That Perfect Place Page 4

  “If you’ll restock the truck, I’ll do evening meds and check on things here,” he said, handing her a clipboard.

  “Jakob?” she called after him. “I’d like to take that three-month trial. I’ve never had a more varied and interesting day.” She’d been busy and interested, so she hadn’t consciously thought about it, but now the words just popped out and they felt right.

  “You’ll never know how relieved I am to hear that.” He came back to shake her hand. “I was real pleased with the way you worked today. Welcome aboard, Dr. Maitland.”

  Jill heard his words of praise ringing in her ears all through her belated dinner and positively gushed when she told her sister all about it later.

  ill met Ellen Burco on Friday morning, and wow, was she pregnant. She looked at Jill and explained. “Twins, which will bring my kid count to three.”

  “Now that it looks like Dave won’t be back anytime soon, I thought I’d tell you I have a friend in the Quad Cities who does large animal and would like to move back closer to his family,” she said to Jake. “Should I give him your number?”

  “How good is he?”

  “We graduated together. Jim was a cow man through and through. He did well at State. Plus he’s easy to get along with.”

  “Yeah, give him my number.”

  Jill and Ellen chatted for a bit, and Jake went into Jeanine’s office. “Get something planned for Ellen by way of thanks. Make sure Jill gets her paperwork filled out. We need a three-month contract for now. And call State and bug them again about getting that temp they promised. I hate to use them, but I need a day off.” He stretched and yawned as he said the last.

  “No problem. Now, you have an appointment at the VA on Wednesday at eleven sharp. Do not cancel it again. Ida’s worried, especially with all the extra work you are doing. I’m taking Callie to her doctor this afternoon, and Brad’s opening meet is tonight at UNI.”

  “OK.” He walked by the other office and stuck his head in. “Come on, Jill, time to hit the road. We’re cutting off at four thirty today. Ellen, don’t lift anything over twenty pounds. I mean it. Jeanine will be glad to help. Won’t you, Sis?” he called back over his shoulder.

  “I live to please, Jakob.”

  The bulk of the day was taken up with vetting cows who were heading to the sale barn. They stopped to adjust some barrel-racing horses just above Independence. Jake took the time to show Jill what sort of symptoms to look for to indicate adjustment was needed.

  “I find with performance horses an adjustment is almost always needed even if there are other causes for soreness.”

  “You really like the horse work, don’t you?” she asked when they were back in the truck.

  “Yeah, yeah I do. I figured to stay in California and specialize, but things here needed attention.”

  “Things have a way of not working out the way you think they will, don’t they?”

  “That’s an understatement. Did you like Ohio?”

  “I was content there, I guess. I didn’t get along with my in-laws though. Nothing I did pleased them. Can I ask how long you’ve been divorced?”

  “We married in June of ’98, divorced in February of ’02—a disaster from start to finish.

  “Do you ever think about trying it again?” Am I the only one who still harbors dreams of a career and a family?

  “I’ll admit I get lonely at times, but it would take someone very special to get me back to the altar.”

  “I feel like such a fool sometimes. I guess I knew after our second year it wasn’t going to work, but I always kind of wanted a child or two. At least you have that.”

  He reached over and squeezed her arm. “You’re in the toughest phase now. It’ll get easier. Just don’t let it shake your faith in yourself.”

  Jill pretended to be busy checking out their next destination so he wouldn’t see that his kindness had nearly brought her to tears.

  True to his word they pulled into the clinic lot at 4:20 p.m. She helped him with the wrap-up on the day’s work and promised to do evening meds for him. He loped off to the house to shower and change for his son’s track meet.

  Jeanine called Jill into her office to fill out some paperwork so she could get her on the payroll and insured.

  “I suppose you got quite an earful during your appointments?”

  “I tried not to let it influence me, but yes, I was curious that people kept hinting about hearing bad things about this place.”

