Home

by Kris Bryant

  “I can live with that.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Everything about organizing a successful search and rescue was gratifying except the mounds of paperwork that had to be filled out afterward. Natalie was on her couch after she and Henry had a much-needed nap. Henry. That was a name she was going to have to get used to. Like Harley said, he seemed very accustomed to it, so it probably was his name. How Harley had heard the name was completely out of the realm of logic. It gave her the creeps really. She didn’t believe in ghosts or spirits, but this whole thing made her rethink her beliefs. “Henry.” She whispered his name. He immediately turned his head and looked up at her. “So, no more Ghost Dog for you. Or buddy. Just Henry.” He wagged his tail against the couch cushion.

  That was his favorite place—on the couch sprawled next to her. He always had to have a part of his body touching her. His paw, his head, his ribs. Even if she moved slightly, he adjusted so they were always touching. “I really wonder where you came from.” She rubbed his stomach and watched as he closed his eyes. He trusted her completely, and the feeling was reciprocated. Now she wasn’t sure she wanted to find his real owner. Maybe they had dumped him or he’d escaped for a reason. Not everyone loved dogs, because they required a lot of attention and people got in over their heads. It wasn’t her place to judge them. She hated taking animals to the animal shelter in Sawyer, but it happened. “Not you, big boy. You’re staying here if you want.” Another tail wag.

  Somebody is dying to see Henry. Are you at work?

  Natalie snapped a picture of Henry on his back looking up at the camera.

  No, we took the day off. Come over if you want.

  We took the day off, too.

  Natalie held her breath. It was the first time she’d had a picture of both of them.

  Your mini-me for sure.

  We have several loaves of sweet stuff if you’re hungry. We can bring that over.

  I’m sure I could eat something.

  Natalie wasn’t hungry. Her stomach still burned from the entire ordeal. She had almost lost a kid on her watch. Not just any kid, but the child of a woman she wanted a relationship with. And Harley was such a sweet girl. Very smart, not spoiled, and she genuinely cared about so many different things. She had shown so much trust when Natalie gently woke her up. Harley had blinked a few times and clutched Natalie’s neck as tight as she could when Natalie scooped her up. Once she’d realized she was safe, she cried. They both had.

  Natalie had radioed Matt, who was the closest volunteer to her. He had found them both and walked ahead clearing a path. Henry hadn’t been happy when Matt showed up. Natalie didn’t think he would leave them, but she’d still worried about his safety. When he had jumped into the van, she’d breathed a sigh of relief. She didn’t know if she had the energy to go back out for another search-and-rescue mission right on the heels of Harley’s.

  “Okay, Henry. Guess what? We are having guests, so we need to straighten up the place. I think you’re going to like who’s coming over.” Natalie got up and applied a light layer of makeup, brushed her hair back into a ponytail, and slipped on jeans and a sweater. She found fun, fuzzy, no-slip socks and even a cute pumpkin bandana that she put around Henry’s neck.

  “Henry!”

  Natalie turned to find Harley standing in the foyer hugging Henry. “Hi.”

  “Oh, my God. I’m so sorry, Nat. I sent her ahead of me, but I didn’t realize she was going to rudely barge in.” Sarah put her hands on her hips. “What do you say?”

  “I’m sorry. I was so excited to see Henry again.”

  Natalie waved them off. While it surprised her, she found it was a very comfortable feeling knowing that Harley felt safe here. “No worries. The door is always unlocked.”

  “Even at night?” Harley asked.

  Natalie was careful about answering. “It’s better to lock doors at night. And probably during the day, too.” She knelt to have direct contact with Harley, who was too busy loving on Henry to give her full attention to anything. “And I have a very smart, loyal dog who lives here, who can protect me if somebody bad tries to come into my house.”

  “And you’re the sheriff.”

  “This is true.”

  “So that makes this a safe place.”

  Harley’s logic made Natalie laugh. She stood and looked at Sarah. “You have a future lawyer on your hands. Hi. Come on in.” She reached over and took the heavy bag from Sarah’s hand. In a move that surprised both of them, Sarah kissed her. It was swift and sweet and right in front of Harley.

