A Much Younger Man - Z.A. Maxfield Page 0,3
for him. “I recommend the carnitas tacos. They’re three for five dollars tonight.”
“Awesome. Thanks.” We left him at the hostess station and made our way inside to get a drink.
Behind the bar, Jim, the cantina’s owner, schmoozed with the denizens of St. Nacho’s he knew and liked while another bartender did the real work. Cooper was a great favorite of Jim’s. As soon as he saw us, he retrieved Cooper’s violin case from behind the bar and handed it over.
“What put that big smile on your face?” he asked.
“There’s a kid out there playing the fucking strings off his guitar.” Cooper carefully put his instrument away. “Amazing fingers.”
“That good, huh?” Jim’s expression was fond. “Did you adopt him yet?”
“Ha, ha.” Usually it was Jim doing the adopting. If the stories were true, he’d adopted Cooper.
“Looks like he’s living rough,” I said. “So maybe that’s not such a bad idea.”
“That’s a rite of passage all up and down the coast,” Jim said. “Kids hit the road with a guitar and a big dream. It’s a rock and roll cliché for a reason.”
“Hope it’s just a summer thing.” Cooper accepted his usual soda from Jim. I asked for whiskey.
“It’s hard to see how he can care for that Lab properly.” I took my drink and lifted it in thanks. “I need to make sure she’s okay.”
“You’re such a softie.” Cooper nudged me. “She looked healthy, didn’t she?”
“The dog looked fine, but who drags an animal around without thinking about food or predatory insects or the fact that in the summer, the heat from the asphalt will blister her paws? People are free to put themselves through whatever adventure they want, but as far as I’m concerned, pets deserve better.”
Cooper patted my arm. “C’mon, Lindy. Beck didn’t look stupid. He’ll probably come to the clinic, then you can make sure the dog’s okay.”
“I hope so.” I wanted to help both of them and not just because I was a vet. There was something about Beck. It was that slow blink—that trust—as if he’d placed himself into my hands because he needed me. I couldn’t get the image of him out of my mind.
Later, I saw Beck’s friend carry his bottle and bag of food back to the boardwalk.
If I could have confined my compassion to the dog, I might have slept better that first night.
It was my heart that kept dragging me back from sleep, though. Emotions I’d never experienced before gave me dreams I didn’t want.
I fell in love on Taco Tuesday in St. Nacho’s.
Because it was St. Nacho’s, the only person surprised by that fact was me.
Chapter Two
I normally did surgeries between seven and nine in the morning. That Friday, I had my hands full. When I finally stepped out of the surgical suite at ten, my receptionist, Lena, flagged me down. I motioned her toward the recovery room where I discarded my soiled protective gear and stepped behind the curtain to change my scrubs.
“How’s Maisy?” She peered into the cage of the dog whose malignancy I’d just removed.
“The surgery was a success. She’ll be accessorizing with an e-collar for a few days.” It was her second tumor removal, though, and sooner or later Maisy’s owners would have a difficult decision to make. “What’s next?”
“You were already booked through lunch, and Mylo swallowed a sock again. April’s got him. She induced vomiting.”
“Mylo, Mylo, Mylo. Goddamn, that dog is persistent. You could open a store with all the socks he swallows.”
“The poor kids are crying, and Jill’s a nervous wreck. They’re in the waiting room.”
“I’ll talk to them. So far, he spits them back up like a champ.” I stepped out feeling fresher and went to the sink to wash up.
“Anything else?” I rinsed off and dried my hands.
“I finished the summer newsletter for you to look over.”
“Okay.”
“Also, there’s someone here who says you told him to come in so you could look at his dog for free.”
My pulse rate kicked up. “Chocolate Lab named Calliope?”
“So you did tell him to come? He showed me her records. She’s up to date on vaccines. I don’t see why—”
“I want to make sure she’s parasite free.”
“Must you really tell total strangers you’ll examine their dogs at no cost? Some of them could be looking for easy access to drugs, or—”
“Let me worry about that, Lena. It doesn’t hurt to help people.”
She hmph’d at me, muttering about how easy it was to take advantage of soft touches and fools.
“I’m both. I freely admit it.”
She pushed