Vet's Desire (15 page)

Marty perked
up. “Baby-sitter as in female baby-sitter?”

“Female as in
Lara, the vet nurse.”

“Lara.” He
pursed his lips, thinking, and then his eyes brightened. “Oh yeah,
cute little vet nurse at that playboy vet’s clinic.”

Playboy vet was
right. “That’d be the one.”

“Tim. Met him
there when I picked up Al’s formula.” Marty opened the taxi door
for her and took the carrier while she sat inside. Handing it back
to her, he added, “Lara is cute. Wonder if she’s single?”

“I don’t think
she has a death wish, so it might pay you to stay away from
her.”

“Every woman
likes a little danger in her life.” Closing the door, he went
around the other side and slid in. “And I’m that little bit of
danger.” He winked at her. “In fact, I’m a whole lotta danger, but
I promise to just give her a taste. Maybe.”

“That makes me
feel so much better.”

The taxi driver
glanced at Marty in the rear-view mirror but kept his thoughts to
himself.

Cindy gave him
Lara’s address and settled back in the seat.

Marty proceeded
to fill her in on what he’d been discussing with their father for
future plans for the Bellacross Restaurant they all held equal
shares in, and they threw ideas back and forth, arguing and
agreeing until the taxi drew to a stop in front of Lara’s
house.

Cindy speared
her brother with a narrow-eyed look. “Stay.”

“I’m hurt.”
Marty placed one hand on his chest. “What if you get attacked
between the gate and her front door? How can I protect you?”

“You’re the
only danger around here, remember?”

“I’m hurt.”

Getting out of
the taxi, Cindy took the bag and Al’s carrier up the garden path to
the front door. Knocking on it, she waited.

It opened
within seconds and Lara smiled out at her. “Hi, Cindy. Wow, you
look great.”

“Thanks. And
thanks for agreeing to baby-sit Al.” Cindy held out the carrier.
“I’d have gotten Maddy to baby-sit him, but she has to get up early
for work and my family are at this party.”

“No problem.”
Lara took the carrier carefully as well as the bag. “He won’t be
the first kitten I’ve bottle-fed, and he won’t be the last.”

“I promise to
be back by midnight.” She looked wistfully at the carrier. “This is
the first time Al has left home since I got him.”

“He’ll be
fine,” Lara assured her. “I’m staying up watching movies and he can
snooze beside me on the sofa.”

“Thanks again.
If there’s anything I can do in return, let me know.”

“Hey, you’re
offering to help us with our abandoned kittens and cats, least I
can do is help you out.” Lara grinned. “Plus, I’m dying to see how
much Al has grown.”

Cindy took a
step back. “You have my phone number.”

“On the pad by
the phone.” Lara’s eyes twinkled.

“If he needs
me-”

“I’ll ring
straight away.”

“If you think
he looks a little peaky-”

“Don’t worry, I
have some training.” Lara laughed and flapped her hand at Cindy.
“Go. He’ll be fine. I’ll see you in about four hours.”

Cripes, who’d
have thought the little fur ball would have crawled so thoroughly
into her heart already?

Cindy sat back
down in the taxi and Martin looked at her as the taxi pulled out
onto the road. “You all right?”

“Fine.” She
cleared her throat. “Lara’s a vet nurse. Al is in good hands.”

“That’s right.
Now, did you notice if she had a man in her house?”

“Marty, I was
only at the front door.”

“Did you look
over her shoulder?”

“You are such a
hound dog.”

“Woof
woof.”

Cindy punched
him in the arm.

“I’m telling
Mum,” he said.

“Tell-tale-tit.”

He laughed.

Eventually the
taxi pulled up in front of the mansion belonging to Dr Margaret
Clarke. Marty held the door open for Cindy and she walked beside
him up the marble steps.

Lights spilled
from the windows and music filled the air. Sophisticated music,
subtle orchestra. Men and women dressed in clothes that clearly
cost a lot of money entered ahead and behind them.

“Wow, Dr Clarke
still has her hooks into Martin Shaw, poor bastard.” Marty looked
across to where Dr Margaret Clarke stood greeting the guests with a
neatly dressed man by her side.

“Maybe he’s
here for keeps?” Cindy smiled at a woman who passed nearby, her
expensive perfume thick in the air. “Hi, Maryanne.”

“Cindy.” She
beamed at them, and then her smile dimmed as she saw Marty.
“Martin.”

