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Strangely, he was sure. All those years he’d spent living alone in his house, and he hadn’t realized just how empty it was until Lydia and Eddie came along. He’d enjoyed having a reason to go home every night, to walk along the ocean’s edge and throw balls into the water.
He’d even enjoyed waking up early to open the door so Eddie could go and do his business.
“Yeah, I’m sure,” he said in answer to her question. “Let’s see what they’ve got.”
They walked into the main reception area, stopping at the front desk that was teeming with leaflets and papers.
“Hi,” the woman behind the counter looked up. “Can I help you?”
“I called yesterday,” Lydia told her. “This is Jackson Lewis. We’ve come to talk about your rescue dogs.”
The woman nodded, tucking a strand of grey hair behind her ear as she reached for a clipboard. “Oh yes, that’s right. Hi, and welcome to Angel Sands Rescue. I’m Sarah, and I volunteer here. Can I ask you to fill this out?” she asked Jackson, handing him a chewed down pen. “Am I right in thinking you live alone? No kids?”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
“It makes things easier. A lot of our dogs have been through trauma. We don’t like homing them with young children if it can be avoided.” She leaned over the form that Jackson was completing. “You have your own business?” she asked. “Does that mean you’ll be out of the house a lot?”
“Yeah, but I own the office, so the dog could come with me.” Jackson blinked, surprised at his answer. Was he really considering this?
“So you’ll need a calm dog if you’re bringing him to work with you. We have a lovely bulldog that came in last week. Sadly, her owner passed on, and the owner’s daughter lives in an apartment that doesn’t allow pets. We’ve called her Bella, though of course whoever adopts her could rename her.” She gave Jackson a quick smile. “Would you like to see her?”
“Yeah. I’d like that a lot.”
They followed Sarah through a set of double doors, down a corridor filled on both sides with glass pens. There were animals of every size in them, from Great Danes to tiny kittens. Nearly all of them came up to the glass as Lydia and Jackson walked past, looking up with interest.
“How long do you keep them here?” Jackson asked. He hated to think of these beautiful animals being cooped up.
“We try to rehome them as quickly as possible. Most are only here for a week or two,” Sarah promised him. “And we take them out daily for exercise and fresh air. If you look on the right, there are some empty pens. One of our volunteers has taken them for a walk.”
They reached the far end of the room, and Sarah pointed to the glass. “This is Bella’s pen.”
Jackson could feel his heart start to hammer against his chest as he turned to look at the dog walking toward them. She was white with brown patches, her tongue lolling out as she waddled toward them, little pants escaping from her open mouth. When she reached the glass door, she looked up at them, her soulful eyes wide as she took them in.
“Hey, Bella,” Sarah cooed. “I brought you some visitors.”
Bella’s tail wagged as though she could understand. She pressed her nose against the glass, her breath misting it, as her paws scrabbled at the barrier.
“She’s excited to see you,” Sarah told them. “I’m going to open the door, okay?” She unlocked the door and opened it, and Jackson and Lydia walked inside, both immediately dropping to their haunches to pet Bella.
She let out a happy bark and started to lick Jackson’s face as he ruffled the folds in her fur. “She likes you,” Lydia told him. “Look at her. She can’t take her eyes off you.”
Jackson laughed. “Maybe I still smell of boy dog.”
Truth was, it felt good to be stroking her. Beneath Bella’s fur, he could feel the tightness of her muscles, and the layer of fat that characterized her breed. He pulled his hand away for a moment, but she nudged it, encouraging him to stroke her again.
That earned him another face lick. This dog sure was demonstrative.
“Should I feel jealous?” Lydia whispered. “I thought I was the only one who got to lick your face.”
Jackson laughed. “You’re gonna want to stay a away from my face until I wash it again.”
Lydia ruffled Bella’s fur. “Ah, I’m okay to share you with this beauty.”
They spent ten minutes in the pen with her, playing with her toys and letting her barrel them over and climb on them. Bella’s tail didn’t stop wagging the whole time. She was clearly in love with Jackson, though she gave Lydia some attention, too.
“What do you think?” Sarah asked, as they reluctantly left Bella and walked back to the reception.
“She’s beautiful,” Lydia said. “And so funny.”
