Two Hearts Find Christmas

by Tamara Ferguson

  “What do you think?” she finally asked softly.

  He was disappointed when she switched the subject. “We’re going to need to get your coat and a hat if you have one. I thought we’d stop off and have dinner on the way back.”

  Dinner? He knew he was smiling from ear to ear. “Will I need to change clothes?” He was wearing his usual jeans and long-sleeved thermal T-shirt.

  “Nah,” she said quickly. “You’ve gotta to be sick and tired of never leaving this place. I just thought we’d stop for a burger somewhere where we can eat in.”

  “Oh.” He tried not to sound disappointed. “I thought you were asking me out on a date.”

  Nina laughed softly. “Well, I am...kind of.”

  Josh’s smile remained on his face when he went to the closet, pulling out his lined camouflage coat and cap.

  “So where are we going?” he finally asked, when they’d exited the building and were walking through the parking lot.

  “It’s a surprise,” Nina said, guiding him to a vehicle that was parked in the lot.

  As his hand roved over the hood first, moving to find the handle of the passenger door, Josh grinned. “I can’t believe you drive a truck,” he said, pulling open the door and awkwardly stepping inside.

  “Why not?” Nina asked, sounding slightly indignant.

  He felt the cool breeze against his face when Nina opened the driver’s side door.

  “Aren’t you like five-foot-tall?” he asked.

  “I’m five-foot two, I’ll have you know.”

  “I guess you need every inch you can get,” he answered, still grinning when he felt his arm being punched. “I’m not sure how your feet reach the pedals.”

  She cleared her throat. “It’s a small truck,” she admitted, sounding sheepish.

  When Josh laughed, Nina began laughing too.

  He tried to figure out where they were going by the turns she was taking on the road. Definitely north, he decided because Nina mentioned how the sun was hitting her face through the driver’s side window while she was trying to see the road. Even though he knew the general location of the former Crystal Rock Campgrounds, Josh couldn’t visualize exactly how it was set up since the wounded warrior facility had only been built about two years earlier. He hadn’t been allowed the chance to explore the property surrounding the facility outside yet.

  Ten minutes later, Nina turned the truck into a long rocky graveled drive, finally pulling it to a halt.

  Josh didn’t have a clue where they were, until after he slammed the passenger door shut and heard a couple of dogs barking.

  He was smiling widely by the time Nina strolled over, hooking her arm within his.

  “Tim came in specially tonight, so he could help you with choosing the right dog.”

  Nina strolled along with him down a sidewalk and soon they were walking inside of a building that smelled sterile, but also a little like a barn. Funny how his sense of smell was a lot more attuned to his surroundings when he couldn’t see.

  “Tim must be waiting for us in the arena.” Nina said, continuing to walk Josh through what seemed to be a corridor.

  After hearing Nina pulling open a door, Josh was guided gently through the doorway. The door closed behind them automatically while sounding out an electronic beep.

  Josh heard heavy footsteps approach. “Josh? Hi, I’m Tim Atkinson.”

  “Nice to meet you, Tim. I remember you from high school.”

  “I remember you too,” Tim answered with humor in his voice.

  “Yeah,” Josh answered dryly. “I guess a lot of people knew me back then, especially the cops.”

  Tim barked out a laugh, and with his hand on Josh’s arm, he guided Josh further into the stadium, where Josh could hear dogs panting nearby. “The dogs are set up in individual pens, with trap doors leading outside, which makes it easier with their housebreaking. The first thing we need to do is narrow down your prospects. I’ve got five different dogs for you to choose from here. What we’re looking for is a dog that not only fits you physically, in terms of his ability to lead you around, but we also want to find an animal who balances your lifestyle and personality. Sometimes that’s even more important than everything else, since he’ll be living with you, we hope, for the rest of his or her life.”

  “I don’t have a clue what I’ll be doing in the future right now.”

  “I kind of figured that. So, let me ask you this, have you thought about what kind of place you’ll be living in?”

