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Even if the distraction comes in the form of his kids.
“Keep forgetting to tell you,” Wells says. “We have an adoption event happening in about a month.”
“Oh, perfect! The puppies will be just the right age by then.”
He nods. “I’m sure they’ll go quick.”
“That also puts it right around my birthday,” I tell him. “The big two-seven.”
“Oh, yeah? I’ll have to tell Momma. She’ll make you a big ole cake, and we’ll all get drunk and make a big-ass bonfire.”
“That sounds safe. Alcohol and fire.”
He just rolls his eyes and laughs. “Don’t be so dramatic. Hayes used to be a volunteer firefighter. He knows how to put somethin’ out if it starts.”
“Alright, alright. But we don’t need to make a big deal out of it. It’s just a birthday.”
He clutches his hands over his heart like he’s been wounded. “Justa birthday? Miss Poppy, there is no such thing on this ranch. Go big or go home.”
“Uncle Wells! Wade is pissin’ in the yard again!” Jolene’s little voice comes in through the front doors.
“Daddy says I’m allowed to piss outside!” he shouts back.
“Only when there are no ladies present!”
“You’re agirl.”
“Poppy is right inside!”
I slap my hand over my mouth, trying not to laugh out loud.
“Okay, well, I guess I’ll go handlethat.”
“Alright, I’m gonna let Betty out to eat on her long lead.”
I let Wells handle that mess and go spend some time with Betty. Every day, I give her a little snack at lunchtime and open her door. She’s started letting me get close enough to where I can put a long lead on her without snapping at me. So I tie her up to the wall on a twenty-foot lead and put a little snack in a bowl farther and farther away from her each day.
I’m desperate to get her to come out of her shell, and I’m hoping once she sees that she can come out of her safe space and get rewarded for doing so, the next thing we can do is work on introducing her to other adults. Maybe even long walks outside to get her legs stretched. The farthest she goes now is outside to pee. And even that is a mountain to climb each time.
I move slowly inside her home, picking up her water bowl so I can clean it out and refill it. I speak softly to her, letting her know what I’m doing each step of the way, even though she has no clue what I’m saying. I hope it puts her a bit at ease.
I let the water hose run cold while I watch Wells and the kids play together in the grass. He’s lying down, letting the puppies run all over him while Wade laughs and laughs like it’s the funniest thing he’s ever seen. Meanwhile, Jolene is pouting off to the side, just sitting cross-legged with one of the puppies on her lap. She’s going to be heartbroken when that thing gets adopted. She has been joined at the hip with that specific one ever since she met them.
When the water is finally cold, I rinse out Betty’s bowl and lean over to start filling it up. And what happens next happens so fast that I barely register it. In a blur of brown hair and white sundress, I see Jolene run past me and into the barn. She’s shouting something back at Wells about how she’s going to grab something for the puppy.
But she doesn’t know Betty is technically loose, on a lead that stretches to the middle of the damn barn. And Betty hasn’t met Jolene. Betty is easily scared, and Jolene is a ball of hyper energy. I drop the bowl, water splashing all over my shoes as I take off inside. The hose is still running, but I don’t care. I have to make sure Jolene isn’t going to run right into Betty’s path.
“Jolene!” Wells shouts, just as I see her running right toward Betty.
My feet move impossibly fast, and by the grace of god, I get to her before Betty does. I grab hold of Jolene’s arm and swing her back, tugging her out of the way. I hold my other arm up to block us just as Betty growls and lunges. Jolene stumbles, making me lose my balance as my ankle twists. I fall down…hard.
And all I can think about is how all that work I’ve done for the past two weeks has gone up in smoke. Because she is not a bad dog. She is just terrified, and with someone unknown to her running straight at her while she eats…it was a recipe for disaster.
The wind is knocked out of me, and her teeth sink into my forearm with force but release quickly when she realizes who she’s bitten. The pain is sharp and fucking brutal. My ankle is throbbing. Betty whines and backs up with her ears down.
I want to cry. My poor girl. No one will take her now. Not with a biting history, no matter how much it wasn’t her fault.
God. Dammit.
