"Whatever is this place?" she asked.
"A lifesaver. Come on - we go this way."
He pushed their way through a pair of double doors and went over to a uniformed human male who was seated behind a desk.
"Hey, Dr. Manello." The man put down a newspaper that had New York Post in big letters across the top. "We haven't seen you for a little bit."
"This is a colleague of mine, Pa - Pamela. We're just going to see my girl."
The human man focused on Payne's face. And then seemed to shake himself. "Ah ... she's where you left her. Doc spent a lot of time with her today."
"Yeah. He called." Manuel knocked the desktop with his knuckles. "See you in a few."
"Sure thing, Doc. Nice to meet you ... Pamela."
Payne inclined her head. "It is lovely to meet with you as well."
There was an awkward silence as she straightened. The human man was absolutely struck by her, his mouth slightly parted, his eyes wide ... and very appreciative.
"Easy there, big guy," Manuel said darkly. "You can resume blinking at any time ... like, as in, now. Really. Truly."
Manuel put himself in between the two of them, and took her hand at the same time, both blocking the view and establishing dominion over her. And that wasn't all: Dark spices wafted up from him, the scent a warning to the other man that the female being admired was available only over Manuel's cold, dead body.
And didn't that make her feel like there was a blazing sun in the center of her chest.
"Come on, Pay - Pamela." As Manuel tugged at her and the pair of them started walking, he added in a mutter, "Before John-boy's jaw drops off his face and lands on the sports section."
Payne skipped once. And then did it again.
Manuel looked over. "That poor guard back there almost has a near-death experience with his badge being shoved down his throat and you're happy?"
Payne kissed Manuel's cheek quickly, seeing behind the faux grim on his handsome face. "You like me."
Manuel rolled his eyes and pulled her over by the neck, returning the kiss. "Duh."
"Duh," she mimicked -
Someone tripped over someone's foot, hard to say who it was, and Manuel was the one who caught them from falling.
"We'd better pay attention," her male said. "Before we're the ones who need resuscitating."
She elbowed him. "A wise extrapolation."
"Are you smacking my ass."
Payne glanced over his shoulder. And then slapped his butt - hard. As he yelped, she winked at him. "Indeed. Verily. I am." Dropping her lids and her voice, she hammed, "Would you like me to do it again, Manuel. Perhaps ... on the other side?"
As she joggled her eyebrows at him, the sound of his laughter broke out and filled the empty hallway, ringing far and wide. And when they bumped into each other again, he pulled her to a stop.
"Wait, we need to do this better." He tucked her under his arm, kissed her forehead, and lined himself up with her. "On three, lead with the right. Ready? One ... two ... three."
On cue, they both stretched out their long right legs, and then it was left ... and right ... and left ...
Perfectly in step.
Side by side.
They went down the corridor. Together.
It had never dawned on Manny that his sexy vampire might have a sense of humor. And didn't that round out her package perfectly.
Ah, hell, it wasn't just that. It was her wonder and her joy and the sense that she was up for anything. She was absolutely nothing like those fragile, brittle socialites or the pretzel-thin models he'd dated.
"Payne?"
"Yes?"
"If I told you I wanted to climb a mountain tonight - "
"Oh! I would love to! I should love to see a long view from ..."
Bingo. Although, God, he had to wonder at the cruelty of finally finding his perfect match ... in someone so fundamentally incompatible.
When they came up to the second set of double doors that led into the clinical part of the horse-pital, he pushed one half wide, and without missing a beat, they turned sideways and shuffled through ... and that was when it happened.
That was when he fell completely in love with her.
It was her happy chatter, and the bounce in her step, and the icy eyes that shone like crystal. It was the backstory she'd shared and the dignity she showed and the fact that she'd been judged against a standard he'd used to date - and now wouldn't be able to bear sitting across a dinner table from. It was the power in her body and the sharpness of her mind and -
Christ ... he hadn't even thought about the sex.
Ironic. She'd given him the orgasms of his life and they hadn't even made the top of his I Love You Because list.
He guessed she was just that kind of spectacular.
"Whatever are you smiling for, Manuel," Payne said. "Perhaps anticipating some future instance of my hand upon your derriere?"
"Yup. That's exactly it."
He pulled her in for another kiss - and tried to ignore the pain in his chest: No need to spoil the time they had with the good-bye that was waiting for them. That was going to come soon enough.
Besides, they'd nearly reached their destination.
"She's over here," he said, hanging a left and pushing into the recovery-stall area.
The instant the door opened, Payne hesitated, a frown appearing as whinnies and the occasional hoof stamping broke through the hayscented air.
"Farther down." Manny tugged at her hand. "Her name's Glory."
Glory was the last one on the left, but the instant he said her name, her long, elegant neck stretched out and her perfectly proportioned head emerged from the top of her stall.
"Hey, girl," he said. In response, she let out a proper greeting, her pointed ears pricking, her muzzle pumping the air.
"Merciful fate," Payne breathed, dropping his hand and going forward ahead of him.
As she approached the stall, Glory tossed her head, her black mane flaring, and he had a sudden vision of Payne getting bitten. "Be careful," he said as he broke into a jog. "She doesn't like - "
The instant Payne put her hand on that silken muzzle, Glory went right in for more, bumping against the palm, seeking a proper cuddle.
" - new people," Manny finished lamely.
"Hello, darling one," Payne murmured, her eyes going over the horse as she leaned into the stall. "You are so beautiful ... so big and strong...." Pale hands found a black neck and stroked in a slow rhythm. "Why are her forelegs bandaged?"
"She broke the right one. Badly. About a week ago."
"May I go inside?"
"Ah ..." God, he couldn't believe it, but Glory appeared to be in love, her eyes all but rolling back into her head as she got a good scratching behind the ears. "Yeah, I think it'll be okay."
He sprang the latch on the door and they both slipped in. And when Glory went to move back, she hobbled ... on what had been her good side.
She'd lost so much weight that her ribs were showing like picketfence rails under her coat.
And he was willing to bet when the newness of her visitors dimmed, her burst of energy would fade fast.
The voice mail message from the doctor had been all too apt: She was failing. That broken bone was healing, but not nearly fast enough, and the redistribution of mass had caused the layers of the opposite hoof to weaken and separate.
Glory extended her muzzle into his chest and gave him a quick shove. "Hey, girlie."
"She is extraordinary." Payne patted her way around the filly. "Just extraordinary."
And now he had another thing on his conscience: Maybe bringing Payne here was not a gift, but a cruelty. Why introduce her to an animal who was likely going to be ...
God, he couldn't even think it.
"You are not the only one who is territorial," Payne said softly.
Manny glanced around Glory's head. "I'm sorry?"
"When you told me I was to meet a female, I ... I had hoped she was one with a horse face."
He laughed and smoothed Glory's forehead. "Well, she has that, all right."
"What are you going to do with her?"
As he tried to form the words, he gathered the mane that fell just above the filly's nearly black eyes.
"Your lack of reply is answer enough," Payne said sadly.
"I don't know why I brought you here. I mean ..." He cleared his throat. "Actually, I know why - and it's pretty f**king pathetic. All I have is my job.... Glory is the only thing that is not my job. This is personal for me."