Page 24

I want to feel that again.
Honestly, if he had suggested we go inside right then, I might have agreed. I needed to relax after Bella and Bigfoot started making my life so difficult.
When he offered to help, my first thought was no. I can handle things myself—even though I clearly haven’t been able to up until this point.
But as much as I hate to admit it, I need the help. Bella and Bigfoot are proving to be more of a handful than I anticipated, and if there’s even a slim chance that Ethan can keep them under control, I’d be a fool to turn him away.
Besides, Wesley has things to do, and I don’t want to be calling him and waiting for him to bail me out every time these dogs decide to stage another jailbreak.
So, I decide to give Ethan a chance, even if I’m not entirely comfortable with the idea. I do need the help. Even if it’s just once a day, I’ll take any help I can get.
However, when I open the door and let Samson bound on outside, I see that Ethan is striding through the dew-covered grass toward my back porch. I don’t like the way my heart immediately starts thumping harder when I see him.
He’s dressed neatly in scrubs, and he looks…sexy in the light blue outfit. I wonder what type of underwear he’s wearing and if it’s too restricting or if I could see him getting hard if I touched him enough.
I shake these thoughts away.
“Morning,” he says when he sees me. “Ready to deal with these dogs?”
I don’t want him to know how relieved I am to see him, so I just smile and wave. I have Bigfoot on a leash, and Bella is howling up a storm, sure that she’s missing out on the fun.
Ethan jogs over and takes the leash from my hand, leading Bigfoot over to his fenced-in area. I notice that the area under the fence has already been fixed. When did Ethan have the time to do that?
I bring Bella out a moment later and lead her over to the fence. Samson barks, and I take his electric collar off so he can come with us. Ethan opens the gate so we can slip inside without letting Bigfoot out. “Do you really think we can keep these two from causing any more trouble?”
He chuckles, and the sound is surprisingly pleasant. “I’m up for the challenge. If this fence doesn’t keep them in, then we might have to put a weighted backpack on them or something so they can’t jump. It will tire them out too.”
Bella trots across the backyard, leash trailing after her. At first, she keeps whipping around, trying to see what’s following her, but when she realizes the leash is to stay, she relaxes a little.
Then, she and Bigfoot start running and leaping on each other, having a grand old time. I laugh as they wrestle. Samson barks at them, eager to join in, but not quite sure how.
“I have one more,” I tell Ethan and head back inside for the last, much more manageable dog in the pack. Finally, everyone is in the backyard. I stand close to Ethan, arms crossed as I watch them play.
If I had a fenced-in backyard, dog-sitting would beeasy. I imagine just opening the back door and letting them roam free for an hour or two.
“How did they do last night?”
“Oh, they’re quiet at night. They didn’t bother me at all. It’s just that they are strong and have a lot of energy. There’s no turning that energy off.”
“If you want, we could take them on a quick walk around the neighborhood,” Ethan suggests.
I look at him in horror, sure my eyes are as wide as saucers. “Are you talking about these dogs? The ones who slip their leashes and make runs for it?”
“I bet they wouldn’t do that if they had enough exercise.”
I like the thought of parading through the neighborhood with Ethan, but I’m worried that Bella and Bigfoot will make it too difficult.
“What time do you need to leave for work?”
“I have twenty minutes.”
I glance then at Ethan. “Fine, but I get the two small ones. You get the big ones.”
Ethan grins at the challenge. “Let’s go.”
We take the dogs for a walk around the neighborhood, and Ethan manages to keep them from lunging at every squirrel and passing car. As we round the corner back to my house, he glances at me, a small smile playing on his lips.
“You know, you’re not half bad at this yourself. The dogs might be crazy, but you can tell they like you. They keep checking to make sure you’re back there still following us.”