Paws and Prejudice

by Alanna Martin

  He would. Her bitter tone of voice had gone right over his head, which was her fault for never complaining about being a soldier before. Aside from her refusal to shun Josh, her father had no reason to suspect how her feelings about the feud had changed.

  “This doesn’t require much else of you,” he continued. “I heard a rumor that Ian and Micah entered into an exclusive promotional deal with the Bay Song Inn. I don’t want to ask them directly, but I figured you could work it in as you’re interviewing them. Find out if it’s true and what it entails.”

  The Bay Song Inn was the Lipins’ family hotel and the business Josh’s girlfriend helped run. Kelsey could see why her father might be interested if the brewery and the town’s most upscale hotel had some kind of business arrangement, but not why it was so urgent.

  Kelsey grabbed the doggie rope by the TV stand because she could feel her irritation building and needed to let off some steam. The rope was actually three ropes braided together so each dog could grab a piece to play. Puck and Romeo charged over and grabbed two of the fraying ends. “What’s the big deal if they have some promo thing?”

  “What’s the big deal if they have a promotional deal with the Lipins?” Wallace sounded incredulous, and Kelsey couldn’t be sure if it was because he didn’t understand where her confusion came from or whether he was not used to his soldier questioning orders.

  “The brewery is neutral,” she said, glad for the huskies giving her a good tug-of-war workout, because the exertion kept her voice from becoming too sarcastic. “They’ve signed deals and sold beer to both Porter and Lipin bars and restaurants.”

  She had done her homework with Ian and Micah for the puff story, and Kelsey rattled off a list of the establishments to prove her point.

  “This isn’t the same.” Her father was trying to get Juliet’s attention, but the husky was too busy watching her brothers. “If what I’m hearing is true, this is bigger than just selling their beer to restaurants, and they did it before giving one of our family’s businesses a chance to make that deal instead. It’s allegedly an exclusive promotion for the hotel’s guests once the tasting room opens to the public.”

  Maybe that was because the Lipins asked first? Ian and Micah weren’t part of the feud, so there was no reason for them to pass up a business opportunity.

  Kelsey managed to hold her tongue, but the effort caused her to lose her concentration on the rope. Romeo and Puck tugged hard, and she went flying halfway across the living room. The wall prepared to meet her face, and she raised a hand just in time to prevent a disaster.

  The living room fell silent. Taking a deep breath, Kelsey turned around to find all three dogs gaping at her. Juliet looked alarmed. Romeo and Puck looked shocked, then guilty, although they hadn’t don’t anything wrong. The two boys rushed over to her, making sure she was okay. She’d never let them win like that before.

  Her father laughed. “Strong dogs.”

  Yes, they were, but the dogs knew their limits—and hers. She was the one who’d messed up, and he was the reason.

  Once upon a time, Kelsey wouldn’t have questioned her father’s ire. This was partially her fault for letting herself get friendly with Ian and feeling protective, but her exhaustion with her father and the feud had started before she’d ever met Ian. Then, more recently, Josh’s relationship with a Lipin had brought her feelings into sharper focus. But it wasn’t her cousin’s decisions that had sparked this rebellion in her either.

  Kelsey wasn’t sure what had. Possibly it wasn’t a single incident at all, but the inevitable result of growing up, growing wiser, growing more jaded. Of learning to see the absurdities of life for what they were. Or of being absorbed in reading and writing books that celebrated love—in all its forms—over conflict.

  Whatever the combination of events, her exhaustion with fighting a ridiculous war had grown stronger over the last several weeks, and the way her family stressed that she not trust anyone who wasn’t a Porter seemed more and more unfortunate. Especially as Porters kept letting her down, and as she’d been forced to put some trust in Ian. Of course, there was no guarantee Ian wouldn’t screw her over eventually, but so far he’d upheld his end of the deal. It was an uncomfortable limbo to live in, but maybe if she hadn’t been warned away from making deeper friendships with outsiders when she was younger, someone knowing her secrets might not keep her up at night as much.

  “You all right?” her father asked, and Kelsey wondered how long she’d been staring into space as these traitorous thoughts raced through her brain.

