Jingle Bell Wolf, page 14
“Well, we…um, well, I desperately need someone to take over the clinic. Hell, at this rate I could be here for another forty years serving as the pack’s vet, if I live that long and we don’t get someone else in to replace me.” Doc Mitchell sighed.
That had all to do with their longevity. That was one thing about having their own wolf-run town. They didn’t have to worry about hiding their identity when they didn’t age as fast as humans. Which could be a problem for Gabrielle at some time in the future at her current job.
Landon hoped Doc Mitchell wasn’t coming on too strong though. Landon felt they needed to ease Gabrielle into the idea of moving here and taking over the clinic by showing her the fun they had as wolves and how many friends she would have.
“I have an excellent staff. They’re eager to meet you,” Doc Mitchell said.
Gabrielle sighed and smiled. “We’re bringing Rosco in for his vaccinations tomorrow. I mean, Landon is, and I’m coming along to see your place and your clinic.”
Landon smiled, grateful that she was going to at least check it out. He hoped when they arrived there the doc wouldn’t try to pressure her into moving here. He was afraid it would have the opposite effect on her and put her off.
Doc Mitchell was a grizzled, white-haired gray wolf. He loved animals and didn’t have any use for humans who didn’t take care of their pets properly, but since they rarely had a human pet owner come through Silver Town and need to make an emergency stop at the vet clinic, that normally wasn’t an issue. He didn’t smile a whole lot, even though he was pleased with life in general. But he did smile at Gabrielle, as if she was the angel who would save him.
“I bet you have some stories to tell,” the doc said.
Gabrielle smiled. “I do.”
“I had to help out at a vet clinic in Green Valley once when their doctor got sick. Human, you know. And”—Doc chuckled—“well, I have some stories to tell too.”
She laughed. “I bet you do.”
Now Landon wanted to hear them! He was sure the rest of his family did too.
“Well, I’ll see you tomorrow then.”
“We have to bring in a kitten, too—a calico about eight weeks old. Have you seen any calico cats at the clinic that gave birth a couple of months ago?” Gabrielle asked.
“No, can’t say that I have. I saw the message from the pack leaders, though.” Doc rubbed his bearded chin. “But I’ll certainly check her out for you.”
“Thanks.”
Landon was pleased Gabrielle had asked Doc the question about Princess Buttercup. He hadn’t thought of it.
As soon as Doc shook Gabrielle’s hand, he said to Landon and the others, “Make sure you convince her she needs to stay here.”
Silva brought over their drinks and balsamic mushrooms. “We all have to convince her of that, Doc. Even you.”
“I’ll do my damnedest. I’ll see you tomorrow, Gabrielle, Landon.”
“See you then,” Landon said.
When Doc Mitchell returned to the table to sit with Doc Weber, Silva said, “You should have seen me fighting with patrons about keeping this table reserved for you. Now, if you hear anyone mention it’s because the new vet is here, I only had to say that to keep the others from fighting over the table.”
Gabrielle shook her head. “When people learn I’m returning to Daytona Beach on Friday, they’re going to be really disappointed.” She took a sip of her brandy Alexander. “Oh, this is good.”
“Thanks. I’m glad you like it. It’s one of our most popular drinks,” Silva said.
“I can see why,” Gabrielle said.
Landon knew that Silva was making up a story about the reserved table. Sure, the tables were filled with wolves tonight, like they often were, but if Silva said a table was reserved, it was reserved. Her mate, Sam—a wolf who looked like a big bear, with his black beard and amber eyes and tall stature—wouldn’t have allowed anyone to give Silva trouble. And the only ones who would have considered giving her trouble would have been rogue wolves passing through. Everyone in here tonight—except for Gabrielle—was local.
“I’ll get your sandwiches. They should be ready by now.” In a few minutes, Silva returned with their sandwiches and chips. “Enjoy.”
“Thanks,” everyone at their table said.
