NEW ON THE JOB
By Andee S. Davis
Stifling a weary sigh, fledgling veterinarian Carissa Thayer wondered if it was time to call it quits after only two weeks on the job.
“We have twenty-one cats,” the little girl told her, nodding. “Ten boys and eleven girls.”
The numbers added up, but it sounded more like childish exaggeration to Carissa than the truth. She watched the blonde in a wheelchair stroke her tiny gray tabby. The child’s blue-green eyes shimmered with hope and tenderness as she fondled the shaky kitten.
“So, let’s have a look at…Bently.” She hesitated calling the small scrap of life by its name. It was too soon to tell if this one would make it.
With practiced hands she examined the squirming kitten, and ignored the needle-like claws that left short welts on the backs of her hands. “It’s a boy, and probably only five weeks old. I want to treat him for worms and an upper respiratory infection.”
“I could tell he had a cold because of the stuff in his eyes.”
Carissa studied Lila Colson, noting the intelligence in her expression. Could this little girl have understood her diagnosis?
“How old are you, Lila?”
“I’m six. My birthday is in April. Daddy says my mother named me for the budding lilacs. Daddy thinks Bently was born in June, when our roses are all open. When’s your birthday?”
A smile tugged at Carissa’s lips. “I’ve only had six birthdays too, Lila, can you believe it?”
Her question was interrupted by the entrance of a tall, lean rancher clad in jeans, scuffed boots, and a clean white T-shirt. The resemblance to Lila was clear, down to the blue-green eyes and sun-bleached blond hair. Carissa stiffened at his approach, but he simply bent over and murmured a soft reprimand to his daughter. “If you talk her ears off, she’ll have to see a surgeon, and then she’ll send us the bill to get them repaired.”
Lila’s hoot of laughter startled the kitten, and Carissa just managed to keep it from leaping off the stainless steel exam table. She took a long look at the man who shared his daughter’s wide smile.
“I’m Drew Colson, and I see you’ve already met Lila. This scrappy little mite was brought in last evening by our dog Nana.”
“Carissa Thayer.” She relaxed and shook his right hand, but noted his ringless left hand resting on Lila’s wheelchair.
Lila added, “Poor Nana thinks she’s a mother dog, but she’s never had puppies. She takes care of all the animals on the ranch. We have other dogs, too, and horses, lots of cows and sheep, and a donkey.” With a glance at her father, she added, “Oh, you just have to come out to Nine Pines to see them all.”
Carissa looked to Drew for confirmation. “Who is your veterinary for your livestock?” She found herself hoping it was the man whose retirement had opened a position here.
“Old Harold Delzer. I asked him, before he left, whom he’d recommend as a replacement.” His level gaze flattered Carissa and she realized he was pleased with Dr. Delzer’s choice. But the retired vet had a large contingent of loyal clientele. To say that filling his shoes was turning out to be a challenge was a major understatement.
She cleared her throat. “So, Mr. Colson, do you really have twenty-one cats?”
She enjoyed watching that slow smile reemerge as he answered with a wink to Lila, “No, I s’pose we now have twenty-two.”
* * *
Half a dozen barking dogs serenaded Carissa’s arrival at Nine Pines the next week. She stared with awe as she steered her four-wheel drive vehicle over a graveled approach, and parked in the shade of evergreens. The longest bed of roses she’d ever seen stretched through the lush landscaping. Beyond them, arcs of misting water irrigated the lawn at regular intervals. Wooden pathways ended at a wheelchair ramp that led to double front doors. She counted six cats lazing on the home’s sunny veranda, and one more sat like a sentinel on Lila’s lap.
Carissa said a quick prayer as she gathered her courage along with her supplies.
“Dr. Thayer, over here!” Lila’s energetic wave sent her companion scampering.
Carissa greeted her. “So, where’s your mare that’s foaling?”
“In the north barn. Daddy said to bring you on over when you got here.” Lila picked up a basket that held the kitten named Bently. Carissa watched, impressed, as the child confidently directed her motorized wheels over the paved walkway leading to a huge barnyard.
At the pavement’s end they met Drew, who offered his hand for a hearty shake. “Lila, you and Nana take the kitten into the house while and the doc work.” He whistled sharply. Instead of the big English sheepdog Carissa was expecting, a fat brown dachshund appeared and led the girl inside.
Drew turned to the vet. “Surprised? I’ll bet you expected Nana to be a collie, or a St. Bernard.”
She smiled and started forward. “This job has many surprises.”
As they left the hot sunshine and entered the interior of the barn, she noted the cool air. “I noticed tall trees shading the barn from two sides. That’s good for your mare, foaling this late in the season. Her files show this is her second.”
“She had some problems with her first. Dr. Delzer warned me to have a vet on hand for her next foal.” Drew showed Carissa to a large, clean stall where Butterscotch, a chestnut mare in the late stages of labor, was lying on her side.