  “I’m fine. I’ll see what I can find out about the deal.” Let her father interpret that how he would; she wasn’t about to pester Ian with questions. He wasn’t a part of the feud. He didn’t owe loyalty to either family. And damn it, Kelsey couldn’t shake the urge to defend him from the bullshit the rest of them had to live with.

  Josh liked to call her a mother hen, but Kelsey preferred to think of herself as a mama wolf. And somehow, despite her best intentions to maintain her distance, she’d adopted the sexy, funny Ian puppy after all.

  19

  IAN HAD SEEN Kelsey twice since the night he’d dropped off her table and done the one thing he’d promised himself he wouldn’t do again each time, but today would be the first time he’d see her with all three of her dogs. His fingers tapped the steering wheel as he drove to the trailhead where they were meeting, and he strongly suspected it wasn’t the dogs that made him excitable. It was her. At this point, he felt strangely little concern about the dogs. His thoughts were more focused on the woman.

  It had been a busy week, and he’d been feeling morose the last couple of days because of Rosh Hashanah. Rather than drive to Anchorage, Micah had found an online service they could attend, which was fine. For him, holidays were about family (and to a lesser degree the foods he missed), and video-chatting with Isabel and his grandparents simply hadn’t been the same. He felt unsettled in his new home and not always welcome, and not being a part of the family celebration this year exacerbated that feeling.

  But the promise of seeing Kelsey today had helped him get through it, and Ian wasn’t sure that was a good thing. If he pondered it too long, in fact, he was certain it was a bad thing. Reaching a truce with Kelsey had alleviated some of his feelings about not belonging, but sex with Kelsey was a problem he should be trying to fix. Until he cemented the just friends aspect of their relationship, Ian was wary of becoming too emotionally dependent on her. He couldn’t afford to develop stronger feelings. It wouldn’t be fair to either of them when he couldn’t devote sufficient energy to a romantic relationship.

  For that reason alone, Kelsey’s idea that they meet for a walk instead of dinner was brilliant. Ian didn’t know if she’d suggested it specifically because it meant they were less likely to tear each other’s clothes off, but he valued the idea for that purpose.

  He also cursed it for the same reason, but whatever. If his self-control continued to fail, his lack of interest in exhibitionism could save them.

  The sun was hidden as Ian pulled into the trailhead parking lot about thirty minutes outside of town, but the weather was practically balmy in the midfifties, and it amused Ian how much his internal thermometer had recalibrated. Two other vehicles were in the lot, one of which he recognized as Kelsey’s. Although he wasn’t too nervous about meeting her other dogs, he’d declined the offer of being in an enclosed space with them for the drive. Ian was thrilled with the strides he’d made, but he was a work in progress.

  Kelsey had all three dogs out of the SUV and on leashes, and Ian took a minute to identify who was who. Puck’s white fur made him easy to distinguish, but Juliet and Romeo looked very similar, and he didn’t want to confuse them. He recalled Kelsey saying Romeo was wary of strangers, and after all his progress, Ian didn’t want to cause a canine incident by mistaking the dog he knew for the dog he didn’t. Luckily, Juliet helped him out. It bec
ame clear quickly who was who as he approached—one dog’s tail waved frantically, and the other regarded him warily.

  Juliet barked, which seemed to excite Puck, and they both strained on their leashes.

  “Yes, we’re all very happy to see Ian,” Kelsey said to the dogs, and Ian couldn’t help but grin at the way Kelsey had included herself in that.

  A few minutes later, he’d followed her instructions and introduced himself to Puck and Romeo. He was twitchy when they licked him, but overall, he was proud of himself for staying calm. Two weeks ago, he certainly would never have had it in him to kneel in front of not just one but three large dogs. So although he might be sweating a bit despite the cold and his muscles were tense, he owed Kelsey a lot. Sweaty and tense were a far cry from panicking. He could even admit there was a certain joyfulness in the way Juliet and Puck wagged their tails.

