My Kind of Love

by Jill Sanders

  “Morning.” Riley sat down across from him instead of standing to take his order. “What are you doing here?” she asked, tilting her head.

  The girl looked the same as she had in grade school. Okay, not really, but Josh had a hard time seeing anything but pigtails and skinned knees when he looked at her.

  “Morning.” He set down the menu he’d been trying to hide behind. “I’m ordering breakfast. I’ll have—” She held up her fingers, stopping him.

  “In town? What are you doing in town?” she corrected.

  “Living here.” He chuckled. He’d always enjoyed riling up the Jordan girls. They had spunky attitudes and usually entertained him easily.

  “Not all of us fall for your same old games.” She stood up, then glanced over her shoulder at him. “When you feel like eating breakfast, just let me know.”

  “Hey,” he called after her, laughing harder. “Have mercy on me. I’ve got a full day’s work ahead of me.” He was practically screaming it across the new dining room.

  Riley shut the kitchen door behind her and he knew it was going to be a while before he got any coffee or food.

  “Damn,” he said under his breath.

  “None of them play fair anymore.” He turned around to see who had spoken.

  Great, Josh thought. Could his day get any worse?

  “Hey, Aiden,” Josh said as Carrie’s brother got up from the booth behind him and walked over to sit across from him.

  “I heard you were back in town,” Aiden said as he got comfortable. Aiden was the complete opposite of his sister. Instead of fiery red hair, Aiden had taken after Robert. His dark hair and dark eyes left little doubt that he was a chip off his old man’s block. Especially, when it came to threatening his sister’s boyfriends. He’d heard it all from Carrie’s big brother through the years.

  “Yup.” He glanced towards the kitchen door as his stomach growled loudly.

  “Back to stay?” Aiden asked.

  “Looks that way.” He thought about getting up and getting his own cup of coffee—he had worked there for a few years—but then Riley was back, carrying a tray of drinks his way. “I heard you left town?”

  “For a few months.” He glanced up as Riley set two cups of coffee down in front of them.

  “I’ll have the breakfast special,” he said before she walked away. Then he turned to Aiden. “Think she’ll get it for me?”

  “Hey, you have coffee, be thankful.”

  Josh chuckled. “Pride, the only place where you can get bad service and enjoy it.”

  “Tell me about it.” Aiden’s eyes followed Riley back to the kitchen.

  “Don’t even go there,” Josh warned. “You don’t want to mess with the Jordan clan.”

  “Yeah, I tried that once.” Aiden cringed.

  “Oh?” He leaned in as he sipped his coffee. “Who?”

  “Sara.” Aiden sighed. “It was a mess. She’s getting married next month.”

  “What?” He frowned. “Sara, she’s only…” He groaned. “A year younger than me.”

  “Yup.” Aiden chuckled.

  “Why is it I still think of them as high schoolers?” He sighed.

  “Because you didn’t stick around long after graduation.” He leaned back again. “Unlike me. I stuck around long enough to know not to get involved with anyone from town.”

  Riley had walked up just as Aiden finished his sentence.

  “Finally learning something, are we?” She smiled sweetly down at Aiden, but her smile fell away as she set Josh’s food in front of him.

  “I’m not going to mess with Carrie again,” he promised. “Honest.” He held up his fingers in the scout’s pledge.

  Her eyes narrowed. “I’ll be watching out for her. So is everyone else in town.”

  “Tell me about it.” He sighed and nodded to Aiden sitting across from him. “I get the message, loud and clear.”

  “Good.” Her smile was back. “If you need anything else… you know where it is.” Josh chuckled as she walked away.

  Chapter 3

  She’d heard that her brother had sought Josh out that morning for a talk, as her father had done yesterday. No doubt to try and scare him away from her.

  Was the entire town of Pride going to jump to her defense? She tried to tell herself that everyone was just helping out; they had all seen what Josh’s leaving had done to her the first time.

