Chapter 6 #2
“Pepper, definitely Pepper. Don’t you think?” Kelsey looked at Patrick for confirmation. Since most of the dogs’ names weren’t known, finding the right name for each of them was one of Kelsey’s top priorities.
Patrick gave the stocky Rottweiler another once-over before answering. “I think you’re right. Pepper suits her.”
“Then Pepper it is.”
They’d been outside for twenty minutes when Kelsey sank to the ground in a warm patch of sun at the far edge of the front yard, a spot nestled under the yard’s most enormous trees. Kelsey figured they had to be as old as the house.
The Rott had been super laid-back with Kelsey, and Patrick was seeing how she did with him.
Most animals seemed to pick up on the fact that he was a bit different.
Patrick had Asperger’s. He was brilliant but a bit quirky.
Most animals were comfortable around him from the start, though a few were skittish. Pepper seemed fine.
Kelsey crossed her legs and rubbed her calves, enjoying the feel of the grass beneath her.
She was wiped out from the intensive cleaning yesterday and from assembling the crates this morning.
When the laid-back Rottweiler noticed her on the ground, she pulled Patrick in Kelsey’s direction.
The Rott collapsed in the grass alongside Kelsey with a plop.
Since Pepper had trusted her enough to sit next to her, Kelsey decided to go with it, even if sitting on the ground beside a powerful dog who might still be wound up from an unstable past wasn’t the most responsible of ideas.
They sat together for several minutes. Pepper was content to lie still and have her ears rubbed. Her nubbin of a tail wagged contentedly.
Maybe she didn’t have much trust to reestablish with people after all.
Even as underweight as the dog was, Kelsey guessed she was at least eighty pounds.
She was thin for a heavyset Rott, but she hadn’t been starved.
The vet had put her at about five years old, and by a simple glance at her belly and the two rows of exposed teats, it was clear she’d had at least one litter already.
And, unlike many of the dogs, she didn’t have any visible scars.
“Maybe she was only bred and not fought. She seems so trusting of people,” Kelsey said.
“Most breeds that end up in the fighting rings were originally bred to have strong trust in their owners.” Patrick’s tone was matter-of-fact, but Kelsey knew it wasn’t because he didn’t care.
He just had difficulty connecting with his emotions.
He rarely got upset, but when he did, he immersed himself in a laborious project and didn’t stop until he was physically spent.
He was cute with his soft brown eyes and always disheveled hair.
He drove her nuts at times with his penchant for routine, but he was one of her favorite people.
“True.” Kelsey let out a sigh and forced thoughts of Pepper’s past out of her mind. Animals were often better than people at living in the present.
Mr. Longtail emerged from a thick hedge at the edge of the yard.
He headed toward the group with his tail erect and unusually fluffy.
Kelsey shortened the leash that Patrick had passed her way when Pepper sat down.
Pepper watched the cat approach with only mild curiosity, as though she’d been around cats before and knew they weren’t prey, which definitely wasn’t something you could say about many dogs.
To Kelsey’s surprise, the cantankerous cat walked right up to the Rottweiler and started to sniff, first the dog’s face, then her paws and down her side. Pepper did nothing more than wag her tail, after glancing Kelsey’s way as if in confirmation that this was okay.
“Well, she could easily be adopted into a house with cats,” Kelsey praised, patting her. She relaxed and resumed rubbing Pepper’s ears, which the dog seemed to really enjoy.
Finished with his sniff test, Mr. Longtail rolled onto his back and wiggled back and forth, marking his scent. Clearly, he didn’t mind that the dog next to him was practically ten times his size.
“I see why Sabrina Raven liked him,” Patrick said. “He’s not your average cat.”
Kelsey shook her head as Mr. Longtail stood up and strolled toward the back of the house without seeming to give them another thought.
“No, he definitely isn’t. And I’m no longer worried about him getting too stressed out by all the dogs.
He’s just so full of himself. He probably thinks they’re here for his amusement. ”
“Possibly.” Patrick watched the cat appreciatively before turning back to his Swiss Army knife. He was using the pair of microscissors to trim his nails. “Does the contract Megan signed tell which of you has more say? You or the handler?”
Kelsey’s brows furrowed. “No, but he does, I would guess. He’s the professional.”
“He’s letting it be your decision to keep Pepper.”