  Josh became thoughtful. “More than likely, in a house. No matter what happens, I have enough money put away right now to purchase one. And I guess I’m entitled to disability pay, even though I can’t imagine not working. I’d be bored to death if I didn’t.”

  “Keep in mind that a house or a condo would work well, and it’d be a heck of a lot easier for you if you had a yard. Fenced-in would be best.”

  Josh nodded agreeably.

  * * *

  For the next few hours, Nina sat and waited while Josh attempted to choose a dog. There was nothing wrong with Tim’s selection, but Nina couldn’t see any of the dogs as quite the right fit. Nina was sure a tall German shepherd mix named Tipper would’ve worked as Josh’s final choice, but the dog’s personality was just too laid back.

  What Nina wanted to see was Josh smile, because he didn’t do it very often.

  She watched Tim guide Josh and each dog through the paces around the arena. No doubt any one of them might’ve been able to do a good job, but Nina had met another dog when she’d been here the other day, and she really wanted to see how Josh reacted with him.

  Finally giving in, Nina stood up and walked over to where Tim and Josh were having an intense discussion. Tim was frowning because, apparently, Josh was disappointed since none of the dogs seemed to be quite the right fit.

  “Tim?”

  Tim looked over. “Yeah, Nina?”

  “What about the dog I liked the other day?”

  Tim grimaced. “You mean Ralph?”

  “Yeah, I think that’s his name. He’s a black lab mix?”

  Tim hesitated. “He’s not very well trained, yet. I’m not even sure if he’ll work for us in the program. He’s a little lax about following the rules.”

  Josh snorted. “Sounds like me.”

  Tim grinned, studying Josh. “Eh, what the heck? Let me go get him.”

  A few minutes later, Tim was half leading, half dragging a large dog through the arena. The dog seemed to recognize Nina right away, and appeared to be dragging Tim even harder in order to reach her.

  “Heal,” Tim ordered, and the dog finally pulled back.

  But the black lab mix had a huge doggie smile on his face.

  When Nina smiled at the dog, the dog wagged his tail like crazy, emitting a long loud yelp. He seemed to be full of energy.

  Tim winced. “I don’t know. I really don’t think this guy’s gonna work.”

  Nina looked at Josh, who was listening and smiling.

  “Can I try him out for a minute?” Josh asked.

  “Be my guest,” Tim answered, giving Nina a rueful smile as he handed over Ralph’s leash to Josh.

  When Ralph’s behavior transformed from frisky into sedate as he walked beside Josh, Tim watched in amazement

  “Sit,” Josh ordered.

  And Ralph sat.

  “Well, I’ll be...” Tim was shaking his head dazedly. “I’ve never seen such a drastic change in an animal’s behavior before.”

  Josh asked, “Want to go for a walk, Ralph?”

  Standing back up, Ralph answered with a yip.

  Walking towards Josh and the dog, Tim was staring at Ralph suspiciously. “So, you’re not the goofball you’ve been pretending to be with me, huh?”

  Looking at Tim, Ralph whimpered, hanging his head.

  Nina couldn’t help it when she started laughing, and soon Josh and Tim were joining in.

  “Can Nina and I take him outside for a short walk before we
take off, Tim?”

  Tim smiled. “I don’t see why not. I guess you’ve chosen your dog, huh?”

  “I’m thinking yes,” Josh answered, wearing a broad smile.

  Tim grimaced. “I’ll have to work a little harder with him then. But with his response to you, I’d say it’d probably be better if you could be here working with him as much as possible.”

  “Nina?” Josh asked.

  “I think we can figure out how to get you here if we do it later in the day. Maybe I can drop you off, if Steve would be willing to come and pick you up, since he lives near the wounded warrior home.”

  “I’ll go along with whatever you guys need for me to do,” Josh answered. “Would it be too disruptive for me to get to know him better by petting him and playing with him a little? I had a friend who was seriously wounded, and he had a service dog, so I know there are certain guidelines to follow with him as opposed to a pet.”

  “I was wondering why you were holding yourself back,” Nina said, smiling when she looked at the dog. Ralph’s tongue was hanging out from his mouth and his head was cocked sideways in definite anticipation.

