“Maybe you should go on ahead until we can find someone else for the dogs.”
That suggestion was not well-received if the loud voice emanating from the phone was anything to go by.
“I know you need me and the kids with you. I’m just not sure what else to do,” Harry said in a voice that sounded close to breaking.
I waved my hand in front of Harry to get his attention.
“Hang on a second, Justin.” Harry looked at me expectantly.
“I’m great with dogs.”
“Huh?” Harry said, his brain clearly a bit sluggish with all he had going on.
“I’m assuming your dog sitter isn’t available. I can watch your dogs.”
Harry bit his lower lip for a second, and then Justin said something to him. “What? Oh, yeah. Well…Ransom just offered to watch the dogs.” He waited a beat for Justin to respond before continuing. “Yeah, he is. Definitely. I’m sure. Okay. Be there soon.” Harry disconnected the calls and put the phone in his pocket before looking at me. “Are you sure you don’t mind?”
“Not a bit.” Which was a bit of a lie. Cramming dog sitting into my schedule would be a nightmare, but Harry was great, and if I could ease his burden a bit, I would.
“I…I really appreciate it, Ransom. We’ll pay you, of course.”
Shaking my head, I said, “No, you absolutely will not.”
“Ransom,” he warned.
“Harry,” I said, mimicking his tone.
He sighed. “We’ll hash it out when I get back. Is there any way you can follow me to my place so I can introduce you to the dogs and show you where everything is? Then I’ll give you a key so you can go grab your stuff and come back.”
My stuff? “Oh, you want me to stay at your place.”
He rubbed his jaw. “It would be easier. We have three dogs, one of which is a new rescue, not even a year old. He chews everything in his path, so it would be better if someone could be there for more than just to walk and feed them. Is that okay?”
“Sure,” I replied, because I’d already offered so I wasn’t going to split hairs at that point. Harry and Justin both worked, so I was sure the dogs would be able to spend enough time on their own for me to do the same.
Harry looked relieved. “Great. Ready to go?”
“Don’t you need me to stay for the after-care kids?”
He waved me off before starting to walk out of Safe Haven. “I asked Roddie if he could stay in case you ended up not being able to come in after all. Speaking of that, is everything okay with you and Taylor?”
“Yeah, we’re good. She just needed some help with something.”
He nodded. “Well, if either of you ever need anything, don’t hesitate to come to me.”
I smiled. Such a nice guy. “We won’t.”
Once we were in the parking lot, I climbed into my truck and followed Harry the twenty or so minutes to his house. It was in a nice neighborhood where everyone had well-maintained lawns and lived-in homes. Harry pulled in the driveway of a blue split-level house while I parked on the street out front. There was a basketball net at the top of the driveway and some scattered toys littered across the lawn. It looked like a happy place, and I briefly wondered what it would’ve been like to grow up in a place like this.
Harry hustled to the front door, and I jogged to catch up to him. He threw open the front door, and we walked into pandemonium. There were bags scattered around the base of the staircase, toys strewn everywhere, dogs running toward us with kids following close behind.
“Papa, Daddy was crying!” an adorable little girl yelled as she crashed into Harry and hid her face in his stomach.
Harry bent to drop a kiss on her head. “It’s okay, baby. He’s just sad. It’ll be all right.”
Two young boys crowded around, and Harry drew them into quick hugs when he managed to untangle his daughter from his body.
“Ransom, this is Benjamin, Oliver, and Grace. Kids, this is Ransom. He’s going to watch the dogs.”
I smiled as I waved hello. They were all cute as hell. Oliver looked to be the youngest at probably about five. Grace was maybe seven and Benjamin a couple of years older than her.
“Now for the rest of the brood. That one”—Harry pointed at a black-and-white dog—“is Jetson. He’s half border collie, half hound as far as the vet can figure. Don’t throw a ball around him unless you’re prepared to throw it for hours.” He pointed to a yellow Lab and said, “That’s Bamm-Bamm. Anything on level with his tail will be knocked over, so be wary. And that,” he said, his tone growing harder, “unholy creature is Taz. He’s a mutt, but we think there’s some boxer in there. Maybe a little shepherd. All I know is he’s totally insane, and I never should’ve let my family talk me into rescuing another puppy, but here we are.”
As Harry spoke, Taz began running in circles by my feet as if he could lure me in by creating some kind of cyclone.
“I assume you were into cartoons when you were younger?” With names like Jetson, Bamm-Bamm, and Taz, what else could be the case?
Harry chuckled. “Justin was.”
“Justin was what?” a voice asked from down the hall.
I looked up to see a tall, thin guy with shaggy blond hair walking toward us. Harry opened his arms, and the man, who I felt safe in assuming was Justin, walked into them and buried his face in Harry’s neck. The kids all joined in the hug, and while it was a beautiful thing to witness, I felt like I was intruding. Crouching down, I began playing with the dogs to give them a moment.
“Sorry,” Justin said, and I looked up to see that he’d pulled back but stayed close enough for Harry to keep an arm