  “Hi. We’re here.”

  “I see that. What goodies did you bring me?” Natalie lifted her eyebrow at Sarah, who rewarded her with a wink.

  “Um, we have pumpkin bread and some lemon bars. And a casserole from the post office.”

  Since Natalie hadn’t gotten to eat any of the pumpkin bread her mother had made, she reached for that first. “I usually hate everything pumpkin by Thanksgiving. Thankfully, we have three weeks before that.”

  “What are you doing for Thanksgiving?” Sarah asked.

  “Usually Mom and I just cook a nice meal and hang out.”

  “Come over. Let’s all have Thanksgiving at the house. Aunt Judy and Uncle Bob would love the company,” Sarah said.

  Natalie couldn’t say no to Sarah if she tried. “I’ll check with Mom, but I’m sure it’ll be okay. She’ll want to bring dessert.”

  “We’ll take care of the savory stuff, and you take care of the sweet stuff. Deal?”

  “Sounds perfect.”

  “Where are Henry’s toys?” Harley asked. She looked around the living room and by his bed.

  “He doesn’t have any toys. Yet,” Natalie added. knowing full well they would have to remedy that situation quickly.

  “Why not?”

  “Well, I was hoping we would find his owners soon.”

  “He doesn’t have anybody anymore,” Harley said.

  He offered her a paw, and she shook it. Then he rolled over when Harley made a twirling motion with her finger.

  “Hold up. This dog knows tricks?” Natalie completely blew over the part about Henry not having family. Harley knowing his name, or at least a name he was familiar with, was already over the top. She couldn’t take any more.

  “Honey, did he tell you he doesn’t have a family anymore?” Sarah asked.

  “Don’t be silly. He can’t talk.”

  “Then how do you know he doesn’t have one?”

  Harley grew quiet. “I just do. I don’t know how. Can I take him outside and play with him?”

  Natalie looked at Henry. “Are you going to be a good boy and stay in the yard, or do you want to go on the leash?”

  “Let’s put him on the leash. That way neither one of them gets away.” Sarah’s suggestion had merit.

  “Do you know how to walk a dog?” Natalie asked.

  Harley laughed and nodded.

  “You’d be surprised how many people don’t know. Here are the rules. Stay in the yard. Don’t go past the shed. And don’t step in anything.” Natalie crinkled her nose for effect, which made Harley laugh even harder. She tethered Henry to the leash and gave the handle to Harley. “Nobody gets lost today. Don’t let him push you around, and if he jerks you and tries to get away, just drop the leash. I don’t want you to get hurt. You have five minutes. Make them count.” Natalie zipped up Harley’s jacket and opened the back door for them.

  “You’re so good with children,” Sarah said.

  Natalie barely had the door closed before Sarah was in her arms, kissing her. This one wasn’t the sweet, gentle kiss of new lovers, but it was a passionate one that she felt was long overdue. She kissed her back with as much desperation as she felt. If Harley hadn’t been there, there would’ve been a trail of clothes leading back to Natalie’s bed. “I’ve missed you.” Natalie broke the kiss and looked out the window. Seeing that Harley and Henry were safe and playing, Natalie turned her attention to Sarah but took a s
tep back. Now wasn’t the time. “How are you holding up?”

  “I’m okay. I probably aged ten years and need more sleep, but I’m just so thankful she’s home.”

  Natalie tilted Sarah’s chin up. “You look beautiful.” She liked the way Sarah averted her eyes and blushed whenever she received a compliment. “Even after such a horrible ordeal.”

  “No parent should have to go through that. Is it legal to chip your kid?” Sarah asked.

  Natalie laughed at first and then gave the question more thought. “I’m sure they have trackers you can put on their clothes or in backpacks. That might be a worthwhile investment, especially after what you just went through.”

  “Maybe you need one for Henry, too. They probably have something you can attach to his collar, like a GPS chip. I mean, if you’re thinking of keeping him.”

  “According to Harley, he doesn’t have a family. We could share him. You get him on the weekends, I get him during the week, or something like that.”