  She spent her morning working around her farm. She loved the land she’d purchased almost two years ago. It was close to five acres and had enough small outbuildings for a cat house and several dog homes, as well as two barns, one for horses and the llama, the other for the smaller animals. She had a pair of potbellied pigs, some goats, ducks, and a rather spunky goose she’d named Gertie.

  Halfway through her rounds, her mom drove up in the new truck she’d gotten for her last birthday. The sign on the door read Pride Animal Rescue & Veterinarian.

  “Carrie?” her mother called out to her as she parked. “I just got a call about some dogs in need. Your dad’s heading over there now. He thinks it might be a hoarding problem. I’ve got the extra crates, but you might want to grab your two and follow me.”

  Instantly, Carrie’s blood heated, and she sprang into action. She tossed the two crates she had in the back of her old truck. She had purchased a pair of large magnet signs for the doors and was very proud of the Carrie’s Sanctuary decorations on each side.

  She followed her mother’s truck for a few miles and groaned when they turned off towards the Garnet’s place. Everyone in town knew that the family had a problem with hoarding and it didn’t end with animals.

  Carrie and her mother had been trying for years to get possession of some of the creatures who suffered on the ten-acre spread. The old trailer where the family of five lived was clear in the back of the property. The road was unmaintained and almost impossible to maneuver. She took her time since her truck was older than her mother’s. When she finally pulled up behind her mother’s truck, her parents were standing just outside the trailer, talking.

  “Hey.” She walked up and looked around. “What’d I miss?”

  “We really need to look into getting you a newer truck, something like I have.” Her mother frowned over at her. “That is, if you’re going to continue doing this sort of thing.”

  “Oh, I am.” She smiled and rubbed her hands together. “What have we got?” She turned to her father.

  “One of the dogs broke off his chains.” Her dad started walking and they fell into step with him. “He bit the neighbor boy, which gives us cause to do an animal welfare check. And since you two are my experts…” He motioned for them to step through a fence.

  Carrie stepped into the area where the animals were kept, vibrating with anger. Her mother reached down and took her hand.

  “Breathe through it.” Her mother sighed. “Let’s be professional.”

  Carrie nodded and then got to work. She enjoyed working with her parents. Sometimes, she had even been called into court to act as a witness. Which is why she had started taking pictures of situations like this before moving and rehabilitating the animals that were suffering.

  Two hours later, she drove away with both of her crates full. Her mother had the rest of the rescued dogs, which were in need of immediate medical attention. The dog that had bit the child would have to be quarantined until her mother determined if he was safe. They would be housed at her veterinary office until they were well enough to be moved to Carrie’s place for rehousing or, if too far gone, put down peacefully.

  As she drove back into her driveway, she spotted Josh’s bike parked behind her car and groaned. Parking the truck, she decided the best way to handle Josh was to ignore him.

  She was hot, sweaty, and covered in a layer of dirt and excrement. She probably smelled and looked as bad as the poor animals she had rescued.

  Deciding not to look for Josh, she started pulling the crates out of the back of her truck. The animals cried, and she gen
tly comforted them.

  There was a grey poodle mix whose fur was so matted, she wondered how the poor thing could move. Setting the crate down in the shade, she reached for the next one, but strong arms lifted the crate, which contained a mother terrier and her new litter of pups.

  “Hey.” Josh held the crate and looked at her. “Where do they need to go?”

  She swallowed what she had planned on telling him the next time she saw him.

  “Inside the barn.” She motioned to the open barn doors.

  Then she reached down and picked up the other crate.

  “I’ll get…” He shook his head. “Isn’t that heavy?”

  “Yes.” She held in a grunt and forced herself not to complain as she followed him into the barn where she housed the newest arrivals. There were dog pens along the back wall for newcomers that allowed each animal inside and outside activity while being secured. They all had to be quarantined, until they were up to date on their shots, which took almost a full month for some.

  “This place is pretty amazing.” He set the crate down where she motioned him to.

