Must Love Pets: A Romance Box Set

by Theresa Weir

  He pulled her into a warm, comforting embrace. “Don’t ever say that. I’m so glad I made it here in time and wish I’d been hours earlier.”

  Pulling back slightly so she could see his face, she said, “Maybe. But at least this way the guy is caught and I can stop looking over my shoulder.”

  Keeping an arm around her, Stuart locked up the front door and reset the alarms. “I can’t believe he was so slick as to get past the dogs, then come after you…well that’s more than scary…”

  He turned off the rest of the lights, and then led her to the stairs. “Although, if the dogs were sprayed, and weren’t in your room until the end, and you were locked in the bathroom, how’d he get bitten? He was screaming to get the dog off him, but in the chaos, I never did see which one he was screaming about.”

  Ninna laughed. “That was Mosey. He bit him on the butt. I owe him a big thank you for that.”

  Stuart gave her an odd look as they arrived at the spare room. He opened the door and stopped at the entrance. Frowning, he turned back to her. “Why don’t you sleep in my room tonight and I’ll sleep here? This isn’t a good place for you to be tonight.”

  She grimaced as she looked around. “No, you’re also tired. Besides, if I let the dogs sleep in here with me, then I won’t be scared. I’m more shook up now that it’s over.”

  Walking around the room, she realized she wasn’t afraid. “You know something. I will sleep here. Mosey is sure to join me, as will at least one of the other dogs. I’m so tired that I’m sure I’ll be fine.”

  At his lack of response, she looked at him curiously.

  “You appear to more comfortable around the dogs now. Is there one that you fell for the most?”

  She laughed. “Caught me out, did you? Well, to be honest, I found all of them to be friendly. But I did, against my better judgement, fall for that oversized basset hound.”

  An odd light came into his eyes, a tender smile whispered across his lips. “Really? Mosey, huh? Come here for a second, I have something to show you.”

  He led the way to his bedroom with all the dogs traipsing behind. Opening the door wide, he turned on the overhead light and pointed out a big painting on the far wall. “See that?”

  She walked closer and chuckled, shooting him a big grin. “That dog’s ego is already huge, why would you make it bigger by giving him a full-size portrait?”

  “Go closer.”

  She walked right up to it, loving the amazing detail. “The artist even got that look in his eye. This is perfect. Who painted it?”

  “My mother. She was an incredible artist. She passed away about seventeen years ago now.”

  Silence filled the room as she digested what he said. She frowned. “He doesn’t look that old.” She laughed. “Oh, I get it. The painting was of his sire?”

  Stuart, with a gentle look on his face, said, “No, it isn’t. Look at the plaque underneath.”

  Shooting him a confused look, Ninna leaned closer and read aloud, “Mosey, beloved friend to the Macintosh family. 1979-1994.”

  She spun around, confusion on her face, but inside shock, a dawning horror, and an inkling of understanding filtered in. Leaning against Stuart’s leg, Mosey sat in his half-slouched position, his jowls hanging much the way she’d first seen him at the Center—laughing at her.

  “Am I crazy?” She took a deep breath and added, “He’s slouched at your left side.”

  Stuart smiled, a touch of melancholy on his face as he looked down. “He was my dog, you know. I’ve always wanted to see him, but since his death, only a few special people have had the privilege.”

  She swallowed hard. Yes, she’d finally connected the dots, but this was no time for assumptions. Not when she’d gone through years of therapy and medications for something similar. Had everyone been wrong?

  “Death?”

  “Yes. You’ve been seeing Mosey’s ghost, my dear. And if you’re really lucky, he’s been talking to you.” At the stunned guilty look on her face, he laughed, “He has been, hasn’t he? Apparently he has a colorful turn of phrase.”

  Ninna could only nod as she tried to process the information. She didn’t have an overactive imagination. She wasn’t crazy. Maybe she’d never been crazy? Mosey had existed and apparently, according to more people than just her, he still did. A funny sound escaped.

  With a big grin, Stuart said, “How perfect that you, who’ve never had anything to do with animals and was scared to look after a couple of them, have been honored by the presence of my beloved old pet and best friend.”

  Ninna’s stunned gaze went from Mosey, to Stuart and back to Mosey.

  Mosey opened that huge jowly mouth and spoke as loudly as she’d been speaking to Stuart—as clear as a bell.

  Boo, now I see you—and finally, you see me!

  Then he re-formed those crazy skin folds and flashed that huge grin at her.

  Gravy?

  -THE END-

  Author’s Note

  Dear Reader,

  Thank you for reading It’s A Dog’s Life! If you enjoyed this book, you might enjoy Broken Protocols, book 1 of the Charmin Marvin novella series.

  About Broken Protocols:

  Dani’s been through a year of hell, and then she’s tossed forward through time with her orange Persian cat, Charmin Marvin, clutched in her arms. They’re dropped into another century, the gift from one brother to another.

  And then it gets worse. The one brother is smoking hot, their secret gets out…putting everyone in danger…and her cat is talking and doesn’t know when to shut up.

