Josie stares at me with wide eyes as if I just threw her under the bus. Nothing I said was untrue, and I didn’t mean for it to be malicious.
“I’ll handle it,” Josie presses and spoons pasta onto her plate. Mr. Walker goes back and forth between asking me about his sister and telling me stories about her. I’m able to eat a full plate of chicken and pasta before my phone rings, calling me back to the office.
“So, should I uh, get my checkbook?” Josie asks, walking me to the door. She has her arms crossed tightly across her chest, unknowingly pushing her breasts together.
“No, an invoice will be sent to you,” I tell her. Crystal just updated Kim’s records to have Josie’s info on file.
“Gotta love two vet bills in one day,” she says ruefully.
“Listen,” I start, putting a hand on the doorknob. “This really is a big undertaking and it’s going to be costly. I was serious when I said I’d be able to get the horses placed at other rescues.”
Josie’s jaw tenses as she tries to keep her face neutral, but her eyes give her away. “Thanks, but no thanks. I know you don’t think I’m capable, but I am. You’re not going to get rid of me that easily.”
Chapter Eighteen
JOSIE
The venom in my voice surprises me, and I have to work hard to keep the shock off my face. I’m not a confrontational person in the least, but I’ll be damned before Dr. Smartass here sends me packing. He has no reason to think I’m unfit to take on the responsibility of a rescue. Well, except that I did have to call him out here for an emergency.
But accidents happen with horses, and it was Elijah’s fault for not latching the chain back around the gate. Though…am I really to blame for trusting someone with zero horse experience to help out around here? Even when we had Phoenix, Elijah hardly came to the barn. He tried to go all-in during his freshman year, thinking that since he was one of the few guys riding horses with us girl, they’d fawn all over him. It only took him one day at the barn to realize the girls were only interested in their horses, not boys.
“I’m not trying to get rid of you,” Jacob responds, brows going up. “Though, I stand by what I said.” He eyes the hole in the porch and his lips pull into a smartass smirk that I want to slap right off his face.
“I appreciate your concern for the horses,” I say carefully. “But we’ll manage. I have help.”
“Hopefully it’s not your brother.” The smirk turns into a cheeky grin and, dammit, it looks good on him.
“No,” I reply flatly. “He won’t be here much longer. We’re, um, waiting for my aunt’s ashes so we can scatter them in the pasture.”
The grin fades off Jacob’s face. “Oh. I, uh, I am really sorry. Kim is going to be missed around here.”
I uncross my arms and look out at the barn. “I’ve never lived in a small town before. In the city, you can disappear and no one would notice for days. Or maybe not ever.”
“That sounds kind of nice,” he says softly and gets that distant look in his eyes again. “Sometimes all I want to do is go by unnoticed.” Dammit, Jacob, go back to being an asshole.
“I guess that would be kinda hard when you’re the only vet in town.”
“Right.” His steel-blue eyes linger on mine for a beat too long. Blinking, he redirects his attention to the hole on the porch. “You should get that fixed before someone else gets hurt.”
“Good thing you mentioned it because I was going to leave it.”
He’s trying to figure out if I’m joking or not. Hell, I don’t know if I am. He’s getting under my skin without even trying. “Well, you do have a tendency to fall, remember?”
“I’ll put a caution sign up to remind myself of it.”
Our eyes meet again, and my heart skips a beat. Jacob inhales and I’m totally not paying attention to how his pecs rise and fall under his t-shirt. He has a jacket on today, hiding his tattoos.
“Thanks again,” I add. If he really is the only vet in town, we need to have at least a decent rapport. Though, I’ll be damned before I let him tell me what I can and can’t do.
“I’m just doing my job.” He turns and walks down the cobblestone path but instead of turning to go to his truck he heads towards the barn.
“Where are you going?”
“The barn. I need to check on the pony before I leave.”
“I can do that,” I rush out, though other than making sure the bandage is still in place I don’t know exactly what I’m checking for.