  “OK, so here’s what you should know about Jake and us before you start. I’d rather you hear it from me than the village gossips. My dad was a lousy vet and an indifferent father. Jake’s senior year of high school, Dad and his old partner were hit with a big lawsuit for using out-of-date vaccines. We nearly lost everything, and he told my brother he couldn’t go to college. So Jake ran off and joined the marines. In ’01, he was sent to Afghanistan and was wounded. They sent him to California to recuperate where he applied to vet school.

  “After he graduated, he moved back to Iowa because Dad was no longer remotely competent and Dave was snowed under. A few months after he returned, Dad accidently started the fire that destroyed the clinic and killed him and Callie’s mother. Ida insisted they take Callie in when nobody would claim her, but she mostly hangs on Jake. He footed the bill to rebuild the clinic as you see it now and did a lot of the work himself. He and Dave have worked their asses off to make things go.” Jeanine looked Jill in the eye before adding, “Please don’t judge us by what others say.”

  Jill decided Jeanine wasn’t really a hard ass, she was just watching out for her family—certainly not a bad thing.

  “All I want is to establish myself as a competent vet on my own until I decide where I want to settle permanently,” Jill said. “I am not easily swayed by gossip.”

  “Fair enough.” Jeanine let out the breath she had been holding. “When can you start?”

  “I planned to start right away. All my things are stored, so I just have to call the movers to get them delivered.”

  She was not going to tell a stranger she had virtually nothing to bring other than personal items and some cooking gear. Jill didn’t want anything from the house she and Tom had lived in. His mother had decorated it before they were married and nothing that was in it had any value to Jill, sentimental or otherwise.

  “Do you want me to work tomorrow? Callie informed me that Jakob hasn’t had a day off in a while.”

  “That’d be great. You could take Thursday or Friday of next week off, but we would need you at least a half day on Wednesday because Jake has to be in Iowa City at ten.”

  “I’ll take Thursday if there are any public golf courses around here?”

  “Mostly nine-hole courses, but yeah, there are a few.”

  The rest of the week went quickly, but Jill felt comfortable in her new surroundings by the end of it. No one criticized her work or peered over her shoulder, and she even got a compliment from Ellen Burco on her surgical technique. She knew her new boss watched her closely but so far with approbation. It was like being back at school where she had felt so at home. She couldn’t believe her good luck. It’s as if all my bad experiences never happened. They act like they are glad to have me.

  Some of the female clients seemed disappointed to meet her and asked where her boss was. She suspected that Jake being an unattached male in his thirties drew some of them in regardless of his medical skills, which Jill already had nothing but admiration for. She swore he diagnosed things with divine powers. He would nail a problem before any lab work or x-rays came back and so far had yet to be off base.

  Jill’s regular schedule would be Monday through Friday with Wednesday off and a half day Saturday. Her Saturday hours were supposed to be over at noon, but she didn’t finish until two her first week. There were two emergencies near the end of the morning: a kitten with a fishhook and a jumping puppy with a broken leg. She skillfully and sympathetically helped them out and sent them home a lot more comforta
ble.

  On her way to the cabin, as she mused over her rewarding morning, Jake rode up on a nice-looking sixteen-hand Quarter Horse. Callie was sitting in front of him, and Brad was on an equally nice but smaller paint horse.

  “Hey, Jillian, I’m riding the big horse today!” Callie called out.

  “Dr. Maitland, until you’re invited otherwise,” Brad corrected.

  “You can all call me Jill, OK?”

  Callie stuck her tongue out at Brad who merely rolled his eyes. Jake dismounted and handed the reins to Brad. “Take her to the barn, please. And Callie, don’t be a brat. Brats don’t get to ride the big horse.”

  “I’m sorry, Bradley,” she said, pouting.

  Jake turned to his new employee. She had to shade her eyes to look up at him.

  “I’m meeting a few friends for dinner tonight,” Jake said, “and I thought you might want to come along. I can introduce you around a bit and show you some of the local hangouts.”

  “Well,” she hedged, wondering if she should.

  “Dr. Maitland, this isn’t a boy/girl thing. If you were a guy I would have said hey, come out and have dinner with me and my friends and I’ll show you the decent watering holes.”

