by Mayer, Dale
Right. So the concern was for everyone else, not her. Figured. She plastered a cheerful smile on her face. "No worries. I'm all better." As he hadn't dropped his hands, she stepped back and then headed around him to her desk. Once there, she sat down and attempted to read over her training notes of the day before. Not an easy thing to do as a continuous stream of animals arrived - on her side of the counter. Did everyone in this place bring their animals to work? Some people arrived with dogs, one had a cat in a small basket, and someone had a parrot or something similar on his shoulder. Now that guy was going to leave a mess.
"It's okay, Ninna, we don't do this every day." Stacey had walked up behind her, startling her.
"Sorry, I didn't see you." Ninna kept her hand to her chest, waiting for her heart to stop galloping inside. "What were you saying?"
"I was trying to explain the animals. Today is staff vet clinic day. Anyone who has a pet that needs to see a vet can bring it in free of charge. One of the benefits of working here. It happens once a month." She grinned at Ninna. "Do you have a pet?"
Ninna chuckled as she finally understood. "No. I've thought about it, but hadn't felt the need."
"If you live alone, a dog can be a great companion, not to mention a wonderful guard dog."
That reminded her of her shadowy visitor the previous night. "Maybe," she said slowly. "I have been nervous these last few nights. A rash of break-ins in my neighbourhood have been kinda scary."
"There you go." Stacey walked toward her office. "If you decide that's something you'd like to look into further, talk to Stuart. He might be able to help you decide on what breed would be perfect for you."
Stuart again.
"I'll think about it."
"Think about what?" Stuart walked toward her, a huge puppy in his arms. "Did you see this guy? He's only three months old."
Ninna's gaze widened and she gasped in delighted horror. "What? He's huge!"
"He's a Newfoundland. Belongs to one of our trainers. "
Ninna wanted to walk over and give the overgrown teddy bear a cuddle - only she wasn't to that point. "He's gorgeous," she whispered, in delight from behind her desk. "So many animals today."
"There always are. Today, though, they are also on your side of the counter."
She smiled. Maybe she should get a dog, although she'd have to buy a bigger house for one like this. "Stacey told me about today. She also suggested I might like to speak with you about what kind of dog might be good for me. If I can even get comfortable enough with the idea to take that step."
He raised an eyebrow. "Do you have any pets?"
When she shook her head, he frowned. "Why a dog? Maybe a cat is better. They generally require less maintenance, don't have to be taken out for walks, and can be left alone for longer periods of time."
"I'm not sure what I want," she admitted.
She mulled it over when the basset hound walked around the corner in the company of a black lab. She eyed him carefully, glad she was sitting with the desk safely between them. He sat down on his wrinkly butt and grinned at her. "A cat might be nice," she said cautiously, never taking her eye off the dog sitting and staring at her.
His grin widened.
She shuddered and looked away.
"A cat can be great company - if you're a cat person. If you're not...well, let's just say that you shouldn't go there."
That brought a startled laugh out of her. "Then I guess I should put some more thought into it."
"True. Then also consider that a dog has a function in your home. They can be great watchdogs. Look at all the break-ins this last week. A dog would have prevented those."
"Or the dog would have been injured by the intruders." She'd feel terrible if that happened.
Stuart shook his head. "That's why we're such strong advocates of training here. True, if the intruders had a gun, a bullet is definitely going to do a lot of damage to a dog. But a good dog is going to do a lot of damage to an intruder, too. Often just the presence of a watchdog is enough to stop the intruder from even trying. Why bother? There are easier houses to go after."
"So you're really saying they're a deterrent." She got that, and after last night's scare, she wouldn't mind taking one home at the end of the day, for that reason alone. "I was afraid someone was watching my house last night."
"Really? I thought I heard someone around the garage last night, but after the initial noise alerted the dogs, I couldn't hear anything but them. Needless to say, if there was an intruder, he didn't stay around long." He shifted the dog's weight in his arms. Huge chocolate eyes peered out at him curiously, waiting for the jostling to be over.
She laughed. "He's so content."
"Nothing bothers this little guy. But he's too big for you. A lab would be better. A small dog might also be a good choice. They can be yappy, though. Labs make great family dogs."
"Right. More to think about. Do you do adoptions here, too?"
"Absolutely. Matching dogs to people is just as important as finding the right person for the dog." He started to walk back down the hallway. "When you get a moment, come on back and see the various animals we have here."
"Will do." But he'd left already. Not that it was a bad thing. She wasn't sure she wanted a dog at this stage of her life. Why couldn't she borrow one for awhile? See how that worked out first? She pondered the concept as she dove back into her work. Surely that was an option. Didn't centers foster animals out?
"Yes we do," Stuart answered, hours later when she finally managed to approach him. "Usually, though, they're animals with special needs and are matched to caregivers who have the time and love for them."
