He loved it out here, away from the city. Up on the mountain or here at the ranch, nothing worse than a screeching hawk made him jump.
Sure was better working there than at that clinic in Denver. Being in the inner city those two weeks of renovations had been like being in a combat zone. Every car that backfired or door that slammed had him thinking they were under attack.
He willed himself to breathe. Just thinking about it set his heart to racing. A cold, wet tongue licked his fingers and he looked down to find a beautiful dog—one blue eye, one half blue, half brown—staring soulfully up at him. He smiled and crouched down beside it.
“Hey, beautiful! Where’d you come from?” The markings on the dog looked like a patchwork of browns around the eyes and silver and white throughout her body. A few black spots, to boot.
Luke answered. “We rescued her up in the old shed at Cassie’s old place after the fire—her and five puppies. Her name is Chance.”
“Hi there, Chance, you pretty girl.” He felt a peace come over him as he stroked the dog’s fur. Chance kept staring at him, as if trying to reassure him that everything was going to be okay.
He hadn’t been around pets much in a long time.
Megan joined him in loving on her. “What kind of dog is she?”
“Blue merle Australian shepherd, predominantly,” Luke answered. “Who knows what else, but she’s got the classic coloring and markings of an Aussie. They’re good herding dogs. She’s been helping us round up the alpacas at night. Good for companionship, too. When you guys move down…”
He stopped himself and glanced over at the sofa where Karla and Cassie were seated and lowered his voice. “Well, you can have pick of the litter if you’d like to keep one. I don’t think we need to keep all five of them.”
Angelina, who had been stirring a pot on the stove, must have overheard him. “Luke, can Marc and I take a look at the puppies? We’ve wanted to get a dog. Do you think these would enjoy hiking?”
“Sure. They love being outside. It’s all we can do to keep this one in the house,” he said pointing to Chance. “But Cassie had a talk with her and they reached some kind of agreement.” Luke glanced over at his wife again. “I know Cassie’s become attached to them all, but we already agreed that, as long as they go to the homes of our friends—and are spayed or neutered—we’re okay with adopting them out. You just have to give us generous visitation rights.” He grinned.
A dog. Ryder hadn’t thought about having one before, but the way this one put him at ease when he had been headed toward a mild panic attack just now made him wonder if having one might be a good companion for him.
Megan seemed to be on the same wavelength. “Where are the puppies?”
“In the bedroom. We’re trying to wean them from Chance, so be sure to keep the door closed.”
She took Ryder’s hand. “Come on. Let’s see if one speaks to us as strongly as this one has. I’m sure Chance is already taken.”
“Better believe it,” Luke said.
They walked into the bedroom and found two of the five puppies chewing on Luke’s boot. Those two might be more than they could handle. The other three were curled up together in a large dog bed lined with fleece. When he and Megan drew closer, one with mostly chocolate brown and white coloring poked its head up. With a distinctive brown mask around its eyes along with a streak down its nose, it reminded him of a bird kachina doll’s mask.
Seeing them, he or she stretched, yawned, and then gamboled over to them. Ryder picked it up, checked quickly underneath, and determined its sex.
“Female.”
“Oh, Ryder, she wants us to adopt her!” Megan scratched the puppy on the back of her neck. “She’s so soft.” The dog looked from one to the other and began licking Megan’s hand. She giggled. “I think she likes me.”
Ryder handed the puppy to her. “What’s not to love about you? Obviously she has good taste in mommies.”
Megan met his gaze as she nuzzled her chin back and forth against the puppy’s fur. Her eyes welled with tears. “Our own little furbaby.”
Ryder was struck by how peaceful this dog also made him feel, but clearly having a tiny creature to look after would be good for Megan, too. “We’re going to have to keep her out here until we move, though.”
“It won’t be long now. Can you believe how everything is working out for us here in Colorado?”
He really couldn’t. “I think it’s where we’re supposed to be. And helping Luke with his woodworking projects will keep me busy enough I won’t have time to worry about anything.”