“Sorry about that, Gabrielle,” Landon said. “You’re just on vacation, and we want you to enjoy your time with us. We don’t want you to feel that you’re being pressured to stay and then you would feel rotten about being here.”
“That is the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me. I’m having a great time with you. I can understand how Doc Mitchell feels and the problem with replacing him with a wolf veterinarian.” Gabrielle drank some more of her cocktail. “I sure do like this drink.”
“They are good. The sandwich is great too,” Roxie said.
“And the homemade vinegar potato chips.” Nicole took another bite of one of hers.
“The mushroom appetizers too.” Gabrielle took her first bite of the roast beef sandwich. “Oh, this is delightful.”
“Their food is always great,” Blake said. “At the lodge, we offer different fare, but when we want to be with only wolves, this is the place to be.”
“This is wonderful.” Gabrielle bit into one of her vinegar potato chips. “Hmm, this is so good.” Then she sipped some more of her drink.
Christmas music was playing overhead and conversation and laughter filled the air.
“Maybe it’s fate that you came to ski with us at this time,” Nicole said.
“Fate?” Gabrielle asked.
“Yes. A few years ago, Doc Mitchell might not have wanted to give up his clinic.”
“Have the pack leaders tried to find another vet?” Gabrielle asked.
“You know how it is with our kind. The only wolf veterinarians they might learn about would be with a pack, and getting them to leave their pack would be counterproductive,” Blake said.
“Hmm, so it’s fate then.” Gabrielle smiled.
The way she smiled at Landon told him she didn’t believe it. Not that he did either. They just got lucky that Gabrielle had arrived and they learned she was a vet. Especially if they could convince her to return here and give them a try.
“So, what vet stories do you have to tell us?” Kayla asked. “You can’t leave us hanging like that.”
Gabrielle laughed. “Okay, well, we had a case where one cat patient wouldn’t tolerate any dogs when she came in to see the vet. We had to move all the dogs out of her sight so she would calm down.”
Roxie laughed. “Here I thought we spoiled Rosco.”
“That cat definitely ruled the roost.” Gabrielle took a sip of her water. “You know, pet owners can get really upset if their pet suddenly is injured or sick in the middle of the night. I had to go in during the middle of the night to meet with one client like that who called to say he thought his pit bull had broken his leg. When the client arrived, he was stark naked.”
Everyone laughed.
“Being what we are, I was just amused. Poor guy. I gave him some scrub pants and took the dog into surgery. Melvin, the dog, had broken his leg. I can only imagine what happens in the emergency room in a hospital for humans if they have a child who is needing emergency care in the middle of the night.”
“That is too funny,” Kayla said.
“It was. You probably have heard the old tale where someone’s at a party and they want legal advice from a lawyer or medical advice from a doctor. Well, being a vet, I’ve had to field medical questions from our human clients too. I’ve had a number of clients remove their shirts to show me rashes or other ailments they have while I’m supposed to be seeing to the pets.”
The group laughed.
“What do you say?” Kayla asked.
“Well, in one case, the client’s dog had a heart murmur and the client said his was even worse. He pulled up his shirt and wanted me to listen to his heartbeat.”
“Did you?” Kayla asked.
“I was reluctant at first, but he was insistent so I listened to his heart. He was right. His heart murmur was much worse than his dog’s. But the human client was having heart surgery a few days later, and he called me afterward to tell me he was perfectly fine. I have to say I love my clients.”
Landon was glad they’d met Gabrielle. She was so much fun.
“One client said her cat was going to the bathroom in her house even though she let her outside a couple of times a day. I asked her what kind of litter box and litter she used. Sometimes cats can be finicky. The client didn’t have either. That was the problem. After she bought them, she called me and was thrilled to tell me it worked!” Gabrielle took another sip of her brandy Alexander. “I imagine you’ve had some funny cases of your own at the lodge.”
