The melody of her days continued, but the low notes of pain were only getting louder.
Poor Rhage didn’t know what was wrong with her. He’d lick the tears from her face, sit in her lap, and try to coax her into playing with him. But holding the little dog was bittersweet, because Rhage had been the one to bring her to Jake.
Why, oh why, had she said she would work in the clinic these last two weeks? Every time she saw Jake or heard his voice, her heart shredded even further.
But she couldn’t leave until they hired someone else. Even if she hated Jake—and God, she never could—she had to be fair to Saxon.
Okay. Okay. Get over yourself. Like the survivor she was, she straightened her spine and printed the last bill and put it into a folder, ready for Mrs. Atkinson to pay when she picked up her pretty, newly spayed cocker spaniel.
Rainie wrinkled her nose at the other folder, which contained her ideas for the clinic: Expanding into an emergency hospital. Stocking and selling specialized foods and medicines. Offering boarding. Streamlining the scheduling with new software. Improving the invoicing system and…enough.
She opened a drawer and tossed the folder inside. As with the suggestions for Bart’s tow truck company, her notions for the clinic would simply die away, not wanted, not used.
Around her, the place hummed with quiet noises—a complaining cat in the feline room, low voices from the treatment area, cupboards slamming in the pharmacy. The waiting room had emptied as the staff took lunch. Despite emergencies, Rainie usually managed to give everyone a chance to sit down and eat. Since she’d come, the stressed expressions and general unhappiness had disappeared.
The clinic needed her. And she was happy here. Involved in everything. The animals added an incredible dimension of reward she’d never known before. I don’t want to leave.
The emaciated cat in her lap rubbed her fingers, marking her with his scent as if to emphasize she belonged…here.
Way to realize that too late, Rainie.
But, even if she’d known, she’d still need to leave. To get away from her past.
No, she had no choice, especially since Mrs. Grayson had offered this big chance. In New York, she’d make herself into someone better. Respectable. Classy. And she’d never have to run into old classmates or be called a whore again.
At the thought, she smoothed down her jacket. She’d worn her most conservative suit for its ability to deflect Jake’s cold stares. If her clothing could only deflect the way her heart leaped at the sound of his voice—and even his damned footsteps. When had she learned what his boots sounded like?
Swallowing the ache in her throat, she looked up as Jake strode out of the pharmacy room.
“Rainie.”
“May I help you, Doctor?”
A muscle in his jaw tensed. “Can you schedule an exploratory abdominal surgery, please?”
“For?”
“Old Buckingham, Jed Parker’s basset hound. Probably has cancer.”
“Oh no.” Oh God. The elderly man was crippled with arthritis and lived in the country. “He will be all alone without Buck. His son lives in Miami and doesn’t get over here often. And—”
Jake cupped her cheek; his thumb brushed away the tear she shed. And then he simply stood there, staring at her.
She put her hand on his wrist. Pushed. “Don’t, Jake.”
He didn’t move. His piercing green eyes shot steely anger through her ribs, straight to her aching heart. “How can you leave, Rainie? You love it here. People share their personal lives with you.” His gaze took in the Siamese curled in her lap. “You cry over puppies and carry cats around. What the hell will you find to like in some frigid advertising company?”
Her mouth opened, but the words didn’t come out. She, who never had trouble expressing herself, was mute. “I…”
He waited and then let her go with a disgusted noise. “Not the first time I was mistaken about a woman,” he muttered, picked up a chart, and headed to Exam Room Two.
Yes, you’re wrong about me. He had no idea who she’d been. How having her in his life would impact his own future, his relations with his family. She closed her eyes, feeling her emotions boil up out of control.
Why did he have to act as if he cared about her? He didn’t. When he’d learned she planned to move? Snap—he’d found himself another woman before even leaving the wedding grounds. He was rich and important. His world didn’t admit her.
But…God, she hated making him unhappy.
“Mrow-ow-ow.” The cat’s complaint sounded like a feline buzz saw.