“I suspect he’s being courteous.”
Patrick pressed the scissors back into the thick knife and slipped it into a pocket in his pants. “You blush when you look at him.”
Kelsey stopped rubbing Pepper’s ear midway through a stroke.
Patrick had always been one to call things as he saw them.
And they knew each other too well for her to try to hide her thoughts.
“Back at the warehouse when I saw the shape one of the dogs was in, I pretty much threw up on his boots. And it’s obvious he thinks I’m not cut out for this.
He said as much this morning before you came. ”
Patrick frowned. “I thought it was because you two liked each other.” Patrick was twenty-six and seemed to have zero interest in a relationship of his own. It came as a surprise that he’d have even the remotest interest in her finding one.
Kelsey glanced at the house, a blush stinging her cheeks. She couldn’t see anyone through the open windows, but she was reassured that she and Patrick were too far away to be heard. “I’d have to be blind not to notice he’s good-looking,” she admitted, “but that’s as far as it goes.”
Having had her ears abandoned, Pepper let her head sink to the ground and licked her lips contentedly.
Patrick nodded but pursed his lips like he did when he disagreed but thought better than to say it aloud.
“Patrick, I appreciate your enthusiasm, but he and I are going to be working together for a few months. Anything like you’re suggesting could get, I don’t know, weird.”
“It was good for Megan to fall in love,” Patrick said as matter-of-factly as if he was stating that the sixty-five-degree day was refreshing.
A hearty laugh bubbled out of Kelsey, and it caught Pepper’s full attention.
The dog lifted her head and stared straight at her.
With more agility than Kelsey would have given her credit for, Pepper was on all four feet in a flash.
The hairs on the back of her neck ruffled as she stared Kelsey down.
Kelsey realized how naive she’d been to allow herself to remain so comfortable on the ground next to such a powerful dog with a possibly traumatic history. “It’s all right, girl,” she chanted, keeping her voice calmer than she felt. “It’s all right.”
Pepper took a step closer, and Kelsey dropped her gaze to her lap as she chanted the simple phrase. In the same calm voice, she added, “Don’t move unless you have to, Patrick.”
There was a flash, and Kelsey felt a warm, wet tongue swipe the length of her cheek. The relief that swept over her brought tears to her eyes. Patrick let out a sigh like a balloon deflating as Pepper inundated Kelsey with fresh licks.
Taking Patrick’s outstretched hand, Kelsey stood up and gave the dog a pat on the shoulder. She wiped her cheek dry with a shaky hand as Pepper shook her massive head, her collar jangling. “You’d almost think she’d never heard anyone laugh before.”
From the direction of the house, a door swung open. Kurt and Rob appeared on the stoop of the front door, frowning in Kelsey and Patrick’s direction. They’d seen what happened from the windows. Because of course.
Kelsey’s growing confidence about being a good fit for this rehab disintegrated. Now for sure Kurt had to think she was an idiot. And if Patrick had been harboring hopes of Kelsey making a love connection while here, they were probably vanishing into thin air too.
Everyone kept silent as Kelsey and Patrick walked Pepper toward Kurt and Rob.
When they got close to the house, Kurt said calmly, “Can we please agree to stay standing around the dogs until we know them better?” Now that she was closer, Kelsey could see two deep lines making a V across his forehead.
She wanted to sink into one of the dry cracks in the ground but instead locked her shoulders as they headed up to the porch. “We can if you can accept that I do know some things about dogs. I’ve worked in a shelter for seven years, and I haven’t misjudged a dog’s character yet.”
Color flashed above Kurt’s collar. As he opened his mouth, Rob placed a hand firmly on his shoulder.
“Of course you do,” Rob said, smiling congenially, “or none of us would be here today embarking on this rehab. Kurt, why don’t we walk them around inside and show them where we’ve placed the dogs?
Kelsey, we’ve set up our biggest kennel on the screened-in half of the porch for the Rottweiler.
And before I leave, we’ll go over the feeding schedule these dogs have been introduced to the last few days. ”
Kurt’s features softened a bit, and the lines disappeared from his forehead. Kelsey felt the muscles around her spine relax in response. Although something told her this wouldn’t be their only disagreement, she gave Rob a nod.
What on earth would happen when no one was around to play peacemaker?
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