Chapter Thirteen
The overhead bell of the café jingled when Josh guided Raider, followed by Katie, inside.
After the recent experience at the pharmacy, he expected the dog to be exhausted.
Instead the animal seemed to be energized by having finally done something besides just lie around.
Raider’s ears were up, his nose twitching at the mouthwatering scents—or perhaps searching for another job.
“Well, well.” Agnes appeared from behind the kitchen partition, wiping her hands on her apron, her eyes going straight to Raider. “I could kiss you, sweet boy.”
Josh’s eyebrows shot up.
“Don’t look so surprised. He’s our new local hero.” Agnes leaned over and scratched behind the dog’s ear. “I bet we can find something special for you in the kitchen.”
“How did you—”
Shaking her head and making a small tsking sound, Agnes cut him off.
“Mildred McEntire.” At his and Katie’s blank stare, she straightened and smiled.
“Sorry. Mildred is our modern version of town crier. She was at the pharmacy filling a prescription when poor Luke had his meltdown. He’s a sweet boy, but when he loses it, he really loses it.
Everyone was doing their best to help, but this guy was the only one who could make a difference. ”
Beside him, Katie shifted her purse strap higher on her shoulder, looking both amused and slightly overwhelmed by small-town communication speeds.
“Katie!” Jackie’s voice rang out from a booth near the back. She waved both arms. “Over here!” Her husband Garret sat beside her, already setting his menu aside, his teacher-calm expression firmly in place.
Waving back at her friend, Katie led the way to the table, having to stop at every other table as one patron or another felt the need to praise Raider.
To Josh’s surprise, the dog that had been so hesitant and withdrawn when they first met, didn’t seem at all distressed or leery of all the humans fussing over him.
As a matter of fact, Josh was willing to bet the dog was enjoying every minute of his lovefest. Talk about a full recovery.
At the booth, Josh hesitated beside Katie, his gaze darting to the empty bench seat and then over to where Jackie and Garret sat smiling up at them.
For a second he considered bailing, claiming Raider was too worn out.
That would be safer than sitting this close to Katie.
Before he could do or say anything, Katie slid into the booth first. Sucking in a slow breath, he slid in beside her.
At his feet, Raider settled in with a heavy sigh.
Right about now, Josh understood exactly how the dog felt.
“Look at you.” Jackie beamed down at the dog. “Already a town hero and you’ve only been here, what, two weeks?”
“Something like that.” Josh’s hand dropped automatically to scratch behind Raider’s ear.
Garret nodded toward the dog. “Kade mentioned Raider was injured in an explosion. Looks like he’s healing up pretty well.”
“Better than I’d expect.” An odd sense of pride in the dog’s progress blooming inside him.
“You seem to be doing better too.” Jackie reached over and took hold of her husband’s hand.
“Mm.” Josh nodded. The last thing he wanted was to get into the uncertainty still rumbling around in the back of his mind.
Yes, his balance felt better. Yes, he was able to nod his head, though shaking still made him feel a little off kilter, but right now he was more than a little confused about what his future held. What did he want it to hold?
“Much better.” A wide smile on her face, Katie looked at him and he had an overwhelming urge to grin back—so he did.
For just a moment, their gazes locked, lingered, and Josh found himself forgetting all about his vertigo, the dog, the kid with the meltdown, his career, his doubts, and had to stop himself from taking hold of her hand much the way her friends across the table had their fingers laced together.
At his feet, Raider’s tail began to sweep the floor. Josh glanced down at the dog eyeing the kitchen door like he knew good things came from that direction.
Sure enough, another few seconds and Agnes appeared through those doors and came straight to their table. “Hope this is okay.” She held up a large soup bone.
Raider sat up, his muscles shaking with interest, but his training and control showing through as his gaze darted from the bone to Josh, silently waiting for the next signal.
Not waiting, Agnes stepped closer to the dog and table and nudging Josh’s shoulder, urged him over so she could sit at the edge of the booth. Bending over, she cradled the dog’s head with one hand before feeding him the bone with the other.
His tail slowed and his eyes met Josh’s. No matter how inviting, the dog was not going to take the bone until Josh gave the orders.
Katie leaned into him, her voice low, her breath warm against his neck. “Looks like you’re his person now.”
If he could think straight with her so close to him, he might have argued, or agreed. As it was, all he could manage was a nod at the dog with a slight gesture to take the proffered bone.
“That is one well trained dog. Good boy.” Smiling, Agnes patted the top of the dog’s head and pushed to her feet. “I’ll be back to take your orders in a minute.”
It took everything in Josh not to call for Agnes to come back and sit down so he could remain close to Katie just a little bit longer. Instead, he wondered how much trouble might he be in if he opted to simply stay pressed against Katie instead of shifting back to his original place on the bench.
With a silent sigh and a world of regret, he shifted, picked up his menu, and decided hiding from his life and Katie was futile.
Good or bad, like it or not—and he most definitely was absolutely liking it—he was also most definitely falling for Katie Lawford.
And like it or not, he needed to do something about it. But what?
By the time they pulled through the Sweet Ranch gate, Raider was asleep in the back seat, bone still clutched proudly between his paws like a trophy.
The animal had certainly earned his nap.
Another few minutes and Raider actually led the way into the house, straight to the guest wing and his food and water.
“Here’s your hat, what’s your hurry,” Alice teased as the dog strolled past her. “Maybe I won’t give him the pupcake I baked.”
“Pupcake?” From the way Josh’s whole face crumpled, he most likely had no idea what the woman was talking about.
Anyone else that expression would have made him look downright foolish, but all Katie could do was smile. On him it was rather…endearing.