  She started to get annoyed, changed her mind, and laughed instead. “You’re right. What time?”

  “I’ll be out front at six thirty. Is Italian OK?”

  “Yeah, I like pretty much anything and too much of it.”

  “Doesn’t show.”

  “You don’t have to be chivalrous. I have a mirror.”

  “When I figure out what that means I’ll make a snappy comeback. See ya then.” He strolled off to the barn and she watched until he was out of sight. She liked the way he was so calm and deliberate about everything he did. The animals must like it too because they seemed to be relaxed and compliant with him.

  Oh please, let him continue to be easygoing and reasonable.

  Promptly at six thirty, a green vintage Chevelle pulled up out front. Jill came out immediately and slid into the passenger seat.

  “OK, so tell me about your muscle car.”

  “A ’73 SS with a 450 big-block V8, if that means anything to you.”

  “Jakob, I have four brothers. I’m used to car speak. How’d you get it?”

  “My granddad left it to me. It had forty-seven thousand miles and the original celery-green paint, but we did replace the vinyl top. The garage wasn’t insulated and the vinyl got baked.”

  He made the right onto the road that had Jill so entranced when she’d first arrived and accelerated.

  “This is such a picturesque spot. You must have loved coming here as a boy. Nothing near our farm was this interesting.”

  “I climbed these hills. We had a fort over there.” He pointed off to his left. “There’s a picnic spot in the little meadow on the right.” Again he gestured. “But it’s unusable unless it’s been very dry. This creek floods at the first sign of rain. Don’t use the Havecare Road shortcut when it rains hard because of the danger of flash floods. Actually, it’s more of a certainty,” he corrected. “Take the long way around if it’s wet.”

  Jill felt a thrill in her belly as they powered up the hill and out of the hollow. The old muscle car had some kick, and both enjoyed the ride to Oelwein. Jake was careful to point out important turns and landmarks as they went to help orient her.

  “I have to say, I am glad you share my views on the business,” he remarked.

  “How so?” Jill asked.

  “Well, I noticed you recommend the minimum and don’t push extras on the owners.”

  “I’ve seen enough of how some vets fleece their customers, often at the animal’s expense.”

  “People around here appreciate it. They love their pets, but most of them don’t have a lot of extra dough. If you think something’s needed the owner might not be able to afford, ask Jeanine or me. She knows pretty well who can pay or not. She does say I give too much away.”

  “She watches out for you.”

  “Like a mother hen, but I love her anyway.”

  Jake had to park a block away from the restaurant. “It’s pretty popular. You’ll see why when you taste their food,” he commented as he locked the car.

  When they walked in, there were three couples, including the Brandeises, sitting at a long table in the center of the storefront restaurant. Introductions were made and everyone was studying the menu when a hostile bleach-blonde stalked up to Jake.

  “Where is my son?” she demanded, her rather large chest heaving.

  “Our son is at the movies with Travis,” Jake answered calmly, never taking his eyes off the menu.

  “Why wasn’t I told?”

  “Check your phone. I watched him text you at noon.” He turned to Jill. “Dr. Maitland, Caroline McCaffrey, Brad’s mother.”

  Caroline was checking her phone and didn’t acknowledge the introduction. “Next time check with me first before you let him run off on my time.” She flounced back to her table, bangle bracelets rattling. Jill noticed the smirk on the face of the red-haired man with her.

  Jake didn’t say another word and continued studying his menu. Jill caught Maggie Brandeis making a face at Caroline’s back.

  The rest of the evening was relaxed and enjoyable. Jake’s friends were interesting, and the conversation spanned a lot of topics from farming to sports and a big discussion about alternative energy sources. Apparently, Andy Willis, Jake’s childhood friend, was building a wind turbine on his father’s farm. Jill fit right in, being knowledgeable about farming, and held up her end of the conversation.

  They wound up the evening at a bar in Jesup arguing about Afghanistan. Several of the men said that America should withdraw as there was nothing to be gained staying. Steve pointed out how many Taliban and Al Qaeda had been taken. Finally, everybody looked to Jake for an opinion.

