Page 59 of Love At The Shore
He held up a finger and disappeared back inside for a few minutes while she waited. Once Tank was all decked out in his shell collar and Lucas had put on a fresh hoodie and pair of board shorts, he clipped the leash to the dog’s collar and walked him outside to meet Ally.
“Come on, boy.”
Tank practically strutted to the patio. He’d started looking forward to his morning walks with Ally. It was cute, albeit somewhat surprising, considering that Lucas still heard her peppering Tank with commands as they disappeared over the dune every morning.
Ally lit up with excitement when she saw them coming, and Lucas couldn’t help but smile. Warmth filled his chest as Jenna’s words from the night before came back to him.
She really likes you. They both do.
He pushed the screen door open, ignored Ally’s outstretched hand and stepped out onto the deck.
“Wait.” Ally glanced down at Tank and then back at Lucas. “Where are you going?”
“I thought I’d tag along today, if that’s all right with you?”
She gasped and then beamed at him. “Are you kidding? Yes!”
“Here you go.” Lucas handed her the leash. Tank followed the transfer with a swivel of his furry head. “Lead the way.”
“Awesome.” Ally skipped down the stairs with Tank bobbing faithfully alongside her.
They crossed the dune over the worn path where the sand was loose, surrounded by sea oats swaying in the gentle morning breeze. The ocean was crystal clear, bright and shimmering. At this early hour, the only other people on the beach were serious runners and fishermen looking for a morning bite.
Lucas followed Ally’s lead as she turned toward the quieter end of the island, where most of the sea turtles typically came ashore to build their nests and lay eggs. The sand farther up near the dune was marked in spots with wooden stakes and bright yellow tape, protecting the places already visited by nesting turtles. Come autumn, the beach would be crawling with tiny, fragile hatchlings making their way to the sea.
Now, all was quiet, save for the gentle swish of the waves coming ashore and Tank panting softly at the end of his leash.
“Mind telling me where we’re going?” Lucas asked.
“Right here.” Ally stopped near an empty wooden swing facing the water. “Sit down. It’s his favorite spot.”
As far as Lucas knew, Tank had never batted an eye at the swing before. But he was willing to give it a go. “Okay.”
“It took him a while to warm up,” Ally said.
Warm up for what?Lucas lowered himself onto the swing and nudged it into motion with his foot. “He’s not really a morning dog. Or a trick dog, for that matter.”
Ally smirked, then pointed at Tank and said, “Sit.”
Tank obediently plopped his rear on the ground in a perfect sit position.
Lucas’s mouth dropped open, and before he could recover from the shock of what he’d just seen, Ally kept going.
“Shake.” She held out her hand and placed his paw in it.
It was astounding…and one of the cutest things Lucas had ever seen.
Ally wasn’t finished though, because of course not. She wasn’t the kind of kid to do things halfway. If Lucas wasn’t careful, she’d probably have Tank whipping up chocolate chip cookies.
“High five,” she said, and Tank dutifully obeyed.
Ally stood primly, head tilted just so, as she shot Lucas a look that said,See?
He stared at his own dog, bewildered. “That’s amazing.”
“He just didn’t know what he was missing.” She bent and gave Tank a scratch behind his ears, then she pranced in a happy circle while the pup scampered and leapt after her.
So it was as simple as that. Tank had been set in his independent doggy ways, perfectly content on his own, until a relentless charmer moved in next door and turned his life upside down.
