “I’m doing this for us, too. It’s gonna be years before Kevin gets through vet school. And I made it very clear to her that this is just to help her get back on her feet, so she has a reference for another job down the road.”
“You didn’t even think to talk to me about this first?” She was wide-eyed.
He dropped his head a bit, “I thought you weren’t upset with me over this.”
“Well that was before I knew you hired your ex-fiancée to work with you without so much as consulting me about it.”
“I’m talking to you about it now, Princess,” he smiled.
She gave him one of those looks, “Gee thanks.”
He sighed, “OK, I’m sorry. I should’ve told her I’d think about it. I should’ve talked to you about it first. I didn’t. She’s coming in on Monday morning. Why don’t you come with me to the clinic so you can meet her and mark your territory right off the bat?”
“You make me sound like a dog, Mitch.”
“You know that’s not what I mean.”
“What do you mean?”
He got up and walked around the table and knelt down next to her, “I mean, I love you and I told her that I love you and if you come in and meet her, she can see for herself that I love you and that you love me. Please, Jen. Don’t make this into a fight. I don’t want to fight with you, Baby. I just want to love you.”
She let out a breath and shook her head, “Mom’s gonna have a field day with this one.”
“I’m sure she will,” he stood up and kissed her. “But I don’t care what Linda thinks. I care what you think. I love you, Jen. And if you’re really upset over this, then I’ll tell Kim I changed my mind. I’ll tell her that I’ll just write her a referral letter instead.”
She shook her head, “No. Then it just looks like your jealous wife threw a fit and you caved in. I’ll come in on Monday. I’ll give her a chance. But she’d better understand that you are mine.” She narrowed her eyes.
He chuckled and bent to kiss her again, “I’m all yours, Princess. I promise.”
~*~
When Mitch walked into his father’s house on Saturday afternoon, he was greeted immediately with Emily running toward him, arms up, “Mitch! Mitch!”
He scooped her up and kissed her cheek, “Hi, Sissy. I told you I’d come and play this weekend, didn’t I?”
“Uh huh,” she nodded and hugged his neck. “Play tea party with me?”
He chuckled, “I sure will. But I need to talk to Dad about something first, OK?”
She pouted and he giggled and pushed her lip back in, then she giggled. It was a game they played.
Rob came down the stairs, smiling, “Hello, Son. Your lovely wife and son just left here.”
“Yeah,” he nodded, “I talked to her on the phone. She’s going over to see her mom and Uncle Terry. I told her I’d be over there in a bit. I promised Pee Wee here I’d play with her first.”
“So I heard,” Rob winked. “She has the table set for you upstairs. I believe you’re having a tea party.”
He kissed Emily’s cheek again and then set her down, “Go on upstairs, Baby. I’ll be up in a few minutes.”
They watched her bound up the stairs, then Rob looked back at him, “I also heard you had a visitor yesterday.”
Mitch nodded, “Apparently a news bulletin went out. I need to talk to you about that, Dad. Can you help me draw up a contract for her real quick?”
“Come on in the study,” Rob led the way. “Jenny mentioned that this morning, so I already made a rough draft.”
Mitch followed him and then shut the door, “So did Jen give you an earful about it this morning?”
Rob chuckled, “Well, she’s none too pleased. But you already knew that.”
Mitch sat down in the chair next to the desk and started looking over the contract Rob handed him, “I guess it was a bonehead move on my part. I was just seeing it as a chance for me to have more time with my family.”
“Yes,” Rob sighed, “but at what cost?”
“She is a good vet, Dad. I don’t want to trust my practice to just anyone. That’s why I haven’t hired someone before. I trust Kim as a vet, though.”
“But do you trust her as a woman?”
“I used to.”
“And she walked out on you,” Rob reminded. “Is that the kind of woman you want to trust now?”
“Dad,” Mitch sighed, “I’m not marrying her. I’m working with her. That’s why we have contracts.”
“Mitch,” Rob leaned back in his chair, “I can appreciate your desire to spend more time with your family. It’s admirable. I’ve been there. That’s one of the reasons I’m working out of my home now. But I can also appreciate Jenny’s misgivings.”
“Dad,” Mitch pointed out, “you’re always helping people out. How many times have you helped Mary? And she’s not someone you ever even cared about. She’s just my mother.”
Rob nodded, “Yes, and believe me, I take plenty of heat from Paula over it too. Mary is a very sore spot with her. If I were to offer her a job where she would be part of my every day life, Paula would make that life unbearable. Of that I have no doubt. Jenny’s being a whole lot more understanding about this than Paula would be. Think about it, Mitch. How would you feel if Jenny was going to be working with a man she had been engaged to? A man she had been intimate with? I don’t think you’d be very happy about it.”