  “Hell, it’s such a mixture of ancient tribal customs and modern technology, they just need time to figure things out on their own, without us or anybody else roaming around stirring things up, but apparently it is of strategic importance—hence, all the attention.”

  “And on that message from our fearless leader, Steve and I will take our leave.” Maggie stood up and dragged Steve to his feet. “Jill, welcome to Iowa.” She handed Jill a napkin with a phone number on it. “My cell, when you need girl talk or to go shopping don’t hesitate to call. Sometimes we need a break from the animals and the men.” She smiled sweetly at her husband who just grinned.

  The party broke up after that, and Jake handed Jill his keys.

  “The sheriff is a cousin of Caroline’s husband, and he knows this car. He’ll be gunning for me.” He reached in and flipped up the left foot-pedal extension before she got in, reminding her of his amputation. He managed so well she had forgotten it.

  “It will be a pleasure to drive this home. Just tell me how to get there,” she said as she started the car. She peeled out of the lot and turned left. “So how did you wind up at UC Davis for vet school?”

  “After my divorce I hadn’t planned on returning to Iowa, ever. UC Davis has a great program for equines.”

  “But you came home anyway?”

  “My son needed me. Caroline and I have shared custody, and she didn’t stay in California. Poor kid spent most of his time with one grandparent or the other until I moved back. My dad was pretty far gone with what turned out to be a brain tumor, and Mom was in an awful state. My grandparents were getting up there in age, so I came back. California is great but so is having family near.” He was impressed by her driving and surreptitiously admired her profile all the way home.

  Sunday morning, Trish called Jill. They talked for nearly an hour, mostly about the new job. She told her friend that Jake was very easy to work for and that his friends were nice. Trish warned her not to get too close too fast.

  “Remember, you need to think of yourself first. Don’t get drawn into another bad situation.”

  “Trish, I refuse to be
a hermit. Besides, I can’t make up my mind about staying until I know more about the people and the area.”

  “Watch out for your new boss. He sounds like another smooth operator. You don’t need another Tom in your life.”

  “Jake’s a nice guy, but I would never catalog him as a smooth operator.”

  “Just watch yourself; you are very vulnerable right now.”

  “Yes, oh wise one,” Jill said and signed off laughing. I don’t feel vulnerable, I feel like I finally found a great place.

  By noon, it became apparent why Jake’s family had been so anxious for him to get a day off. He was in the clinic when Jill went to run at seven, and later she saw his truck go out on an emergency call. Ida, Celia, and Callie came over after lunch, and he had not yet returned.

  “He has been going six and seven days a week now since he came home,” Ida informed her. “He can’t keep it up forever without ruining his health.”

  “Isn’t there an emergency service he could join?”

  “He’s been trying to work it out with the equine practice in Hudson, but they are understaffed too.”

  “What about the practice in Independence?”

  “They don’t treat horses, but they will see anything else.”

  “Not the Brandeises’ animals,” Celia reminded her.

  “No,” said Ida, “but they are some help. Anyway, we want to invite you to join us tonight for supper. We have family and friends coming over and would be happy to have you.”

  “You can get acquainted with half the county at Gundersen’s Sunday gatherings,” Celia offered.

  “I’d love to, but you have to let me help with the cooking.”

  “Deal,” both women answered.

  Jake’s truck pulled in about four o’clock, and while he showered half of eastern Iowa pulled into the driveway. At least it seemed that way to Jill. First, Jeanine and her husband, Sam, pulled in with their daughter, Vanessa, and Sam Jr. Then Nels Jr., his wife, Sylvia, and two college-age sons came in a big SUV. Ed Deale, Celia’s husband, wandered over with one of his grandkids and Brad, who had been helping get things ready for planting on the farm. Emma Murdoch came with her daughter and son-in-law, and Stephanie Parr, the other vet tech, with her new husband, Troy, followed by the Brandeises and the Burcos. The house got noisy and crowded, and Jill took the opportunity to examine the photos on the stairs.