“No way.” Elisabeth could only imagine how romantic that must have been.
“Yup. Even surprised us with dresses and brought my friends’ husbands up to his ranch for the dance. It was incredible, and every night since then…it’s like just being with him is romantic.” She held her hands out when she said incredible like the memory was too big for the word.
“Wow, Callie. You’re both so lucky. I’m just the opposite. I’ve always believed in love and marriage and that we all have someone we’re fated to be with.” She finished grooming Sweets and put four little pink bows on her collar. “My whole life, all I wanted was to come back here. I was drawn to this little town as if it were my destiny, or at least as if it were my own hometown, when I’d only spent a few weeks over the years here with my aunt. And now…” She bit her lower lip and drew in a deep breath.
“Now?” Callie’s eyes widened.
“Now I wonder if Ross is the reason I’ve always been drawn here.” Elisabeth knew it sounded stupid. Damn it. She shouldn’t have said it out loud. She covered her face with her hands. “Oh, Callie. I’m so embarrassed. I’ve known you for all of an hour and I’m gushing like a schoolgirl over your boyfriend’s brother. Definitely not the way to appear normal.”
Callie pulled Elisabeth’s hands down and smiled. “Lucky for you, I think normal is totally boring. And in case you don’t know it, Emily is a total romantic, so there’s no way she thinks you’re crazy, either.”
They talked for a while longer, and after Callie left, Elisabeth piled the Wynchels’ three dogs into her car. If she kept this up, she’d definitely have to get a larger car, not to mention a few more hours in her day. Toting animals around was time-consuming.
Ross pulled into the driveway behind her car and leaned out of his truck window.
“Leaving?”
“I have to return the Wynchels’ dogs. Want to come along?” She went to the window of his truck, and he leaned down and met her halfway for a kiss.
“Where you go, I go.” He stepped from the truck and hugged her close. “I found your thank-you note. It made my whole day. How was your day? Did anyone else show up?”
“Callie did, which was a surprise.”
They both turned at the sound of wheels on gravel. The red-haired woman who was in Ross’s office the day Elisabeth brought Kennedy in came rushing toward them. Her clothes were covered in mud, and she had streaks of dirt on her cheeks and forehead.
“Tracie, what happened?” Ross asked.
“Am I too late? Are you still grooming dogs?” she asked Elisabeth.
“I was just going to take the dogs back to the Wynchels’, but I can groom your puppy when I get back.”
“I can take the dogs back to Wren. Go ahead and help Tracie,” Ross offered.
“I’m so sorry. Justin Bieber got into the bushes by the creek, and he’s all muddy and filled with burrs. He’s a mess. I tried to give him a bath, as you can see.” She pointed to her clothing. “But I couldn’t get the burrs out.”
Tracie went back to her car to get Justin Bieber, and Elisabeth reached for Ross’s hand.
“Are you sure you don’t mind?” She hated asking him to do more than he already had, especially after he’d worked all day.
“Of course not.”
She touched her forehead to his chest. “Thank you. I owe you.”
His mouth quirked up. “That’s an even better reason for me to do it.”
She swatted his stomach. “Can you please tell Wren that I can’t pick up the dogs next weekend because I’ll be at the fair? I don’t think she’ll care one way or the other, but we should let her know.”
Ross lifted her chin with his index finger. “Hey, I’m proud of you. You’re working so hard, and you aren’t getting anything in return.”
“Sure I am. I already have one paying client, and I got my fill of pups for the day—until I get to see the boys, of course.”
Elisabeth went to work bathing and grooming Justin Bieber. He was a silky terrier, and it took a while to get all of the burrs out of his long locks, but by the time Elisabeth gave him his final brushing, his fur was once again silky and tangle free.
“Wow. He’s never looked so handsome,” Tracie said. “Maddy will be thrilled.”
“Is Maddy your daughter? I saw her at the clinic when I brought my piglet in to see Ross.” Elisabeth smiled at the memory of the first time she saw Ross and how everything about him, from his looks, to his voice, to his in-control demeanor, had reeled her in.
“Yeah. She’s eight. She’s so in love with him. She was too upset to come with me today. She was afraid you’d have to shave him.”
