“Thanks.” Del gathered the empty plates and stood up, moving to the sink. “I’ll do the dishes and meet you outside, Royce.”
The kitchen was cleared in record time because she was looking forward to getting wet with the kids and trying something new. From the open window, she watched the two men head back down to the sheds with the little boy racing ahead of them. After a few minutes, he came back out of the shed whistling to the two dogs as he kicked his boots in the dust. They bounced around him, eager to be free from their duties.
Once the dishes were done, Del headed outside where Lilly sat on the grass, the hose unrolled and snaking over the lawn.
“Dad said to use the old towels in the laundry if you need them.” Royce let the dogs inside the gate and they bounded up to her, sniffing her legs.
“Shoo, stay down.” Del batted her hands at the sniffing animals and tried to step away with no success. Their cold wet noses followed her and she grimaced when a wet tongue lashed out and swiped over her knee. “Yuck, stop that.”
Royce howled with laughter and her face burned. “What are they doing? Stop them please.”
“Nah, they’ll be okay. You had a scratch on your leg and they always find them. Bluey says if the dog licks a cut it gets better faster. They have special stuff in their spit.” He nodded his head as if the older man’s word was law. “They won’t hurt you if you stand still, ya know.”
Resigned to the attention of the two kelpies and the unknown germs he was talking about making contact with her skin, Del stood still and let them sniff and lick her knee until they were finished. A hot bath later tonight with loads of disinfectant and a large dash of perfumed bubbles would no doubt kill anything they left on her skin and get rid of the doggie smell. The darker of the two dogs wandered over to the garden bed and cocked its leg against a terracotta pot filled with dying plants and marked it.
She frowned and a small shudder rolled over her skin and Del wondered what she had gotten herself into. “Okay, let’s do this. Royce, can you please go and get a couple of towels for the dogs.”
“They aren’t for the dogs. Dad said you will probably look like a drowned rat by the time we are finished and the towels are for us.” He dropped the large bottle of shampoo at her feet and skipped up the path to do as she bid him.
Drowned rat? Really? How very kind of him. Pursing her lips, she gazed down toward the sheds, hoping the evil eye she was sporting would make his skin tingle with apprehension. I’ll show him I can make do with this. So what if we get a little bit wet. The kids will enjoy it on such a nice hot day. Just you wait, Blake.
“You hold onto the hose, Lilly, and I’ll turn on the tap.” She followed the hose to the house and twisted the controls, starting the water flowing as Royce came bounding down the stairs with his arms loaded with towels. “Leave them up on the steps so we don’t get them wet, okay. Let’s go and do this together, Royce.”
“Tiny, here girl.” He whistled and the smaller of the dogs came bounding over, licking the water as it flowed from the hose. Lilly giggled, waving it around so the dog jumped and barked as it chased the stream.
“Royce, can you hold her while your sister hoses her down? If we get her nice and wet, we can all help shampoo the dust out of her.” Del leaned down on the already wet grass, her sore ankle forgotten, and ran her hands over the back of the frisky dog. It twisted around and tried to roll in the grass, wetting Del’s shorts and leaving a track of loose hair on her legs. She pushed the dog away but it leaned back into her.
“I think she likes you.” Royce looked down at her, laughter in his eyes.
“That’s…um…really great. I’ve never had a dog of my own.”
She fought down another wave of emotion as the dog looked at her with melting brown trust-filled eyes. What had she missed out on all these years by not having this kind of love? Her mother was allergic to animals and Peter hated them so Delilah had never thought it was an option to have a pet. The dog lifted its leg and scratched its ear, still leaning its body against her leg. The movement flicked more water over her clothes. She tried to wet Tiny all over with Lilly waving the hose wildly, getting more water on Del than she did on the dog.
Satisfied the dog was wet enough now, she reached for the shampoo bottle and unscrewed the top. “Hold her please, Royce. I don’t want this all over the grass or—heaven forbid—on me. That’s where everything else seems to be ending up.”
Lilly chortled with glee and continued to flick the hose around, wetting everyone in the process. A stream of water fell over her head and trickled down her face to drip on the pink t-shirt she was wearing as Lilly giggled raucously.
Del poured the shampoo into her hand and placed the bottle behind her on the grass. With Royce’s help, she wiped the shampoo over the dog before reaching back and pouring another dollop into the palm of her hand. This portion went on the white blaze of Tiny’s chest. “Rub it in. Lilly, put down the hose for a minute and help us. You can wash it off when we are done.”
They all clamored to make as many bubbles as possible and the dog lapped up the attention. She tried to roll onto her back again when
