“You did what?” Lightheaded from Capri’s news, Lila dropped into a chair, unable to believe what she’d just been told. “What do you mean you talked to him?”
Capri shrugged as she slid into a chair opposite her at the kitchen table. “Yeah. I talked to him.”
Reva carried the pot of coffee to the table. “Oh, Capri. I’m not sure that was a good idea.”
Charlie Grace held up her mug to be filled. “Oh, I don’t know. Maybe he needed to understand the situation. Clearly, Doc isn’t broadcasting what little regard he has for all Lila’s hard work.”
Reva raised her eyebrows. “So, you don’t find anything a little—uh, uncivil about confronting this guy? I mean, he was likely clueless in all this.”
“Maybe,” Capri admitted. “But that doesn’t excuse the situation. The clinic should belong to Lila.”
“You don’t understand.” Lila buried her head in her arms on the table and groaned. “He’s the guy from the rodeo.”
Capri glanced between the others, confused. “He’s what?”
Lila straightened and reluctantly met their combined gaze. “My new boss is the same guy I confronted at the rodeo.”
Charlie Grace let out a low whistle. “Well, that certainly complicates the situation.”
Lila groaned. “What a mess.”
Capri lifted a powdered donut from the plate on the table. “Mmm…my favorite kind.” She stuffed her mouth and added, with her mouth full, “He needs you.”
“Come again?” Lila asked.
Capri swallowed. “I said…he needs you. Think about it. Doc’s record keeping was not stellar. You complained about it many times. The clinic’s history is in your head, Lila. You know every person in town and their animals. You know what illnesses have been treated and who has paid and who hasn’t.”
Lila wasn’t having any of it. “That doesn’t matter. He can start fresh. He can learn.”
“Maybe so,” Reva said. “But it would be in his best interest to tap into one of his most beneficial resources…you.”
Lila moaned. “I’ll be lucky if he doesn’t fire me. Not only did I get off on a bad foot, but my—” She jabbed a finger in Capri’s direction. “My friend marched in and bit his head off. Yeah, I’m scoring points right and left.”
She wrapped her hands around her coffee mug. “Thing is…I need this job. Camille is barreling toward high school graduation and all the expenses associated with that. Follow that up with getting my girl settled in college. All that on top of my regular expenses. And jobs aren’t pinecones hanging on tree boughs around here. I can’t simply pluck another—unless I want to flip burgers and schlep beer at Moosehead Tavern.” She looked at them. “Veterinary medicine is my thing. I don’t want to do anything else.”
Charlie Grace reached across the table and took her hand. “You don’t have to quit, and he’s not going to fire you. What you are going to have to do is figure out a way to work together.” Her voice grew more firm. “You can do this, Lila,” she said, her jaw set in determination.
Reva nodded enthusiastically. “This situation will all work out. You’ll see.”
Even Capri joined in. “Absolutely.” She wiped her arm across her mouth to clear the remaining donut crumbs. “What they said.”
The next morning, her friends’ words rang in her head as she climbed from the shower and got ready. She rehearsed their encouragement again in the car as she drove to the clinic, mentally acknowledging that she’d grown accustomed to her dreams being elusive and unattainable, always just out of her reach. “I can do this,” she said out loud as she unlocked the door and entered the clinic.
Lila flipped on the lights and went directly to the peg on the wall where she hung up her jacket. She tucked her purse in the cubby behind the front counter. Then she took out the clipboard and checked the appointments for the day.
The sound of an engine drew her attention to the front window. A sleek dark blue pickup pulled in and stopped, signally her new boss had arrived. Seconds later, the door opened, and he stepped inside. Upon seeing her, he cleared his throat. “Good morning, Lila.”
“Morning,” she forced a brightness she didn’t feel.
“We need to talk,” he said, rubbing at his right earlobe.
Oh, here it comes. He was going to fire her. And she wouldn’t blame him. She’d been rude. He’d gotten into her business in that rodeo arena, and she hadn’t held back in telling him so. Maybe not using those exact words, but her message had been clear.
She hadn’t exactly been welcoming upon learning he was taking over the clinic either. And only God Himself knew what Capri had said to him. Given the look on her face when she marched out of her house yesterday, Lila imagined her reprimand had been sharp as nails. What she couldn’t imagine was how Whit Calloway had taken her harsh words.
Lila drew a deep breath. “Yeah, sure.”
“Look, I think we got off on the wrong foot. I’d like to start over,” he suggested.
