A Love To Remember. Angela Weaver

struggling to keep his face from the dog’s tongue. “How are you doing, fella? Looks like you’ve lost quite a bit of weight.”

      “Yes, that’s what I’d like to speak to a doctor about.”

      “Of course, Ms. Clayton.”

      She gave the young man a warm open smile she normally reserved for animals and kids. “Please, call me Sasha.”

      “Only if you call me Jo.” He grinned broadly. “Sasha, I’m Dr. Blackfox’s veterinary assistant and I’ll he helping with Darwin today. Now, if you’ll just have a seat, I’ll take you back as soon as a room becomes available.”

      Sasha took the dog from his arms and settled into one of the comfortable waiting chairs. “So you like treats, boy? I’ll have to buy you a box before I leave.”

      Leave. The word left an uncomfortable taste in her mouth. She’d only arrived in Atlanta yesterday and already her mind was mentally preparing to depart. “Poor pooch. It must seem like everyone is leaving you,” she murmured.

      Her eyes strayed to the other people with their pets and she felt a momentary pang of envy. Although she studied animals for weeks or months at a time, she could never bond with them the way those people had bonded with their pets. Her parents had moved around so much that having a pet was never an option. Once she’d tried to befriend one of her mother’s wounded birds, but having an endangered hawk as a pet was against the law.

      She thought of her parents and her heart sank. She’d have to tell them. There was no way she could deliver the news on the phone. She’d have to fly to Cuba and do it in person. She shook her head and rubbed Darwin’s back. One step at a time, Sasha, she told herself. Now if she could get through seeing Dr. Trey Blackfox as easily.

      Chapter 6

      Rosalind Blackfox took a seat in the plush waiting room chair. Her eyes looked over the room with satisfaction. She’d worked hard to make sure the interior designer created an area that resembled more of a doctor’s waiting room than a veterinary clinic. The interior design firm she’d picked out for Trey had done an excellent job of making the room both comfortable and functional. A little furry head moved on her lap drawing her eyes downward. “You have to wait your turn like everybody else, Christmas.” The little terrier laid his head back down on her leg and closed his eyes.

      “He’s adorable.”

      Rose looked at a woman sitting a seat away. Pretty, but she would be stunning with a visit to the salon and touch of makeup. The woman’s flawless complexion helped a lot. She glanced down at the stranger’s left hand and noticed the absence of a wedding band. It only took the lack of a ring to set the matchmaking part of her mind to humming. She had three eligible sons and a single daughter and no grandchildren.

      “My husband gave him to me for Christmas.”

      “He looks like a puppy.”

      “Actually, Christmas is two years old.” Rose laughed as the younger woman’s eye widened.

      “He’s what the breeders call a teacup. He’s actually smaller than a toy terrier. What is yours?”

      “Darwin is a Jack Russell terrier.” Sasha paused. “I think he’s about three years old.”

      “Adopted?”

      “Inherited.” She looked away. “Darwin was my godfather’s companion.”

      “I’m sorry.”

      Sasha’s lips trembled. “Thank you”

      Alarmed, Rose pointed at the dog lying immobile on the floor. “Will he be alright?”

      “I don’t know. It seems that he’s not eating and barely drinking. He won’t leave Uncle Camden’s room. I think that he’s waiting for my godfather to come back.”

      “Poor thing. Which doctor will be seeing him?” Rose sent out a quick prayer to God that the answer was her son. She worried about all of her children, but Trey needed more attention than the others. At least Marius and Cable stayed close to home so she could keep an eye on them. Her daughter… Her daughter, Regan, was in the foreign service.