“Maryanne.”
Marty smiled widely. “Looking good, sweetheart.”

Her gaze turned
sour and she walked off.

“Oh, well
done,” Cindy said. “Another conquest of yours that bit the
dust?”

“Her choice,
not mine.”

“Because you’re
such a hound dog. Did you cheat on her?”

“Nah. She was
just too snooty for my tastes.” Marty steered her over to where Dr
Clarke stood. “You’re looking hot, Dr Clarke, as always.”

Margaret
Clarke’s cold gaze swept over him. “Martin.”

“Thanks for
inviting us.” He held his hand out to Martin Shaw. “Same name as
me, eh? Dr Clarke does love her Martins.”

Martin Shaw
shook his hand with polite amusement.

Dr Clarke
looked at Cindy, her gaze assessing her clothes. “Cindy, glad you
could come.” There was a touch of frost to her tone, and a glint in
her eyes that was a clear indication that she didn’t think it was
appropriate for Cindy to wear such a tight-fitted bodice that
showed off her ample bosom.

Cindy smiled
widely. “Dr Clarke, a pleasure to be here. Place looks lovely as
always.”

The
almost-smile Dr Clarke bestowed upon her was as much approval as
she’d ever show anyone.

“So, where’s
the birthday girl?” Marty inquired.

“Right here,” a
new voice replied.

Turning, Cindy
saw Dr Clarke’s sister-in-law, Hannah Harding, approach in a cloud
of chiffon and perfume.

“Marty, Cindy,
so glad you could both come.” She enveloped them in a shared hug
before gesturing to another door. “Eat, drink, and be merry.”

“You may place
your gift upon the table to the side of the room,” Dr Clarke
instructed.

“Nah,” Marty
replied. “We’d rather give it now.” And so saying, he whipped a
small wrapped box from his pocket and grabbed Hannah around the
waist, dipped her into a laughing and shrieking bend backwards,
gave her a smacking kiss on the lips and straightened her up again,
steadying her with his hands until she got her balance.

Hannah giggled
in delight, cheeks flushed as she patted her white hair and pulled
her dress a little straighter.

Dr Clarke’s
eyes went a little colder and Cindy nudged her brother in the ribs
with her elbow. “Come on, lover boy.”

“Save a dance
for me,” Marty told Hannah before taking Cindy’s elbow and hustling
her through into the big ballroom. “Now where’s the food? The
drink? The tarty babes?”

“The
decorum?”

“Where’s the
fun in that?”

“Trust me,”
said a deep voice behind them, “There’s no fun if you upset your
mother.”

They both
turned around to face the tall, thin, slightly stooped man standing
behind them, his lined face kind, his brown eyes shrewd, and his
short blonde hair liberally touched with grey.

“Hi, Dad.”
Cindy went up on tip toe to kiss him on the cheek.

“Sweetheart,
you look amazing.” Mr Lawson turned his gaze to his son. “And you
look good, too.”

“Thanks.”

“But as wild as
ever.”

“I’m the
picture of a sophisticated man.”

“And I’m a dumb
blonde.”

“I don’t dare
answer that.”

“Wise move.”
Taking Cindy’s arm, Mr Lawson ushered her across the large
ballroom. “Your mother is over here.”

Marty
obediently followed. All the Lawson siblings knew not to scatter
and find their own amusement at parties until they’d greeted their
parents.

Stopping just
behind four women chatting to each other, Mr Lawson waited
politely.

The tallest and
plumpest of the women glanced up, her blue eyes brightening upon
seeing Marty and Cindy. “Darlings!”

Immediately she
enveloped them in smothering hugs, her impressive bosoms mashing
against them. Expensive perfume filled the air and her many
bracelets clinked together.

Holding Cindy’s
arms, she stepped back and looked her over. “Marvellous gown,
darling. Loving the accessories. What do you think of these?”
Lifting the skirt of her black gown, she showed trim ankles clad in
outrageous platform sandals.

“Oh, very
nice.” Very girly, too, perhaps a little too girly for an older
woman, but then again, who cared? Cindy grinned. “What about
these?” Lifting the hem of her gown, she waved one gold-sandalled
shoe at her mother.

“Adorable! I
want some. Where did you get them?”

“Cabornas.”

“I have to go
there. Marty, dear boy, you look positively handsome.”

“Thanks,
Mum.”