  “Thanks.” She opened the door for the family of dogs and the mama slunk out, sniffing out her new surroundings. When she was satisfied, she gently grabbed each baby and carried them to the dog bed in the far corner. Shutting the family in their new home, she turned her attention towards the poodle.

  Securing the dog with a leash, she took her over to the shampoo and grooming station. She picked her up and secured her to the station, so she could start cleaning the poodle up.

  She forgot about Josh watching her as she gently cleaned the animal and looked for any open wounds on the seriously neglected creature.

  “So,” he interrupted her as she pulled out a pair of clippers, “you clean the animals up yourself?”

  “Yes,” she said, flipping on the clippers. The dog jumped, but she soothed it by talking to her. “I’ll give them all their shots and check them for heartworm as well today. This one needs a flea bath after we’re done taking off all this matted hair.”

  She talked more for the dog’s benefit than Josh’s. The poodle watched her and acted like what she was saying was important, so Carrie continued to speak about the process she went through for each rescued animal—documenting the state that the animal is in upon receiving them, setting up a new medical chart for each one, giving them names if they didn’t come with one. She made sure they were adoptable, then Riley would come over and take glamor shots of the animals, so she could put them up on social media and her own website for adoption.

  By the time she was done, the poodle was cleanly shaved and smelled a million times better than before. The flea bath had taken her longer than expected and when she glanced down at her watch, she groaned.

  “You need to hire some help,” Josh said as he helped her hold the poodle down, so she could take blood. “What does this do?”

  She watched the small tester. “It shows if she has heartworm.”

  “It looks like a pregnancy test.”

  “Have you seen many pregnancy tests?” she asked, glancing up at him.

  He chuckled. “No.” He turned slightly towards her. “You?”

  She shook her head. Thankfully, the poodle was clear of heartworm. Taking out a box of her medical supplies, she gave the dog the standard newcomer cocktail. Shot after shot, the dog watched her as she soothed her skin after each injection. She explained each shot, again, more for the dog’s benefit than Josh’s.

  She put the poodle into her new area and closed her in. The dog took a long drink of water, then lay down like she was exhausted. Carrie knew how she felt. It had taken her and her mother almost an hour to catch the poodle, who had been left to run wild in a small caged area with cement flooring and water the color of mud in an old bucket.

  “Are they next?” Josh asked, nodding to the new family.

  “Mom is, the pups are too young. My mother thinks they’re less than a day old. I’ll have a better look once I separate the mama.” She walked into the cage with a leash.

  Mama was not having being separated from her babies. In the end, Carrie avoided the sharp teeth and got the terrier into the cleaning station to start the flea bath.

  “Will the babies be okay?” Josh asked, glancing back at the cage.

  “Sure. I won’t keep them separated that long. Besides, Mom desperately needs a bath and her shots if she’s going to be strong enough to feed the pups.”

  “How many animals do you have here?” He sat across from her, watching her.

  She calculated it in her head. “Counting the new litter of pigs that was born last week to Ricky and Lucy, more than sixty.”

  He whistled. “And you take care of them all by yourself?”

  She narrowed her eyes. “At least five times a week, my mother stops by and helps out. Riley, Sara, and a few others stop by to help occasionally. But, for the most part, I can handle—”

  “Sure, you can.” He stood up.

  “Was there a reason you stopped by today?” She waited for the terrier’s test. When he was silent, she glanced over at him, her eyebrows raised as she waited. He looked like he’d swallowed a bug. She wanted to laugh, but she held back.

  “I… wanted to say that I was sorry,” he finally said.

  She froze and waited. “For?” she asked when he didn’t continue.

  “Not saying goodbye to you in person.” He ran his hands through his hair and looked over at the crying babies. He picked one of them up and rubbed its nose with his before holding it close to his chest.

  “Why did you leave like that?” The question had been burning in her brain for the past two years.

