put the bottle down. “Because now you know I work there.”
“No, because you’re not on duty tonight.” She spoke without thinking and saw the surprise flicker across his face. She was surprised too. No more wine, Harriet. “I mean because you’re obviously a good doctor. No other reason. And I’m only ruthless when it comes to protecting animals.”
He looked at her for a moment and then stood up. “I’ll order the food. Is there anything you don’t eat?”
“No, but if you tell me what there is in your fridge I can cook it. I’m a good cook.”
“In that case you are definitely going to cook for me one day, but tonight I was thinking more of takeout.” He pulled open a drawer and spread a selection of flyers in front of her. “There’s a Thai restaurant round the corner where the food is so good it makes you want to move to the Far East. Or we could go with pizza if you prefer.”
“Thai sounds delicious, but the menu looks baffling.” And the prices high. Their business was doing well, but there had been enough years where they’d scraped by to make Harriet balk at the idea of spending hard-earned dollars on food she could produce herself.
“If you don’t have any allergies, you can leave it with me.” He picked up the phone. The fact that he ordered without a pause and without once consulting the menu told her that he frequently made the same call.
She remembered seeing him in action in the hospital and sensed he was used to giving orders. Also to knowing what he was doing.
“Isn’t every day bad where you work?”
“Some are worse than others. Today was particularly difficult, and there were complicating circumstances.”
“You see a lot of things.” Things she probably couldn’t imagine, least of all deal with on a daily basis.
“The people who come through the department are often under a tremendous amount of stress. They’re anxious and scared, and that can translate into aggression. People want things done right away, and when that doesn’t happen they’re not happy.”
They’re not happy. “That’s an understatement, right?”
He gave a half smile. “Yes. And we prioritize patients according to medical need, not the order that they walk into the department. That’s always a tough one for people to understand.”
“They think their injury is bad, but you’re seeing someone far worse.” She nodded. “You must handle a lot of abuse.”
“ER workers are an easy target.” He reached into a drawer and pulled out forks. “I pride myself in being skilled at diffusing anger. I spend all day managing other people’s emotions. It seems as if when I walked through that door tonight I forgot to manage my own.”
“It must have been the final straw coming home to the mess Madi created.”
He closed the drawer. “Tell me honestly—is this what I’m going to expect every day? Break the bad news to me gently.”
Harriet glanced at Madi, who was happily gnawing her toy, oblivious to the chaos she’d caused. “She seems settled now. Hopefully it will continue. What time do you leave for work tomorrow?”
Until that moment she hadn’t made up her mind that she was going to go through with this, but their short conversation had revealed a lot about him.
Despite what had happened earlier, she suspected it took a lot to make him lose control of his emotions. He was the sort who would keep his head under pressure. She wondered what exactly had happened with the patient he’d lost. What had driven him so close to the edge? What was different about this day?
“Tomorrow? 6:00 a.m.”
“You need to take her out before you leave. You don’t need to walk her, just take her out to pee. Then I’ll come at nine.” Harriet pulled out her phone and typed a note for herself. “What time will you be home?”
“Difficult to say.” He checked his schedule on his phone. “In theory, five p.m. But it could be anytime. Do I seriously have to take her out if you’re coming at nine?”
“If you don’t want her to wet your oak floor and ruin it, then yes. I don’t want to leave Madi on her own for more than a few hours, so instead of nine I’ll come at nine thirty, and then I’ll come back at two thirty. That should work.”
He spread his hands in a gesture of surrender. “Whatever you say. You’re the expert.”
She wondered if he was making fun of her but his expression was deadly serious. “I’ll take her out for some fresh air and exercise, always assuming the snow isn’t too deep, and then I’ll spend time with her here.”
“And you can do that? How many other dogs do you walk in the day?”
“It varies. Tomorrow I have a pretty busy day, but I can pass at least two of my walks on to another dog walker, so that’s what I’ll do. Until she’s happier, Madi is my priority. I can bring some paperwork and do it in your apartment, if you’re comfortable with that.”
“Anything! I owe you in a big way. Thank you.”
“I’m not—”
“I know.” He interrupted her with a wry smile. “You’re not doing it for me. You’re doing it for the dog.”
“Madi. I’m doing it for Madi.”
“You’re as sensitive as my sister. She is a dog. Why can’t I call her that?”
“Probably for the same reason people don’t call you ‘the human.’ It’s not overly friendly.”
The food arrived and Ethan spread the cartons across the kitchen island and handed her a plate.
“Help yourself. And tell me more about your business.”
“Why?”
“Because I’m interested.”
“What do you want to know? We walk dogs. We cover the whole of the East Side of Manhattan.” And she was proud of that. Proud of the way they’d built their business from nothing.
“Presumably you don’t do it all by yourself. You mentioned a sister—”
“Fliss. We’re twins. We run it together.”
“And you employ dog walkers?” He spooned noodles onto her plate. “How does that work?”
“They’re often college students. Sometimes people who are retired. We don’t really care about the background. The important thing is that they love dogs and are responsible. Our business is built on our ability to deliver a top quality service to our clients.”
“So how many dogs do you walk at a time?”
“We only offer solo walks. It’s a personal service. Easier to meet the needs of the dog that way.”
“And you take