  Romeo, however, like his tail, appeared unmoved. Since he was shyer than his siblings, Ian made an extra effort to control his own nerves and spent more time petting him in the spot Kelsey suggested. He could totally relate to that kind of wariness around the other species, and it was especially gratifying to see the dog finally relax enough to close his eyes and bask in the attention. “You and me both, boy. We both have trust issues.”

  Romeo barked in what Ian hoped was agreement.

  As he stood, Ian realized Kelsey had been smiling down at him, and he was glad he hadn’t noticed before. There was such pure, beautiful delight on her face that it knocked something around inside him, making it hard to breathe. He told himself her happiness was only for the dogs’ sake, and maybe it was, but that didn’t negate the effect her expression had on him. He wanted to know how to bring about that happiness again.

  He also wanted to press her against a convenient tree and kiss her until they shed their clothes, and to hell with being in public.

  With that in mind, Ian gestured toward the trail. If they were walking, they weren’t kissing. “Shall we?”

  “Let’s,” Kelsey said in such a manner that he suspected she was having similar ideas. “Come on, babes. It’s walk time.”

  The huskies were clearly familiar with the word, because three pairs of ears perked up, and they barked happily.

  Happily. Ian was even starting to recognize different types of barking and not just assume it all meant attack!

  The trail Kelsey had suggested was wide, cutting through an open field. The air was pungent with a woodsy scent that made for a pleasant change from the bay smell of Helen. They walked silently for about a minute, Kelsey watching her dogs and Ian both watching the dogs and checking out the scenery.

  “So, my father came by the other day,” Kelsey said. She trailed off and chewed on her bottom lip.

  Ian waited for her to continue, concerned about this new mood that was darkening her face. He’d just seen happy Kelsey, and he’d seen plenty of annoyed Kelsey. Also dubious Kelsey, horrified Kelsey, and turned-on Kelsey (which ranked up there with happy Kelsey if he was ordering them from best to worst). But this was a new emotion, and if Ian had to guess, it ran darker and deeper.

  Before he could think better of it, he reached over and touched her hand. Kelsey startled, and she smiled at him, but she didn’t take his hand in her own.

  His touch did seem to focus her though. She took a deep breath, and when she spoke again, it sounded like she’d gotten a grip on whatever had been bothering her. “I thought I should warn you. He’s heard a rumor that you and Micah entered into some kind of exclusive promotional deal with the Bay Song, and he’s not happy.”

  Oh. Oy. Ian could almost laugh at the situation. He and Micah had spent so much time trying not to piss off one family or the other, only to have something they’d done before they’d even been aware of the feud come back to haunt them. It figured.

  But pissing off Wallace Porter was not a laughing matter. Over time, Ian had picked up the knowledge that Wallace was one of the main players in the Lipin-Porter feud. If this were war, he’d hold the rank of general. So while Wallace didn’t have any power over him or Micah, he did wield a lot of power over the rest of the Porter family. If they also became unhappy, that could be a problem. A far bigger one than Ian’s inability to keep his hands off Kelsey.

  That hamsa Micah had hung on their wall didn’t seem to be helping much.

  Sighing, Ian ran his hands through his hair. “Yeah, we made a deal with Lydia Lipin months ago, before we were aware of the feud. It hasn’t gone anywhere since the brewery isn’t open to the public yet, but we’d planned to offer discounts to the Bay Song’s guests in return for the hotel promoting us.”

  “Ah.”

  “I’d forgotten about it because it won’t even start until the spring.” Ian shook his head ruefully. “Once we were clued in that most businesses are forced to choose sides, we’ve been so careful to try to work with everyone. I don’t want to be involved.”

  Kelsey kicked at a tall patch of grass. “You shouldn’t have to be. It has nothing to do with you, and I told my father that.”

  “Will he listen?”

  She laughed sarcastically. “Who knows. Sorry. I wish I could be more optimistic, but that’s not me.”

  It was Ian’s turn to laugh in spite of everything. “I hadn’t noticed. You’re so bubbly and cheerful.”

  “Yeah, well, it’s not like you’ve been a ray of sunshine since I’ve known you either.”

  “My grumpiness has solely been in response to your surliness.” Ian placed a hand over his heart.

