The Soldier's Promise. Patricia Potter

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СКАЧАТЬ but the fact he’d been too long without female company.

      The list. Back to the list. He had finished scraping paint and filling in holes on the living room walls. He planned to prime it today, then paint it tomorrow.

      There was also the Harley outside, but that was at the bottom of his list.

      Other than giving it a brief inspection, he’d hadn’t had time to work on it since the bike had arrived from Georgia, along with his other belongings. It hadn’t been used since before his last deployment to Afghanistan.

      He missed it. It was one of his few big purchases, and he’d ridden across the country on it while on his leaves. It had been his only vehicle until he’d bought the used Jeep Wrangler to pick up Amos.

      He sipped a second cup of coffee as he looked around. He wondered how the property had looked when Dave’s family had owned it. Or why his friend had clung to it despite never coming back.

      He finished his coffee and went into the smaller, second bedroom and searched through the cartons that had been shipped from Georgia. He hadn’t gone back to the base to do it, just asked a friend to pack everything except his uniforms. He’d wanted those left behind.

      When the boxes arrived, he’d discovered his off-duty clothes had been way too big after months of hospital food, and now he lived in newly purchased jeans and T-shirts. The other boxes included his stereo and CDs, a small television and a couple of paintings he’d bought to brighten his rooms in the bachelor quarters for noncommissioned officers.

      Then there were the six boxes of books, everything from biographies to history to novels. He’d opened one of the boxes and was currently reading a suspense novel when he couldn’t sleep.

      Bookcase. He added that to the furniture list.

      Then there was the box containing dog toys he’d purchased just before picking up Amos. Like other military dogs, Amos was trained with toy rewards rather than treat rewards, and he’d dearly loved his ball and rubber KONG toy that Dave had carried all over hell and back. But Amos hadn’t been interested in the new batch. Still, Josh placed several toys in each room, then went back to work priming the living room walls.

      The vet arrived at noon.

      Stephanie Phillips looked around as she stepped inside, her gaze going to the primed walls, the cans of paint, the ladder and the fireplace. “You’ve been busy.”

      “Lots to do.”

      “You’re going to stay, then.”

      Josh shrugged. “It needs repairs whether I stay or not.”

      “That’s not a very definitive answer,” she said.

      “Maybe because I haven’t decided yet.”

      “And it’s really none of my business.”

      He let the silence answer for him.

      “I hope you do. We need some new blood in town.”

      “Or at least a new patient.” The ungracious words popped out before he could stop them. She’d agreed to make a house call, and he needed her. But the old protective wall had gone back up after discovering the mayor had had him investigated.

      “Now, that’s cynical.” But her smile belied the cut of the words.

      “And you don’t deserve it. I apologize.” He moved across the room to an open door. “Amos is in the bedroom.” He turned and gave her a wry look. “Neither of us bite. It’s safe.”

      “Didn’t doubt it for a second,” she said.

      He led the way into the bedroom and watched as she knelt beside Amos, who had crawled halfway under the bed after hearing the door open.

      “Dr. Phillips...”

      “Stephanie,” she corrected. She started talking to Amos in a voice so soft Josh could barely hear the words. Her fingers ran through his fur.

      “You’re a fine fellow,” she said softly. “And you have nothing to fear from me. You just don’t know who to trust, but that’s okay. You’ll learn. You’ll like it here. Woods. Rabbits to chase.”

      Amos had tensed when she first touched him, but now under her gentle hands and soft voice, the dog started to relax.

      “He’s a very handsome dog,” she said. “I’ve not seen a Belgian Malinois around here before.”

      “He’s smart as hell. He saved a lot of lives out there. He deserves some peace.”

      “He was trained to detect explosives?”

      “He was what they call a dual-purpose dog. He could detect explosives as well as track enemy combatants.”

      “We always need trackers around here. People keep getting lost in the mountains.”

      “He’s not ready for that.”

      “Not now, but...”

      “I’m not concerned with anything but now,” he said shortly.

      She nodded. “He’s thin. Too thin. What does he eat?”

      “Not much of anything. I tried dog food at first. Some that the vets at Lackland recommended. He ignored it. I tried hamburgers and steaks on the trip. He would nibble after leaving it for a while, but never much. Same yesterday. I got him a steak from Maude’s Diner. He couldn’t be less interested.”

      “And those are good steaks,” she said. “My dogs would die for them.”

      She whispered something to Amos, then stood. “Amos, can you sit for me?”

      “Sit, Amos,” Josh said, trying to reinforce the command.

      Amos slowly moved his butt from under the bed. Amos usually cringed now when a command was given. Today was no different, but after a moment he obeyed.

      “Good boy,” the vet said. She took a small package from her pocket and pulled out a piece of cheese and offered it to Amos.

      To Josh’s surprise, he accepted it.

      “Few dogs can resist cheese,” she said. “Works a lot better than most dog treats.” She continued whispering to Amos as she inspected his ears and then her hands checked the rest of his body. “Muscle tone is still good.”

      “I’ve been taking him for walks at night when there’s no traffic. Sudden noises scare him. And any kind of loud noises. Knocking on the door, for instance.”

      “Is that why you’ve scared off visitors?”

      “You’ve heard that, too?”

      “Everyone in town has. I know you don’t want to say much about your service. Or Amos’s. But it would be a quick way to stop the visitors. They’ll understand.”

      He shrugged. “We don’t care if they understand.”

      She СКАЧАТЬ