“Please try to
control your lustful urges while here. I swear, one day you’ll get
us all tossed out on our ears.”

“Not with our
money.” He leered at a young woman passing nearby, delighting in
her flush and bright eyes. “Grease enough palms and we’ll slide
through anything.” His glance slid around the room. “Where’s
Alex?”

“Your brother
is somewhere over there.” Mrs Lawson waved in the direction of the
tables holding food. “Avoiding the women and wanting to go home. He
only came because I nagged him.”

Cindy sighed.
“Mum, he only just got home on leave from his tour of duty in
Afghanistan. Maybe he wanted to stay home.”

“He needs to
get out, forget about that wretched war for awhile and enjoy
himself. See if you can talk some sense into him.” Mrs Lawson
stopped a passing waiter and placed her empty glass on the tray.
“Could I have a glass of orange juice, please?”

The waiter gave
her an almost shocked look.

“If I get
tipsy, I also get a little handy.” She traced one hand down her
husband’s arm and winked at the startled waiter. “If you know what
I mean.”

“We save the
tipsy for when we get home,” Mr Lawson added gravely.

The waiter
nodded his head and took off.

Cindy couldn’t
blame him. “Ewww. Please.”

“Honey, where
do you think you came from?” Mrs Lawson purred.

“Let’s not even
go there.”

Her parents
laughed before Mrs Lawson looked down at Cindy from her impressive
height. “And who is looking after my furry grandchild tonight?”

“Al’s in good
hands, Lara is a vet nurse.” Cindy took a glass of champagne from a
tray held out by a waiter. “Thank you.” She couldn’t resist winking
at the straight-laced man and he actually blinked before grinning
just a little.

“Well, there’re
lots of people we know here,” Mrs Lawson continued. “Mingle and
have fun, darlings.”

One of the
first things Cindy did was go in search of her other brother. Going
around the room, she followed the wall until she came to the tables
loaded down with delicious nibbles. He wasn’t there but she did see
a tall, familiar, blonde-haired figure leave the presence of a
couple of eager women and disappear through a French door.

Yep. Alex.

Heaping up a
plateful, she grabbed a tray off a waiter, loaded it with the plate
and a couple of glasses of orange juice that another waiter had
thoughtfully placed on the table, and skirted around the room until
she came to the French doors.

Slipping out,
she carefully closed it behind her and spoke to the still figure
standing near the marble rail. “Want some company?”

“Cindy?”

“Well, it’s not
the model for Jenny Craig,” she replied, placing the tray down on
the little table to the side and kicking out a chair. “Rest your
arse, soldier, and be at ease.”

Alex laughed a
little and sat. Eyeing the plate, he raised one brow. “For me?”

“
Us,
greedy guts. It’s for us.”

Plucking a
prawn from the little pile, he dipped it in the tiny bowl of sauce
and popped it into his mouth. “Mmm. Good.”

“What, they
don’t give you this on the road?” she teased.

“No, so I’ll
probably get the shits for eating it now.” Picking up the orange
juice, he took a sip and grimaced. “What? No beer?”

“Hey, be
grateful for what you get.”

They ate in
contended silence for several minutes. Cindy didn’t ask questions,
she didn’t push, she just let things happen as they would. One
thing she’d learned early on was that Alex was a thinker and when
he wanted to talk, he’d talk. Until then, no amount of urging would
get him to say a word about his experiences.

Not once did he
mention Afghanistan or the war, and she let it go. After a few
minutes, she chatted about Al and her plans for fostering.

“Nice,” he
said. “Good plan. You’ll do well.”

“Really?” She
was surprised and pleased. “You think so?”

“Absolutely.”
In the light coming from between the curtains behind the closed
doors, his face was serious. “I can see you with a gaggle of
kittens hanging off your apron strings - mummy-cat.”

“You dick.” She
launched a dinner roll at him, which he caught with a laugh that
sounded a little lighter than earlier.

She bit into a
piece of pastry. “I saw you dodging the women panting after
you.”

“Yeah. None of
them…” Voice trailing away, he shrugged. “Not interested in them, I
guess.”

“Hmm. And to
think you were once as girl-crazy as Marty.”

“Untrue. Marty
was always the wildest.”

“The horniest,”
she corrected.

He grinned, his
teeth a white flash in the darkness. “Not you?”

“Let’s just say
my experiences so far haven’t been that great.”