Bonnie Winn - Forever a Family

Her worry wasn’t grounded in fact, but having experienced how quickly a life could be snatched away... Joey should be safe in Rosewood, probably safer than anywhere else. And the veterinary clinic was hardly a dangerous place, but it didn’t dampen her concern. Overprotective, the Colonel was always saying. So much so that he thought she wasn’t raising Joey right, not disciplining him as she should.

“Mom?” Joey stared at her, his face scrunched in question.

Olivia shook her head. “Sorry. Zeke, do you want Joey to stay longer today? I can come back later.”

Zeke’s usual cheerfulness was absent as he studied her quizzically. “No need. He put in enough time for today.”

“In that case, Joey can use the rest of the afternoon to do his school assignments.” Feeling oddly out of step, as though the rest of the world were revolving just a minute or so faster than she was, Olivia clutched her keys.

“See you in the morning,” Zeke replied quietly.

“Okay,” she agreed.

Watching her leave, Zeke concentrated more on her face than her form. Not that she wasn’t just as attractive, but the haunting vulnerability in her eyes struck him. In those few moments she’d looked as though something awful was about to happen. Having lost her husband was terrible enough. What could be worse?

“Zeke?” Angie prodded, having followed him outside.

He exhaled. “Sorry, long day.”

“Once you see Her Highness, we can take a break.”

Sighing, Zeke forced himself to turn around. Maybe Angie was right. It was about time Belinda took her dog to another vet. He didn’t need a living reminder. Like a pebble in his shoe, Belinda was a memory he couldn’t ignore.

* * *

Apparently feeling protective, Angie didn’t leave his side while he examined Fluffy.

Belinda practically purred as she spoke. And he didn’t imagine the satisfaction in her eyes.

Once she and Fluffy were gone, Angie threw open a window. “That woman wears enough perfume for half the town.”

There had been a time when he’d saved up all his allowance and most of what he made at his after-school job to buy her perfume. Not the expensive one she was wearing. Come to think of it, he didn’t remember her ever wearing the perfume he had bought her. His bulb had been dim, blind and deaf. “How’s the appointment book looking, Angie?”

“Good news on that front. We’re caught up. Just had a cancellation for our last appointment. Except for our resident menagerie, we can pack it in for today.”

Rubbing the back of his neck, he listened with only half an ear. “Go on home, Angie. I’ll take care of the stock.”

“But what about the kennel and—”

“I can use the time with our patients.”

She studied him for a moment. “And I can use the time to catch up at home. See you tomorrow.”

“Right.” His mind full, he wandered outside, stopping first at the brooder. Olivia immediately came to mind. She’d been something, chasing down that flock of scattering chicks. Checking, he saw the brooder’s temperature was high enough for the baby chickens. There weren’t as many chicks as usual, since he’d taken the infamous batch to the 4-H club. Vehemently opposed to the sickening conditions of many commercial chicken-and-egg producers, he had a small operation of free-range chickens. And the chicks were always in demand by the locals.

Hearing a pickup truck traveling up the long driveway, he poked his head outside and recognized his father’s old Chevy. Robert Harrison could afford a new one but claimed it wouldn’t have the personality of his well-worn vehicle.

Zeke carefully secured the brooder, then raised a hand in greeting, always glad to see his father.

Robert climbed from the cab of the truck, still agile and active although he was in his late sixties now. “You in the middle of something?”

“Nope. Just checking on the residents. And I was thinking I ought to make a fresh pot of coffee.”

“Reminds me.” Robert reached back into the cab of the truck. “Your mother sent some stew and half a chocolate-fudge cake. Says I’ll finish off the cake if it’s in our kitchen.”

Zeke grinned, much of his Belinda-induced fatigue fading. “Good thing I’m hungry. Might just have to eat some of that cake. Only polite to share.”

It didn’t take long to get the coffee brewing and pull out plates for cake. He stuck the plastic bowl of stew in the microwave.

“You are hungry.”

“Just one of those days, Dad. Playing catch-up on some missed appointments.” His father knew the nature of the business made that fairly common. After he sliced a hefty chunk of cake for his father and emptied his now-warm stew into a stoneware bowl, Zeke filled him in on Olivia and the chick debacle.

Robert was laughing before Zeke finished the story. “Too bad you didn’t get that on video.”

Zeke speared a wedge of potato. “They were moving too fast for me to think about anything except catching them.”

“Coffee’s done.” Robert got up and filled the two mugs sitting on the counter. He put the mugs on the table and then grabbed a carton of cream from the fridge. “Now I can dig into that cake.”

Concentrating on the stew, Zeke finished it before lifting his own mug.

“You’d better eat at least as much cake as I do. Beats me how, but your mother will know if I get the lion’s share.”

“Don’t have to twist my arm.” Zeke cut a healthy piece for himself and started eating it with the same enthusiasm he’d had for the stew.

Robert watched him for a few moments. “How long since you’ve eaten?”

“Breakfast. Like I said, really crammed schedule.”

“From the chicken woman,” Robert noted. “Which messed up yesterday’s appointments. Nothing serious while you were gone?”

“Nope.”

“Doesn’t sound like she meant to cause any trouble.”

“Nah. It was an accident. Good thing.” Remembering, he shook his head, unable to suppress a grin. “Hate to think what she could have done if she was trying.”

Chuckling, Robert reached for another bite of cake. “Sounds like someone worth getting to know.”

Zeke remembered the look in her eyes before she left with Joey. “Why?”

“She sure wouldn’t be dull.”

“And with my track record, I need someone more like the chicken woman?”

“Son, you’ve got to let go of the past. You were a kid when you met Belinda. And by college she’d... I’ll be kind and say changed. It’s best that you found out her true colors before marriage.”

Zeke snorted. “You forgetting that she refused to marry me? Wasn’t my choice.”

“Doesn’t matter. You’re still better off.” Robert paused, his fork midair. “You don’t still have feelings for Belinda, do you?”

“No. Can’t see now why I ever did.”

Robert exhaled. “That’s a relief. I was beginning to think I’d never see you get married.”

“Well, don’t get out the rice just yet. Still don’t trust my judgment enough to marry someone. Look at Penny—I couldn’t figure out she was still in love with her ex-husband.”

Frowning, Robert put his fork down. “You loved Penny’s kids more than her.”

“You just made my case, Dad. I don’t have good sense when it comes to women.”

“But, son, you’re going to be wind up lonely—”

Zeke held up one hand. “First off, with a family our size, I’ll never be lonely. And I date, Dad. You married the best woman on the planet and now the pickings are way too slim.”

“You telling me that of all the women you’ve dated since college, you haven’t been tempted?”

Just with Penny. Considering the children, going back with her ex was the best outcome for her. But it had reinforced his certainty that when it came to relationships, his judgment was flat-out bad. Otherwise, he would have realized that she’d still loved her ex. Zeke shook his head. “Just not in the cards for me, Dad. I’ll leave marriage to the experts like you and Mom.”