by Elle James
“Curiouser and curiouser,” Dawg said with narrowed eyes. “He volunteered? He obviously didn’t deserve you.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Beth said. “We broke up months ago.”
“But you’re still not over him if you’re off in a corner thinking about him.”
She tilted her head, wondering why she was opening up to this stranger. But she was. “I don’t know if it’s him I’m not over, or the idea of getting married I’m not getting over. I saw myself getting married before I turned thirty.” She raised a hand. “I know…it’s old fashioned of me, but I believe in getting married before having children. And I want children some day before I’m too old.”
“You have a lot of time left, sweetheart.” Dawg frowned. “You’re not going to be thirty for another four or five years.”
She snorted. “One and a half years. I’ll be twenty-nine on my next birthday. I feel my biological clock ticking like a timebomb.”
“Sorry,” he said. “I didn’t mean to pry into your life, and you didn’t have to tell me your age.” He shook his head. “You’re practically ancient.”
She swatted at his arm. “You’re not helping my ego.”
“Sorry, I didn’t think women got touchy about their age until they were into their dotage…their forties.”
Beth tipped her chin up. “Forty is still young.”
“The way you talk, life is practically over after you turn thirty.”
“I didn’t say I’d get old after thirty. But a woman’s most productive years are in her twenties,” Beth said.
“And many women have children into their forties,” he countered.
“And many women find they can’t have children in their thirties. I want them.” She grinned. “Now, doesn’t that scare you away? A woman who wants to be married, have children and a full, satisfying career?”
He shook his head. “Not at all. I admire a woman who wants it all.”
She sighed. “Well, my ex-fiancé didn’t admire those attributes enough to stick around for the wedding.”
“If you’re ready to leave, I’ll give you a ride home. Of course, after my rounds of hailing and farewelling.” He held up his hands. “No worries. No strings attached. I won’t even hit on you… Unless you want me to.” He waggled his brows. “I might even invite you to meet my dog. Chewy might have separation anxiety, but he’s a lover. He loves everybody. We can share a bowl of water and kibble with him, if you like.”
“Now that might be an offer I can’t refuse. After your description of Chewy, I think I like your dog more than you at this point.”
“Ouch.”
“And I do admire a man who isn’t afraid to love his dog.” Her lips quirked. “All eight pounds of him.”
He nodded. “I do love my dog. So, what’ll it be?”
“Thank you. I’d love a ride home. And I might like the idea of using the excuse of leaving with you to get me out of staying here until Nora’s ready to go. I wasn’t too happy about calling on a stranger to give me a ride home.”
“If you need someone to vouch for me, you can ask Rucker, Nora’s fiancé, about the nature of my character. We go back a long way.”
“Strangely enough, I trust you.” She slipped her hand through his arm and let him lead her across the floor to the group Deltas and the women who belonged with some of them.
Dawg shook hands with a man Beth hadn’t met before and congratulated him on his separation from the military. “Mustang, what’s this I hear you’re going to work for that security group out of Montana?”
Mustang nodded. “I met Navy SEAL, Hank Patterson, in Afghanistan when the Deltas and the SEALs had a joint mission to take care of some bad guys. He heard I was getting out and contacted me.”
“Nice to know you have work in the civilian sector. At least you won’t have to pound the pavement looking for a job.” Dawg patted the man’s shoulder. “And keep me in mind for when my time comes to leave the military.”
Mustang nodded. “I’ll let Hank know you’re interested.”
“Thanks.”
Beth smiled at Mustang and congratulated him before moving on to other members of Dawg’s team, including Rucker.
Nora raised an eyebrow and stared pointedly at Beth’s hand curled around Dawg’s elbow.
Dawg stepped back and waved a hand toward Beth. “You all know Beth, Nora’s friend.”
The men nodded, and the women smiled.
“She helped out at the last barbecue we had at Rucker’s place,” one of the women said. She held out her hand. “I’m Sophie,” she said. “When I’m not hanging out with Blade,” she patted the man’s arm she was leaning on, “I’m working here with Sarge.”