“I heard what he did today for young Luke,” Alice continued, “so I baked him a doggie approved cake.”
“Ah,” Josh nodded, “pupcake.”
“That’s it.” Alice grinned.
“News travels fast around here, doesn’t it?” Katie had heard more than one story about the Honeysuckle grapevine, but this was her first experience in a front row seat.
Cassie shook her head, biting back a laugh. “Oh, you have no idea.”
“From what I hear,” Alice filled a tea kettle, “Mildred says the dog was downright heroic. No one else knew what to do with Luke, no one could find his lost lovie, but Raider stepped right in and calmed the boy down.”
“Pressure therapy,” Josh mentioned softly.
“What?” Alice asked.
“Oh, sorry. What the dog did is called pressure therapy. It’s not uncommon for autistic children.”
At the sound of toenails tapping, Katie’s gaze turned to Raider coming into the kitchen and plopping down at Josh’s feet. “Do they train military dogs to do pressure therapy?”
“Not that I know of.” Josh shook his head. “But German Shepherds are exceptionally smart dogs. Maybe for him it was just instinct.”
“Like the way they always position themselves between their people and the door,” Alice added. “Best way to protect the family.”
Josh nodded. “Something like that.”
“Guess he’s almost ready to go back to work.” Cassie took a seat at the table.
“Not in the military.” Josh reached down to scratch the dog’s ears, smiling sweetly.
Katie wondered if he realized how far over he was leaning and showing no signs of dizziness before dragging her thoughts back to what he’d just said. “Why not?”
“Even though he’s recovering,” Josh straightened in his seat—still no sign of dizziness, “an injury like his means medical discharge from the army. He can’t be deployed again and restricted duty is hard to find for a K9.”
“I see.” Her lips pressed into a thin line, her eyes shifting between him and the dog, she merely nodded, considering not for the first time how alike the dog and man were.
For Raider it was a given he would be retired from the military, for Josh, well, that question was still up in the air.
Or was it? Maybe he already knew his destiny.
“Then maybe he could be a therapy dog?” Alice stared at the dog in deep concentration.
Josh nodded. “That’s what I’ve been considering ever since the incident was over and the little boy hugged the stuffing out of the dog.
I’ve worked with a lot of handlers and K9s.
While I’m no Kade, if I’ve learned anything all these years, it’s to recognize a good dog when I see one, and Raider is most definitely a good dog. ”
“Maybe we could do some training tests,” Katie turned to Josh, “the way you and Kade did with Brady, to see if Raider would be a good candidate?”
Before Josh could respond that he’d need help from Kade, the overhead light flickered once, capturing everyone’s attention, and then again before sparking and leaving them in total darkness.
“Oh my.” Katie’s hand reached over and clutched at Josh’s arm.
For a heartbeat, no one moved. Then Alice’s voice cut through the sudden darkness. “Well. That’s not ideal.”
Katie blinked, waiting for her eyes to adjust. Moonlight filtered through the kitchen window, casting everything in shades of gray.
“Generator should kick in any second,” Alice said.
They waited. Sure enough, a distant hum started up, and the refrigerator shuddered back to life. But the overhead lights stayed dark.
“Fridge is on the generator,” Alice explained, already moving toward the pantry. “Lights aren’t. Give me a second.”
Katie heard rustling, then the soft glow of a flashlight beam swept across the floor.
“Here we go.” Alice emerged with two gas lamps and a handful of candles. “Josh, can you light these? Matches are in the drawer by the stove.”
He stood carefully, feeling his way along the counter.
Katie rose to help, their hands brushing as they both reached for the matchbox. “Sorry,” she whispered.
“Don’t be.”
The first match flared, and Josh lit one of the lamps. Warm light bloomed across the kitchen, softer and more intimate than the overhead bulbs had been. He lit the second lamp, then started on the candles Alice had scattered across the table and counters.
“There.” Alice surveyed her work with satisfaction. “Much better than fumbling around in the dark.”
Katie had to agree. The flickering glow made everything feel different—quieter, more peaceful. Like they’d stepped into a different time.
Reaching for one of the flashlights, Josh looked to Alice. “I’ll check the breakers. Where’s the panel box?”
“On the side of the house. Out the guest wing door, turn right. Only a few feet ahead.”
“I’ll come with you.” Katie jumped to her feet. Not that she’d have a clue what to do with an electric panel, but…
Josh nodded and stretched his arm out, his fingers splayed in invitation.
Forcing herself to breathe steadily, she accepted his hand and almost forgot how to walk.
“While you two are checking the breakers, I’ll call Clint.” Alice reached for her cell phone. “Make sure the barn’s okay and the water tanks are still working.”
As if summoned by sheer will, the back door opened and Clint came in. “Glad to see the house generator is working.” Stepping softly, he sidled up to Alice and gave her a quick peck on the lips, softly speaking, “You okay?”
Alice smiled up at him, her face softer than it had been with them. “Not my first blackout.”
“No.” He chuckled and kissed her on the tip of her nose.
“We’re on our way to check the breakers.” Josh gently squeezed her hand and Katie would have sworn in a court of law that all reasonable thought, including her own name, just leaked out her ears.
“Great. I’ll grab a flashlight and head out to make sure the barn generator is working and check the water pumps. If it turns out to be the breaker box, I’ll be back.”
With one more quick kiss, Clint turned and walked out the back door as they walked down the rear hall.
Content to have her hand held tightly in Josh’s, Katie didn’t mind admitting that if it meant getting to hold Josh’s hand, she’d be perfectly happy if the lights never came back on.
This was so not what she had expected from her visit to ranch country—seriously not what she’d expected.