Love Slave for Two: Reunions [Love Slave for Two 3] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (13 page)

The receptionist gave him a clipboard with a form to fill out. “Ah, we’re actually here on vacation,” Tyler told her. “We’re from Florida. My son adopted the puppy without our knowledge in South Dakota and kept him hidden.”

The woman laughed. “Smart kid, huh?”

“Too smart, I’m afraid. Will we need any special forms? We’re driving to Seattle first before we head back to Florida.”

“Dr. Keene will go over all that with you,” she assured him.

He sat down to fill out the paperwork when his cell rang again. Nevvie.

“Hey, Tyler. You all right?”

“Oh, hi, love.” Harley barked and he had to shush him. “I’m fine.”

“Was that a dog?”

“Uh, yes.” He needed to distract her. “We got the RV moved. You’ll see us parked along the fence in the public parking area.”

“Any trouble?”

“No, none whatsoever. A very nice man helped me hook up the trailer.”

She sounded relieved. “Okay. I just got off I-90 at Livingston. Do I need to stop at any of the stores here for supplies?”

“Ah, no, I believe we’re all right, love.”

“Okay. I’ll be back soon.”

“Aces. Drive safely.”

“Love you.”

Harley barked again. “Love you, too.” He hung up fast and looked at the puppy. “Are you trying to get us in trouble?”

Harley barked and wagged his tail.

* * * *

Nevvie hung up the phone and tossed it into the passenger seat. No doubt this was beautiful country. She slowed down and took her time so she could appreciate the picturesque valley Highway 89 ran through. Mountains gently sloped up and away from the valley floor on either side, the topmost portions of them still covered with snow. While she’d traveled with Tyler for work, and both men for fun, she’d never been to this part of the country before. And she’d never had time to herself like this before.

And since Tyler hadn’t managed to get himself killed or arrested while moving the RV, she supposed she could relax and take a few minutes to herself. Normally at home, she had Tyler and Tom to give her respites from the kids—and from them. Whether to go get her hair or nails done, or to just run errands alone.

Being cooped up with her family was taking its toll on her nerves.

She pulled over at a scenic rest area overlooking the Yellowstone River. She used the bathroom and then walked out to look at the river. Definitely not what she was used to. In Florida, rivers ran calm and slow. This river, apparently on the tail end of the spring melt, rushed past, even in the wider sections, with a never-ending, low roar that could have easily substituted as a heartbeat for the area.

She closed her eyes, took a deep breath of the cool air underlain with the sharp smell of the rushing river, and let out a deep, relaxed breath.

I feel better already.

She would need to talk to Tyler about getting some alone time while in the park. No doubt he might want some, too, and she’d gladly give it to him. But this was just what she needed. Already, the events in Mitchell were fading from her mind. It was an accident, and she wouldn’t hold a grudge against Tyler for it.

An unexpected chuckle escaped her.
Maybe he can use it in a book.
That brought an outright fit of laughter. While not the trip from hell by any stretch of the imagination, this certainly hadn’t been the smoothest vacation ever.

After twenty minutes, she reluctantly returned to the car.
I wonder what they had in that gallery back there.
She’d seen the signs a couple of miles ago for a little shop.
If Tyler needs me, he’ll call me.

Back inside the car, she checked her phone. No calls.

Smiling, she started the car and pointed it back to the north.
A little bit of mommy time is in order.

* * * *

Tyler nervously sat in the exam room with Harley in his lap. The puppy’s tail wagged nonstop. Every minute that passed meant one minute closer to his doom when Nevvie returned and exploded.

Not that he would blame her for that, because, admittedly, acquiring a puppy was a pretty large deal.

He stared into Harley’s brown eyes.

Adorable brown eyes.

“You, my little one, have caused me untold aggravation. Do you realize that?”

Harley’s tail continued wagging.

Tyler looked up when a woman entered the room. From her white jacket, he assumed she was the vet. “Mr. Paulson?” she said. “I’m Dr. Keene.”

He stood, the puppy in his arms, and shook hands with her. “Yes. And this little one is Harley.” He placed him on the exam table.

“Harley, huh?” She let the puppy sniff her hand before she took over. She checked his teeth for starters. “Is someone a biker?”

“My son named him. He, eh, adopted him in Sturgis, South Dakota.”

She smiled. “Adopted him, huh?”

“Yes. Very clever little guy. Kept him hidden for two days in our RV without us knowing. We discovered him this morning.”

“Where are you from again?”

“Florida. I know, the accent tends to throw people.”

She looked up, as if seeing him for the first time. “Tyler Paulson? The writer?”

He felt his face heat. “Ah, yes. That’s me.”

She smiled. “I thought the name sounded familiar. I love your books.” She called a technician into the room. “Please draw blood work and do a fecal. We also need to get him started on his first round of puppy shots.”

“We’re heading to Seattle now. Is there some sort of health certificate I need?”

“Sure, I’ll prepare one for you. Let’s get his tests done first.”

“Right.”

“How old is he, do you know?”

“The little girl said he was nine weeks old, and the runt of the litter.”

“That’s about right. Are you crate training him?”

He gave her what he knew to be a blank look. “Crate training?”

She laughed. “We have a new puppy kit, including a DVD, that we’ll give you.”

“Do you sell crates? I was here earlier and bought puppy food and the leash and collar and things.”

“No, we don’t. The feed store here in town might have them. Otherwise, any of the big discount stores along I-90 will probably have them, unless you hit a pet store first.”

“Oh. All right.”

Twenty minutes later, Harley had his first round of shots, a dewormer, a microchip, a health certificate, flea and tick protection, heartworm prevention medication, and a cookie.