“I remember you,” Beth said with a smile and took the woman’s hand, giving it a firm shake.
“I want the name of the spice you put on the kabobs,” Sophie said. “They were so good.”
Beth grinned. “I’ll text you the name of it when I get back to my apartment.” She spoke to a few others of the women while Dawg talked and joked with his friends.
“Well, I hate to break up the party,” Dawg said at last. “I need to get home to my dog.”
Rucker shook his head. “I thought you found a dog sitter for Chewy.”
Dawg nodded. “I did. But she likes to go to bed by nine o’clock.”
“Are you leaving too?” Nora asked Beth.
Beth nodded. “Dawg offered to drop me off at my place.”
Nora frowned. “Are you sure you don’t want to stay?”
“No,” Beth smiled. “I’m tired.”
Nora’s gaze shot from Beth to Dawg and back, a smile curling her lips. “Well, enjoy the ride and don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”
Beth’s cheeks heated. She wanted to say she wasn’t planning on doing anything but didn’t want to draw any more attention to herself and Dawg as they left. It wasn’t like she was going home with Dawg. He would drop her off at her place and that would be the end of the evening, unless she decided to meet his dog.
Nora hugged her close and whispered, “Dawg’s a good guy.”
Beth whispered back, “I’m going home…alone.”
“Uh-huh.” Nora grinned and stepped back into Rucker’s arms. “Just have fun.”
Dawg held out his hand.
Beth placed hers in his and a little jolt of electricity rippled up her arm and spread throughout her body.
They left the Salty Dog Saloon together.
Despite her determination to remain unfazed by Nora’s suggestive glances and words, Beth couldn’t help a little shiver of something she hadn’t felt in a long time. Desire.
And she’d barely even thought about her ex-fiancé all evening. What did that mean?
It meant the night held all kinds of possibilities. Too bad he was taking her home first.
Dawg led Beth across the parking lot to his four-wheel-drive pickup and held the door for her while she climbed up the running board and into the passenger seat. Once she was seated and had secured her belt, he rounded the front of the truck, feeling lighter on his feet than he had in a long time. He suspected it was because of the woman he was taking home…to her apartment.
She wasn’t like some of the other women who hung out at the Salty Dog Saloon, hoping to snag a Delta and willing to do anything to get one. They didn’t know what they were getting into until the Delta shipped out for months at a time, sometimes with little communication to those back home. Those relationships rarely lasted.
Dawg was tired of the games. Beth had been a breath of fresh air. She’d listened when he’d gone on about his dog and had even sounded interested.
“Do you mind if we get Chewy first and get him settled at my house before I take you home?” he asked. “I wasn’t kidding when I said my dog sitter goes to bed at nine o’clock.”
“Why should I mind? I’m not in a hurry, and I’m glad to leave the noise. Besides, you’re doing me a favor by taking me home.” Beth smiled. “And after all you
’ve told me about your little guy, I’m interested in meeting him.”
He grinned. “Good. We’ll get Chewy, settle him in at my house and then I can take you to your place.”
“Chewy sounds like quite the character.”
Dawg smiled. “Oh, he is. He’s like my kid. I hate to be deployed and leave him behind. But it’s my job.” He sighed. “In fact, we’re due to deploy three days from now. We haven’t been back long. I like to spend as much time as I can with Chewy before I leave again. Thankfully, Mrs. Doherty will be here for my guy while I’m gone.”
“You’re pretty dedicated to the little guy, aren’t you?” she said.
“I am. He needed me about the same time as I needed him,” Dawg’s smile faded. “We lost one of our teammates on a mission. I was feeling pretty low. Having someone to care for helped me stop feeling sorry for myself. I had something else to focus on besides my grief.”
“I get that,” Beth said quietly. “When my father died suddenly from a heart attack, I was inconsolable. Until my mother took me to get a puppy. Bitty helped me through that time. She was a good little dog.”
“What kind?” he asked.
