Drew couldn’t remember the first time a dog had licked his hand. And he couldn’t imagine a childhood that wasn’t surrounded by all kinds of animals.
‘You haven’t been around dogs much?’
Caro pressed her lips together, as if slightly embarrassed by the question. ‘No, not much.’
‘But you’re spending a fair bit of time and energy making animal prosthetics.’
‘Yes. I always wanted a dog when I was little, but I couldn’t have one because my parents moved around so much.’ She gave a little smile. ‘So I made my own. I built my first robot dog when I was ten. It couldn’t do much, and one of its legs kept falling off, but I really loved it.’
‘But you couldn’t feed it treats.’ Drew put another square of cheese onto her hand. Almost as soon as he’d done so, Phoenix ate it, and then climbed onto Caro’s lap.
‘No. I could probably make one now that responds to treats. She smells them, I suppose...’ Caro’s mind was obviously exploring the possibilities, and she started to examine Phoenix carefully, parting her coat with her fingers. ‘She’s so soft...?
?
‘She still has her puppy coat. In a couple of months she’ll start to shed that, and she’ll grow a double layer coat. The top layer is waterproof with a warm underlayer.’
‘Hmm. I’d like to see that.’ Phoenix had mistaken scientific enquiry for love and was nuzzling at Caro’s chin. Perhaps Drew was the one who was mistaken, and love and science weren’t so different for Caro.
‘You probably wouldn’t like vacuuming up all the dog hairs. They get everywhere.’
‘Oh, that’s all right, I have a tortoise... Tony does my vacuuming for me.’
Drew decided not to ask. Caro’s attention was all on Phoenix, and she was stroking her carefully. There was the kind of magic about it that brought a lump to his throat.
‘I’ve...um, I’ve got to move.’ Caro looked up at him questioningly.
‘That’s all right. Just push her off your lap, she’ll get the idea.’
Caro gently pressed her fingers against Phoenix, and the pup ignored her completely. Drew grinned. ‘You need to be a bit firmer with her... Phoenix, come here.’
Phoenix took no notice of him, clearly reckoning that Caro was far more interesting. He held out another square of cheese, and Phoenix scrambled off Caro’s lap to reach him.
Caro got to her feet. ‘I won’t be long...’ She swiped two of the biscuits from the plate, putting them into the pocket of her green cardigan. Then she picked up another, taking a bite from it as she walked towards a door that led from the open-plan living area to the other side of the house.
Phoenix was eyeing him with that I-haven’t-eaten-in-months look, and he put the saucer containing the last cube of cheese on the floor. She wolfed it down and started to lick the saucer. Drew took a gulp of coffee, almost choking it was so strong. If this, and her obvious requirement for calories, was anything to go by, Caro definitely had been up all night.
Not his business. Not even close to being within his remit as a professional consultant. And however entrancing Caro contrived to be, or rather didn’t contrive to be because it was quite obvious that she had no idea just how fascinating she was, professional was the word that should cover every aspect of their relationship. He’d made his mind up about that.
He had good reason. Drew had loved Luna with all his heart. He’d only hesitated in proposing to her because his own parents’ marriage would give anyone pause for thought. But when Luna’s shining optimism, her enthusiasm for the here and now had led her to propose to him, Drew hadn’t hesitated to accept.
He’d grieved for her when she’d died. Had gone through all of the stages, starting with disbelief then pain and guilt. He’d blamed himself for not being able to persuade Luna to work a little less and blamed her for diving when she’d been tired from travelling and should have waited a day.
Finally, he’d come to accept it. Luna had been very different from him, she’d travelled the world with a team of conservationists, seeking out catastrophes, while Drew had concentrated his efforts on long-term projects here in Cornwall. They’d both worked hard, but Luna would push herself beyond her limits, never satisfied with what she’d already achieved.
Love wasn’t enough. Living together for more than six weeks at a time was the real test, and Luna and Drew had never done that. Their relationship had been a succession of promises to miss each other every night that Luna was away, followed by joyful reunions.
He stretched his limbs, rubbing his face. It was all in the past now, and Drew’s relationship with Luna had been more like his parents’ than he’d thought. They had been different too and had argued their way through twenty-three years of marriage, until they’d finally come to the conclusion that they liked each other far better now that they were divorced.
Caro was obviously just as blinded by her work as Luna had been. She was enchanting, beautiful and they were like chalk and cheese. He should remember that the next time he felt the impulse to reach out and touch her.
When Caro reappeared, he hung onto that thought as tightly as he’d gripped his walking stick on the way up here. Her cheeks were pink from the shower, and her hair was shining, all of it caught back in a newly-braided plait. She wore jeans and a fresh T-shirt under the same green cardigan and was holding two sheets of paper as if they were about to burn her.
‘I’ve...um...got something for you to sign. There are two copies, one for you and one for me. It’s just a... I showed it to Lucas and he was happy with it.’ She put the paper down on the coffee table and fished a pen from her pocket.
If Lucas was happy with it, that was enough for Drew. He reached for the pen and Caro started, a look of panic on her face. ‘You should read it first!’
Fair enough. Drew focussed on the words on the page, reading them through carefully.