including a study that was recently completed by a few of our best grad students.” She reached for a leather messenger bag, but he held out his hand to carry it for her. “Oh,” she said as their fingers brushed. “Thanks.”
“Molly and Uncle Daniel seem to agree with your diagnosis,” he said. “And they also agree you’re the expert.”
“Which is kind of funny, since Dr. Kilcannon gave me my first vet job.” As they reached the wooden porch of the standalone veterinary hospital, a sleeping setter raised his head from the corner.
“Is that Rusty?” She went straight to the old red dog, kneeling to greet him. “How’s that beautiful brain of yours, big guy?”
“Better since you removed the tumor,” Declan answered.
She ran her hand over the spot, remembering the surgery and the week this awesome setter had spent under her care back in Raleigh.
“Hey, baby,” she said softly, a familiar feeling welling up as he looked at her with brown eyes that she could have sworn held appreciation. “Do you remember me, fella?” She bent over and kissed his silky red head. “’Cause I sure remember you.”
He poked his wet snout against her cheek, making her laugh.
She stood up slowly, unable to wipe the smile from her face as she turned to Declan. “There’s nothing like it,” she whispered.
“Like seeing an old friend?”
“That, too.” She smiled, her heart relaxing a little at the warmth in his eyes. Maybe the Declan she’d known wasn’t completely MIA, after all. “But seeing a dog you saved?” She glanced back at Rusty. “Honestly? It makes my fingers itch to do surgery again. I miss it so much.”
“My uncle said your work on Rusty was…masterful, I believe was the word he used.”
She tipped her head at the compliment, but just then the door popped open, and Molly stepped out, her mahogany curls bouncing, her hazel eyes bright, her arms wide open.
“There’s my favorite TA!”
Evie hugged the other woman, adding a squeeze of affection. “And my favorite student, Dr. Kilcannon.”
“It’s Bancroft now. The real Dr. Kilcannon is back with Lusky.” She slipped an arm around Evie and led her into a cozy little reception area with a fish tank and a wall full of photos of Irish setters much like the one snoozing on the porch. “Only you could diagnose something as complex as Wobblers while standing on the street.”
Evie glanced over her shoulder to see Declan right behind them. “Lusky was letting you know,” she said. “I’m sure you would have figured out that something was wrong when you checked him out today.”
“We’re in here.” Molly guided her into an exam room, where Dr. K stood over the dog lying on the table, holding a tablet with an X-ray image on the screen.
“Evie Hewitt.” The tall, handsome country vet reached out both arms for a hug. “The woman who saved my Rusty.”
She returned his embrace. “I just saw him. He’s still glorious.”
“He’s got a lady love named Goldie and a new reason for living.”
“I heard you have one named Katie.” She beamed up at him. “Congratulations.”
“She’s definitely a reason for living.” Laughter deepened the crinkles around his blue eyes, which were exactly the color of his mother’s, little Gramma Finnie. “And you met Katie when you did Rusty’s surgery. I hope you’ll stay and see her again.”
She had an excuse—Granddaddy—all ready to go. She could handle running into a random Mahoney or Kilcannon, who were always gracious. But the last time she’d seen Colleen Mahoney was at her husband’s funeral, one of the saddest days of Evie’s life. She wasn’t quite prepared to see Declan’s mother today.
“Well, let’s start with our patient,” she said, shifting her attention to the exam table, where Declan stood with two strong hands cradling the big dog’s head.
Declan leaned over to whisper in one pointy ear, “Brought in the big guns, bud.”
“He’s doing better now,” Dr. K said. “I gave him a little feel-good shot. Especially after I saw these.” He handed her the tablet. “You can swipe to see them all.”
“Yeah, whoa.” She slid her finger over the screen to get to the lateral shot of his spine. “Severe compression. Jeez. He’s likely had this for a while.”
“Can you tell this layman exactly what his problem is?” Declan asked.
“Of course.” Evie shared the image with him. “See those two vertebrae kind of crushed together? This disease is essentially compression on the spinal cord, which can, in certain positions, cause excruciating nerve pain.”
He made a face and glanced at the