To Love Someone (Baytown Boys #14) - Maryann Jordan Page 0,22

the lights as she moved through the clinic. Walking back through the surgical area, her sharp gaze scanned the room, but, as usual, Susan and Tonya had the space spotless.

She walked into the pharmaceutical closet, again scanning the area, mostly to see that their supplies were well-stocked. Not OCD, she still liked the supplies to be orderly, and Annette kept the shelves neat. Moving to the medical refrigerator, she checked the vaccines, surprised to find that they seemed to be low on canine vaccines, including rabies, distemper, bordetella, and parvo, but remembered Annette saying that they should receive an order soon. Not giving it another thought, she walked out and secured the closet’s metal door.

Setting the final alarm and locking the front door behind her, she headed toward her truck and grinned. Sliding into the driver seat, her hands smoothed over the steering wheel, and her smile widened. She turned the key and the engine rumbled to life. Letting out a breath she’d been holding, she grinned. “Okay, Bessie, let’s get home before you become cantankerous again.”

While she wouldn’t call the drive back to her home pleasurable, her truck made it down the road, no hesitations, no sputtering. Once she’d let Frodo run around and sniff, she brought him inside and fed him dinner. Staring inside her refrigerator, it struck her that a trip to the grocery store needed to be added to her list of things to do. Opening the freezer, she breathed a sigh of relief. One of her clients who’d had trouble paying her bill was so grateful that Samantha had only charged her half-fee and had brought several casseroles to the clinic. She pulled one out and placed it into the microwave. Soon, her home was filled with the scent of spicy chicken enchiladas. Grabbing a beer, she sat at her little table and ate while Frodo kept an eye on her.

It wasn’t late, so she took a chance to see if Jason was still in the shop. He answered on the second ring. “Hey, Jason, it’s Sam. Thanks a lot for getting my truck going again.”

“That old truck still has some life in her.”

“I’m glad… it means a lot to me. I was going to come get it this afternoon so that I could settle my bill. Since Joseph brought it out, I’ll come in tomorrow.” Jason quoted a price, and she breathed a sigh of relief. “Thanks. I really appreciate it.”

Disconnecting, she added stopping to pay the mechanic’s bill onto her to-do list for tomorrow, along with finding the time to double-check the clinic’s pharmaceuticals. Moving over to her small sofa, she sat down and Frodo jumped into her lap. She absentmindedly rubbed his head while flipping through channels, but nothing held her interest. At least, not on TV. Her mind was filled with the image of Joseph climbing down from the tow truck, all denim, heavy boots, and gorgeous body. And his smile. And the way her name sounded on his lips. She’d never known how wonderful it was to hear ‘Samantha’ rumbled from deep inside a man’s chest.

Blowing out her breath, she shook her head. I seriously need to pull out my battery-operated boyfriend tonight. But even as the thought went through her mind, she knew it would never be as good as the real thing. Leaning her head back, she sighed. Her life was busy, but the pervasive blanket of loneliness was beginning to settle heavily. Is it so bad to want someone to love?

6

Joseph was in the tow truck almost all day. A car accident on the main highway outside of town. Three stalled cars, one in a parking lot and two still in their owner’s driveways. An overheated engine on the beach road.

By the end of the day, he was hot, tired, and looking forward to a run on the beach, a shower, and maybe dinner at the pub. Walking through the garage office, Jason looked up and waved him over. “Yeah?”

“Don’t forget about the AL meeting tonight.”

He pinched his lips together and nodded, letting his breath out slowly. “Damn, I did forget.”

“Come on… it’s not like you’ve got a hot date waiting on you instead.” A wide grin crossed Jason’s face as he wiggled his eyebrows. “Or do you?”

“Quit being an ass. You know I don’t.”

“Good. Then you can come to the meeting, and we’ll get something to eat at the pub afterward.”

Not having an excuse to skip the meeting, he nodded and headed up to the apartment