He pointed at several cages behind her. "For example, the calico in the first cage, her front leg was badly damaged when she was brought in. We had to amputate it. Now she's here for a few days to make sure she's on the road to recovery, then she'll finish her recovery at a foster home. She'll most likely go to Nancy, a retired nurse. When the wound has healed, the cat will be put up for adoption."
"So I can't 'try out' a dog?" She winced at the look Mosey gave her as he sidled past to a large cushion by the back door. "I know that probably sounds wrong, but I just don't know that I'm going to like having a dog around?"
He stared at her thoughtfully. "I have a proposal for you. I have to go away next weekend, why don't you look after the dogs? Even better, stay in the spare room. That way you'll catch up on some sleep and you'll have some idea of what to expect. Dogs are great company," he added warmly. "Besides, you'd be doing me a huge favor."
She sighed. "I'm a sad case, huh?"
A boyish grin split his face. "No. You're cautious. That's a good thing. We don't want you adopting a dog and then finding out that the two of you aren't a good fit."
"Next weekend?"
"I'm leaving Friday. My brother had planned to be in town, but he's finishing up with contractors on my acreage and it would be inconvenient for him to stay at in town now."
"When are you coming back?"
"As early as I can on Sunday. Probably noonish. In theory, you'd only be there for two nights. You can go back and forth to your house if you need to. I'd prefer you stay over instead of just coming back and forth to feed them. With as many animals as there are, they'll be much calmer if they're not left alone."
She gave in. It was her fault really. She'd asked and this had been his solution. It wasn't a bad one, after all. It was for only a couple of days. Besides, she'd be helping him out. That would be a good thing - right?
Then he did it.
"As a thank you, I'll take you out for dinner next week. I know a great Thai restaurant downtown." His wheedling tone made her grin. He sounded like a twelve-year-old boy trying to get his own way.
She relented, secretly happy to, but not wanting him to see how much she'd do for a date with him. Jane would howl. "Fine. But you have to make a list of everything I have to do for the dogs. Make it so an eight year old could understand. I've never been around dogs, so I
don't know when they have to go for walks or anything."
His face lit up. "No problem. I'll make sure the instructions are easy enough the dogs could understand them."
Shaking her head at her own stupidity, she walked out to her car. "Damn. What did I just do?"
"Hot dog! We're gonna have fun this weekend."
Ninna stalled, looking around.
Mosey lay on the grass beside a cherry red Jeep with the top off. Two of the dogs she recognized from Stuart's house last night filled the back seat. So, easy deduction, Stuart drove a Jeep. Nice.
"If you ask, he'll take you for a ride."
"I'm not talking to you. Go away." Determined, she carried on to her blue Honda Civic.
"Never again. Now that I've found you, I'm never going to give you any peace!"
Chapter Four
Ninna managed to forget about the upcoming weekend for over a week. By Friday, though, her nerves had gotten the better of her. That had been made all the easier as the basset hound communication seemed to have stopped. It had been the stress of the first day. It had taken a few days of looking over her shoulder and eyeing dogs a little warily, but finally she'd relaxed. She could do this.
Then Friday rolled around. And her calm disappeared. Because it was today. Damn it. Why had she decided to do this? An offer to help a friend was one thing. An offer to help a sexy eligible date...and dealing with dogs, especially talking dogs...now that was another story altogether. It was stupid, but she'd worked herself up into a real lather over looking after a few animals for a couple of days. How hard could it be? Feed them, change their water. She'd even considered staying in her house and just checking on them a couple of times. No biggie.
This was ridiculous. She'd turned into a stressed out witch as the week wore on.
"Ninna, hey, have you finished updating the reports?" Stacey walked toward her, a large stack of papers in her hand.
"Yes, but I haven't printed them off yet. Do you need it right now?" Ninna checked that the printer had paper. "I can print them off now, if you'd like."
"No need. As long as I have them by the end of the day." Stacey, a distant already-on-to-the-next-problem look on her face strode off, leaving Ninna wondering if everyone was having a bad day.
"Of course they are. Budget cuts and grant deadlines. Human stuff."
Ninna stiffened. All week she'd avoided seeing the basset hound, keeping her head down and her mind closed. Not an easy feat. It was something her shrink had shown her years ago. Focus on one thing only. Don't get sidetracked by non-essentials. How come it never worked when she'd had sessions with him?
"Cause it isn't working now, either. I thought you could use some time. You know...to get used to having me around."
She turned very slowly. Mosey sat in a sideways slumped sitting position, his wrinkles arguing with gravity as they slowly settled down toward his tail. Ninna couldn't help backing up slightly. She was fascinated. She'd never been this close to his breed...and didn't plan on getting any closer. She'd made wide circles around the dog to avoid accidentally coming in contact with him. He creeped her out, unlike some of the other breeds she'd been happy to touch and cuddle. All those wrinkles. She shuddered.