  “That actually sounds like a great idea.” Sarah looked out the window and watched Henry and Harley play. “They obviously have a very strong connection, and keeping them apart would be a mistake.”

  “Keeping us apart would be a big mistake. We obviously have a very strong connection, too,” Natalie said. She pulled Sarah into another embrace and kissed her slowly. She shivered when she felt Sarah’s hands under her sweater, stroking her back softly.

  “We’ve had a strong connection since we were teenagers. I can’t believe I didn’t act on my crush.”

  “Technically, you did. There was some pretty fantastic kissing at that party. You were bold back then.”

  Sarah hid her face in her hands. “I still can’t believe I did that.”

  Natalie gently pulled Sarah’s hands down and entwined their fingers. “Best night of my life.”

  “Best?”

  Natalie put her forefinger on her bottom lip and looked up as though she was giving the question the most thought she could. She nodded. “Best so far.”

  “Better than the other night? Right over there on that couch?”

  “The one where you sneaked away in the middle of the night and I woke up shirtless and alone?”

  Another blush spread across Sarah’s features. “Ack. Stop.”

  “I’m teasing. I’m sure we have plenty more nights together. Hopefully in the very near future.” One more kiss and then she would call in Harley and Henry.

  “Okay, you two. Come on in. It’s cold out there.” Sarah opened the door and waved them in.

  “He needs a toy, Mom.” Harley walked Henry in and unclipped his leash and handed it to Natalie.

  “Thank you,” Natalie said. She put the leash up. “And you’re right. He needs toys. Maybe if you two aren’t busy, we can take him to the big animal stores outside of Portland and pick out a few things.”

  “Maybe this weekend? And in the meantime, we can pick up a toy at Spruce Market. They have a decent selection.”

  “Can we go now? And bring Henry?” Harley asked.

  Another Eastman she couldn’t say no to. She was looking for her keys before Sarah interrupted her.

  “Why don’t we sit down and eat something first. I think we all should just chill for a bit. I brought over something that could be zucchini bread or banana bread, and I even have a casserole in the bag. Maybe we can do an early dinner?”

  “I think time with the both of you sounds perfect,” Natalie said. It surprised her that she meant it, but her feelings for both of them had grown exponentially since Harley had gone missing. And it had been less than forty-eight hours. Sarah was right. Everyone was still emotionally charged from the last two days, and downtime was exactly what they needed. She watched Harley and Henry snuggle and play, and it was so adorable it nearly made her cry. It took a lot to make her cry. Finding Harley had broken her. Since then, she was emotional about everything.

  “Is it weird that we’re eating dinner at four thirty?” Sarah asked.

  “Based on the average age of the people of Spruce Mountain, this is an appropriate time to eat dinner.”

  Natalie was rewarded with a friendly shoulder bump from Sarah.

  “I can’t tell you how tired I am. I would think she would be exhausted, but she’s been running full-steam-ahead since she woke up this morning,” Sarah said.

  “Well, most of your energy was zapped from nerves and fear. I’m surprised you’re out and about today.”

  “I wanted to see you.”

  Natalie saw the raw need in Sarah’s eyes. Without thinking, she pulled Sarah into her embrace and held her close. “I’m so happy you did. Look at them. I still can’t believe what happened. How? Why? It’s amazing. The whole thing.”

  “Still no answer on the website? Nobody’s come forward?”

  “Nope, and honestly, at this point, after everything that’s happened, I kind of hope nobody does. If Harley says he doesn’t have a home, I’m just going to go with it,” Natalie said.

  “He belongs with us.”

  Natalie tried hard to figure out what “us” meant. Were they a thing now? Was Sarah ready to commit? Just a few days ago she was in limbo about the relationship and told Natalie she wanted to go slow. She’d felt Sarah pull away that night. “I agree. I’ll have Sly Stone pull the post. Looks like we have a dog.”

  The squeal from Harley was expected, but the squeeze and squeal from Sarah weren’t. She wrapped her arms around Natalie’s waist, and she kissed her shoulder.

