Already getting Diesel back in the truck, Colt heard the text come in. He didn’t save the number yet, not when he’d rather get to Charish. From her house, he was only five minutes away.
He found her easily enough, since he recognized her van. Once he let Diesel loose, the dog immediately bolted through the water and to the other side. Colt quickly grabbed the clippers and followed.
Sitting in the dirt, big sunglasses pushed to the top of her head, Charish held out a hand. “No, Diesel, wait!”
Too happy to see her, Diesel ignored the order and practically knocked her over, earning a laugh from Charish and concern from him.
“Diesel,” he started to say.
“The bushes,” she countered at almost the same time, while trying to get hold of Diesel’s collar. She finally managed by giving the dog a great big hug. With her face against Diesel’s neck, his wet paws and belly tracking dirt over her shorts, Charish explained, “They’re sticker bushes and there’s a little dog stuck inside.”
For only a second, Colt appreciated the picture she made loving on his dog while also concerned for another. She looked messy, very sweet, and it stirred memories of them stretched out together, the scent of sun-warmed skin and young lust in the air.
Drawing a breath, he said, “Let me take a look.”
The little dog yapped.
Ears perking, Diesel went on the alert. Nosing closer to the bush, he also pricked himself until Colt urged him back. “I need you to sit, boy. Sit.”
He didn’t like it, but Diesel obeyed, while also keeping a hawk eye on what Colt did.
Wrapping her hand in Diesel’s collar, Charish said, “I hope you weren’t too busy. I just wasn’t sure who to call. I tried to get him out, but only managed to scratch up my arm, and it made him more frantic and I was afraid he’d hurt himself more—”
“Shh. I’ll get him.” He cut away the lower branches, freeing a path.
With a smile in her voice, Charish whispered, “That’s what I told the dog.”
He would have smiled, too, except the poor little thing looked so terrified. “Good thing I was close, huh, buddy? There now, I’ll have you out in a second.”
“Do you think he got separated from someone up the creek?”
“No.” Colt eased away the last bramble, but saw that some were stuck to the dog’s matted fur. “He has some pretty big ticks on him, no collar, and his fur is a mess. I’m guessing he’s been out here awhile.”
With a soft gasp, she whispered, “Oh my God, poor baby.”
Colt glanced at her, saw sweet concern and honest empathy, and had to brace himself against her impact.
Now able to get his hands around the dog, he carefully pulled him free. The stickers got his bare arms a few times, snagged on the dog, too, but finally Colt held him in his arms.
Turning carefully, he sat in the dirt and held the dog close. “There you go, my man. You’re okay now.”
Diesel’s enthusiasm overflowed. He snuffled the dog, barked, and reared back in excitement. Rather than be alarmed, the little dog yapped in return, wiggling to be free. Cautiously, ready to grab him again, Colt set him on his feet—and watched him shoot over to Diesel as if they were long-lost friends.
The little dog was barely the size of Diesel’s head, but that didn’t bother him. The two dogs circled and sniffed until Charish laughed.
“They’re so cute together.” She turned her big dark eyes on him. “He seems okay, right? Not injured?”
“A few scratches. He needs to be cleaned up, and given the ticks, I’d bet he has mites, too. If I can get it set up in time, a checkup today wouldn’t hurt.”
“Is the vet open on Saturday?”
“I know a vet tech. I’ll give her a call.”
Charish tucked in her chin, gave a grudging nod, and followed the two dogs to the edge of the water to give him privacy.
It didn’t take Colt long to check in with Val, and then he joined them. “She can see us in twenty minutes.”
“Us?”
“Diesel behaves in a car, but I’m not sure about this guy.” He bent to stroke the dog and felt things in his fur that he didn’t want to think about. Peeling off his shirt, he wrapped up the dog and handed him to Charish. “Come on. I’ll drive.”
“My van...”
“We can lock it up, then swing by to get it when we’re done.” He already had dog hair and muddy paw prints in his truck. The van was more suited to a mother of small children...but maybe she’d had that in mind when she bought it. Plus a used van was often less expensive than sportier cars.
Diesel rode on the floor near Charish’s feet, with the scruffy dog in her lap. In that position, she could barely move, but the dogs found multiple ways to bump noses. He noticed that Charish spent an equal amount of time petting and praising Diesel so he wouldn’t get jealous.
By the second, the things to admire about her were adding up. Not that he needed a lot of help in that arena.
“What will you name it?”
She went perfectly still. “Name it? The dog?”
Feeling a grin go crooked, Colt said, “You were planning to keep it, weren’t you?”
She hugged the dog closer. “I hadn’t thought that far ahead. Shouldn’t we check to see if anyone is missing him?”
“Val will know. Missing dogs are always reported to the vet.”
A few minutes later they learned that no, no one had reported the dog lost. During the exam, they also found out that he had an ear infection, luckily no signs of fleas, and an abundance of bloated ticks, which were removed. The scratches were superficial, but Val treated them anyway.
“Thanks for seeing us on short notice,” Colt said.
“Any friend of Diesel’s and all that.” Charish noticed that Diesel loved Val, and she also noticed that—hopefully—Colt and Val were just friends.
“All in all, he’s not in terrible shape for a small dog who’s been on his own.” After removing several badly matted clumps of fur, Val sold them a bottle of gentle dog shampoo, as well as special food that would get him healthy again.
For the records, she needed a name. Colt deferred to Charish, and on the spur of the moment, she dubbed him Winslow.
Val knelt down to cuddle each dog. “Any chance they can spend more time together until Winslow settles in? He’ll need plenty of reassurance, and it appears he’s already bonded to Diesel.”
“Um...” Charish floundered.