  “What you perceived as my surliness,” Kelsey said.

  “Right.” He rolled his eyes. “Because you bounced up the steps to the brewery the day we met all sunshine and smiles, and I misinterpreted that.”

  “You slammed the door in my face!” She pointed a finger at him.

  “You brought dogs.”

  “How was I supposed to know you wouldn’t love my dogs?” Kelsey appeared to be fighting down a smile.

  The urge to kiss her was back, stronger than ever. Ian allowed himself a few breaths to clear his head and will his body to behave. He’d temporarily forgotten all about the dogs again, and the dogs had forgotten all about him. They were too busy sniffing the ground and investigating every rock or fallen tree limb in their path.

  “I don’t know,” Ian admitted after a moment of watching Puck try to pick up a stick that was too big for him to carry. “They don’t seem so bad really.”

  He expected some sort of snarky comeback from Kelsey, or if nothing else, commentary about how her dogs were much better than not so bad. But she kept smiling in that adorable way of hers, like she was basking in his change of heart.

  He would be in trouble if he focused on her for too long, so Ian changed the subject. “The feud, on the other hand, is so much worse than I expected. I thought my family had issues.”

  “Everyone’s family has issues,” Kelsey said, echoing a comment Ian remembered her making on the drive to Wasilla.

  At the time, he’d declined to discuss his family, but recent events made him more prone to talking. There was something amazing about walking down a quiet path in the woods with Kelsey and three huskies and feeling relaxed while he did it. She was responsible for that, and part of him felt like she deserved an explanation for how he’d gotten to this point.

  “True,” Ian said, stuffing his hands in his pockets. “When you were asking me questions about the brewery, one of them was why I lived with my grandparents.”

  “It was a nosy question. I shouldn’t have asked it.”

  “It was, but it also flowed from the other questions you were asking, so I get it. Anyway, the answer is because my mom died when I was eight. My parents had divorced a few years earlier, and my sister, Isabel, and I were sent to live with our dad. That did not go well.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  Ian shrugged. “You don’t hav
e to be. My dad was a lousy parent. All he ever loved was being successful at his job, and to him, Izzy and I were inconveniences, and he made sure to let us know it. He’s probably a good part of the reason I have—had—a phobia of dogs. I mean, the dog that jumped on me when I was knee-high started it, but my father thought he could cure me by exposing me to more dogs without any thought about how to do it. Loud dogs, hyper dogs, dogs that were bigger than me. He didn’t exactly have a lot of patience, and he expected me to snap out of it to make his life easier. Of course, it only made things worse.”

  More amazing than the fact that he was calmly walking down a trail with three dogs was the fact that he could relate all of this without wanting to scream. But while Ian had adjusted to Kelsey’s dogs relatively quickly, getting over his father’s bullshit had taken a lot longer. Years, really. And in many ways, he knew he wasn’t over it completely. His father was the reason he worked so hard at the brewery and why he sometimes lay awake at night, stressing about whether he and Micah would be successful.

  What he’d gotten over was the rage. He still dearly wished to strangle his father when he’d do something like forget Isabel’s birthday, but most of the time, Ian didn’t even think of him. Some days that felt like a miracle.

  Kelsey swore, and Ian fumbled on. “When I was twelve, my dad decided he couldn’t deal with me or Isabel anymore, and so my mom’s parents took us in. But by then, my dad had done a good deal of messing with our heads.”

  “I’m so sorry,” Kelsey said again. Her free hand had balled into a fist. “My dad can be an asshole, but in some ways, yours seems almost worse. I don’t know how you can talk about him so calmly. I want to punch him on your behalf.”

  Ian chuckled. He’d totally pegged Kelsey right when they’d watched Terminator together. “I made a conscious decision years ago to move on. I just thought you deserved to know where my dog issues stem from.”

  “Thank you for sharing.” Kelsey offered him a tentative smile. “But be aware that if I ever meet your dad, I can’t promise I won’t unleash my inner hellhound on him. I have a lifetime of feud-fueled dirty tricks up my sleeves.”