With her back still to the waiting room, Rainie checked her lap, but the Siamese lay sleeping. She stiffened. Had someone come in while she was talking to Jake? How had she not noticed?
Because Jake took up her entire world.
She plastered on a smile, spun her chair around, and saw Master Z.
He wore a white shirt and a dark gray tie that matched his eyes. She’d helped Jessica pick the tie out a couple of months before. “You’re in white,” she said like a total dumbass.
“Indeed.” His eyes crinkled. “I work with children, pet. A psychologist in all black is frightening.”
“Um. Right.” She straightened, realizing he held a cat carrier. “Can I help you?”
“Jessica and I realized Galahad is due for his shots. Can you fit him in?”
As he spoke, she brought up the records on the computer. “He’s not due for another couple of weeks.”
“However, I’m here now.” He set the carrier on the counter.
Such a scruffy cat for a sophisticated person like Master Z. The huge feline had scars, ragged ears…and narrowed eyes. That was one pissed-off kitty.
“We’ve missed you at the Shadowlands,” Master Z said.
God, she’d missed everyone too. She struggled to get her dejected expression under control. “It’s mutual.”
When Rainie extended her fingers for the annoyed cat to sniff, Master Z watched. “My mother reports you plan to relocate to New York. Do you think you’ll enjoy it there?” His voice was relaxed. Just making conversation—as if the Shadowlands owner had ever made casual conversation in his life.
“Probably. Hey, if the city were that bad, your mother wouldn’t live there.”
He gave her an easy smile. “She wouldn’t reside in New York if her existence depended on it. Although she buys companies around the world, her home is Sarasota.”
“Oh.” Rainie felt despair slide through her again. Soon she’d leave all her friends behind. “I’m sure I’ll adapt quickly enough.”
“You make friends easily, yes. But, Rainie, you and Jake seem good together, and you love Florida. Why did you accept my mother’s offer?”
He’d heard her talking with Jake. The…the snoop. Her mouth turned down, and yet, under his compelling silence, words slid right out of her. “I have to live in a place where people don’t know my past. And to become more…more. Besides, Jake found a better woman. Someone of…of his class.” Of Z’s class, as well.
He regarded her thoughtfully. “I think you’re mistaken, pet. I doubt Jake is interested in anyone but you.”
Joy zinged through her and then dissolved in the light of reality. “No. I saw them—I mean, I’m right.”
He considered her as those silver-gray eyes held her in place. Then his grin flashed, taking her by surprise. “I’ll make you a wager, Rainie. If I lose, I’ll pay for Jessica and Gabi and Uzuri to fly to New York and help you get settled in.”
Her fingers closed on the edge of the counter. Have friends with her in her new place? She wanted that. The only thing better would be Ja— Stop. “What’s the bet? And what if I lose?”
“If Jake proves he’s not interested in…the other women…before Friday, you’ll return to the Shadowlands. And there you will spend the evening serving him with total trust and total submission.”
“No,” she gasped.
He lifted an eyebrow.
Jessica and Gabi and Uzuri. In New York. They’d help her settle in, ease the strain of the move, relieve the loneliness.
But, what if she lost? Could her heart withstand another night with Jake? “He won’t do it. He’s interested in…her, and even if not, he doesn’t want me any longer.”
“We’ll leave the decision to him.” Z poked his fingers through the carrier’s wire door to stroke his battered cat. “I won’t tell him about the wager unless you lose. If you do, you’ll call me, and I’ll explain the rules to him that evening.”
Friends in New York. One more night with Jake. “Okay, you’re on.”
“Good.” Z’s silvery-gray eyes met hers, trapped hers, and his voice deepened. “Rainie, you’re wrong about who suits him. And who you are. And what is important in life. You think long and hard before you make a mistake.”
* * * *
His family had returned to St. Petersburg on Monday. On Wednesday, Jake took Saxon to supper at their house. The cook had outdone herself with preparing an it’s-nice-to-be-home meal, then gone home to her husband. So the casual dining room held only his parents, his younger sister, and his best friend.