  Cheers,

  Dale Mayer

  About the Author

  Dale Mayer is a prolific multi-published writer. She’s best known for her Psychic Visions series. Besides her romantic suspense/thrillers, Dale also writes paranormal romance and crossover young adult books in several different genres. To go with her fiction, she also writes nonfiction in many different fields with books available on resume writing, companion gardening and the US mortgage system. She has recently published her Career Essentials Series. All her books are available in digital and print formats.

  Books by Dale Mayer

  Young Adult

  Family Blood Ties Series

  Vampire in Denial – Free

  Vampire in Distress

  Vampire in Design

  Vampire in Deceit

  Vampire in Defiance

  Family Blood Ties Trilogy: Books 1-3

  Design series

  Dangerous Designs – Free

  Deadly Designs

  Darkest Designs

  Designs Series Trilogy

  Stand-alone

  In Cassie’s Corner

  Gem Stone

  Adult Books

  Psychic Vision Series

  Tuesday’s Child – Free

  Hide’n Go Seek

  Maddy’s Floor

  Garden of Sorrow

  Knock, Knock…

  Rare Find

  Psychic Visions Set, Books 1-3

  By Death Series

  Touched by Death

  Haunted by Death

  Second Chances…at Love Series

  Second Changes

  Broken Protocols – A Charmin Marvin Series (Romantic Comedy)

  Broken Protocols

  Broken Protocols 2

  Other Books

  Romance x3: An Anthology

  It’s a Dog’s Life

  Sian’s Solution – a Family Blood Ties short story

  Riana’s Revenge – a fantasy short story – Free

  Connect with Dale Online

  http://www.dalemayer.com/

  https://www.facebook.com/DaleMayer.author

  To be informed of new releases and special offers, sign up for Dale Mayer’s newsletter.

  Dale’s Amazon Author Page

  Christmas at Angel Lake

  Rescued Hearts, book 2

  by

  Edie Ramer

  A kitten saved her…
>
  Broke, pregnant and deserted by her boyfriend, Maddie Barrymore swerves to avoid a kitten while driving in a Wisconsin blizzard—and her life takes another turn. Like Puss in Boots, she stays in an empty house. She has the baby, the kitten, gets a job and a degree…yet every day she’s ready to flee if the real owner shows up.

  Five years later, he does…

  Dumped by the woman he loves, film producer Logan MacLeesh’s heart is as dark as one of his movies. He plans to hole up in his grandmother’s old mansion and throw himself into his work…until he discovers the sexy squatter and her four-year-old son. Before he can call the sheriff, Maddie’s tale of how she ended up there entertains him. They make a deal that as long as she tells him a story every night, she and her son can stay. Even the cat, though Logan’s always been a dog person.

  A dog in need of saving…

  Far away in another state, a homeless dog lifts his head, sniffs…and smells him. The human who’s meant for him. As he heads through the snow toward the scent, his journey seems impossible, even though it’s Christmas, a time when miracles happen.

  Chapter 1

  Maddie Barrymore was lost—in more ways than one.

  She squinted out the window of her beat-up Ford as the wipers swished back and forth, the snow piling up on the sides of the windshield. She should be turning into her sister Kris’s driveway right about now, but she’d missed the expressway exit then needed to figure out where she was. Her cell phone wasn’t working here, and when her boyfriend had slithered out of their Chicago apartment while she was waitressing, he’d taken with him everything of value, including her GPS system.

  Her grip tightened on the steering wheel. Later, she would beat herself up over her lousy choices in men. Right now, she had to concentrate on driving through a near blizzard. Snow-blanketed trees lined the winding road, and she was thankful that at least Kris and her family lived in a city, though its biggest business was a furniture company that made people and cat furniture.

  Wonderful. She was moving from a city almost as well known for its cultural center as its crooked politicians to a city known for cat furniture.

  And she’d never been that crazy about cats. Except kittens, of course. Something about their small bodies and big, needy eyes and—

  A tiny animal darted in front of her car. Her instinct was to slam down on the brakes, but at the last moment, she held back, her booted foot light on the brake pedal. The car swerved toward the animal instead of away from it. As if her thought about cats had conjured it, she thought it was a kitten.

  Every muscle in her body rigid, she jerked her foot off the brake and turned the wheel slightly, praying beneath her breath, “Please, don’t hit it. Please, please, please.”

  The car glided into the driveway that had been hidden by shaggy, snow-covered bushes, and she didn’t feel any bump.

  “Thank you,” she whispered, pressing gently on the brake again.

  Instead of stopping, the car slid toward the ditch at the edge of the driveway. The front tire on the driver’s side dipped into the ditch—and then dipped in farther. As the car tilted to a forty-five-degree angle, she held her breath and clutched the steering wheel.

  The car stopped and shuddered. Maddie’s breath shuddered, too. Her movements jerky, her left shoulder squashed against the driver’s door, she put the car into park, pulled the keys out, then took her shaking, mittened hands off the steering wheel. They still shook as she released the seat belt. And they shook as she slowly lifted her butt over the stick between the two seats—a feat that required twisting her body into the air at awkward angles and leaning on one foot.

