LITMIR.BIZ

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of that.”

      The way she said Richard startled Andy. There was a warmth in it, as if they were more than simply acquaintances. Dr. Payne never talked about his private life.

      Before any more thoughts flickered through her mind, she was herded into the ranch house. A dog was at the window, watching. He didn’t move until they were all inside and Karen said, “Joseph, say hello.”

      The dog approached obediently. He was medium size where she had expected a larger animal. Maybe a German shepherd. But this dog more resembled a small Lassie; his coat appeared woven of shades of tan and black and gray. He had blue eyes that regarded her as cautiously as she expected hers were.

      “Joseph?” Karen said again.

      The dog held up his paw.

      Andy took it gingerly. The fur was soft, and the dog’s gaze seemed to reach inside her and ask questions she couldn’t answer. Then his tongue flicked out and licked her hand.

      “He likes you,” Karen said. “It took much longer for Adam to win a kiss.”

      Andy found herself petting the dog.

      “Try behind his ears,” Karen said. “That and his stomach are his favorite places.”

      Andy followed the advice and with her good hand rubbed behind the dog’s ears. Joseph turned on his back and bared his stomach. She rubbed it, stopped when she heard a rumbling noise.

      “That’s a groan of pleasure,” Karen said with a smile.

      “You sure about that?”

      “I’m sure.”

      Andy went back to rubbing his stomach before straightening up.

      “You think he will do?” Karen asked.

      Andy stood and Joseph sat in front of her. She hesitated. Joseph lifted the same paw that he had before and looked expectant.

      “He’s accepted you. Now it’s up to you,” Karen said. “He’s a smart dog, one of the smartest I’ve trained, and that says a lot. He had to be to survive. If you feel through the fur, you’ll find scars. He’s had some rough times. Some hikers found him badly hurt in the mountains. They assumed he’d been dumped by someone and had a run-in with wild animals. One of the hikers, a donor to this program, took him home, but he already had several dogs.

      “He called me,” Karen continued. “Said Joseph had a natural empathy that makes him ideal for our purposes. If you have a nightmare, he knows to wake you up. He will remind you when it’s time to go to bed. Panic attack? He will physically interrupt you and redirect the panic.”

      Andy was stunned. She had read about dogs and vets but hadn’t realized exactly what they did. “All of that?” she asked dubiously.

      “And more. He can find and locate objects, like your shoes, or your phone or keys. In other words, he can pretty much do anything you want to teach him to do.”

      Andy found it hard to believe he could do all that. But if he just interrupted the nightmares, she would be grateful.

      “I know it’s hard to believe,” Karen said, “but it’s really remarkable what these dogs can do.”

      “Dr. Payne said they are free. How can you do that?”

      “I have sponsors. Dr. Payne is one of them. But there’s others, including area veterinarians who donate their services. I do it because my son had PTSD, only it wasn’t recognized like it is now.” She paused, then added, “He committed suicide.”

      “I’m sorry,” Andy said.

      Karen simply nodded. “If you decide you want to come into the program, you’ll stay in the bunkhouse with the dog until I think the two of you are ready. But I want to know for sure that you’re committed, that you will stick with it. I don’t want Joseph disappointed again.”

      “What happened?”

      “Adam took Joseph home and then discovered his wife was extremely allergic to dog hair. It was either her or Joseph.” She looked sternly into Andy’s eyes. “You don’t have anyone allergic, do you?”

      “No.”

      Andy looked down at the dog. He looked up at her. “Are you ready for me?” she asked.

      She would have sworn the dog smiled. “Why the name Joseph?” she asked.

      “Of the coat-of-many-colors fame,” Karen said. “You will be expected to stay here a short time. Maybe a week, maybe less, maybe more. You’ll live in the bunkhouse with the dog while you get to know each other. He’s trained, but you’re not. You’ll learn what he can do for you, and learn to accept what he has to offer.”

      Karen paused, then added, “You up for the challenge?”

      Andy looked down at Joseph. The brightest blue eyes she’d ever seen looked back as if to say, “What are you waiting for?”

      She nodded. She had to be. It was what Jared would want. He used to say that what first attracted him to her was her strength. Instead, she had been a zombie these past months. She hadn’t even been able to cry since she’d woken up from surgery. She hadn’t remembered everything then; she’d just had a head full of dread. Then it came back slowly. The first gunshot...

      “Good,” Karen said, breaking into that memory. “Joseph has had all his shots, and when you’re ready to leave, we’ll give you supplies. After that, it’s up to you, but we ask that you keep in touch and if for some reason you feel you can’t keep Joseph, return him to us.”

      Joseph made a low sound, like a rumble, and moved closer to her. She felt his warm body through the jeans that were much too large for her. She reached down and stroked his head. He licked her hand and looked up at her as if she were a goddess.

      “When can you get started?” Karen asked.

      Andy looked at Dr. Payne.

      “Three days?” he asked. “It will take a few days to do the paperwork, discharge you from my care. And it will probably take you that long to buy a few things.”

      She bit her lip. Everything was going so fast. “Trying to get rid of me?” she asked.

      “Now that you mention it...” He smiled.

      “I have to give notice at the coffee shop, but I don’t think that will a problem. I broke more than a few cups.”

      “Good. Now that’s settled,” Karen said. “Can you stay for dinner?”

      “Wish we could, but I have a meeting tonight,” Dr. Payne said. “And I imagine Andy has some planning to do.”

      He ushered Andy out the door and into his car. Once settled, he asked, “Should I accept the use of the cabin in Covenant Falls on your behalf?”

      “You’re pushing it, Doc.”

      He shrugged. “You can always cancel it.”

      She still wasn’t sure taking on a dog was a good thing. Since the violent afternoon that had taken everything away from her, she’d changed from a hard-charging, ambitious army officer to someone who couldn’t make a decision on what to eat. Mainly because she hadn’t cared. Didn’t want to care.

      Neither was she sure she wanted to form a close bond with the dog. In fact, she was quite sure she didn’t. But maybe the dog would help. Anything to keep from falling to pieces whenever she heard a loud noise. She would just have to maintain an emotional distance, that was all.

      She looked at Dr. Payne. “I’ll give it a try.”

      She had made her first decision in months.

       CHAPTER TWO

      NATE

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