Leader of the Pack (The Dogfather Book 3)

by Roxanne St Claire

  Andi nodded in agreement, following Liam’s gaze to study the strong muscles and regal carriage of a dog she’d come to love almost as deeply as the man at her side. She couldn’t help smiling at the way Jag constantly leaned his head in to get a whiff or touch of the girl who’d stolen his heart.

  “Zelda made him work for it, that’s for sure,” Andi said.

  Liam laughed and draped his arm over Andi’s shoulder. “Worth the fight,” he said, pulling her in. “Watching Jag take down Zelda’s walls until she finally realized she didn’t want to even be in the training pen unless he was there? Priceless.”

  “Remember how she snarled at him every time he got near her?”

  “Remember? I thought she’d bite his head off the first time they trained together.”

  Laughing at the not-so-subtle metaphor, Andi slid her arm around his waist and rested her head on his shoulder, watching the two dogs bound up the hill of Mount Leinster, heading for the box where toys and treasures were stored.

  Many treasures, Andi thought with a secret smile.

  “But look at them now, Liam. She can’t resist him.”

  He laughed softly and tucked her closer, planting a kiss on Andi’s head. “Too bad they can’t make little Zelda and Jag babies. I sure would have fun training those puppies.”

  Unable to hide that smile, she turned her head, pretending to drink in the view. “You were right about the third week in October,” she said. “This color rivals anything in New England.”

  As far as the eye could see, the rolling foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains were swathed in auburn, russet, crimson, and gold. Above it all, an achingly blue sky was dotted with autumn clouds, warmed by a gentle October sun.

  They’d been back to Liam’s land at Waterford many times, with Christian and Jag, and then, as Zelda wormed her way into everyone’s hearts and became another dog Liam couldn’t part with, they brought her along, too. By agreement, no dog training was done here, just play and laughter.

  And today, the first of what she hoped would be many trips here for another reason.

  Andi had purposely chosen a time while Christian was at school, so it would be only the two of them making this particular memory.

  At the top of the hill, Jag trotted over to the “toy box,” as Christian called the covered bench, barking to demand one of these people open his trove of tennis balls and rubber chew toys. Next to him, Zelda watched, then joined in on the barking.

  “All right, all right,” Liam replied, letting go of Andi to hustle ahead and get to the box. But she grabbed his arm to hold him back. She wasn’t quite ready for him to open that yet.

  “Wait a second,” she said, easing him to her.

  Jag barked again, but Liam held up a hand, immediately silencing him. Not Zelda, but she wasn’t quite as well trained yet.

  “What is it?” Liam asked.

  “I want…” She swallowed. “To be with you when you open it.”

  His brows flickered in surprise. “Okay.”

  She grinned. “Just call me Zelda. Can’t let you out of my sight or touch.”

  For a second, he just closed his eyes. “Not sure what I did to deserve that.”

  “You were you,” she said, wrapping both arms around him and looking up. “Constant, steady, unwavering, unchanged. Liam Kilcannon, I love you so very much.”

  He shook his head a little. “And I don’t think I’ll ever get used to hearing you say those words.”

  “Well, you better.” She held up her left hand, where the engagement ring and wedding ring had resided for almost two blissful, delicious months. “’Cause these aren’t coming off. Unless…”

  “Unless what?”

  She laughed at the subtle tone of horror and nudged him to the box. “Come on…open it.”

  His brows drew in a frown again. “You’re up to something, aren’t you?”

  “Something,” she agreed, ahead of him now, pulling him toward the dogs and their toy box. She pointed to it. “Open it, Liam.”

  Still looking a little perplexed, he unlatched the brass hook in the front and easily lifted the wooden lid with one hand. It took Christian two hands and a noisy grunt. And it had taken some effort by Andi, too, when she’d come up here early this morning and planted her surprise.

  As the lid creaked, Jag lost control for a moment and barked, sticking his snout in to make sure no one had sneaked up here to steal his slobbery, fuzzy tennis ball. Of course, Zelda came close to mimic him and nuzzle her nose on Jag’s flank.

  Liam leaned into the box, reaching for the ball, but stopping as he peered inside. Silent, he didn’t even look up, but snagged one tennis ball and tossed it over his shoulder to Jag, who launched after it. He flipped a well-gnawed Nylabone to Zelda, who pounced down for a good long chew. Then he rooted around and produced a gnarled rope, a red rubber ball, and…

  “Well, what have we here?” he asked as he drew out the long cylinder of blueprints.

  Finally, he looked at her, then took a step closer, sliding her lip out from underneath her front teeth. “Use those lips for better things, Andi Kilcannon,” he whispered. “Like an explanation.”

