Page 10 of Faking I Do
I cracked a grin at the thought of getting a glimpse at Lacey’s behind. “I’ll take full responsibility.” Arranging the belt into a loop, I took a few more steps closer to the dog. “Are you hungry, bud?” I held out a piece of venison jerky I found at the bottom of my pocket.
The dog sniffed the air and inched closer. Dried blood covered the poor thing’s muzzle. My stomach clenched. I’d seen more than my fair share of evil in the way men treated each other. But there was no excuse for mishandling an animal.
“There you go.” With the dog sniffing the piece of jerky, I slipped the belt around its neck. “We’re going to get you taken care of.”
I stood, walking the few feet back to Lacey with the dog on the makeshift leash.
“Poor thing. Who did this to you?” Lacey dropped down, her hands immediately going to the dog’s head. “We’ve got to get this tape off of him.”
“Her.” I pointed to the pup’s underside. “You’ve definitely got a little girl on your hands there. Hold on to her for a sec? I’ve got a first aid kit in the truck.”
Lacey took the belt, but it didn’t seem like she’d need to hold on too hard. The pup nudged her nose into Lacey’s cheek, her tail wagging like crazy. Looked like they’d both found a friend.
By the time I got the scissors and cut the tape holding the pup’s mouth shut, Lacey had given the animal a complete once-over. She’d also taken it upon herself to snag my huge water bottle and let the dog take a drink. I cringed as the dog covered the mouth of my stainless steel tumbler with quick, sloppy laps.
“We’ve got to get her to Zina’s. She can see if she has a chip and check her over.” Lacey stood from where she’d been running a hand over the dog’s side. “Looks like she’s in pretty good shape besides the obvious.”
“You’re in charge, Mayor Cherish.” I picked up my water bottle and pointed to the truck. “Should I assume she’s riding shotgun with you?”
“Absolutely.” The smile she gave me was worth having to sanitize my water bottle when I got home.
“Let’s go.” The dog didn’t have any problem hopping up into the cab. Once Lacey got settled, the pup climbed onto her lap and covered her face with kisses.
“Hey, cut that out.” She ran her hand over the dog’s head. “Where do you think she came from?”
My heart constricted. That was the million-dollar question. Ever since For Pitties’ Sake rescue had opened up outside of town a few years ago, they’d been inundated with stray dogs. And not just any kind of dogs. Pit bulls. “I wish I knew. Bestguess is someone decided she was getting too big and wanted to find a place to dump her.”
“But why tape her mouth shut? That’s inhumane.” The dog nudged her head under Lacey’s hand in a demand for more attention.
I swept my palm over the dog’s side, earning me a couple of licks. “I agree. Just once I’d like to get my hands on one of those bastards.”
“What would you do if you caught one?” She cocked her head, evaluating me with those big blue eyes.
The way she stared up at me, her eyes full of sass, made me wish Luke and I weren’t such good friends. There was no excuse for the kind of thoughts I was having about my best friend’s little sister. “Things I don’t feel comfortable describing in present company.”
“You think I can’t handle it?” She let out a huffy breath. “After all the time we’ve known each other, you still think of me as a weak little girl, don’t you?”
“What?” I scoffed. It would be best if I let her think that. Nothing good would come out of telling her how I really felt. I hadn’t thought of her as a little girl since she came back to town. Still, I kept trying to remind myself that the bombshell sitting next to me was off-limits. That she was the same annoying kid I’d been forced to tolerate while I hung out with her brother. Even if the sight of her made my pulse ratchet up and my palms sweat.
“I’m all grown up now, Bodie, and I don’t need you looking out for me.”
I pulled into the parking lot of the dog rescue and brought the truck to an abrupt halt. “I’m well aware of the fact you’ve grown.” Did she have to keep drawing my attention to that? How could I not notice the way her lanky limbs had given way to curves thatdidn’t end? Her smile had changed from a loopy, toothy girl’s to a seductive grin that was most definitely all woman.
“Well, fine, then.” She led the dog from the truck.
I caught up in time to open the door for her.
“I can open my own doors, you know.”
“Be my guest.” I let go of the handle. The door closed.
She let out an exasperated groan as she reached for the handle.
“What? Do you or do you not want me to open the door for you?” She was sending enough mixed signals that I’d never find my way out of the tiff we’d started.
As we stood arguing on the concrete pad in front of the building, a guy came up behind us. “Can I get the door for you?” He reached in front of Lacey and grabbed the handle.
“Thank you.” The smile she gave the stranger overflowed with charm.