Mitch rubbed his hand over his face, “OK. You’re right. So what now? Jen says if I tell Kim I changed my mind, that it makes her look like a jealous wife and she doesn’t want that.”
“Just make it very clear to Kim that this is a temporary position,” Rob shrugged. “And take every opportunity to reassure your wife and Kim that Jenny is the love of your life.”
~*~
Monday morning, Mitch walked back into their bedroom with Matthew in his arms, already dressed and ready to leave. He found Jenny staring into their closet, still in her pajamas.
“Honey,” he walked over to her, “I thought you were already ready.”
“I don’t know what to wear, Mitch,” Jenny moaned. “What does one wear to meet her husband’s ex-fiancée, ex-lover, new employee?”
He couldn’t keep from chuckling. He bent down and kissed her ear, “You look good in your PJs.”
“Oh, stop it,” she shoved him away playfully. “If I was just going to work at the stable, I’d wear jean shorts and a tank, but I don’t want to look like trash to meet this chick.”
“Baby,” he kissed her neck, “you don’t ever look like trash. Especially in shorts and a tank. You look sexy like that.”
“I don’t want to look sexy,” she sighed. “I want to look intimidating.”
“Why?” He sighed. “So you two can start off hating each other? Baby, just dress like you normally do. Be yourself. Jen, you’re my wife. I love you, Baby. That’s all that matters.”
“You don’t think like a woman, Mitch.”
“Thank God,” he laughed. “OK. How about one of those cute little polo dresses you have? They’re cool and they look businesslike, but not overboard. You can throw some shorts and a tank in the truck to change into once you get to the stable.”
“Good idea,” she grabbed a light green one. “I’ll be ready in a few minutes. I promise.”
They pulled into the clinic lot, one truck after the other. All the other employees were already there. Everyone but Kim. Mitch was relieved by that. He wanted to be there before she arrived. They went inside and Linda immediately grabbed her grandson, while Mitch went to don a lab coat and look over the hospital cases. Jenny went with him. They were in the treatment room when Kim walked in.
Mitch smiled and handed the cat he’d just finished working on back to Sheila, “Morning, Kim. This is my wife, Jenny. I’m sure you already saw our son, Matthew, when you walked in. He’s up front helping his grandma.”
Kim smiled and put her hand out to Jenny, “Hi. Nice to meet you. You have a very cute son.”
Jenny returned her smile and shook her hand, “Thank you. We’re pretty proud of him.”
“Come on in the office, Kim,” Mitch led the way, “and I’ll show you the contract I drew up. I’ll let Jen get all the paperwork taken care of with you. She does the books for the clinic so she knows what all we need to see to prove you’re not a terrorist.”
Kim giggled as she followed he and Jenny into the office, “Yes, because you don’t know who I am or anything.”
Jenny replied before he had a chance, “It doesn’t really matter to the government. We have to fill out the same forms no matter who you are.”
“I know,” Kim gave Mitch a nervous look as she took the contract he handed her.
“Read through that and Jenny can handle the rest,” he started back out of the office. “I have cases to see.”
He noticed a panicked look on Kim’s face as he walked out, but he tried not to worry. He felt like the best plan was letting them work it out on their own right from the start. He and Sheila went back to working on the hospitalized cases.
“Is it true?” Sheila whispered.
“Is what true?”
“Is Dr. Thomas your ex?”
He looked up at her and nodded, “Yes, it’s true. But let’s not make an issue of it, all right? It was a long time ago. She’s just a vet, OK?”
She nodded, “Whatever you say, Doc.”
When the ladies came back out of his office, he didn’t see any signs of a struggle, so he let out a sigh of relief. He gave Kim a smile, “Contract look OK?”
“Perfect,” she grinned. “I signed it. So, where do I start?”
He nodded toward Bruce, who was working with Lucy on other cases, “Why don’t you work with Bruce for now. He’ll show you where everything is and go over our procedures. I’m gonna start on surgeries in a bit. Right now, I’m gonna go say goodbye to my wife.”
Jenny smiled at him and followed him back into his office. He shut the door and turned the lock, then pulled her into his arms, kissing her deeply. He wanted to make her head spin.
“Wow,” she let out a slow breath when he broke the kiss. “What brought that on?”
“I love you,” he kissed her again. “Thank you for putting up with my stupid ideas, Jen.”
“Oh, Mitch,” she put her hand on his cheek, “I know you have the best of intentions. I promise I’ll try really hard to get along with her.”
He sighed and moved to sit on the edge of his desk, her standing between his legs in front of him. Her arms were on his shoulders and his hands were on her hips. He loved those hips.
