A Soldier's Secret. RaeAnne Thayne

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СКАЧАТЬ all over strangers. Despite his moods and his uncanny intelligence, Conan was usually well-mannered, but just now he strained against the leash as if he wanted to knock her new tenant to the ground and lick his face off.

      “Sit!” she ordered, more sternly this time. Conan gave her a disgruntled look, then plopped his butt to the floor.

      “Good dog. I’m sorry,” she said, feeling flustered. “Hi. You must be Harry Maxwell, right?”

      Something flashed in his eyes, too quickly for her to identify it, but she thought he looked uncomfortable.

      After a moment, he nodded. “Yeah.”

      With that single syllable, he sounded as cold and remote as Tillamook Rock. She blinked, not quite sure how to respond. He obviously didn’t want to be best friends here, he was only renting her empty apartment, she reminded herself.

      Despite Conan’s sudden ardor, it was probably better all the way around if they all maintained a careful distance during the duration of Harry Maxwell’s rental agreement. He was only here for a short time and then he would probably head back to active duty. No need for unnecessarily messy entanglements.

      Taking her cue from his own reaction, she forced her voice to be brisk, professional. “I’m Anna Galvez, one of the owners of Brambleberry House. This is my dog, Conan. I don’t know what’s come over him. I’m sorry. He’s not usually so…ardent…with strangers. Every once in a while he greets somebody like an old friend. I can’t explain it but I’m very sorry if his exuberance makes you uncomfortable.”

      He unbent enough to reach down and scratch the dog’s chin, which had the beast’s tail thumping against the floor in ecstasy.

      “Conan? Like the barbarian?” he asked.

      “Actually, like the talk-show host. It’s a long story.”

      One he obviously wasn’t interested in hearing about, if the remote expression on his handsome features was any indication.

      She tugged Conan’s leash when he tried to wrap himself around the soldier’s legs and after another disgruntled moment, the dog condescended enough to sit beside her. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here when you arrived so I could show you around. I wasn’t expecting you for a day or two.”

      “My plans changed. I was released from the military hospital a few days earlier than I expected. Since I didn’t have anywhere else to go right now, I decided to head out here.”

      How sad, she thought. Didn’t he have any family eager to give him a hero’s welcome?

      “Since I was early, I planned to get a hotel room for a couple days,” he added, “but the property management company said the apartment was ready and available.”

      “It is. Everything’s fine. I’m just sorry I wasn’t here.”

      “The real estate agent handled everything.”

      Not everything Tracy probably wanted to handle, Anna mused, then was slightly ashamed of herself for the base thought.

      This whole situation felt so awkward, so out of her comfort zone.

      “You were able to find everything you needed?” she asked. “Towels, sheets, whatever?”

      He shrugged. “So far.”

      “The kitchen is fully stocked with cookware and so forth but if you can’t find something, let me know.”

      “I’ll do that.”

      Despite his terse responses, Anna was disconcerted by her awareness of him. He was so big, so overwhelmingly male. She would be glad when the few months were up, though apparently Conan was infatuated with the man.

      She had a sudden fierce wish that Tracy had found a nice older lady to rent the attic apartment to, but somehow she doubted too many older ladies were interested in climbing forty steps to get to their apartment.

      Thinking of the steps reminded her of his injury and she nodded toward the sling on his shoulder. “I’m really sorry I wasn’t here to help you carry up boxes. I guess you managed all right.”

      “I don’t have much. A duffel and a suitcase. I’m only here for a short time.”

      “I know, but it’s still two long flights of stairs.”

      She thought annoyance flickered in his eyes, as if he didn’t like being reminded of his injury, but he quickly hid it.

      “I handled things,” he said.

      “Well, if you ever need help carrying groceries up or anything or if you would just like the name of a good doctor around here, just let me know.”

      “I’m fine. I don’t need anything. Just a quiet place to hang for a while until I’m fit to return to my unit.”

      She had the impression Lieutenant Harry Maxwell wasn’t a man who liked being in any kind of position to need help. She supposed she probably shouldn’t be holding her breath waiting for him to ask for it.

      “I’m afraid I can’t promise you complete quiet. Conan is mostly well-behaved but he does bark once in a while. I should also warn you if Tracy didn’t mention it that there are children living in the second-floor apartment. Seven-year-old twins.”

      “They bark, too?”

      She searched his face for any sign of a sense of humor but his expression revealed nothing. Still, she couldn’t help smiling. “No, but they can be a little…energetic…at times. Mostly in the afternoons. They’re gone most of the day at school and then they’re usually pretty quiet in the evenings.”

      “That’s something, then.”

      “In any case, they won’t be here at all for several days. Their mother, Julia, is a teacher. Since they’re all out of school right now for spring break, they’ve gone back to visit her family.”

      Before Lieutenant Maxwell could respond, Conan broke free of both the sit command and her hold on the leash and lunged for him again, dancing around his legs with excitement.

      Anna reached for him again. “Conan, stop it right now. That’s enough! I’m so sorry,” she said to her new tenant, flustered at the negative impression they must be making.

      “No worries. I’m not completely helpless. I think I can still manage to handle one high-strung mutt.”

      “Conan is not like most dogs,” she muttered. “Most of the time we forget he even is a canine.”

      “The dog breath doesn’t give him away?”

      She smiled at his dry tone. So some sense of humor did lurk under that tough shell. That was a good sign. Brambleberry House and all its quirks demanded a strong constitution of its occupants.

      “There is that,” she answered. “We’ll get out of your way and let you settle in. Again, if you need anything, don’t hesitate to call. My phone number is right next to the phone or you can just call down the stairs and I’ll usually hear you.”

      “I’ll СКАЧАТЬ