  “Things got… complicated.” He rocked the baby in his arms. She wondered if he realized that he was swaying back and forth. He looked damn sexy cradling a tiny dog to his chest.

  “Life does.” She turned back to the test to avoid falling hard and fast for him again and sighed when it came back negative. “Lucky.” She scratched the mother’s head. “I’ll switch you?” She nodded to the puppy he was holding. “I need to examine each one.”

  “Sure.” He held out the puppy and took hold of the mother’s leash. “I’ll take her out on a walk. Moms like to get away from their crying babies every once in a while, right?”

  She smiled and nodded, and he left the barn. He talked to the terrier as they walked away.

  While he was gone, she checked over the four puppies. All four, two males and two females, looked healthy. She placed a colored ribbon around each one’s neck so she could tell them apart, then got to work on all the paperwork she needed to fill in.

  Josh came back in with the mother and put her back with her puppies. She settled down in the bed to feed them.

  “What happens now?” He nodded to the dogs.

  “Quarantine for a full week, then I’ll move them out with the other dogs. Except mama and babies. They go to the new nursery area, once it’s done.” She groaned. “My dad and brother are coming over this weekend to finish it.”

  “I could help,” he jumped in.

  She stopped writing and looked up at him. “Don’t you have a new business to start?”

  “Yes, but… I was hoping… That is…”

  “Spit it out.” She set the pen down.

  “I wanted to pick out a dog,” he finally admitted. “I asked around town to see if anyone had a new litter, and Patty sent me here.” He shrugged. “She mentioned that as part of the adoption process, you have to volunteer here.”

  “Yes.” She smiled. “Why don’t you walk around and take a look at the dogs I have, then let me know.” She turned back to her paperwork.

  “So, you still haven’t told me the real reason why you work at the Golden Oar?” He asked, halfway out of the door. “I would think this would pay for itself.”

  “For the most part, it does, but all this”—she motioned around— “doesn’t come cheap.”

  “What about donations?” he asked.

&
nbsp; “Sure, I get some, but all of the donations go directly to feeding and caring for the animals, not the human taking care of them.” She smiled and waved him off. “Enough questions, go. Look around.”

  He disappeared, and she turned back to her paperwork. Still, her mind wouldn’t stop running over what he was actually doing there. He’d come to apologize.

  She knew from experience that men didn’t apologize easily. Living with her dad and brother taught her that early on.

  By the time she was done with the paperwork, the sky had turned dark and she realized she hadn’t eaten lunch that day. She pulled a bottle of soda from the small fridge in the makeshift office she had and sipped it as she made the rest of her rounds.

  She was out talking to Bert, her extremely moody llama, when Josh found her again.

  “I hope it’s okay, but I took a few dogs out on short walks. You have a staging area, and I let them play there for a while.”

  “Thanks. I have a few high school students who come daily after class and do that.”

  “Extra credit?” he asked, leaning against the fence.

  “Detention.” She smiled. “I worked out a deal with the principal.”

  “Smart.” He turned to her. “So, I want to talk to you about… Louie.”

  “Louie?”

  “The golden retriever?”

  “He’s almost a year old.” She tried to mentally pull up the animal’s chart.

  “I want him.” He laid a hand over hers. “He’s what I was looking for.”

  “Okay.” She turned to go back to the office.

  “We can deal with all the paperwork later. I won’t be ready for him for about a week. I have men in my place ripping everything apart at the moment.”

  “Oh? What place is that?” She was angling, but she didn’t care. After all, he was the one who had shown up at her home.

  * * *

  He was sunk. Hell, he was worse than sunk. He was cement-shoed, chain-tied, dropped-at-the-bottom-of-the-deepest-body-of-water sunk.

  He didn’t even know what had really taken him out there, other than overhearing a few women talk about the animal rescue that morning. It seemed that every time Amelia and Carrie Brogan went off to rescue animals, it was all the town could talk about. So, naturally, after hearing of the excitement, he’d wanted to know more about what Carrie did.