The animal struggled to her feet as Carissa approached calmly. It’s a good thing he doesn’t know how nervous I am inside, she thought while Drew spoke low words of reassurance to the horse. A careful examination revealed a serious breech presentation, and she prepared herself for the hard work that condition demanded.
The next hour sped by, with occasional assistance from Drew as necessary. When it was all over, a beautiful brown colt lay in the straw. Without a word of explanation, Drew hurried off to the house. Carissa finished with the colt and was cleaning up when he returned, carrying Lila piggy-back.
Together the three of them rested in the straw, waiting patiently, and were rewarded when the wobbly colt managed its first nourishing drink.
* * *
“I think we should name it Caramel.” Lila twisted an orange half over a juicer. “It’s too light to be called Chocolate.”
“She names the horses after her favorite foods,” Drew explained to Carissa. “The dogs are named after cartoon characters, and the cats… well, only Lila knows.”
Carissa sipped rich, hot coffee from an oversized mug. “Speaking of cats, I was pleased to see your little Bently has put on at least half a pound since you brought him in.”
Lila answered, “Oh, he’s eatin’ like a hog, and he can use his litter box like the big housecats. And Dad showed me how to give him his medicine. I want to be a veterinarian when I grow up.” She left her juice on the kitchen table and wheeled off to find the frisky kitten.
“I’ll admit, it was a surprise that Bently survived. I thought he was too sick to make it. Nana’s belly was slick with mud when she brought the soaked stray in from the direction of the river. At first I’d thought it had drowned.” Drew looked evenly across the breakfast table at Carissa. “We owe you for its life.”
“It’s just one of the many surprises I’ve had since meeting Lila,” …and you, she wanted to add. “Bently’s survival, a dachshund with a nanny complex, and more cats than I have heard of in one place at one time. Not to mention the loveliest ranch I’ve ever seen, complete with manor-style landscaping.”
“The beautiful gardens are a lasting gift from my late wife…she was a hobby gardener with a real eye for elegance. Tending her roses helped me deal with the grief of her loss four years ago.” He paused, but continued on with renewed optimism. “But Nana and I take full credit for the menagerie of cats, dogs, rabbits; whatever comes our way. I guess God gave me a soft spot for little critters.”
The gentleness in his voice warmed Carissa’s heart. A mental image appeared of tough rancher Drew Colson nuzzling a puppy in his arms, like a snapshot for a page in her scrapbook. Kind, a devoted father, successful, funny, and handsomely rugged. She glanced at his frame and added, Strong…definitely strong. If she had written out a wish list, he couldn’t have come much closer to filling it.
“There’s just one thing I want to know,” he continued. “Back at the clinic Lila was asking you a question about your birthday, and I never did get to hear your answer.”
The young veterinarian struggled to keep back a telling grin. So he remembered! Drew continued on, as if mistaking her hesitation for shyness. “I’ll tell you my birthday if you tell me yours. It’s the middle of November, when all the trees except our pines have lost their leaves.”
“And sometimes there’s even snow.” Lila had returned with the kitten in tow, tucked beneath her hands on her lap. Both father and daughter awaited her answer.
“My birthday,” Carissa replied, “is when the new blades of grass are poking through the soil. Usually the crocuses have started blooming, and daffodils are reaching their green stalks toward the sun.”
“The spring!” Lila guessed.
“You’re right, Lila, but now for a riddle. I’ve had only six birthdays, so how can I be the same age as you are?” Carissa didn’t dare meet Drew’s eyes, and this time it was out of shyness.
With a conspiratorial smile for her father, Lila explained. “Me an’ Dad figured it out. Your birthday’s February 29th, and that only comes every four years. So really you should be…” Lila looked to her father for help.
“At least twenty-four.” Drew had a way of drawing her attention back to his steady gaze. Carissa found the need to draw a deep breath to calm her nerves. She returned his scrutiny with a brave smile.
“But don’t you get presents every year?” Lila appeared worried.
“On the off-years, I celebrate my birthday on the 28th.”
“You should see the ranch on February 28th if you like spring bulbs. There’re hundreds poking from the ground.” Drew’s grin emerged too. He clutched his coffee mug in one hand and leaned back in his chair, some inner satisfaction clearly written on his face. “Of course, by a week from now, the entire garden will be at its peak. I’m hosting our annual summer barbecue then. Folks come from all over. We’d be pleased to see you here, but as our guest, not as our vet.”
Something inside Carissa sparked at the generous invitation, and a wordless prayer of thanks winged upward. At last she belonged, and she realized there was only one reply to give. The identical, hopeful expressions on both her new friends’ faces cinched it.
“A barbecue? Next week?” She drew out her answer to receive the full effect of her teasing. But a frowning attempt at serious consideration and sorry regret failed when she saw Drew and Lila freeze in concern. “Well, okay, I’ll come, but only…”
Carissa fought the smile that tugged too strenuously, and gave way to an open laugh. “Only if you allow me to bring the region’s newest contribution to culinary excellence for dessert.” She leaned toward the little girl. “And Lila, it’s even topped with caramel!”
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