  She smiled. “You need one?”

  Letting out a long, slow sigh, he held the cylinder against his chest. “I guess not.”

  “You commissioned a house design a few months ago.”

  “I did?”

  “Well, you asked for ideas.” She tapped the rolled paper. “These are my ideas for the house that could be built on this land. By us. For us.”

  He closed his eyes and squeezed the tube a little. “Andi.” His voice was a gruff whisper. “I love you.”

  She laughed lightly. “Most clients wait until they see the house before saying that.”

  Taking her hand, he pulled her to the grass, slowly rolling the rubber band down the blueprints. “I can’t believe you did this.”

  “Anything can be changed, of course.”

  “I’m not going to want to change a thing,” he said as he smoothed the paper out with his large, skilled, beautiful hands. “When did you have time to do this?”

  “I’ve been sneaking an hour at the office here and there.”

  “I can’t believe…” His voice trailed off as he studied the front elevation that she knew so well she didn’t even have to look at it. She knew every angle of every window, the wraparound porch, the shutters and chimneys, and that curved transom over a double front door.

  Instead, she watched his handsome features soften into an expression of pure joy as he took in her work. “It looks like home,” he whispered.

  “It’s not a replica of Waterford, but an homage,” she said. “Obviously smaller and with some modern touches, and I changed the angles of each dormer, added those doors on the—”

  “It’s home, Andi.” He pressed both hands lightly on the drawing, almost reverently. “Home where I will live with you and Christian and…” He lifted his head, facing the sky, fighting tears. “Home.”

  “You like it?” she asked softly.

  “I love it.” He lifted a hand and put it on her cheek. “I love you. I love this home and this life and this place and you and Christian. I love it all.”

  She angled her face to nestle against his warm palm. “I love you, too.”

  He leaned forward and kissed her lightly. “It’s a dream home.”

  “You haven’t seen the inside yet. Turn the page.”

  After one more kiss, he did, revealing the first-floor specs that were less detailed, but easy enough for her to walk him through the open kitchen, office, and extra-large dining room.

  “That’s a guest suite,” she said, pointing to a bedroom and bath on the first floor. “So my parents can come more often. They loved Grandparents’ Day so much.”

  “Fantastic,” he said. “And this dining room is huge.”

  “I thought we might start hosting Wednesday night dinners here and give your dad a break.”

  “Love that idea.” He nod
ded, studying each line. “This is amazing, Andi.”

  “All the other bedrooms are upstairs,” she said, fluttering the page to turn it. “Look.”

  He trailed his finger over a two-dimensional center hall that joined four bedrooms upstairs, including a huge master, a bedroom and playroom for Christian, and finally, he landed on a tiny room next to it. “Laundry?” he asked.

  “No, that’s not laundry.”

  “Second walk-in closet?” He frowned. “No, too big for that. Dog’s sleeping room?” he guessed on a laugh. “Jag and Zelda do like to curl up next to each other.”

  “It’s a nursery.”

  His finger froze, and he slowly looked up at her. “A nursery.”

  “And if we get this house built sometime in the next eight months, baby Kilcannon can sleep right next to us.”

  He stared at her, and Andi realized she was shaking a little, wanting him to love this news as much as she did.

  “Andi…” His voice cracked.

  “Remember that night Christian stayed over at Ryan’s house, and we were in the living room and…”

  “And on the stairs? I’ll never forget it.”

  She laughed. “We, uh, didn’t care about…”

  “You said it was fine.”

  “Oh, it was more than fine.” She put her hand on her stomach. “I took the test this morning. To be sure, I made a doctor’s appointment for this afternoon, before we pick up Christian. Will you come with me?”

  “Are you kidding?” His face lit up from the inside, his eyes wide, his smile wider. “Andi!” He threw his arms around her and pulled her close, throwing back his head to let out a hoot that made both dogs barrel over to see what was wrong.

  “It’s okay,” she told Zelda and Jag as they barked and circled.

  “It’s better than okay.” Liam dragged her all the way down on the grass, kissing her on the mouth while both the dogs tried to get in on the new kind of play.

  Laughing into the kiss, Andi wrapped her hands around Liam’s neck and pulled him closer. “I take it you’re happy about this?”

  “Happy? I…I…” He squeezed his eyes shut as if he couldn’t contain the emotion. “Andi, I’ve loved you from the beginning, and I’ll love you to the end. Here, on our hill, in our home, with our family.”

  Every word rolled over her as soft as the grass and as warm as the sun. She managed to find her breath, slow her heart, and put both hands on his face to look at him. “You’ve changed me from the inside out, Liam,” she whispered. “I thought I could only love Christian, but you showed me that my heart has so much room. How can I ever thank you for that?”