“He’s in great shape, Mr. Paulson,” Dr. Keene said. “I do strongly suggest getting a crate for him, though. It’ll make your life a lot easier. Especially in an RV.”

“Thank you.” He tucked the puppy under his arm, the paperwork, medications, and other items in a bag, and headed back toward the RV.

He hadn’t heard from Nevvie lately. He would call her to see where she was, but didn’t want to jinx his luck thus far.

When he returned to the RV, Adam jumped up from where he was reading at the table and ran to the door to greet Tyler.

“Daddy, is he okay?”

“Yes, he’s fine, son.” He set everything down on the counter. “Perfectly healthy. I can’t say how fine I’ll be after Mommy gets back and finds out.”

“I could keep hiding him for you, Daddy.”

Tyler and Andrew both burst out laughing. “While I appreciate it,” Tyler said, “that’s not very fair to Harley, now, is it?”

Adam shook his head.

“You do realize that Mommy, Poppa, and I will have to talk and decide on a punishment for you disobeying us, don’t you?”

Adam nodded.

“All right. Why don’t you take him outside for a walk?”

“Thank you, Daddy.” Adam threw his arms around Tyler’s legs in a hug before he took Harley outside. Andrew followed him.

Tyler scrubbed his face with his hands and looked at Mikey. “Anything you wish to add, young man? Are you hiding any stuffed animals in your diapers?”

Mikey grinned and laughed before slapping his hands on the table.

Nevvie spent a blissful twenty minutes browsing the tiny gallery and ended up purchasing a small bronze statue of a moose. The gallery owner smiled as she wrapped and boxed it for Nevvie. “Are you going or coming from Yellowstone?”

“Both,” Nevvie said with a laugh. “Had to run into Bozeman this morning. Heading back to Gardiner now. We’ve got an RV.”

“Oh. Family vacation, huh?”

“Yeah. And we’re not even halfway through it, yet.”

“Where you all from?”

“Florida. We’re heading to Seattle.”

The woman’s eyebrows lifted. “My, that is a long trip.”

“You’re telling me.”

With her purchase safely sitting on the front passenger floor, Nevvie headed south to Gardiner.
The rest of the trip will go smoothly. Piece of cake.

She hoped.

She didn’t have any trouble locating the RV when she pulled into town. Just as Tyler said, they were parked along the fence in the public parking area along West Park Street. She pulled in behind the car hauler. Most likely, she’d have Tyler drive the SUV and she would drive the RV. Then they wouldn’t have the hassle of having to load and unload the SUV.

Nevvie grabbed her box and purse and, feeling happy and calm, walked to the RV door.

That calm dissolved when she opened the door and stepped inside.

“Mommy!” Adam squealed, throwing himself at her and nearly dislodging the box from her hands.

A little dog barked and bounced behind him.

Tyler’s expression, one of abject horror, told her more than she wanted to know. “Um, hello, pe—”

“Oh, no,” she said, her voice barely a whisper. “Don’t you dare ‘hello pet’ me. I leave you alone for a couple of hours and you get a
puppy
?”

“No, Mommy,” Adam said.

“Honey, Mommy needs to talk to—”

“Mommy, Daddy didn’t know about him. I got him in South Dakota.”

She blinked and looked down at him. “What?” Shock usurped her anger.

Adam nodded, his blue eyes wide. “I got him in South Dakota. At Sturgis.”

Andrew reached over and took the box from her. “Yes, Nev. It’s been quite the morning around here as well.”

Nevvie closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “Adam, please take the puppy—”

“Harley.”

She swallowed. “Please take Harley outside while I talk to Daddy.”

“Okay, Mommy.”

Andrew grabbed Mikey. “I’ll go with him.”

“Thanks, Dad.”

When they were alone in the cabin, she sat and stared at Tyler. “Well?”

“We discovered him after you left. There was a girl in South Dakota at the bike festival giving away puppies.”

She stared at him. “Two
fucking
days
ago?” Okay, this wasn’t all on Tyler. It meant Adam had somehow snookered her, too. And Tom. And Andrew.

He nodded. “He was keeping him in his backpack and in his drawer.”

“How the hell did he hide him from us?”

“He used Mikey’s baby supplies to clean up, and was sneaking him food and water. That’s how we caught him. We saw him feeding the puppy this morning. Apparently he used the chaos we normally have with all of us here to cover his tracks.”

Nevvie had noticed Adam was unusually attached to his backpack the past couple of days, but she honestly hadn’t thought anything of it.

“But you and Dad were with him at the bike festival. How did he get the puppy?”

“Apparently when my back was turned. I told him he couldn’t have one, and made him put it back. Then he asked to go back to get the girl’s e-mail address. He must have grabbed the puppy while I wasn’t looking.”

She closed her eyes. “We can’t keep him.”

“I already told him we would.”

“What?” She stared at him incredulously. “What the hell are we going to do with a
puppy
? In an RV? For several more
weeks
?”

“Well, he was here for two days while four rather astute adults were completely oblivious. He’s obviously a very quiet dog.”

“We can’t keep him.”

“Love, I already told him we would,” Tyler repeated.

“Without talking to Tommy and me? What the hell?”

“Don’t worry. I did tell Adam we would be punishing him for this.”

She shook her head. “I cannot believe… Hours! I left you alone for a few
hours
and we have a
puppy
!”

“No, we already had the puppy. We just didn’t know it.”

She let out frustrated scream. “I cannot believe this. I just can’t believe it.” She sighed. “We have to get it to a vet.”

“Done.”