Most animals were foreign to her. Two weeks on the job hadn't been enough to change that. She wanted to be an animal person, and cuddling the kitten she'd returned to Stuart had felt good - right. Yet wanting something didn't make it so - at least not overnight.
Dogs made her uncomfortable still. She could probably blame that on Mosey.
"Are you done yet? You keep going around in circles. Like get over yourself."
Ninna lifted her head and stared at him. "Easy for you to say. You're obviously comfortable around people."
"What's not to be comfortable about? You feed me, walk me and give me rides in cool vehicles."
Ninna stared. "That's it? That's the only thing you think about? Your comfort?"
Mosey's legs front legs slid out from under him, and he dropped the rest of the way to the floor. "What else is there?"
The milk and dark chocolate colored wrinkles on his back slid on top of each other. She shook her head. "Lots," she snapped.
"Sorry, Ninna? Did you say something?" Stuart stopped in front of her, a puzzled look on his face.
Heat crept up over her face. "Just talking to myself again," she muttered. With a heavy sigh, she added, "Sorry, it's a bad habit."
He grinned. "No problem. It's kinda cute, actually." With that stunning remark he returned to one of the many rooms in the back. Even after this many days here, she was lost as to what went on in the rest of the building. Except for Stuart. Her radar went off every time he came and went, like a light flashing on and off. She was an idiot.
He thought her mannerism was cute, huh?
"Get over it. He will."
She gasped. "Oh that's so mean."
"Whatever." He rolled onto his side, his breath gusting out in a heavy movement. His jowls appeared to re-form into a grin. Ninna shuddered. She was an idiot. Somehow she'd found it easier to speak to a talking dog than to relax about looking after him. Or were the nerves due to a potential future date with Stuart?
Stupid.
"Yeah. You're not kidding."
"Oh, shut up." Lifting her head, she spun around, hoping no one else had heard her. Thankfully the open office was empty. "You're making me crazy."
"Can't make something that already is."
Her back stiffened and she glared at Mosey. The last thing she needed was to have a dog, or anyone, call her crazy. Bad enough she thought it herself.
Stuart returned to stand in front of her. "So can I give you a lift home tonight? I noticed you've been walking to work lately. I'll need to get moving as soon as I show you around and give you the instructions. I'd hoped to have more time, but it's not looking good at this point."
Ninna tore her eyes off Mosey and stared at Stuart, mentally trying to shift to the new topic. He'd noticed her walking? Right. This weekend. He was leaving...and soon.
She swallowed. "Sure." Checking the clock, she realized it was quitting time now. "Are you sure you want to leave your animals in my hands? I really don't know what I'm doing."
That devilish grin on his face flashed making her heart sigh. "And what better way for you to learn than to give this a try. You're thinking about a getting a dog, so this is perfect."
She winced. "I wish those damn break-ins would stop. I don't think I slept last night."
"Tonight you'll sleep. The dogs will keep any intruders at bay."
She glanced at the two dogs at his side. The three legged one didn't appear to notice his disability. He ran around the same as the other one. Mosey should run. He might lose a pound or two.
"Exactly why I don't. I'm perfect the way I am."
She glared at him, then remembered herself, and quickly switched on a smile. "Maybe I will."
"It's a good night's sleep I'm offering," Stuart wheedled. "You won't be sorry. And it is much better for the animals."
She stood up and grabbed her windbreaker and purse. "Except there is nothing like sleeping in your own bed."
"That's fine, if you're actually sleeping."
There was no way to argue with that.
Stuart motioned to the back door. "Let's go this way and I'll lock up as I go." As he talked he checked the various locks and doors enroute.
"Are break-ins a problem here?" It surprised her as she watched him check the security so closely. She'd never expected an animal clinic to have issues like that.
He shot her a frustrated look. "We keep drugs on hand. There's always a problem with junkies. Unfortunately, it's like anything. Where's there's opportunity, there will be people to take advantage."
Before she'd realized it, they were standing in front of his Jeep. He unlocked her side, then opened his door and let the dogs into the back. She hopped in and struggled with the seatbelt. Considering the lack of a top, she definitely wanted to be strapped in, even if it
was only a few blocks.
Stuart did a lot of running around, so it made sense for him to drive to work every day. For herself, walking to work had a lot of advantages. Fresh air, exercise, chance to relax and unwind and it saved on gas money. Now that she'd successfully concluded her first week at her new job, she'd settled in a routine. At least no firing axe had dropped on her head for screwing up. It would take weeks for her to really feel like she belonged.
"I'll drive straight home, if you don't mind. After I show you around, you can run home and get anything you might need for an overnight stay." He grinned at her. She rolled her eyes at his nudge to stay overnight. He did have a point though. A good night's sleep would be wonderful.