Beth shrugged. “Poodle and something else. Mostly poodle with all her curly dark hair. We got her from a shelter. Someone had dumped her in a field. Thankfully, she was brought to the shelter soon after, and we found her there. She was with me through high school and came with me to college. Sadly, she passed away during my senior year. I joined the Army shortly after I graduated with my nursing degree.” She laughed. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to go on about myself.”
“No, I’m glad you did. I did all the talking in the bar and didn’t let you say much so that I could get to know you.” He grinned across at her. “I like that you like dogs. That says a lot about you.”
“Like what?”
“That you care about something or someone other than yourself.” He reached across the console and took her hand. “Thank you for being you.”
She squeezed his hand. “I don’t think I’d be riding with you now if not for all your talk about Chewy.”
He laughed out loud. “I see how it is. You like my dog more than you like me, and you haven’t even met him yet.”
Beth chuckled. “All your talk about your dog says a lot about you as a man. You have the ability to care about others, even small stray dogs.” Her gaze went to where their hands were joined.
Dawg thought she might pull free of his grasp, but she didn’t. Instead, she let him continue to hold her hand as she stared at the road in front of them.
He drove the rest of the way to his house, pulled into the driveway and parked the truck. “I hope Mrs. Doherty didn’t give up on me.” He came around to her side of the truck and helped her down.
When she was on the ground, he touched a hand to the small of her back, turned her toward the little house beside his, hurried to the front door and rang the doorbell.
The sound of a dog barking made him smile.
Beth smiled too. “I take it that’s Chewy.”
He nodded as the door opened and a small, white-haired woman who couldn’t be even five feet tall opened the door with a dog in her arms.
“Oh, good,” she said. “Chewy and I were just about to go to bed.”
“I’m sorry I was a little late, Mrs. Doherty,” Dawg said. “But I can take that little rat off your hands now.”
She hugged Chewy and held the wiggly creature out toward Dawg. “He was a perfect angel.”
Dawg cocked an eyebrow. “Chewy? An angel?” He snorted. “What did he get into?”
The old woman cackled. “My crochet yarn. He had it strung out all over the living room while I was making supper in the kitchen.” She shook her head. “I have to remember to puppy proof my house before he comes again.” Her white eyebrows rose. That’s in three days, isn’t it?”
Dawg nodded. “Yes. Are you still good for keeping Chewy?”
She nodded. “You bet.”
Dawg took Chewy from Mrs. Doherty’s arms, leaned in and gave the woman a peck on the cheek. “Thank you for taking care of the kid.”
She smiled. “Any time. I’m looking forward to having him for a few weeks.”
“Hopefully, that will be all it is for this deployment,” Dawg said.
“Don’t you worry if it’s longer,” Mrs. Doherty said. “We’ll get along just fine.”
“I appreciate that.” He hugged Chewy. “It makes me feel better knowing I can leave him with someone I know and who cares about him.”
The older woman reached out and patted the dog’s head. “Chewy and I are pals. You know I’m always here if you need someone to give him a forever home.” She grinned. “For however long that is.”
“You’re going to live to be more than one hundred years old,” Dawg said.
Mrs. Doherty snorted. “Sweetie, I don’t know if I want to live that long.”
“You might not want to live that long, but I sure would like it if you did.”
She reached up and patted his cheek. “You’re a good boy, Doug.”
He smiled. “Thank you. It’s nice to know someone cares.”
Mrs. Doherty yawned, covering her mouth. “Oh, my. Excuse me. My bed is calling. I’m not as young as you two are.” She reached out a hand to Beth. “And by the way, I’m Ruth Doherty. And you are?”
Beth chuckled. “I’m Beth Drennan. Dawg is giving me a ride home.”
The older woman squeezed Beth’s hand. “He’s nice like that. I’d throw my hat in the ring for him if I was a few years younger.” She winked.
Dawg winced, his cheeks heating. “Good night, Mrs. Doherty.”
“It was nice to meet you,” Beth added.
“You too, dear,” the older woman said. “And, please, be nice to my neighbor. He’s a good guy. You can’t go wrong with the boy.” She stepped backward into her house, smiled, waved and closed the door between them.