“I’m so proud of you. Even when you were stuck in downtown Denver, you didn’t back down. But you shouldn’t have to go through any more projects like that.”
“Savannah helped a lot. She talked me down a few times.”
“She really is amazing. I wonder when they’ll get here.” When the puppy yawned and curled against Megan’s breast, he knew they had made the right decision about this one.
Megan’s face broke into a grin, and she leaned forward to kiss him. “Congratulations, Daddy, it’s a girl!” He couldn’t help but smile back seeing his girl so happy. “What should we name her?”
Ryder looked at her face again. “How about Kachina?”
“I love that! Distinctive and exotic, just like her.” She pressed her face against the sleeping baby and closed her eyes, like a madonna. Too bad his camera skills were nil, because that would have made an awesome photo. But he pulled his phone out anyway and snapped a few pics. Good thing the ringer was off and he didn’t disturb the moment.
“Can we have one, Maman?”
Damián answered. “You sure Boots will want to share you with a puppy?”
Ryder looked up as the three Orlandos came into the bedroom. Marisol dove straight for one of the puppies chewing on a boot. Good luck with that one, Damián. The man probably prized his biker boots as much as Ryder did his.
The mostly silver puppy quickly lost interest in the boot and jumped into the kneeling little girl’s lap. There were black spots on the back of that one. Marisol’s giggles were contagious.
“Is it a boy or girl, Daddy?”
Damián checked. “Looks like a girl. Runt of the litter, too, from what I can see, but she’s feisty enough.”
Marisol let the puppy play with the strands of her hair, teasing her. “I’m going to name her Chiquita. Isn’t that the perfect name, Maman, for my little girl?”
Savannah didn’t seem too thrilled with the name as she exchanged a horrified glance with Damián, but he just shrugged and grinned. Relaxing, she smiled and turned to her daughter. “Chiquita would be a fine name.”
“Come on, Marc. They’re going fast.”
* * *
“Tesoro mio, don’t worry. I’m sure there are still plenty to choose from.”
Angelina dragged him into the bedroom in her exuberance to see the puppies. She hadn’t been this excited since they had closed on a restaurant property in Breckenridge last month. He and Angelina had mentioned how it might be nice to have a dog—one that could watch over her when he was on a call or something—but he’d been thinking more along the lines of a full-grown, combat-trained Doberman or German shepherd. Not this little ball of fluff. Chance, the mother dog, seemed pretty laid back to him. Not exactly watchdog material.
One of the puppies bounded across the room to greet Angelina and she was soon on her knees scooping it into her arms. He pretty much figured that would be the one they’d be taking home to Aspen Corners.
Cute little thing. Had the markings of a wolf with its silver-gray and white. He joined them on the floor and the puppy fought to get to him for a little more loving. It probably didn’t weigh four pounds. Its eyes were blue like a husky’s.
When he held it to his face, it licked him. Not wanting to keep calling it “it,” Marc sexed it and found it to be male. Maybe that would bring out the dog’s protective nature.
Ah, shit. Nothing wrong with having a d
og just for companionship. One like this that had been abandoned and nearly died would surely appreciate a good, loving home.
Did dogs have abandonment issues the way Marc did? At least he and Angelina were working things out when they came up. No more secrets. No more shutting her out. Sometimes he fought the urge to run to the mountains to be alone, but he only had to remember that day ice climbing last February when he’d nearly gotten himself killed to know he didn’t need that kind of reckless behavior in his life. Sure, he’d still go ice climbing, but not alone.
Angelina had nurtured his soul back to life. He wanted nothing more than to spend the rest of his life with her.
Angelina smiled at him and cupped the puppy’s face. “He looks like a wolf.” He remembered the mask he had worn the night he met her and thought she was probably thinking the same thing.
Marisol interrupted their thoughts. “We read a book at school about a wolf named Lobo. That would be a good name.”
Marc smiled and nodded. Angelina turned to the little girl. “That would be a fine name. Thank you for helping us find the perfect one, bambolina.”
