do it.”
She talked to him about feeding schedules and about establishing who was the boss from the onset.
The puppy went to the bathroom. Dana told Josh to praise him. And grinned when he did so. There was something very endearing about such a perfect specimen of manhood bending over and congratulating ten pounds of matted fur on the little pile he’d just dropped. If there was a self-conscious bone in Josh Redmond’s body, he sure didn’t seem aware of its existence.
Maybe that was what endeared him to her more than anything else.
And when, another couple of minutes later, the puppy peed, Josh congratulated him again and they moved back into the house. He invited her to sit at his kitchen table. He offered her some iced tea and she accepted. “Here,” he said, drawing her attention to the can he held out to her.
“Oh, sorry,” she said, feeling the heat rise up to her cheeks. She’d been busy staring at the arsenal of cleaning supplies on the kitchen table. “It’s just—” she glanced back at the table “—laundry detergent, hand soap, liquid body soap, dish soap, dishwasher soap, bar soap, car wash, carpet detergent, upholstery cleaner...” They were all lined up, obviously brand-new, two brands of every single item.
“I...am on a mission to try the top two brands of each to find out which I like best,” he said.
She had the distinct feeling that he was making up every word as he went along. Someone who liked to clean also had brand preferences for every job.
But it wasn’t her business.
“Have you picked a name for him?” she asked instead, pointing to the puppy who was sound asleep with his head flopped against Josh’s chest.
He shook his head. “It didn’t occur to me.”
“The quickest way to teach him to come when he’s called is to call him only by one name, and to say that name every single time you speak to him. When you feed him, say his name and then the word eat, and put his food down. He’ll learn what eat means, too.”
“You called him Little Guy.”
“Because he’s male and little and I specifically was not naming him as I knew I wasn’t going to be able to keep him.”
“Did you want to?”
He was getting personal again. This wasn’t about her. Though...she kind of wanted it to be.
And while Dana was all about living her new life, about believing that she was just as good as everyone else, she wasn’t so far along on her journey that she was going to pursue the guy who had to be the hottest bachelor in town.
“I didn’t think I wanted another puppy, not anytime soon. I’ve got a kitten now. And my duplex is small. But after having Little Guy around for a couple of days...yeah, I’d like another puppy. A smaller one, though.”
“You should get one, then.”
Maybe. “Anyway, I recommend naming him. Soon.”
“I like Little Guy. It’s what he is.”
“He’s going to be huge.”
“So...all the more reason to remind him that no matter how big he gets, I’ll still be bigger, right?”
He grinned. She melted.
And got the hell out of there.
CHAPTER SEVEN
JOSH DIDN’T HAVE to wait until Monday to speak with Cassie Montford. His cell phone rang shortly after Dana Harris left Saturday, and he recognized the veterinarian’s number.
“Josh? This is Cassie Montford.”
Montford. Not Tate. She was on family business. He stiffened. “I assume you spoke with your husband?” he said, the Redmond in him coming out as he prepared to take control of the situation. To take control and not give off an iota of the emotion roiling around inside him. Getting his own way was all that mattered.
He didn’t want to leave town. Didn’t have any idea where he’d go.
“I’m sorry it took me so long to get back to you,” the older woman said. “I spoke with Sam last night but by the time we were alone and could talk it was too late to call you back. And I just got out of surgery now—a dog was hit by a car outside of town this morning....”
It had been less than twenty-four hours. Josh had expected their decision to take at least through the weekend. In Boston, it would have. The pros and cons of upholding a family secret would have been weighed very seriously.
“Sam and I will keep your secret for as long as we can without anyone being hurt,” Cassie said, her voice sounding even warmer than it had the day before at her office.
More personal.
“Sam has a request, though, Josh. He really wants to meet you.”
Ready to respond with an unequivocal no, until he was a little more certain he could trust himself, Josh didn’t get the chance.
“I’ve managed to rein him in for now, with a threat to tell his parents some things about his past that he doesn’t want them to know.”
It sounded like a stunt any number of wives in his Boston circle might have pulled. It was all about keeping up appearances.
“Not that I’d carry through with the threat, which he knows, but he got the point, anyway. Sometimes people need some space to work through their issues on their own.”
He swallowed. “I... Thank you,” he said.
He wanted to say more. To ask more. To find out more about Sam Montford’s life. About the secrets that he didn’t want his parents to know...the fodder that gave his wife some leverage.
But he was determined to stick with his promise.
He asked about Little Guy’s surgery, set a date for the week after Thanksgiving and started to ring off.
“Josh?”
He put the cell phone back to his ear. “Yes?”
“I can’t promise that Sam will wait forever,” she said. “My husband has a bit of a wild streak. When it gets ahold of him, he’s apt to do something off the wall.”
“Has he had run-ins with the law?” he asked. He couldn’t imagine his mother being gung ho about claiming her Arizona family if he had.
“Absolutely not. Sam’s never been in trouble with the law. Have you?”
Too late he saw what his question had implied. He quickly said, “No. I don’t have a criminal record.” It was the truth. He’d never even received a speeding ticket.
Hard to believe, when a woman had lost her life because of his carelessness. He’d walked away without paying any price at all.
“Sam’s
