In Your Arms: A Small Town Love Story (Safe Haven Book 1) (33 page)

“It must make rostering easier.”

“No, it makes it worse, because they all want to work alongside Vince. He speaks if when spoken to, works like a trooper, and never makes it much past lunchtime before disappearing into the hills. Afternoons, once he’s gone, those girls aren’t nearly as productive so I schedule the menial tasks for mornings.”

Marlo laughed. “And how do you feel about him?”

“I won’t lie to you, the guy’s hot. Scorching, damaged, and I don’t have a savior complex, unless it’s a dog. Did I mention he’s hot?”

“No, tell me about that.”

Lulah grinned. “Misty has fallen deeply in love with him. She won’t leave his side, even tries to leave with him each afternoon. I’m trying to encourage him to take her with him, but he won’t. A dog could help him, you know. You can tell he has issues.”

“Do you think he’s safe to have around?”

“Yeah, he’s fine. When he gets edgy, he leaves. And it’s weird, because the other side of him, when he’s not wired, is kind of peaceful. He’s artistic, too. Yesterday I needed name tags for the kennel doors of the new dogs and I asked him to write them out. He did their names, then these gorgeous caricatures of each of the dogs. They’re fantastic. And I noticed he did a new one for Misty’s door; he’s renamed her Calliope, says she’s his muse. Today I’m going to have another go at getting him to take her when he heads off.”

Like every lunchtime when Vince left, Lulah wondered if it would be the last they saw of him, but the next morning he’d be back. No explanation, just ready to roll up his sleeves, expose his muscular forearms that made all the women pause and appreciate, and get on with the day’s tasks.

He watched her sometimes, but she watched him often. In those moments when their eyes first locked, his guard down because he thought she wasn’t looking, she caught a quick glimpse of longing; not necessarily for her, but for what she was.

Lulah noticed he had the same effect on Calliope. The dog watched Vince and did her best to always be near him. What’s more, her confidence had grown with the task she seemed to have set herself, making sure he was never left alone.

Stories of an animal connecting to a single person, as if they were the mate they’d spent their life waiting for, were common to sanctuaries and shelters around the world. Lulah never questioned why Calliope had attached herself to Vince, but unfortunately Vince didn’t appear to be quite so enamored of the dog.

That afternoon when Vince left, Lulah decided to watch from a distance, rather than help him out by calling Calliope back to the kennels. Perhaps if there was nobody available to take the dog away, Vince would allow her to accompany him.

Vince had been quieter than usual that morning, and Lulah had really felt for him because she could see the way he struggled, and the effort it took for him to get through. He looked short on sleep, and all but dropped to the floor when one of the girls tripped over a metal bucket and sent it flying.

She noticed his clenched fists, muscles bulging beneath the ink on his arms. When she sidled up to him to quietly ask if he was okay, he looked to her with a dog’s beseeching eyes.

“God, Lulah, sometimes a sudden noise takes me back there.” There was a break in his voice, short, like a finger-snap, before it returned to his usual controlled measure. “I’m sorry, I’m not usually this pathetic.”

She reached up and placed her hand on his shoulder. His t-shirt was warm, damp with perspiration, and he tilted his head back, closing his eyes for a moment before sucking in a breath, then aiming a rare smile at her.

“It’s almost midday,” she said. “Why don’t you head off.”

“Thanks, but I’ll finish up my work first.”

Reluctantly, she left him to his task of scrubbing out the food bowls. Lulah paused at the kitchen door, to check one last time, and saw that Calliope had leaned against his leg, her head stretched up over his knee, ready to be his emotional sponge and soak up whatever troubled him.

An hour later Lulah stood at the edge of the courtyard watching as Vince, followed by Calliope, headed along the back path towards the mountain trails.

He ignored Calliope for the first twenty yards, and Lulah hoped he’d finally decided to allow the dog to walk with him. Then she heard his voice, raised, telling her to go back. Calliope stood on the path, her head lowered, tail tucked, but making a slow, short pendulum movement.

Vince turned and started walking, and Calliope immediately raised her head and trotted after him. This time when he stopped he shouted and flung his arms at her, trying to shoo her away. Calliope rolled to her back and showed him her belly. He’d frightened her, but he kept shouting at her to get up and go back.

The dog refused to move. She wouldn’t give up on him.

Lulah sighed. It was time to rescue Calliope and she headed after them at a jog, but before she got near, Vince suddenly dropped to the ground, lying alongside Calliope and pulling her into his chest.

She saw the shudders run through his body, the dog licking his wet face, and backed away to allow Calliope to work her magic.

“Those two need each other,” she muttered to herself as she withdrew to a place where she could observe them unseen. Vince had rolled to a sitting position, and Calliope crawled into his lap. That sat like that for a while, before Vince got to his feet and took his familiar path into the hills with a small blue-and-white pit bull, not following him, but at his side.

A Scarred Soul
available now.

About the Author

E
rin Sloane was born
in New Zealand, and spends as much time as possible at a remote beach on the beautiful Coromandel Peninsula. It’s a peaceful place to write, the surf is excellent, and the wifi is rubbish. She has a rescue dog, Skipper, and a talent for growing beans.

Don’t be shy. I love to chat with readers.

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