  “Well, welcome to the family, Henry,” Natalie said.

  As if he understood, he trotted over to Natalie and licked her hand. Sarah squatted down and hugged him.

  “Thank you so much for finding my baby, you brave boy.”

  Natalie watched the exchange and teared up again. Damn. When was she ever going to stop crying?

  Chapter Sixteen

  Sarah checked her watch again. It felt like the longest week on record, followed by painfully slow hours until her date with Natalie. They saw each other a few times the rest of the week, but she either had Harley with her or Natalie was with Linda. There were a few passionate kisses when nobody was looking, but she was aching for time alone with Natalie. This time she wasn’t going to stop. She was still kicking herself about that night. Natalie had been nothing but kind and careful with her. Truthfully, she had stopped because her feelings for Natalie were incredibly overwhelming so soon after her divorce. Deep down, she knew she didn’t want to leave Spruce Mountain. This was a great town for Harley, especially now that everyone knew them, and Harley loved it. Her classroom was small but challenging, and education meant everything to Sarah. Opening her own business here in town made sense.

  “You have two packages today, Sarah,” Phil said.

  Sarah rubbed her hands together when Phil handed her two small parcels and a few pieces of mail.

  “I made it just in time.” The post office closed at noon on Saturdays. Harley was in gymnastics across the street, so to kill time, Sarah checked her post-office box. It made her nervous to leave Harley, but Harley enjoyed gymnastics, and it was time to get her back on her schedule. Missing school two days this week had made Harley cranky and whiny. Sarah was hesitant, but after several lengthy discussions, she finally believed Harley when she said she would never leave the school grounds or lie again about an adult picking her up. Her disappearance had shaken them both up. She noticed Harley stood closer when they were out in public. And she had crawled into her bed twice this week.

  “Have a nice afternoon,” Phil said.

  She remembered him from the search. “Thank you again for doing everything to help find Harley. I really appreciate it.”

  He grumbled and nodded at her, but Sarah could have sworn his chest puffed out a bit. She was starting to like the people in this town. Once Harley was done with gymnastics, she drove home and dropped the boxes on the kitchen table. “Go change your clothes right now.” The last thing she needed was to have to buy more leotards. Har
ley raced downstairs without a reminder. That was another result of getting lost. She did things without questioning everything.

  “Oh, Christmas shopping already?” Aunt Judy pointed to the small boxes on the table.

  Shit. Sarah was going to have to start thinking about that, too. “No, but I’m excited to open them.” She took the scissors from Aunt Judy and opened the smaller box. She pulled out a business card and handed it to Aunt Judy. “The first one is yours.”

  “I’m so proud of you for doing this. Wanting to stay here in Spruce Mountain. And with your experience and education, you’ll have customers in no time.” Aunt Judy flipped Sarah’s card over and beamed with pride.

  “I’ll start dropping them off at places in town like the library.”

  “I’ll have Bob leave some at the lodge. I’m sure you’ll get business right away. Oh, and the post office and the bulletin board at Spruce Market. Brian Denmore will have to work a little harder because you’re going to steal away all of his business.”

  Sarah put her hand up to her heart. Today was an overwhelming kind of day. She had made several life-changing decisions in the span of a week.

  “What’s in the other box?” Aunt Judy shook the box like she would a present, trying to guess its contents.

  “It’s a tracker for Harley. I’m going to put it in her coat. I was thinking her backpack, but she doesn’t always take her bag with her. She hates being cold, so I know she’ll always have her coat with her. I’ll have to figure something out in summer, but we have some time. Is it too Big Brotherish?”

  “Not at all. You’re being a parent, and after what just happened, I don’t blame you. How does it work?”

  Sarah explained the app and how she could use her phone to locate Harley. “She’s too young for a cell phone, or else I would just use the tracker on that. And I got one for Natalie and Henry. She’s going to put it on his collar.”

  “You two seem pretty tight. Are you excited about your date tonight?”

  It was as if Aunt Judy could read Sarah’s mind. She smiled and nodded. “I’m looking forward to adult time. Thanks again for looking after Harley.”