Page 29 of Surly Sheriff
7
Caged
Rae pulled into Nate and Bella’s driveway the next morning after viewing the two rentals Nancy had lined up for her. Both were suitable and now she had a major decision to make. Last night’s disastrous ending was a flashing red light, yet the idea of leaving Clearbrook,leaving Beau,was repugnant.
Bakery box in hand, she walked across the flagstone pathway to the front door and let herself into the house. Voices drifted from the kitchen as she toed off her sneakers.
Entering the cheerful kitchen, she heard Nate say, “I’m sorry, Beau,” and her gaze shot straight to Beau.
“It’s okay,” he said, but his slumped shoulders negated his reply.
She placed the box on the counter beside the men. They both had coffee mugs in their hands. “What’s wrong?”
Nate answered. “With all the other stuff going on, I totally forgot about my mother’s allergies. There is no way we can have a dog here.”
No wonder Beau looked so downcast. He had bonded with Kismet.
“I’ll call around,” Beau said. “See if someone—”
“I’ll take him,” Rae blurted out before she could second-guess herself.
Beau blinked. “You will?”
She wanted to shove those words back down her throat. But Beau’s hopeful expression made her nod. “One of the rentals Nancy showed me was a guest cottage with a private and enclosed yard separate from the main house. The property is for sale, hence the short stay lease option on the cottage.”
A huge smile spread across Beau’s face.
Rae reckoned she would walk across burning coals just to see it again. She turned to Nate, determined to seal the deal before her common sense overrode her impulsive offer. “Do you mind if I use the phone to call Nancy and let her know?”
“But of course. You’ve saved the day. Again,” Nate added with a wide grin of his own.
She pulled Nancy’s card from her back pocket and rounded the counter to where the landline hung on the wall.
Beau snagged her hand, pulling her toward him. “Thank you,” he murmured. And kissed her. On her mouth. It was over in an instant, but she continued her path to the phone with her lips tingling and her blood pulsing.
And despite the clamoring in her mind about huge, honking mistakes and colossal stupidity, she dialed Nancy’s number and rented the cottage for the next four weeks.
“I can move in today,” she announced.
*
Two hours later Rae pulled into the veterinary clinic parking lot with Beau trailing her in Nate’s truck.
“You sure about this?” he asked, opening Esmeralda’s door when she took too long to exit the vehicle.
She sucked in a breath, not sure about anything except that she wanted to spend as much time as possible with the man before her. So much so, she had committed to staying in Clearbrook for a month.
Not “one, maybe two weeks,” butfour whole weeks.
And yes, she could renege on the four weeks regarding the rental property, but she could not walk out on her commitment to fostering a dog for the period.
On top of it, Bella had wrangled her into working in the store for those four weeks.
“You’re here for four weeks?” Bella had asked. The woman had waddled into the kitchen while she had been on the phone to Nancy.
Wordless, Rae had nodded.
“Oh, thank goodness.” Bella had thrown her arms around Rae and hugged her tight. “You were such anaturalyesterday. Everybody justlovedyou. I was going to ask you to stay longer, and now …” Bella had stepped back, laughing. “I amsorelieved, Rae. This gives me extra time to find a suitable assistant.”