“Oh, no. I try not to do that to dogs. They get embarrassed.”
Tracie smiled at that and drew her brows together. “So, I guess it’s true about you and Ross.”
“True?”
“That you two are dating.”
“Oh. Yes.” We really are the town gossip.
“I’m happy for you both. He’s such a nice man. I’ve known him forever. He was a few years ahead of me in school, but if you ask me, he’s the best of the Braden men. Not that there’s a bad one in the bunch, but he’s always such a gentleman.” Tracie reached into her purse and pulled her wallet out. “How much do I owe you?”
Elisabeth was still processing Tracie’s approval of their dating. “Nothing, it was on the house.”
“Oh, no. I can’t accept that. You just spent an hour doing something I never could have done.” Tracie opened her wallet.
“No, really, Tracie. You came over because you probably saw a flyer, and the flyer announced free grooming on Saturdays, so we’re good. I appreciate the chance to meet Justin Bieber, who is such a sweet puppy.” She picked him up and snuggled him against her chest.
“Flyer?” She scrunched her nose. “I came over because Janice Treelong said you groom dogs on Saturdays.”
“I don’t know who that is, but please thank her for me. I do groom, but it’s free right now, so we’re even.” She handed Justin Bieber to Tracie as Ross pulled into the driveway.
“I’ll get out of your hair, but I can’t thank you enough. Maddy is going to be over the moon!”
“I’ll be at the county fair next weekend with puppy treats and probably doing free pawdicures. Feel free to stop by and pick up a treat for Justin Bieber.”
“We will. Thank you, Elisabeth.”
Ross stepped from his truck and passed Tracie on her way to her car. “He looks like a brand-new dog.”
“I know. Elisabeth is amazing,” Tracie gushed.
Ross watched her drive away and then swept Elisabeth into his arms. “See? Even Tracie thinks you’re amazing. Wren wasn’t happy that you weren’t going to be available to groom the dogs next weekend. I think she’s gotten used to her dogs looking good. I told her that you’d be at the fair and she was welcome to stop by with the dogs.”
“She can’t. Their store is always open, but I’ll get them the following weekend. If I start to get more customers, I’m going to have to rethink the whole pick-up/drop-off thing. It’s really time-consuming.”
“Maybe you can consider actually charging and making house calls.” He pulled a burr from her hair and looked it over. “Even Justin Bieber is leaving his mark on my woman.”
She laughed. “I used to make house calls. I could do that again. Or maybe a mobile grooming unit. I could spend a day at the dog park, or the regular park sometimes. But I’d have to charge, of course. I can’t work for free forever.” Maybe she could make a go of this.
“How will you manage both the pie business and the pet business? Wren said your pies sold the first day, and she wants to triple her order for this week.”
“Really?” Elisabeth grabbed his hands. “I have no idea how I’ll handle it all, but it’s a great problem to have. I’ll figure it out. Maybe I’ll need a regular schedule, because I bake and deliver pies in the mornings and early afternoons. I’ll have to come up with something at some point. I can’t believe this is really happening!”
“This is really happening.” He lowered his lips to hers and she melted against him.
“Mm. I waited all day for that, and it was so worth it,” Elisabeth said, then went back for another.
Chapter Seventeen
TUESDAY AFTERNOON ROSS was running late. He’d had two emergency patients earlier in the day, making him late for the rest of the afternoon. As he worked through each patient, his mind traveled back to Elisabeth. She was visiting clients with Jade today and he hoped it would go well. She was building the pet business on the fly while trying to increase her pie business. It all seemed so haphazard to him, as if she’d opened her arms and was gathering in anything she could get, and the getting was slow. At the same time, she was determined and confident that she could make it work. If she took on clients in Allure, it would add more travel time, and her days would be even more hectic. She was already up with the sun to care for the animals, fit in her yoga, and do the baking—and then she had deliveries to take care of. When he thought how much time was spent picking up and dropping off dogs on Saturday, it seemed like a waste. There had to be a way to lessen her load there, at least. It wasn’t like his practice, where he set up shop in a town where everyone knew and trusted him. He’d had a full client roster a week after opening his clinic doors. That’s what he wanted for her. To be accepted and for people to take stock in, and see the value of, her services and her time.