“I thought I should let you handle all the paper work. I wanted her to understand that you’re just as much her boss as I am.”
“I think that was a good idea,” Jenny kissed him, then chuckled. “I made sure to mention that I do the payroll.”
“You want to stay here for a while? You could help me with the surgeries. I’m sure your mom won’t mind watching Matt.”
She shook her head, “I’m not exactly dressed for it. Short dresses and working in a vet clinic don’t mix very well.”
He let his hands slip down to her thighs and creep under her dress, “I don’t know. I kind of like the benefits of short dresses.”
She giggled, “You’re naughty.”
“You complaining?” He let his hands continue to roam.
She swallowed hard and shook her head, whispering, “Never…”
~*~
Sheila was prepping a dog for surgery when Kim walked through the treatment room. Mitch just grinned at her, but she gave him a questioning look. He waggled his brows and she rolled her eyes. Sheila looked up at him and shook her head.
“What?”
“You’re gonna get your butt in trouble, Boss.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
She lifted the front and he lifted the back and they carried the dog into surgery, “It means just what it sounded like. If I noticed that, so will Linda. And you know what that means.”
He sighed, starting to scrub for surgery, “Oh, so I can’t treat Dr. Thomas like I treat you and Lucy?”
“Nope.”
“And why not?”
She put her hands on her hips, “You know why not. You’re not stupid. You just act like it sometimes.”
He glanced at the monitors before starting to open the dog up, “I don’t see why it has to be any different. We all have fun at work, don’t we?”
“That’s just it,” Sheila adjusted the level of anesthesia, “Lucy and I know it’s just fun. And Jenny knows it too. But with this one…” she shook her head, “you’re asking for trouble.”
“Seems to me if I treat her differently, I’m asking for trouble.”
“Well,” she walked around to his side of the table and put her hand on his shoulder, “it seems to me that you may already have more trouble than you bargained for just by hiring her.”
“Jen’s OK with it,” he defended.
“Uh huh,” she went to the sink to start getting things ready for the next surgery. “That’s why you had to lock the door to say goodbye to her.”
“How do you know I locked the door?”
“It clicks when it locks,” she shrugged.
He chuckled, “Well, I guess I could’ve left the door open. Then there would’ve been no question about where things stand.”
She shook her head and laughed, reaching to open a packet of suture for him, “You, I can see doing that. Jenny, I don’t think so.”
~*~
Thursday morning, Mitch was just finishing up some paperwork before leaving for lunch, when Kim stepped into his office. He looked up at her questioningly.
“Got a minute?”
“Sure,” he nodded. “What’s up?”
“When are you going to let me start going out on large animal calls?”
“I’m not.”
“Why?”
“Because you don’t need to,” he shrugged. “Unless it’s a day when I’m off and it’s an emergency, there’s no need for you to do it.”
“Because I’m a woman,” she scowled at him.
“Exactly.”
“You’re a chauvinist, you know that?”
“I’ve been called worse,” he chuckled. “Besides, you have no idea how long it took me to get these farmers around here to accept me instead of Doc Brown. Take my word for it, they wouldn’t be kind to you.”
She folded her arms and rolled her eyes, “That’s just silly.”
He stood up and bopped her on the top of her head with the file he was carrying, “Stop complaining and just be glad I’m chauvinistic enough to want to protect you.”
“You’re stubborn too!” She called after him.
“Thank you.”
As he walked out of his office, Linda walked by, her brows raised to him. He just grinned at her and handed her the file, “Here, Linda. This can be filed now. I’m on my way to lunch. I’ll be back by 1:00.”
“OK,” she took it and watched him leave, “tell Jen I said hello.”
“Will do,” he turned to walk backwards for a minute and winked at her.
~*~
Mitch walked up behind Paula in the kitchen and wrapped his arms around her, “How much do you love me, Mom?”
She giggled, “What have you done now?”
He chuckled and kissed her cheek before letting her go, “It’s not what I have done, it’s what I want to do.”
“Ah,” she turned to look at him. “So what do you want?”
“I think by next weekend, Kim can handle a weekend without me,” he confided. “I’d like to surprise Jenny by taking her away for a couple of days.”
“And you want us to keep Matt?”
He grinned, “Please?”
“Like we would ever turn down time with our grandson?” She chuckled. “Not a problem.”
“I love you, Mom,” he kissed her cheek again. “Don’t tell Jen. I want to surprise her.”
“Gotcha,” she nodded. “My lips are sealed.”
Rob walked in, “Uh oh. What are you two conspiring about?”
Paula smiled and winked, “I’ll tell you later, Honey. You know how to unseal my lips.”
Mitch chuckled, “And people think I’m naughty.”