Summer Love by Piper Rayne
Chapter Two
Iwoke up after only about three hours of sleep excited and raring to go.
I moved quickly around my apartment. Making coffee, getting dressed, and shoving everything I could potentially need into my new briefcase.
About a year ago I’d moved into the apartment above Strange Brew, the coffee shop nestled in the center of Main Street. The rent was a little more than I’d been paying before, but the location and cute space was too good to pass up.
The veterinary clinic was a couple streets off of Main, but I could still walk to work when the weather cooperated if I wanted to. But since I didn’t know if Dr. Garcia and I would be driving separately or together to Cherry Springs Farm, I figured it would be best if I drove.
Wanting to seem ready and eager to take on my first day, but not like an over-excited puppy who would annoy my new boss, I sat in my car until five fifty-five and then went to the back door of the vet clinic to meet the doctor.
“Good morning,” I called over the sound of the door jingling as I opened it.
“Morning, Becs,” Dr. Garcia replied back cheerfully.
With my job at the bar, I’d been a night owl for the last few years. I could tell the doc was a morning person. Her eyes were bright and wide awake, and she had a cheerful sort of glow to her cheeks.
It was going to take some getting used to, but I was sure I’d be able to convert my schedule in no time.
“You looked like you were having fun last night,” I said easily as I moved around the office, looking at all of the photos on the wall.
“Oh yes, I did. Dancing the night away was just what I needed. It was such a great party. It’s obvious they are going to miss you at the bar.”
I smiled at her and pointed at a picture of her holding a baby goat.
“This is adorable.”
“That little guy is actually one of Mason’s. You’ll probably see him frolicking around the farm today. He’s a bit mischievous.”
“I can’t wait,” I said honestly. I’d never seen a goat outside of a petting zoo but could only imagine how cute one would be running around free on a farm.
“Let’s get to it then,” Dr. Garcia said. “Mason will have already been at it for a few hours, so I’m sure he’s ready for us.”
“Great. Are we driving together or separate?”
“Separate if you don’t mind. I have a couple dogs to spay this afternoon, so I will need to get back. If you’re flexible today, I may need to leave you back at the farm while I get those done. Does that work for you?”
“Absolutely. Anything you need, I’m your gal!”
“Perfect. You can follow me out.”
We left the office and I crawled into the driver’s seat of my pretty yellow VW Bug. This car had been a gift to myself last year and I absolutely loved everything about it. It was the first thing I owned outright, and I loved the fact that it was all mine.
I followed Dr. Garcia’s Land Rover down Main Street and out of town.
I’d never been to Cherry Springs Farm, but I knew where it was, just like I knew where everything in and around Cherry Springs was. That was the beauty of small-town living.
As I turned down the dirt road that led to the farm, the latest Luke Combs played loud and proud on country radio and I couldn’t stop the grin from taking over my face. The land was beautiful, expansive with little dots of different animals as far as the eye could see.
When I pulled closer to the big red barn and large white house with a wrap-around porch and a white picket fence, it was like I’d driven into a dream.
I parked next to Dr. Garcia and got out of my car, my head swiveling back and forth as I took it all in.
“This is gorgeous!” I exclaimed as I shut my door.
“Yes, and I’m pretty sure it’s the biggest working farm in the area. The McKlintocks have been here for at least six generations and I have been their vet since I took over for Dr. Jones in twenty-fifteen.”
“The McKlintocks own the farm?” I asked as I met up with the doctor and we moved toward the barn.
She nodded.
“Mrs. McKlintock, Mason’s mother, runs the house and Mason, the farm, along with his foreman and a number of farm hands. Mr. McKlintock, Mason’s father, passed three years back. So, it’s all pretty much fallen to Mason.”
“Does he have a family?” I asked, naturally curious.
“No, as far as I know Mason’s single. Running this farm takes up most of his waking hours, I’m sure. I don’t know when he’d find the time … although I’m sure having a family to pass the farm down to is important to him.”
I could imagine it was a huge responsibility to run a place such as this, and the fact that he’d recently lost his father and was taking care of his mother, made me inclined to think I’d like Mason McKlintock.
“Come on, Charming, just eat a little bit. It’ll make you feel better, promise.”
We walked in to hear the sound of a man cooing those words to a large and very pregnant cow, and my heart melted just a little.
“Charming being stubborn again?” Dr. Garcia asked, causing the man to come up from his crouch and turn toward us.
He stood, and just seemed to keep right on standing.
Tall, with a trimmed beard, longish reddish-brown hair, and a tanned face, Mason McKlintock was the quintessential cowboy.
“Always, Doc, you know that,” he said, his voice deep and gravelly, and when the white of his teeth shown when he smiled, I felt a dip and sizzle deep in my belly.
Well, butter my biscuits … Mason McKlintock must be Cherry Springs best-kept secret, because I’ve only been in his presence two seconds and I’m ready to offer myself up as tribute to be the woman who would give him those babies to carry on his legacy.
