Читать книгу Shelter of Hope - Margaret Daley - Страница 6

Chapter Two

Story:

Nathan Grayson pounded the last nail into the fence of the new pen and then stepped away. Sweat dripped off his forehead. He mopped the back of his hand across it, then downed the rest of his now warm bottled water.

Giggles floated to him. Carly’s laughter always brought a smile to him, especially now. For months his daughter had hardly smiled, let alone laughed. Her mother’s death last year during the hurricane had robbed them both of joy. His wife shouldn’t have died. If only he hadn’t insisted they move back to Hope, Caroline would be alive today. He had to live with that.

Another bout of laughter sprinkled the air, coming from the barn behind him. Nathan put his hammer in his toolbox and strode inside to see what his young daughter was doing that was so much fun. He had been working for hours. He could use a break.

In the dim interior of the barn he spied Carly rolling around on the dirt floor with the new litter of four puppies crawling all over her, licking her face, rubbing up against her, gnawing on her hand.

“Your mama will be here soon to feed ya,” Carly said to the puppies, giggling as she tried to pull her finger out of one puppy’s mouth. “I am not her.”

“Carly, come away from the puppies. I know a young lady who’s going to have to take a bath before we go to see Kim and Zane tonight.”

Carly sat straight up, cupping one wiggly puppy against her chest. “I don’t want to give any of them away.”

“What did I tell you about becoming too attached to the animals we take in?” He’d had to learn that the hard way. Becoming too attached hurt.

“Not to… But, Daddy, that’s hard.”

He knelt next to her and cradled one of the mixed-breed puppies in his hands. “I know, pumpkin. I have a hard time with it, too, but we only have so much room here. I have to find homes for them so if another dog needs our help, we’ll have a place for it. It’s easier to convince someone to take a puppy.” He held the brown-and-white puppy against his cheek, wishing he had the money and space to take all the animals in. So many had been displaced by the hurricane.

“Can’t I keep one?”

“No, pumpkin. Whining will get you nowhere.” He forced a stern tone into his voice because this always happened when there was a new litter. If she had her way, it would be wall-to-wall animals at the farm.

Carly looked each one over, a frown descending. “But I love them all.”

“Sorry.”

A car coming down the dirt road to their house filled the sudden silence that fell between Carly and him.

She hopped up, saying, “Someone’s here,” and raced out of the barn.

He put each puppy back in a small pen, then followed his daughter outside to a Mustang. A woman with short, spiky black hair and huge, glistening blue eyes climbed from the car. A tear ran down her cheek, then another. He hurried forward.

“I’m Susan Fayard, Zane Davidson’s secretary. Kim told me about how you take in hurt animals and care for them.” She moved to the Mustang’s back door and opened it. “Someone hit her. Please help.”

As the woman stepped back, Nathan leaned in and examined the dog. “I’ll try, but it doesn’t look good.”