Page 106 of Giddy Up, Daddy

“Most people don’t.” She laughed and passed him a pen. “We take the health and safety of our babies seriously. We want the right to reclaim them if they are mistreated, and we definitelydon’t want to see any dumped at a shelter. If things don’t work out, they return to us, andwewill rehome them. That’s the only ethical way to breed.”

It made sense. “Yeah, I can see that.”

“Frankly… if we didn’t know you, and your ranch, we’d require more than just the contract.”

One eyebrow went up. “More than all this?”

“Oh yeah. We make home visits and vet every person who buys a dog from us.”

Sam let out a low whistle. “I mean, I don’t blame you. That’s a hell of a lot of work though. And these puppies aren’t cheap,”—He was still having sticker shock over the price—“but it doesn’t seem worth it.”

Jean’s mouth quirked up at one corner and she made an amused huffing sound. “We don’t do it for the money, obviously.”

Sam was wearing a silly grin as he got in his truck and headed for home. While the puppy was Charlie’s present, he couldn’t help realizing he was excited too. The next week flew by, and he had to keep stuffing down the urge to tell Charlie the secret.

Hiding it from her was distracting enough that he barely noticed she was still being shifty about her own surprise. He tried not to let it worry him. And he made a point of not trying to guess what she was up to— that was how trust worked. Still, Valentine’s Day couldn’t come soon enough.

Chapter Eight

Charlie was a bundle of nerves. Every day she worried that Sam would find some reason to go into the old garage. It was unlikely, of course. Unless his truck broke down, there would be no reason for it. But she worried anyway.

When Valentine’s Day finally arrived, she could barely contain her excitement. Holding back on the surprise had been so hard. Over and over she’d been tempted to drag him out back and show him.

For a change, he was still asleep when she woke. After five minutes of restless shifting, she realized that she wasn’t going to be able to get back to sleep. She turned over and shook his arm. “Sam. Sam wake up.”

Sam must have heard the urgency in her voice, because his eyes flew open. “What’s wrong?” He sat up quickly. His eyes darted around the dim room, looking for the emergency.

“It’s Valentine’s!” she blurted.

His eyes snapped back to her, and he frowned. “What?”

“It’s… it’s Valentine’s Day,” she repeated.

“Charlie… it’s still dark outside.”

She looked over at the heavy curtains and realized there wasn’t the slightest sliver of light showing yet. “Oh. I didn’t notice how early it was.”

He narrowed his eyes and flopped back on his pillow. “Sure you didn’t.”

“It’s true. I just woke up and…” She sighed. “Never mind.” She was quiet for a few minutes as she struggled to go back to sleep.

But the pillow was too lumpy. The blankets were too far on his side. The heater clicked on and the whooshing sound made too much noise. She turned from one side to the other trying to find a comfortable spot.

Her sighs grew more frequent and frustrated, until Sam finally groaned and reached over to turn the lamp on. He sat up and looked at her. “What’s going on with you, darlin?”

It seemed like he should understand her excitement, but of course he didn’t, because he didn’t know. “It’s Valentine’s Day, Sam.”

“Charlie, This ain’t Christmas. No one gets up before sunrise on Valentine’s Day, and if you think you’re getting your present while it’s still dark outside…”

“You got me a present?” She sat up. “What is it?”

“OfcourseI got you a present. Why wouldn’t I get my best girl a present on the most romantic day of the year?”

She’d been too focused on the gift she was giving him to even think about what he might have gotten her. “Oh, right. Well, that wasn’t what I was excited about.”

“Good, because you’re not getting it until this afternoon.” He fixed her with a stern look. “So, what’s got you so wound up that you can’t let me sleep?”

“Your surprise. I get to give youyoursurprise today,” she reminded him.

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