Page 8 of Heavy Petting

“Of course not, it’s a pup cup.”

I raised my eyebrows, unsure what that even meant.

“A small cup of whipped cream.”

“Dairy isn’t the best for a dog’s digestion,” I said. “A little cheese is okay, but whipped cream also has a lot of sugar and that’s not good for them either.”

The instant I said that I felt like an asshole. The frown on Mabel’s face deepened and I could swear that Esmerelda gave me a dirty look before she stuck her snout back into the paper cup as if she was afraid I’d steal the rest of her whipped cream.

“Well, it was nice seeing you,” Mabel said, her tone clearly conveying the opposite. She looked out into the street, clearly dismissing me.

I walked away kicking myself for putting my foot in my mouth with her again, even though I really did prefer that people didn’t feed their dogs whipped cream. As a vet, I always advised people to feed their dogs food that was designed for their nutritional needs, not people food. Resisting the temptation to explain myself further, I headed back toward the clinic.

Even though I was quite sure I’d never seen her before the day she came into my vet clinic, over the next few days I seemed to run into Mabel and Esmerelda everywhere I went… getting coffee at Bayfront Beans, looking in the window at the Bay Boutique, even picking up groceries at the market.

It made it hard to get her out of my mind, especially when I knew I was going to see her for Esmerelda’s follow-up appointment on Friday morning.

I wasn’t one who believed in coincidences, but there had to be a reason that I was suddenly seeing Mabel everywhere I went. Maybe I needed to take the hint the universe was giving me and get to know this woman better. But how? It wasn’t like I could ask her out on a date while I was examining her dog.

Mabel

Iwoke up Friday morning feeling excited about Esmerelda’s follow up appointment. Given that I’d never had any particular emotions about a vet visit before, I knew it was about my growing feelings for the hot veterinarian I kept running into all over town.

Somehow he’d been everywhere I’d been this week. Buying food. Visiting the hardware store. Picking out greeting cards at the Walgreens. I’d even seen him at the gym.

Well, I hadn’t actually been at the gym, but I was coming out of the smoothie place next door when he was walking out of the gym, wearing gym shorts and an old tee shirt with the sleeves cut off, his defined biceps glistening with sweat. I’d damn near choked on my mango smoothie.

For a guy his age, he really kept in good shape.

I changed my clothes three times before I realized what I was doing. Esmerelda sat on the floor of my bedroom, watching me carefully. For some reason I had the feeling that she was judging me.

“I’m being ridiculous, aren’t I?” I said to my dog.

Yes, I was one of those people who carried on entire conversations with my dog even though she couldn’t answer. And I wondered why people thought I was weird.

“It doesn’t matter what I wear. I’m just a dog mom to him, he’s not interested in me, right?”

Esmerelda barked once, giving me an earnest look. I had no idea what that meant.

“I wish you would speak English,” I said.

She cocked her head.

“All right, let’s go get your check-up.”

She barked again.

Thirty minutes later Dr. Martin – Joshua – walked into the treatment room, giving me a big smile. His dark blonde hair looked a little messy, like maybe he’d been dragging his fingers through his hair. Today he was wearing green scrubs that strained against his biceps, a stethoscope wrapped around the back of his neck.

“How are you recovering, Esmerelda?” He spoke to my dog, but his eyes were on me.

His gaze made my stomach flutter.

“She seems totally fine now,” I said, even though I’d seen him so many times around town he basically already knew this. “No limping. Her wound is healing. She’s back to normal.”

“Well that’s good, let’s get you up on the table so I can take a look.”

Joshua bent to take Esmerelda from my arms just as I got up from my chair. We both froze, our faces only inches away from each other. Everything seemed to stop around us. I stared into his brown eyes, noting that there were some flecks of green in the iris. I had the strangest urge to tilt my head forward and kiss him. But then Esmerelda shifted in my arms and the moment was gone.