  Tim answered Josh’s question. “Just make sure he knows you’re the boss, and petting and playing should be used as reinforcement for good behavior. At this point, he needs to be constantly reprimanded—he’s a pretty rowdy pup right now, but he should always realize he’s being scolded by the tone of your voice.”

  “I think I’ve got it,” Josh answered. “Nina?”

  “Coming,” she answered. “Let me go fetch our coats and hats from where I left them in the stands.”

  Five minutes later, when she and Josh were walking Ralph toward the edge of the woods, Nina couldn’t help thinking how amazing it was that the dog was behaving so well.

  “He’s dying to run though, isn’t he?” Josh asked. Ralph had sited a squirrel, and was tugging the leash, moving a little further away from Josh’s side.

  “You can tell he loves it out here. He can see squirrels, birds and even a rabbit closer to the edge of the bluff overlooking the water. He probably doesn’t get much of a chance to run.”

  “I guess I’m not going to be able to just let him loose. How would I find him if he didn’t come back?”

  Nina laughed. “Yeah, from what Tim says it might take a little work to get Ralph to stick by your side. He’s probably a little too playful to be considered a service dog. Look at it this way—if you adopt him, you’ll be able to schedule a routine for him allowing some playtime. You’ll figure something out. Although...” Her voice faded away.

  Josh sighed. “It’d be easier if my vision returned? I was just thinking the same thing.”

  Suddenly noticing snowflakes beginning to fall, Nina looked upward. “Uh, oh. I think the forecast called for three or four inches of snow coming in tonight.”

  Josh held out his bare hand, letting the snowflakes drop into it.

  “Hey, I have a sudden urge to get closer to the water. I’m tired of being cooped up at the rehab center. Can we walk down to the shore, or are we too high above the lake?”

  “We’re actually nearer to the Crystal Rock River than the lake, so it’s pretty steep. But there’s a nice wide path leading down to the shore because of the rest stop located near the edge of the river for canoers.”

  “Okay, I think I know where we are now. A little further north from Angel’s Way?”

  “That’s right. In fact, Kelly Callahan’s older sister is married to the man who purchased the property.”

  “I used to hang out there occasionally. It was pretty run down.”

  “That’s all changed. It’s a showplace now. In fact, Gabe and Lucy have fostered and adopted a bunch of kids through the years.”

  “Yeah,” Josh answered thoughtfully. “I can see that being a fun place for a kid to grow up, with the river on one side and the lake on the other. Plus, it’s built so high, you can see for miles.”

  Suddenly, Ralph began dragging Josh down the path, and when Nina scooted ahead of them to try and stop Josh from falling, she ended up flat on her back, underneath Josh.

  His heart was beating awfully fast, was the first thing she thought as Josh laid there with his face against hers.

  Nina’s heart was beating none too steady itself.

  Her lips met his and her tongue ran lightly over his lips tasting the dampness of the snow that’d landed on his face earlier.

  But strangely, Josh didn’t respond.

  And, squirming awkwardly, he tried to get away from her. “I lost the dog,” he muttered, scrambling quickly to his feet.

  After spending so much time dreaming about the kiss they’d shared all those years ago, Nina tried not to feel hurt.

  Shaking her head dazedly, she rose to her feet while looking around for Ralph.

  Nina drew out a long deep breath of relief when she finally spotted the dog. He was ahead of them near the shore trying to play in the water, which had to be extremely cold.

  “I’m pretty sure he’s trying to go for a swim in the water below. Do you still want to walk down there?” she asked in an unsteady voice.

  “Yeah,” Josh muttered, still looking rather grim. “Let’s see if he comes to me when I call. It was my mistake—I let loose of the leash when I slipped and fell. He didn’t actually pull me down.”

  Nina cleared her throat. “That’s good to know.” She paused. Hopefully Josh wouldn’t brush her away when she tried leading him along the path?”

  But he was fine when she reached for his arm and began guiding him toward the river.

  Josh was smiling again by the time they reached the edge of the water. And, greeting Josh with a nudge of is nose against his hand, Ralph returned to Josh’s side without any directive.