“Oh, yeah, we’ve had several funny stories too,” Blake said. “One time we had someone call the night manager and ask for a Jacuzzi in a room. The manager had to tell the person we didn’t have Jacuzzis in the rooms. The guest was irritated and actually called to speak with one of us about the rude manager who refused to give her a Jacuzzi in her room.”
Gabrielle laughed. “That’s what I want.”
“We’ve had the same thing with pillows,” Kayla said. “One irate man said we didn’t give him fluffy pillows like he had asked for. The clerk said the guest hadn’t requested any fluffy pillows when he checked in or at any other time, but that he would make sure the maid staff knew to leave him some fluffy pillows the next time. Then there was the time we had someone complain bitterly because someone was making a lot of noise in the room next door, but they didn’t tell us until they were checking out.”
“Oh, I know how that is. I had that happen to me once where someone had their TV blaring half the night. It was loud enough to annoy humans, but for wolves? Even worse. I suspected he fell asleep through it, though I sure couldn’t imagine how he could,” Gabrielle said. “I finally had to call the front desk. They went to his room, woke the guy, and he turned off the TV. Blessed silence. I just wished I’d called them sooner. We were staying several days, and he pulled the same thing every night. I smelled alcohol on him when he was leaving his room one night when I was arriving at mine, and I suspected he was drinking himself to sleep every night.”
“We’ve had a similar complaints—loud TV or a party going on,” Landon said, “but if a guest tells us about it, we’ll take care of it right then and there. One time we had a pot-smoking party going on. It’s legal in Colorado now, but we’re still a nonsmoking lodge because wolves don’t smoke and it’s so pungent to us. We kicked the partygoers out and had to air out the room for three days before anyone could stand staying in it.”
“Ugh,” Gabrielle said.
“When we were in Vermont, we had an incensed woman who came to the lodge two months after she’d stayed there and said she’d left some items behind. She didn’t remember who booked the room, what the room number was, and best of all, she didn’t remember what she’d left behind,” Blake said.
Everyone laughed. Landon was the one who’d had to calm the woman down.
“Yeah, and another time, this was at the lodge in Vermont when we allowed pets, a woman brought in about ten cats, unbeknownst to us, and left them in the room with a hundred-dollar bill and a note that said ‘Take care of my cats, and I’ll return in a week.’ She never did return to take care of the cats, and we ended up having to find homes for them,” Roxie said.
“Oh, that’s awful,” Gabrielle said.
“Yeah, we thought the same thing. Now we have another cat mystery case we’re trying to unravel at this lodge,” Landon said.
“Princess Buttercup,” Roxie said. “I asked all the cleaning staff to smell for signs of a litter box or cats in any of the rooms when they start their cleaning tomorrow morning.”
“Good.” Landon had told the rest of the family what Gabrielle had suspected, and they figured she was right. “But I imagine guests who would sneak in the cat and kittens, if that’s the case, would not ask for housekeeping. They’ll have a Do Not Disturb sign posted on their door.”
“True.” Roxie ate another chip. “We could just check all rooms that have a Do Not Disturb sign on the door afterward if we don’t find the cats. We could knock on the door, and if someone opens it, we’ll be able to smell if cats are in the room.”
“Well, hopefully, we’ll find the cat before long and settle this,” Landon said.
“You won’t kick the family and the cat and kittens out in the snow, will you, if you find them staying in a room?” Gabrielle picked up another chip.
“No.” Landon took a sip of his beer. “They can have the cat and kittens boarded at the vet’s clinic. The owners can’t keep the pets in a room. We have rules. But the guests are welcome to stay.”
“Oh, good.”
Roxie laughed. “We’re animal lovers. We would make sure the cat and kittens were well taken care of.”
“Rosco could take care of them,” Kayla said. “But he has to be on call for avalanche searches. He normally loves to sleep next to the fire during the day at the lodge, loving to be near us and around people. I guess we could bring the kitten to the office and have them curl up in there so she’ll be with us during the day at least and Rosco can check on her anytime he wants to, if he leaves her in the office.”