“I like helping find baby names. Maman, are you going to let me name the new babies when they come?”
The wistful expression on Angelina’s face told him he’d better be careful or she’d be walking down the aisle with a baby carriage at their wedding next June. He wasn’t ready to share her yet, well, with anything but this puppy. He’d almost lost her because of his insecurities. Obviously, he still had work to do in that area, but at least she was willing to put up with him.
Angelina glanced at Savannah and then Damián. “Are these wish-list babies, Savannah, or is there another reason to celebrate today?” Marc followed her gaze. He had assumed the little girl was talking about babies in a wishful way, but the couple exchanged a look that gave him the answer, even without saying a word.
Savannah turned to Angelina and smiled. “We’re due in late January. But there is only one anyone can find. Mari has it in her head she can just order up triplets like Grandpa’s and Gramm’s.”
Angelina abandoned the puppy and ran squealing across the room to give Savannah a hug. “I knew it! You’ve had a glow about you for weeks. Congratulations!”
Marc went over and picked up the lonely little Lobo as Luke and Cassie entered, hand in hand. He’d never seen his SAR partner happier. About time. The man deserved some happiness—and a second chance at love.
“What did we miss?” Luke asked.
Marc filled him in. “Three of your puppies have found new parents, and it looks like Damián and Savannah are going to add more than a new puppy to their family come January.”
Cassie followed Angelina in hugging Savannah while Luke patted Damián on the back. Cassie would probably be the next one pregnant judging by the way she had let down her defenses.
Adam carried two of the baby car seats into the room. “Time for some diaper changes. Whose turn in the barrel?”
“Oh, Adam, no one is going to volunteer to change our babies’ dirty diapers.” Karla followed him with the diaper bag and the third baby, this one wearing the Navy-blue sailor outfit he and Angelina had given them. Paxton. Good thing they color coordinated these kids or Marc would never be able to tell them apart.
“Nonsense,” Angelina said. “Let me have that precious little boy.” She took Paxton and laid him on the bed, going to work on the diaper like a pro. She was going to be a wonderful mother—when they were ready to start a family.
In a few years maybe. They had a lot going on in the next year. She’d soon be top chef in her own restaurant. Fortunately, she already had lined up two sous chefs from the culinary school she graduated from in Boulder. The three had been busy creating menus, testing recipes, and preparing for an opening early this fall, in time for the beginning of the busy ski season.
Knowing he wasn’t going to be seeing much of her anyway, he’d enrolled in a paramedic school. Being there to provide medical assistant to Savannah when she’d been kidnapped and taking care of her made him realize how badly he missed his Corpsman days. He’d start classes in a few weeks, both online and on-campus ones. Angelina’s brother, Rafe, said he could work with his department in an EMT capacity, too.
He seemed to be winning her oldest brother over incrementally. Man, he couldn’t screw up again with Angelina.
They were on the road to rebuilding trust and embarking on a life together. By the time their wedding rolled around, they would be more settled into their new lives and have time for each other again. Still, they were making the most of every moment they had tucked away in her cozy bungalow in Aspen Corners.
If her restaurant was successful, maybe they could talk about building their dream home in the mountains closer to Breckenridge. And if anything intruded on their commitment to each other, they would talk it over and re-evaluate their goals. Bottom line, they would be together.
He looked down at the puppy fast asleep in his arms. Maybe this furbaby would slow down the ticking of her biological clock, too. She’d spent so much time helping Karla and Adam with the triplets that he was sure she’d want to start a family right away—with or without a marriage ceremony.
“Oh, Adam, look! One of the puppies has latched onto your pants leg. I think she likes you.” Karla giggled and reached down to extricate the puppy and in its exuberance, it whined and licked at her face.
Marc grinned. “Looks like you’re only going to have one left, Luke and Cassie.”
Cassie glanced around the room and saw which ones had been claimed. “That leaves Suyana.”
Luke seemed surprised. “You named them already?”
