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“About how to support someone we care about who surviveddomestic abuse. We don’t always talk the same language. He wants to make surehe learns yours.”
Now the tears rolled from her eyes, and she didn’t try tostop them. “You already know it.”
“I do, but it’s not the same, baby. Even though we have somesimilarities, it’s still hard. I don’t want to talk about it. Not even Joshknows everything I went through, but I’ve started to wonder if it’s festeringinside me,” Grim admitted. “I thought I could bury it and it would go away, butit doesn’t. It sits under the surface waiting. I realized until the moment Jacktold me he’d changed his will I was waiting for him to realize I wasn’t hiskid. Waiting for Abby to find a reason to turn me out. Waiting for Sam to seewhat he saw in me.”
“What who saw?” Nic asked.
This was an old ache. “My stepfather.”
Her gaze softened on him. “What did he see, Grim?”
He had to tell her the truth. “Evil.”
She sat there for a moment and then she moved, crawlingacross the floor to straddle him. She took his face in her hands, staring downat him. “There is no evil in you, Jared Burch. You are one of the best men I’veever met. I love you. I love you and Josh. Be patient with me. Please.”
His heart clenched but in the best of ways. “There is noamount of time you could take that I wouldn’t be waiting at the end of it.”
She leaned over and kissed him. He didn’t give in to theurge to take control. He let her brush her lips over his, and then she shiftedher body so she was sitting next to him.
She glanced over at the dog and she gasped. “The treat’sgone.”
Grim reached for another. “A little closer this time.”
“Hey, buddy.” Her voice was gentle as she tossed the treat afull foot closer than last time. “This is for you. You’re okay here.”
For the first time in weeks he had some hope.
* * * *
Josh stepped into the shelter, locking the doorbehind him.
“It’s okay, sweetie. One shot and you’ll be fine,” a soft,familiar voice was saying.
Nicole. He’d kind of worried Harlow had been playing a jokeon him when she’d told him Nicole would be waiting on him at the shelterbecause she was helping out Grim with a litter of puppies and one shaky mutt.
She’d barely talked to either of them for weeks, but shedidn’t have the same problem with his family. She’d been getting up early to goriding with his dad and Pops. She spent her afternoons in the garden with hismom, and more than once she’d gone out to The Barn with Olivia, hauling Harlowalong. On those nights Landon always followed at a distance and sent Josh textsletting him know she was okay.
The urge to follow her was almost overwhelming.
“I might give that one more than a shot. He’s peed on metwice. I think he’s aiming.” Grim sounded irritated but only for a moment.“Baby, hold him still.”
“He’s a wiggler,” Nicole said.
So Grim had found a way to connect with her again. Night wasjust around the corner, and the shelter was closed for the evening. They wouldmake sure all the critters got their dinner, and then maybe he could convinceNicole to go out with them.
“He’s so cute. Why would you have any trouble findingsomeone to take him?” She sounded like she was in a good mood.
There was a purring sound from his left, and Josh lookedover. Bandit was an ancient tabby cat who’d wandered in one day and never left.He’d been adopted out a couple of times and the owners were all good people,but Bandit would get out of their houses and find his way back here. At somepoint Grim had given up and accepted Bandit was the shelter’s only permanentresident.
“He’s cute right now,” Grim was saying, “but in a couple ofmonths he’ll weigh forty pounds, and by the end of a year he’s going to behuge. The good news? I think I know who the father is. Dakota’s wrong. Thisdog’s got some Australian shepherd in him. They make excellent ranching dogswhen they’re trained right.”
Josh knew what was coming next. He leaned down and letBandit jump into his arms. The cat seemed to like him and enjoyed being pettedfor a time. He started for the back of the shelter where Grim’s office was setup. “He’s going to parade them by my momma, and the dads will have some newfriends to help out. It’s good timing. Jasper and Gordo are about ready toretire and live the lazy life.”
“Hey.” Grim looked up and gave him a smile Josh hadn’t seenon his best friend’s face for days. “Thanks for stopping by. Nic’s been helpingme with the newbies. They’re about six weeks along, so I’m vaccinating them.Being in the shelter can be rough on a pup, but these will be ready to beadopted out in the next couple of weeks.”
Nicole held a wriggling ball of fluff. “They took thesebabies away from their momma.”
“Hey, we’re honestly lucky the guy waited for them to be oldenough to adopt. Sometimes they dump the puppies immediately so the mom can bebred again,” Grim said, packing up his kit.