Dawg cupped Beth’s elbow and led her across the grass to his house. He pulled the keys from his pocket, inserted it into the door lock, turned the handle and opened the door.
Dawg switched on the living room light.
Chewy immediately wiggled so much that Dawg nearly dropped him.
Dawg set the Yorkie-chihuahua mix on the floor.
Chew scurried away, heading straight for the kitchen and his food bowl.
“He thinks every time his bowl is empty he’s going to starve to death.”
Beth chuckled. “A justifiable fear, considering where he came from.” She stepped through the door ahead of him.
Dawg closed the door behind him. “I’ll only be a minute. I need to fill Chewy’s food bowl and make sure he has plenty of water. “I know I’ll only be gone for a few minutes, but an empty bowl only adds to his separation anxiety.”
Beth smiled. “By all means, take care of you dog. I can wait. I’m not in a hurry.”
“Can I get you something to drink while you’re waiting. Coffee, tea a beer?”
She laughed. “No beer, please. Actually, a cup of hot tea would be nice. I’m surprised you keep tea on hand.”
He shrugged. “I never used to be a tea drinker until I deployed a few times and drank tea with the locals in country. I found it to be very calming.”
Beth nodded. “Me, too.”
“I’ll put the pot on stove. You can have a seat at the table…” When she continued to wander around his living room, his lips pressed together. “Or not.”
His kitchen, living and dining room was open concept.
As Dawg filled the teapot full of water, his gaze followed Beth’s movements as she walked around his furniture. He set the pot on the stove.
Being a bachelor, Dawg wasn’t much into fine home décor or room makeovers. What he had purchased for his house was purely functional. Couch, a coffee table he used as his dining table, a television propped up on concrete blocks and two-by-six planks of white pine. The only splash of color in the room was a crocheted pillow on one corner of
the couch.
When Beth’s gaze landed on it, she turned and grinned. “Mrs. Doherty?”
Dawg nodded. “It was a Christmas gift.”
“It’s lovely,” Beth said.
“Thank you,” Dawg said. “I’m kind of partial to it. So far, Chewy hasn’t chewed it up. He wasn’t quite as much of a puppy as I thought he was. I got him plenty of rawhide to chew on when he went through the baseboard chewing phase. He’s really a good little dog, other than the tendency to bark a lot.”
The dog in question stood beside his food bowl, looking up at Dawg expectantly.
“I know,” Dawg said. “I’m getting food.” He reached beneath the counter below the sink, pulled out a bag of dog food and shook some into the bowl. Dawg pulled a carton of chicken broth out of the refrigerator and poured it over the dog food.
Chewy sniffed the contents of the bowl, ate a couple of bites then crawled into is fuzzy dog bed.
Dawg glanced across to where she stood in the living room, a smile on her face.
“See?” Doug lifted his hands, palms upward. “It’s not that he’s hungry.”
“In this case, he’s not anxious. He’s food insecure,”
With a smile, Dawg tipped his head toward Chewy’s bowl. “He deserves to get the royal treatment.”
“He’s a lucky dog now that he has you.”
“And with Mrs. Doherty as backup,” Dawg added. “I’m fortunate to have her as a neighbor.”
“Yes, you are,” Beth said with a smile. “It’s like she’s Chewy’s grandmother.”
Dawg grinned. “That’s exactly how I feel. But then I feel like she’s my grandmother as well.”
Beth’s smile broadened. “She’s old enough to be.”
“Yes,” Dawg said. “But I don’t tell her that. It might hurt her feelings. Besides, you heard her…she’s sweet on me.”
“Yes, she is,” Beth said. “And she wants you to be happy. She warned me to be nice to you.”
Dawg’s eyes widened. “She did?”
Beth nodded. “Does she say that to all the ladies you bring home?”
He shook his head. “I’ve never taken a woman to meet Mrs. Doherty. In fact, I don’t bring women to my house. You’re the only one I’ve brought to meet her.”