Chapter Text
Juliette is examining the dogs that were brought in by the sergeant, apart from being malnourished and the cut on one of the dog’s legs they seem fine. She takes care of them and informs the night shift of their newest addition. She is filling out the paperwork when her best friend enters, “Hey.”
“How did your date go?” Alicia set her up with one of her husband’s friends.
“It went well until his ex showed up and he left with her,” Juliette knows her friend is worried about her, “No more setting me up. I had enough failed dates.” She firmly believes Mr. Right will come along, “I am fine being on my own.” She does wish to meet her prince charming one day, get married and have kids.
“Fine, let me take you to dinner.” She will have words with Henry for leaving Juliette alone. “Maybe the cute waiter is there again.”
“He’s gay.”
“Doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate the good looks.”
-
The next day Juliette is at work, when she meets the man of her dreams. He has black hair, blue eyes, he has a gruffy beard that makes him look handsome. He is a detective for Portland PD and single going by the lack of ring on his finger. She holds out her hand, “I am Dr. Juliette Silverton. How can I help you?”
“Detective Burkhard. Two dogs were brought here yesterday, they belonged to a murder victim. We believe they might have swallowed some evidence.”
“Follow me,” Juliette leads him to the back, “I can check if there is something in their stomachs.” Half an hour later, they know that there is a USB stick in one of their stomachs, “It will come out naturally. I will call you when it’s passed.” She is looking forward to seeing him again.
“Thank you,” Nick makes some notes, “Did you take swaps yesterday? With any luck they bit the attacker.” He hasn’t had a chance yet to talk to Wu and ask him if he did.
“Sergeant Wu, I believe his name was, was collecting them,” she gives him a small smile, “I’ll call you when it is out.”
Nick hands her a card, “I appreciate it.”
Juliette takes it and touches his hand, butterflies fly around in her stomach, “It’s no bother. I am happy to help.”
Nick nods and leaves, he drives to the station and catches up on his work.
-
Two days later, Juliette calls Nick to tell him the stick has passed. She greets him and hands him the evidence, “I hope this will be helpful.”
“I hope so too,” Nick takes the bag, “How are they?” He’s been worried about the dogs.
“They are getting better. I hope they will find a new home quickly. They are still young, only a year and half old. It would be best if they were adopted together. They are brothers and I wouldn’t advise separating them.” Juliette looks at her watch, it’s almost lunchtime. She takes a deep breath ready to ask him out for a date when his phone rings.
“Sorry, have to take this,” Nick answers the call and steps away.
She watches his back, he has a nice ass and would love nothing more than to run her hands over his back. She wonders if he is hiding a six pack under those clothes.
“Sorry but I have to go,” he holds up the bag, “Thank you again.”
She watches him leave and deflates. She still has his number, maybe she can make up an excuse and call him again. He seems to care about the dogs, maybe she can keep him up to date.
-
Juliette smiles when she sees Nick enter, “Detective, what can I do for you?” It’s been four days since she last saw him and she has missed him. She barely talked to him but she missed him something fierce. She never felt this way about someone before and it is scary and exhilarating.
Nick looks sheepish, he scratches the back of his neck, “I have been thinking about adopting Smurfy and Domino .”
“Did you have a dog before?” Juliette thinks that Nick looks adorable being all flustered by asking her. Maybe she makes him flustered.
“My parents had a dog when I grew up. They took care of him,” he shows her a picture, “I do have a cat.”
“Do you know what you would need? Dogs need more care than cats.” Juliette hands him a brochure, “Read this, it tells you what your responsibilities are.”
“Thanks,” Nick looks past her, “Can I see them?”
“Be careful, Domino isn’t too fond of strangers. He growls at everyone who gets too close. He growled at me this morning when I went to check the stitches.”
“He was fine last time.” He remembers being at the crime scene and both dogs sniffing and licking him.
“Might be because you were there. Maybe he felt safe,” Juliette feels safe with him, she feels all sorts of things for him. “Dogs are a good judge of character.”
Nick slowly approaches Domino who sniffs Nick’s hand then licks it. Nick pets him, Smurfy not to be left out, lies down and exposes his belly. Nick rubs the dog’s belly and chuckles, “Good boys.” He snaps some pictures, “How big will they get?”