“We can do that,” Landon said. “I miss having him around the lodge. I just want to make sure the kitten doesn’t get lost.”
“I agree.” Blake finished off his sandwich. “I can see us now, running all over the place looking for the kitten if it wandered off.”
They all chuckled.
“A couple of people said they’ve heard of friends who thought someone had kittens in the pack, but none of the stories panned out,” Nicole said. “I’m continuing to learn what I can.”
“Good. I hope we can keep Princess Buttercup,” Roxie said.
“So are the two of you going swimming again tonight?” Blake asked Landon and Gabrielle.
“Yeah,” Landon said, then glanced at Gabrielle. “Right?”
“Yeah, we sure are.” Gabrielle finished her sandwich. “This has been great. Thanks for dinner. I’ve had a ball.”
“We have too,” Kayla said. “You’re so much fun to be with.”
Gabrielle drank some of her water. “You are too.”
She and Landon were about to leave when Brando and his friends unexpectedly showed up at the tavern. There were no tables for them at this point so they had to order their meals and drinks at the bar and stand in one corner, out of the path of everyone using the bathroom. It was the only spare spot to stand in. No one made a move to leave the tavern, and the way the wolves in the place were eyeing Brando and his cohorts, Gabrielle had the distinct impression they knew they’d been hassling Landon and her. Otherwise, he was sure someone would have offered them a table to sit at.
Which was confirmed when Silva came to the Wolff table and refilled their water glasses. “They’re on the pack’s shit-list.”
Gabrielle frowned. “How—?”
“Several of the skiers on the slopes today that belong to our pack and some of the ski patrol are in here. They passed along the word that these guys have been giving the two of you grief. Lelandi and Darien were made aware of the situation, but Lelandi said as long as nothing gets out of hand, you can deal with it as you see fit. Of course, since she’s the pack’s psychologist and co-pack leader, everyone is going along with it. Though I can tell you right now, several of our pack members are ready to start crowding them and see how they like it.”
Gabrielle smiled. “Wow, I never realized just how tight-knit pack members can be.”
“You better believe it. We want good members, and wolves like them who try to start trouble with our own wolves certainly aren’t going to be coddled.” Silva smiled brightly. “If you want to have them tossed out on their ears, Sam will take care of it.”
Gabrielle shook her head. “I think Landon and I are about ready to go swimming.”
“Yeah, that’s exactly what we’re bound to do next.” Landon got Gabrielle’s jacket and helped her into it, then grabbed his own and pulled it on. “Night, all. I’ll see you later,” Landon said to the rest of the family.
They looked like they weren’t leaving just yet. He didn’t blame them. They didn’t have a swim date next. But they might be stubbornly holding onto the table too because of Brando and his friends needing one. But then Nicole and Blake walked out with them, and Landon thought they might have needed some special alone time together at their home.
“We’re calling it a night,” Blake said, his arm wrapped around Nicole’s shoulders. “Though our sisters are staying for a while longer to hold onto our table so Brando and his friends don’t get it. See you in the morning.”
Landon laughed. “See you tomorrow.”
After that, Landon and Gabrielle headed back in his car to the lodge. “Are you still going to wear the string bikini for me?”
Gabrielle smiled.
Chapter 11
When they reached the lodge, Gabrielle took the stairs up to her room and Landon changed in the storage room. He came out of the office and saw Gabrielle running to join him, still wearing her warm clothes. She was waving frantically at him, appearing out of breath. She must have gone up to her room and run back down the hall and then the stairs. She was definitely worried about something.
“What is it?” He was wearing his board shorts, sandals, and a shirt, and he hoped they didn’t have some kind of trouble out of doors that was an emergency and needed to be taken care of right away, though she had been inside the whole time, so maybe not. Unless she’d seen something out her guest-room window that was cause for alarm.
“I heard kittens meowing in a room I passed on the way to mine. I just turned around and came back down here, figuring you could get a key to the room and check them out, if the guest isn’t in the room.”
