Page 77 of Puppy Love

One week of this woman living under his roof and he’d come to depend on her in ways that were both alluring and terrifying. Yes, she’d dragged him to a dodgeball practice or two. And, yes, he’d sat through the infamous beer choir, which turned out to be a group of about twenty drunk millennials discussing craft brews and signing show tunes.

The promised social whirlwind hadn’t been nearly as unpleasant as he’d feared, especially since it had the benefit of distracting him from Sophie’s constant proximity—a proximity she refused to consider anything but work related.

While we’re together under this roof, she’d said,consider me officially on the clock. As was the case with Bubbles, he wasn’t allowed to pet her during training hours, had to treat her more like a coworker than a friend.

Which, as it turned out, was a thing he was weirdly okay with. The agony of not having her naked and underneath him was offset by the simple joy he felt when she stood humming in the kitchen as she made coffee. Or how she littered the bathroom sink with lotions and potions he’d rather not examine too closely. Her presence in that house was so natural, so comfortable, it made his chest grow tight to think that he’d somehow lived for so many decades without her in it.

Or that he might somehow have to do it again.

“Go ahead,” he said to Oscar, forcing himself to focus on the man standing in front of him. Sophie might only be on loan to him, but Oscar was the sort of fixture that never left. “Light something on fire. Anything on fire.”

Oscar made the motion of patting himself down and shrugged. “I seem to have forgotten my arson kit at home. Is she comfortable like that? She doesn’t look very comfortable.”

“I’m serious. I’m sure you have a lighter or something. Here—ignite this stick.”

Oscar eyed him warily but complied with the request, extracting a Zippo from one of his vest pockets. “Will this do? And aren’t we supposed to be training people to bemorecareful with their outdoor fires?”

“Just do it.”

It took a few tries for Oscar to get a flame going on the slightly damp stick Harrison had handed him, but if there was one thing his boss knew, it was how blazes worked. He brandished the smoldering flame like a torch, wafting it back and forth in front of the puppy. Bubbles twitched, but she didn’t seem overly distressed. In fact, her nose twitched in recognition of the familiar smoke scent—and then she dismissed it as something unworthy of her attention.

“Well, shit.” Oscar waved the stick a little closer. “She barely seems to notice it.”

Harrison nodded, his heart swelling with pride at everything Bubbles had overcome. He found it hard to believe he’d once thought he needed a big, ferocious dog to do the job. A big dog didn’t have to work to be strong. A big dog didn’t have to fight to earn respect. This tiny, scrappy thing had been required to put in five times the effort right from the get-go, and she’d done it even when she quaked in fear.

She was a badass, this little one. And she washis.

“It’s not a perfect system yet,” Harrison admitted. “And we won’t know how she reacts in the middle of a real forest fire until she’s in one, but I’m beginning to think we may have reached a compromise.”

“Is that a hint for me to clear you for duty?” Oscar asked.

Harrison laughed. “Well, itwasn’t, but if you want to take it that way…”

He didn’t actually expect it to work. He’d spent enough time under Oscar’s leadership to know that nothing would move that man—he was like a rock that way. But there was a softening in Oscar’s expression, a small crack in his armor.

Finally.

Or so he thought. Oscar scratched his chin and cast a glance over Harrison’s shoulder, quelling his optimism with “I’m leaving that up to Sophie. As soon as she thinks you two are ready, I’ll schedule a date to bring the air force team in. That’ll be a good test for you both.”

Harrison didn’t bother to stop his groan. If Oscar was an unmovable rock, then Sophie was a whole fucking mountain. Like Bubbles, her small stature and air of fragility were deceptive. He’d battle a dozen rabid Great Danes before he’d willingly tackle her.

“Well, Sophie?” Oscar asked, all geniality. Harrison didn’t have to turn to know Sophie was walking up behind him. He could practically feel the air vibrating around her. “What’s the word on our boy here? Is he ready to get working again?”

“I don’t know about the boy, but the puppy seems A-OK for duty.”

“Wait—really?” He spun, unable to keep the joy from his face.

She shrugged. “Sure. I told you the pair of you have natural chemistry, and you’ve both worked really hard these past few weeks. Starting Monday, I don’t see why you can’t step up the fire exposure. You just have to promise you’ll slow down and step away if she starts to show signs of distress. You can undo months of hard work that way.”

As delighted as he was to hear that he wasn’t going to have to fight a dozen rabid Great Danes to get what he wanted, Harrison frowned. “I’m not a monster. Of course I’m not going to push her too hard if she’s upset.”

Sophie laughed and held up her hands. “Don’t shoot. I forgot how much you love that little dog.”

She was mocking him again. “I never said I loved her.”

“You started knitting her a sweater, Harrison. If that’s not love, I don’t know what is.”

“So far, all I’ve managed is half of a crooked scarf.”