“I think he likes you,” Juliette falls even more for Nick seeing him play with the dog, “Males can reach up to 24 inches and weigh about to 75 pounds. Do you have a big place? Dogs need space to run around.”
“I have a big backyard. I am more concerned with him getting along with Panda.” Nick knows the dogs are kid friendly, his previous owner worked at a preschool and she took the dog with her.
“They mostly ignore the cats that are here,” Juliette walks towards her office, “Have you found the murderer yet?” She wants to prolong Nick’s visit as much as she can.
“Yes, it was the husband. The USB stick Smurfy swallowed contained all the evidence we needed. He was cheating on his wife with the poolcleaner and decided killing her was easier than divorcing her.” Nick sits down, “Are you arranging the adoption or how does it work?”
“My friend, she works at an animal shelter, she will take care of everything. Every animal that gets dropped off here goes to her shelter. I will call her and tell her you are interested.” Maybe she can convince Alicia to make a housecall to Nick’s place and tag along. “How did you adopt Panda?”
“Thank you. Panda was a gift from my mother, she took care of everything.” Nick gets up again, “If it doesn’t work out for me, my mother is prepared to take them.” He hopes it does, the dogs would be welcome in his home.
Juliette shakes his hand and watches him leave, she should have asked him out or make him stay longer.
-
It’s a week later and Juliette sees Nick again. She did send him a picture of the dogs and she had hoped he would call her but he didn’t. This time he is with a cat, “This must be Panda?”
“Yeah, she climbed up a tree and when she jumped down she landed wrong. She’s been limping and I just want to make sure there is nothing broken.” Nick puts her down, “I brought her medical passport with me.”
Juliette reads it, “Eight years old, all shots up to date,” she examines the cat, “She is well taken care of,” she does an x-ray, “Nothing broken, just a light sprain. I will prescribe you something for the pain.”
“She won’t need a cast?” Nick pets his cat and she starts to purr, “Any news on when I can expect to get the dogs? Your friend said it would take a week.”
“No, just rest. I can call Alicia and ask her,” Juliette hands Nick some pills, “Half a pill three times a day. I have given them all his shots and I removed the stitches from Smurfy’s leg. If it were up to me, you could take them with you now.” She would even drive the dogs to his place to see where he lives.
“I don’t think having them in my car is such a good idea,” he chuckles, “She was meowing the whole way here. She never likes to be in the car and together with two unfamiliar dogs is not a good idea.” Nick looks at Juliette, “I appreciate all the help and thank you for the picture.”
“It’s no bother,” she puts a strand of hair behind her ear, “I am happy to help.“ She takes a step closer to him, “Oh, since you are here we can see if they like each other.” Juliette picks up Panda and carries her to the back. She kneels down in front of Smurfy’s cage, “This will be your new friend.”
Smurfy sniffs the cat but doesn’t growl, Panda meows and tries to get inside the cage, “I think that is a good sign,” Nick kneels down next to Juliette, “Do you think it is safe enough to open his cage?”
Juliette opens the cage and Smurfy walks out and sniffs Panda again. She lets Domino out, Panda meows and brushes against their legs. Smurfy walks over to Nick and licks his hand, Nick pets him, “They seem to like each other. Panda has met other dogs before and she always hissed at them.” Domino joins his brother and both want to be petted by Nick.
“It’s a sign that you are meant to become their new daddy,” Juliette looks at her watch, “Oh, it’s almost lunch time.” She watches Nick cuddle with the cat and it melts her heart, “Do you want to..”
Nick’s phone rings, he picks it up, “Yes, she is fine. I’m on my way back,” he rolls his eyes, “Yes mom,” he shakes his head, “I love you too.” He looks at Juliette, “Sorry, I have to go.”
“It’s alright,” Juliette watches him leave. Next time she sees him, she will ask him out.
-
Juliette puts on her favorite perfume, she looks at herself in the mirror. She put on some casual clothes that make her look good. It’s been two days since she last saw Nick but she can’t stop thinking about him. He’s constantly on her mind and has invaded her dreams.
“Ready to go?” Alicia hopes that it works out for Juliette, her friend has been alone for so long.
“Yes,” she makes sure she has everything. She gets into the car and lets her thoughts wander.
Alicia stops in front of a house, “Is he rich or something? This looks more like a mansion than a house.” She had to double check when he gave her the address, she never expected a detective to live in such an upscale area. “This house must have cost a fortune.”