  The three of them walked along the shore together for the next few minutes as the snow continued to fall.

  Finally, Josh decided he was ready to return the dog inside the shelter. “I counted out the number of steps to get down here. Let’s see if I can climb back up ahead of you with Ralph on my own?”

  “Alright. I’ll definitely be impressed if you work it out. I’ll wait here, but be careful, it’s kind of steep.”

  Gripping Ralph’s leash like Tim had shown him, Josh approached the path and began counting out loud.

  But for some strange reason, as Josh took the first few steps, Ralph began whining. And by the time Josh counted to three, Ralph’s crying became louder.

  Josh had reached the count of five, when Ralph suddenly pulled back and, jumping high in the air, he flung himself on top of Josh.

  Nina watched in horror with her hand covering her mouth.

  But Josh began laughing loudly as Ralph laid on top of him, licking every inch of his face.

  Nina burst into laughter. “That’s gotta be one of the stupidest things I’ve even seen,” she said, laughing harder.

  Josh snorted, pushing Ralph’s snout away from his face. “Well, I’d have to agree with you there. Even though I couldn’t see it happening, I can only imagine how crazy it must’ve looked. Maybe we’d better not tell Tim about this?” Josh grinned, adding dryly, “I think I’m falling in love.”

  Luckily, Josh hadn’t gotten very far and was laying at the bottom of the path on a grassy patch coated with a couple inches of snow. If he’d been any higher, he would have taken a much harder fall.

  Nina was still laughing when she approached Josh, helping him up from the ground against Ralph’s definite protest.

  Now Ralph was growling playfully, attacking Nina’s glove.

  “Ralph,” Josh scolded halfheartedly.

  Although Ralph stopped, Nina decided he still had mischief in his eyes as they all made their way up the path. If Nina had to guess, Ralph’s behavior would be a problem for Josh once he was ready to take him in.

  But Ralph would sure keep Josh laughing.

  Even after spending a few more minutes breathing in the crisp cool air as the snow continued to fall, there was still a slight air of
reserve in Josh’s manner when they finally returned Ralph to his pen at the shelter.

  When she was behind the wheel of her truck, driving Josh along the driveway from the shelter toward the main road, Nina asked hesitantly, “Did you still want to go out for dinner?”

  “I’m feeling a lot more tired than usual,” Josh answered.

  As disappointed as she was, she tried not to show it by the tone of her voice. “Well, maybe we can do it some other time. The snow is beginning to come down pretty hard.”

  Josh finally smiled. “Is there still a drive-in in Crystal Rock, with the papa, mama and baby burgers?”

  Nina laughed softly. “They’ve changed hands since then, but it’s still there.”

  “Since the place is along the way, how about we eat some burgers there before you take me back? I have a sudden craving for a root beer float, too. If they still have them, that is?”

  “They sure do. I wouldn’t mind one of those myself,” she answered, feeling much more cheerful. “Even though it’ll probably leave me freezing to death with the weather.”

  “I’d be happy to warm you up,” Josh answered suddenly, wearing a rueful grin.

  What the...?

  She steadied her hands on the wheel as the truck began swerving on the icy road. The man was running hot and cold, and Nina didn’t know what to think.

  As she drove through town, Josh asked her to describe the businesses still remaining on Main Street, and they joked and laughed about some of the old landmarks in Crystal Rock while they ate burgers and fries and finished their floats.

  “Life was nice for a while when Luke’s mom married my dad. I have a lot of great memories of my stepmom and stepsister, Cassie. We used to come here quite a lot,” Josh said quietly, seemingly deep in thought.

  “Stepmother and sister?” Oh, shoot, that’s right. Apparently, Luke’s mom had lost control of the car she was driving in a snowstorm, sliding on an icy road into the lake, where she and her daughter both drowned. Nina had completely forgotten about the accident, but she’d been pretty young at the time, when her mom had been cancer free.

  “You remember now, huh?” Josh said consideringly. “There was always something kind of suspicious about their deaths, although it was ruled an accident.”