“Not all of them. Just that one, oddly enough.” She reached down to pick up the still-sleeping one. Her cheeks were brown with black spots under her eyes, brown streaks above her eyes looking like bushy brows, and gray everywhere except each of her brown paws. “I guess it was meant to be. Suyana means ‘to hope’ in Quechua.” She met Luke’s gaze and smiled.
“Chance and Hope, huh? Sounds like we got to keep the best of the bunch, darlin’.”
He kissed her on the top of her head before announcing, “Now I don’t know about the rest of you, but I think we should head outside to potty the puppies and take care of them before we dig in on this feast. I’m starving and all that good food you all made is awfully tempting.”
“Sounds like I’m just in time.” In the doorway stood Grant. He hadn’t noticed her come in but had the feeling she’d been watching over the room for a while now. She’d long ago appointed herself as the guardian of the veterans in this room, anyway. But her protective net included their loved ones as well.
Cassie crossed the room to her, although not quite as enthusiastically as she had greeted some of the others. Did the Domme intimidate her? Did she know Grant’s role in the Masters at Arms Club now?
“Grant, we have found homes for all the puppies but if you want one, Luke and I could share Suyana.”
Grant stared at the puppy a long moment, but didn’t reach out to touch it. She finally shook her head. “No, that’s okay. With my travel schedule and running the club now, I wouldn’t be able to give the little fella enough attention.”
Dark circles under her eyes made Marc wonder if taking on running the club was more than she could juggle. He hadn’t been to the club in over a month—each of the owners tried to stop by at least that often. Distance and children and other priorities made it difficult, but they wouldn’t abandon the place. Grant had found a number of kinksters to help with the programming and the community in Denver needed a safe place to play. It also had become a hangout for other military men and women, who apparently had been drawn to it because the owners were all veterans.
But he had run into her at Gunnar’s dungeon, which was closer to Aspen Corners than was the club in Denver. Angelina’s little cottage didn’t have any place they could set up a playroom. Not that he didn’t find ways to explore kink with her. Her kitchen alone had a treasure tr
ove of pervertibles.
Grant and Gunnar had been working together on something covert that had involved a number of flights to Pakistan this summer. Patrick seemed to be involved on a regular basis now, as well. Marc had never asked Gunnar and Patrick for details about their trip to Pakistan last May. He had been too focused on winning Angelina back and uncovering what he hoped was the last piece of the puzzle that was his elusive past.
As Marc surveyed the room, he thanked God for these people. His family of choice. No matter what, they had each other’s backs and could pretty much handle anything life threw at them, as long as they stuck together.
Before they went outside, there was one bit of unfinished business. “Adam and Karla, you haven’t named your puppy yet.”
Karla glanced over at Adam who was changing Kate’s diaper. He asked, “Boy or girl?”
Karla started to look at the puppy in her hands but Cassie answered. “Oh, I just assumed a girl, but it’s a boy.”
They shared a look that told Marc they were remembering when Paxton had been born. Adam cleared his throat. “Kitten, you have any ideas?”
“I’m tapped out after naming all these babies.” She grinned.
Adam then turned to his granddaughter. “Marisol, what do you think?”
She placed her puppy in Savannah’s arms and, with a serious face, crossed the room to inspect the dog. After a moment, she turned to Adam and pronounced him, “Hero. Because he’s yours, Grandpa, and you’re an American hero like my daddy.”
To say Adam was poleaxed was an understatement. When he finally spoke, his voice was gravelly with emotion. “Thanks, pun’kin. Hero it is.”
What an honor. And fitting. Adam had seen this ragtag bunch through the bowels of hell and brought them home. Not just in Fallujah either. Both before and after. And he’d nearly died trying to save Marc’s brother, Gino. The man had been there for every single one of the people in this room probably and at least a dozen times for Marc.
Despite suffering great losses in his life, Adam never became bitter or lost his compassion for others. Sometimes he could be a little clueless, like when he let Karla get away last year. But, hell, the man soon figured out how much he needed her—and a lot faster than Marc had with Angelina.
Nobody's Dream (Rescue Me Saga #6) Page 68