Juliette gets out of the car, “Maybe he inherited some money?” She opens the trunk and gets the dogs out, “He lives close to a park which is good.” She has never been to this neighborhood before. “He did mention his mother. Maybe they share a home?” Even for two people the house is big. Maybe he has siblings?
Alicia walks up the path, she spies a brand new SUV in the driveway, that car must have cost more than she made in two years. She clumps the stairs and rings the bells, she looks around and sees a security camera pointing at her, “Smile, we’re on camera.”
After a few moments later the door opens. A blond woman in her early thirties greets them, “Hi, I am Adalind. Please come in.” She leads them into the dinning room, “Please sit down,” she holds her hand out to the dogs, “You’re even cuter than in the pictures.”
Juliette wonders who this woman is. Maybe a cousin? A friend? She looks around the room, she recognises a painting she once saw at a gallery. She wonders if it is the real one.
Adalind has noticed Juliette looking at the painting, “It’s a copy.”
Alicia takes out some papers, “Nick needs to sign these for the adoption to be official.”
“He’ll be down in a few,” Adalind chuckles when Panda brings the dogs a toy, “Nick wasn’t kidding when he said you got on.”
Juliette hears footsteps, she looks to her left and sees Nick enter with a baby in his arms. She watches as he hands the baby to Adalind and kisses her temple. Nick sits down next to the woman. Her brain is failing to understand what she is seeing.
Alicia clears her throat and hands Nick the papers and shows him where to sign, “All done. Smurfy and Domino are now officially yours.”
“Diana and Kelly will be so excited.” Adalind is rocking her daughter Lily, “I am surprised Trubel didn’t spoil the beans.”
“Who are Diana and Kelly?” Juliette finally has found her voice, “And Trubel, what kind of name is that?” She doesn’t want to accept what she is seeing.
“Our kids. Diana is five and Kelly is three and this little bundle of joy is four months old,” Nick smirks, “And Trubel is my cousin. Her name is Theresa Rubel but likes to go by Trubel. She’s been living with us for the past six years. The dogs are mostly for the kids. To give them some responsibility.”
“The kids can all work together to take care of him,” Adalind smiles when Lily pets Smurfy, “They have been asking for once for some time now.”
“The front door opens and three more people enter, the kids see the dogs and rush towards him. Nick intercepts them, “Careful. These are our new dogs, Smurfy and Domino.”
“Doggy?” Kelly giggles when the dog licks his face.
Diana stares at the dogs, “Are they really ours?”
“Yes,” Nick shows her the papers, “You see this says they are ours.”
Diana hugs her father, “Thank you daddy,” she approaches the dog and hugs him, “He’s so soft.”
Alicia looks at Juliette, she knows her friend had hoped to ask Nick out on a date.
“Oh, I picked up your rings from the jeweler,” Trubel hands Nick a box, “Can’t believe you've been married fifteen years.” She then pets the dogs, “You’re cute.”
Nick opens it and takes out their wedding rings, he puts Adalind’s ring on her finger and kisses her hand and puts his on. He felt naked without his wedding ring, he had a few witnesses hitting on him when they noticed he had no ring. He quickly told them he was married and not interested.
“Fifteen years?” Juliette’s brain is scrambled, the man of her dreams can’t be married. She was supposed to marry him and have children with him. She had it all planned out.
“Yes,” Nick takes his daughter and burps her, “Is there anything else that needs to be done?”
“Can you just show me where they will sleep and the backyard?” Alicia follows Adalind to the mudroom, she looks around and sees that they have everything ready. Bowls, dog beds, a dog door. “Do you have a doghouse?”
“It’s in the backyard,” she leads her out, “We also have a small fence around the pool because of the kids. There is a high wooden fence around the property, no chance of them escaping.” Adalind turns toward Alicia, “Can you show me how the app that tracks them works?”
Alicia nods and shows her, they return to the dining room, “I can see that they will be in good hands.” She smiles when she sees the kids playing with the dogs, “If there is anything else don’t hesitate to call.”
“We will.” Nick bids them goodbye.
Juliette doesn’t even realise she is back in the car. She thought he was the one but he is married with kids. Why didn’t he tell her? He should have told her instead of letting her get her hopes up. She thought he was flirting back but he was just nice to her. She breaks down crying, life is not fair.
Alicia pities her friend.