Page 85 of Bailey-Rose: The Complete Duet

“Would it upset you to know it is family?” he asked, using his other hand to stroke along my jawline. “You lucky, my pretty lady, to have family who truly loves you. Not all have this in their lives. A short time, I had true love from one person, then she died. I pray and pray she my real mother, but she wasn’t. It took time to accept my family is who they are, but I not like them, which made them angry. Now that I think about it, I should be happy… by sending me away, they gave me you and the others.”

Bending down, he softly kissed my lips, but I wanted more. Grabbing the hair at the back of his neck, I kept him from pulling away as I popped up on my tiptoes to deepen the kiss. Seeing what I was after, I felt his smile against my own as he scooped me up so I could wrap my legs around his waist.

“You must be good,” Vili warned. “Only kisses, my kitten.”

“I’ll take kisses all day long if they are from you,” I whispered.

Vili wasn’t willing to go all in on this make-out session I was trying to instigate at first. When he realized I wasn’t going to shatter, he became bolder until he finally gave in. The feel of his hands gripping my ass, holding me tight to him, had me moaning. I rolled my hips, trying to find the friction I needed, but that came to a halt as the movement pulled at my healing incision. Tomorrow, Dr. Arbour was coming to take out my stitches and give me a progress report, but I knew he wasn’t going to give me the all clear.

“What did I say, kitten… only kisses,” Vili scolded, feeling my body tense up. He gave me one more life-altering kiss before setting me back on my feet. “Come, let's finish the walk… surprise should be here by then.”

Just when I didn’t think I could be walking higher than cloud nine after a good make-out session, we rounded the corner of the house. The guys were in the driveway talking with a man who had a golden wooly mammoth sitting next to him. There was no leash keeping the dog at his side, but it was clear to me that the fluffy monster wasn’t going to budge an inch.

Vili led me over to the group, and out popped a little black and white dust bunny from between the bigger dog’s legs. The little guy wagged his tail and was all wiggles as he slowly crept toward me. Using Vili as support, I dropped to my knees and offered the back of my hand to the happy floof. Instantly, he snuffled my hand and quickly licked it before bounding back to the much bigger dog.

It took everything in me not to squeal with delight and shatter everyone’s eardrums, but I managed to pull it together. “Your dogs are beautiful. What are their names?” I asked as Vili hoisted me up by my armpits.

“Well, little lady, this here is Waffles, and the tiny fella is Nugget,” the man answered and extended his hand. “My name is Hank, Hank Sharp, and these two aren’t mine.”

“Oh?” I questioned as Hank gave Waffles a hand signal, which had the dog standing and approaching me.

If Hank said anything after Waffles bumped his large head against my hand asking for pets, I didn’t hear it. The fur under my hand felt like silk on the surface, but it was incredibly dense, allowing my fingers to sink a few inches into his fur. Sweet brown eyes looked up at me, and he gave an approving chuff before pulling an about-face, then plopping his wooly butt next to me. I felt him lean against me as if offering his support so I felt more stable standing here.

Looking up, I found everyone watching the interaction with smiles and a pouting Nugget in Hank’s arms. “What?” I asked.

“Well, Miss Thatcher, the thing about this breed of dog is they have to choose the person,” Hank explained. “It’s one reason they aren’t used for this type of work all that often. That’s why I make it a rule there is no exchange of paperwork until a meet and greet is done. You, little lady, now have yourself a medical alert guard dog and lifelong loyal companion in Waffles.”

My jaw literally fell open at his words. I glanced down at Waffles then back at the guys, finding it hard to believe this was truly happening. “This is for real… right?”

“Yeah, baby girl, it’s for real,” Gareth assured me. “Nurse Harlow told us you qualified for a medical alert dog, and I just took it one step further. No matter where you go or who you're with, I want you to feel safe, and I think Waffles will help achieve that.”

Tears welled in my eyes as I gazed down at Waffles and sniffled when those sweet brown eyes looked back. “What do you think, Waffles? Do you want to be part of this family?”

His answer was to boop his nose against my hip, causing me to smile at him. Waffles got to his feet and nudged me again with his nose, harder this time.

“Little lady, I think it’s best if you sit down right now,” Hank ordered. “Better yet, laying down would be best.”

Waffles nudged me again with a slightly worried whine to accompany what I now realized was an alert. I’d been so overwhelmed with emotions I didn’t notice how lightheaded I was feeling. Thankfully, the driveway was paved so I wasn't lying in gravel, but it didn’t mean it was much more comfortable. Once Gareth and Vili helped me lay down, Waffles wriggled his large body under my legs to send more blood to my heart by keeping my feet elevated.

“Rosie, talk to us. How are you feeling?” Ulysses asked, placing a cool cloth on my head.

“I’m a little lightheaded, but that’s about it,” I shared, trying to keep my guys from worrying too much. “Maybe I overdid it with the longer walk after having my accelerator treatment done.”

Yun-Sun kneeled next to me with a cup and straw, offering it to me. “Sweetheart, why is this cup practically full?”

One of the things I had to monitor and adjust to was how much water I needed to drink. Not only would it help keep my blood pressure stable, it was also needed for the accelerator treatments. As my blood was being supercharged to assist with the rapid healing, I needed to flush out all the bad shit, or it could wind me up on the pavement with a dog under my legs.

“So ah, how long do I stay like this?” I asked.

“Don’t worry… Waffles will let you know when it’s safe,” Hank assured me. “When he does, would you indulge me by letting him help you to your feet? This is part of the service he is trained to offer, and I just want you to feel comfortable taking the offered help.”

“Yeah, no problem, but you’ll have to check with these worrywarts to see if they'll actually let me do that,” I teased, sipping on my special electrolyte water.

Most of my guys gave me scolding looks, but Warrick and Vili just snickered, knowing how accurate what I said was.

“Rosie, this is why we got Waffles. If we don’t let him do his job, then what was the point?” Ulysses reasoned.

Tilting my head, I looked up at him, where he was sitting behind me. “Oh, I’m well aware of that. I just wanted to make sure you guys were on the same page.”