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“Strike while the iron’s hot,” she told him. “You go and figure out what can be done to help the town and—”
The back screen door slapped shut and Zeke barreled their way. He skidded to a stop and plugged his nose. “Something is really smelly around here.” He looked from his father to Lizzie, then spotted the wet dog. He moved closer, intrigued, but didn’t let go of his nose. “That is a weird dog, my Lizzie.”
“A sick dog,” said Heath. He bent low. “I don’t want you to go near her, okay? We think she’s going to have babies.”
“Puppies?” His voice pitched up. His eyebrows did, too. “In the house? We never have puppies in the house. I can’t even believe that we’re going to have puppies in the house.”
Cookie had followed him through the door and when he cleared his throat with meaning, Lizzie was pretty sure he couldn’t believe it, either. She put a finger to her lips and indicated the worn-out dog with a look.
Zeke clapped a hand over his mouth. “I forgot to use my inside voice.” He made a face of regret. “Maybe we should just whisper around the doggie, right? Like this.” He whispered so softly that Lizzie didn’t have a clue what he was saying.
“I think just a soft voice works. We want her to get used to our voices, so she’s not afraid to come into the house.”
“Can we keep the puppies? Like here, with us and we can have a dog just for me?” Hopeful, he peered up at his father, but Heath shook his head.
“Zeke, I can’t answer that right now. I don’t know how this will all turn out. She’s not healthy. She’s been neglected a long time, so things might not go okay with the puppies. Let’s wait and see, okay?”
Zeke’s lower lip stuck out. “’Cept when you say wait and see it means no, Dad. It always just means no.” He folded his arms and stood stubborn as a mule in a stare-down with his father. “I don’t know why I can’t have one animal for me when you have like a gazillion all over the place.”
Heath’s phone buzzed once more. He made a wry face and put the phone away. “On that note…” He bent and kissed Zeke’s forehead. “Be good. We’ll discuss this later. I’ve got a meeting to go to. If it’s all right with Lizzie, you can help with the dog, but you’ve got to keep your voice soft, okay? This dog isn’t used to people and she sure isn’t accustomed to busy little boys.” He aimed a look at Lizzie, over Zeke’s head. “I’ll be back as quick as I can.”
“Corrie’s on her way back from Rosie’s place. Her calm head in a crazy storm mentality is just what we need right now.” She dropped her gaze to Zeke and Heath seemed to catch her meaning.
He nodded and left quickly.
“Can I pet her?”
Lizzie shook her head. “Not just yet. She might get nippy. But there is one very important, maybe most important thing you can do, Zeke.”
His frown had deepened substantially as she spoke, but it disappeared when she said, “You can name this dog. How can we take care of a little mama dog with no name?”
He grinned, elated with this new assignment. “I don’t even know what names to think of!” He kept his voice toned down and his smile in place, but he’d had a long day already and Lizzie knew that could change.
“Well, it’s a girl, so we need a girl’s name.”
“Not Clifford.”
She shook her head, because reading about the big red dog’s antics was one of Zeke’s favorite pastimes. “Definitely a boy’s name. Let’s go through the alphabet,” she suggested. “Addie. Abby. Bria. Belle. Betsy.”
“That’s it!” Zeke whispered up to her, excited. “Betsy! I think it’s the best name ever for a dog that’s not so big, right? A name all her own.”
Oh, Zeke…
So precious.
So sweet.
And needing a mother to love him. To laugh with him. Challenge him. The thought of that shared kiss didn’t just sweep over her. It enveloped her, like a warm blanket on a chilled night.
Zeke yawned once, then yawned again. “I really wish I could just have a dog all my own. I would share him with you.” He looked up at Lizzie. “I wouldn’t hog him all by myself. But I could play with him a lot. He would be my friend.”
Lizzie knew what he meant. The farm had several working dogs, but they weren’t allowed to follow a little guy around and go on boy adventures, and there were no children around to play with. “I didn’t have a dog, either. We’ll talk to your dad later, okay? First, we have to make sure the puppies arrive and that they’re all right.”