  She made it to the other seat then tumbled out of the car, falling to her knees in a foot of snow while icy pellets stung her face. She scrambled up…and saw the small cat, ginger and white, at the edge of the road. Not just a cat, either. A kitten. And if she was clenching her teeth to keep them from chattering, the kitten must be nearly frozen.

  “Don’t run away.” Her voice quivered from the cold, each word showing in white puffs. “I’ll take care of you.”

  The kitten meowed, the sound high and sad, and Maddie didn’t want to think of what had happened to the animal’s mom or brothers and sisters. Maybe they were safe somewhere, and this little one had wandered off and gotten lost.

  “I won’t hurt you.” She crouched and scooped the kitten up. It wiggled in Maddie’s mittens. Though she’d just gotten out of the car, the yarn was already damp with snow.

  Holding the kitten with one hand, she slid down her oversized zipper and snuggled the kitten down beneath her jacket and her sweater, feeling the cold, snow-covered fur on her breasts. She shivered again but kept an arm against her coat, using it as a shelf for the shivering kitten.

  “Let’s see if someone at the house can help,” she said, feeling doubtful as she gazed at the unplowed driveway. But the snow had come down so quickly. Maybe a plow would come later. She’d come from a military family. Being raised in temporary homes the first twelve years of her life—before the loose ties of her family had finally unraveled—she didn’t know a lot about long driveways that needed to be plowed.

  But one thing she did know about was making do. And facing the enemy. And going forward, one step at a time.

  She took that step—then heard a sharp honk.

  She whipped around, squinting at the SUV stopped across the end of the driveway, the window rolling down. Cupping her hand over her jacket to steady the kitten, Maddie headed toward it, moving carefully on the slippery surface. She couldn’t fall. It might hurt the kitten.

  “I hadn’t heard anyone was staying here.” A woman peered out of the car’s open window, her eyes bright with curiosity. She looked to be in her early fifties, with short, curly, brown hair, puffy cheeks, a double chin, and skin the color of light chocolate. “Is something wrong with your chest?”

  “It’s a kitten,” Maddie said. “I slid into the ditch trying to avoid her. She was freezing, so I put her inside my jacket.”

  “You must be a cat lover.” The woman beamed at her, so Maddie gave a weak smile. The first rule of waitressing—if you wanted to be tipped well—was to let the customer believe what she wanted to believe.

  “My cell phone won’t work here,” Maddie said. “I need to have my car towed—”

  “I’ll call Dexter to tow it out. My husband. Were you in the house yet?”

  “No, I just— Ouch.” She looked down, as if she could see through her jacket, at the skin where the kitten had just pricked her.

  “You have suitcases?” the woman asked. Not waiting for Maddie’s answer, she said, “Get them, and I’ll drive you and the kitten to the house. Thank God the heat is on to keep the pipes from bursting, though Dexter doesn’t understand why the owners just don’t turn off the water. You’ll have to put the temperature up. We keep it at fifty-eight degrees in winter.”

  Maddie stared at her. She should be telling the woman she wasn’t staying here, but the words were stuck in her throat.

  The woman laughed heartily. “I’m Alma Young. Dexter and I are the caretakers.” She swept her hand out at the long drive. “I wish the law firm had warned us that you were coming. Dexter would’ve plowed instead of waiting for the snow to stop.” Her cheerful expression changed to a scowl. “We did get the notice that the firm is changing its name, merging with another one. I got the feeling it’s a big shake-up, and anything we do here is just small fish. Dexter thinks they ignore everything we send them anyway. If something needs to be repaired now, he lets them know, gets it fixed, then sends them the bill. It only happened twice so far, and the owner is lucky we’re honest. That’s all I’ve got to say.”

  “Oh, but—”

  “How long are you staying? I hope it’s a while. Four years is too long to leave a house empty.”

  “Four years?” Maddie’s teeth chattered.

  “You’re freezing, and I’m keeping you standing in the snow, yakking your ears off.” The woman held out her hand
s in fuzzy purple gloves. “Give me the cat and get your suitcases. If the snow gets any higher on the driveway, even my SUV will get stuck.”

  Maddie’s mind seemed to be as numb as the tip of her nose. Instead of protesting, she obeyed her as if she were a robot.

  As if she was really going to stay in the house.

  The house where no one lived.

  She hurried to the car, but carefully again, not wanting to fall. She couldn’t afford to injure herself now. She shouldn’t be doing this, taking advantage of the woman’s misconception, but who would it hurt if she stayed here a few days?

  Maybe stay a week or two. At least until after Christmas before moving into the unfinished basement of her very pregnant sister’s small house. Give her time to think of some way to take care of herself without imposing on her sister and brother-in-law and their two-year-old daughter.

  Praying that the car wouldn’t tip onto its side, she opened the trunk and pulled out a big suitcase and a medium-sized one. Her furniture was in a consignment store in Chicago. That left her life in these two suitcases.

  She threw them in the back of the SUV then climbed into the front seat. In Chicago, she wouldn’t get into a car with a stranger, but this wasn’t Chicago. It was snowing heavily. Her phone wasn’t working. Her car was stuck in a ditch. And she had a kitten that needed a home.