  “How many times do I have to tell you? You don’t have to thank me.”

  “Then I will love you. Forever and ever, from this day forward…” She held up crossed fingers and very slowly opened them and spread her hand.

  Liam placed his hand against hers, palm to palm. “Till death do us part.”

  As Liam kissed her and the dogs barked and the soft Carolina breeze rustled the trees, Andi knew that this was her forever. She was absolutely certain of it.

  Don’t miss

  Bad to the Bone…

  the next book in The Dogfather Series.

  The old dog is up to new tricks again! This time, Daniel Kilcannon sets a romance in motion by taking pity on a man who’s hit hard times. Daniel sees something fundamentally good in him…and is sure his veterinarian daughter can help the man’s sick dog, too.

  Trace Bancroft, notorious for being the bad boy of Bitter Bark, has been in prison for twelve years paying for a mistake that cost a man his life. While serving his time, he became a top-level dog trainer, working to help inmates find new purpose through the love of a good dog. Now, he’s come back to Bitter Bark, looking to start over, with only his mutt Meatball, who’s been by his side for years. When he runs into Daniel Kilcannon, Trace is thrilled to take a job at Waterford Farm in exchange for some medical care for his dog. Of course, that means seeing a woman who has no idea why he left or where he’s been. Will Molly Kilcannon remember him? She’s probably long forgotten that one crazy night they had before his life took the most unexpected turn for the worse.

  When Molly sees Trace Bancroft walk into her vet’s office at Waterford Farm, her entire world is rocked to the core. She has kept him as her deepest, darkest secret, telling no one in her family that the bad boy of Bitter Bark is the father of her very good thirteen-year-old daughter. She’s always had a weakness for Trace, but feels nothing but animosity toward a man who left her high and dry and pregnant at nineteen. She’s built a life and a business and a whole world without him and certainly doesn’t want Trace near her or her daughter. But Molly knows that all it will take is one look at Prudence Kilcannon and a little simple math for Trace to realize the outcome of their passion. And then what will happen?

  If you want to know the day BAD TO THE BONE or any of The Dogfather books are available for purchase, sign up for Roxanne St. Claire’s newsletter! Sign up now and receive a free full-length Roxanne St. Claire novel! Or follow me on social media for fun, games, dogs, and more!

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  I answer all messages and emails personally, so don’t hesitate to write to roxanne@roxannestclaire.com!

  Fall in love with The Dogfather Series…

  Sit…Stay…Beg (Book 1)

  New Leash on Life (Book 2)

  Leader of The Pack (Book 3)

  Bad to the Bone (Book 4)

  Ruff Around the Edges (Book 5)

  Double Dog Dare (Book 6)

  Old Dog New Tricks (Book 7)

  About the Author

  Published since 2003, Roxanne St. Claire is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of more than forty romance and suspense novels. She has written several popular series, including The Dogfather, Barefoot Bay, the Guardian Angelinos, and the Bullet Catchers.

  In addition to being a nine-time nominee and one-time winner of the prestigious RITA™ Award for the best in romance writing, Roxanne’s novels have won the National Reader’s Choice Award for best romantic suspense three times, as well as the Maggie, the Daphne du Maurier Award, the HOLT Medallion, Booksellers Best, Book Buyers Best, the Award of Excellence, and many others.

  She lives in Florida with her husband, and still attempts to run the lives of her teenage daughter and 20-something son. She loves dogs, books, chocolate, and wine, but not always in that order.

  www.roxannestclaire.com

  www.twitter.com/roxannestclaire

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  www.roxannestclaire.com/newsletter/

  The Barefoot Bay Series

  Have you kicked off your shoes in Barefoot Bay? Roxanne St. Claire writes the popular Barefoot Bay series, several connected mini-series all set on one gorgeous island off the Gulf coast of Florida. Every book stands alone, but why stop at one trip to paradise?

  The Barefoot Bay Billionaires

  (Fantasy men who fall for unlikely women)

  Secrets on the Sand

  Seduction on the Sand

  Scandal on the Sand

  The Barefoot Bay Brides

  (Destination wedding planners who find love)

  Barefoot in White

  Barefoot in Lace

  Barefoot in Pearls

  Barefoot Bay Undercover

  (Sizzling romantic suspense)

  Barefoot Bound (prequel)

  Barefoot with a Bodyguard

  Barefoot with a Stranger

  Barefoot with a Bad Boy

  Barefoot Dreams

  Barefoot Bay Timeless

  (Second chance romance with silver fox heroes)

  Barefoot at Sunset

  Barefoot at Moonrise

  Barefoot at Midnight

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