Page 53 of Puppy Love

“Well, no,” she said, blinking at the sheer force of that smile. “Not really.”

“Except for the fact that she’s supposed to be in training. And that we needyouto help with it.” Harrison wasn’t sure why the idea of going camping with Bubbles had him reacting so strongly, but that wasn’t anything new. Toss him out of his comfort zone, and this was what happened. The calm acceptance on both Derek’s and Sophie’s faces proved it. They would have been more surprised had henotgrowled a protest. “Besides, what about the c-a-m-p-f-i-r-e?”

“First of all, Bubbles is a dog, so you don’t need to spell it out,” Sophie said with a giggle. “Second, it might be good for her. The candles obviously haven’t been enough. We need to step up her exposure if we’re going to beat this thing.”

Harrison didn’t mention the small success he’d had in the grate that morning. It would kill him to get her hopes up only to dash them back down again. “But what about our regular training?”

She shrugged. “We can continue it there. A service dog isn’t supposed to change your lifestyle, Harrison; she’s supposed to fit into it. If camping is something you do every year, then you should absolutely keep doing it. Bubbles will adjust. She might even like it.”

Harrison barely heard any of what Sophie said beyond that ominouswe can continue it there.Weimplied more than one of them.Weincluded herself.

“All right!” Derek cried. “It’s a plan. You’ll like it out there, Sophie. Some of the wives and girlfriends come, so it’s not like you’ll be the only one.”

He caught the swift look of embarrassment that colored Sophie’s face and amended his words. “Not that you’re a girlfriend, of course, but you know what I mean. You’ll have company out there. More than this sorry bastard, anyway.”

This sorry bastard didn’t much care for the plan either way. He wasn’t ready to share Bubbles with the world. He wasn’t ready to shareSophie.

“We can’t ask Sophie to change her plans at the drop of a hat,” he said. “I’m sure she has other appointments, other places to be. We weren’t even supposed to work this weekend.”

“I’m in.” Sophie’s response was so quick it made Harrison’s head spin.

“But—”

“Are you leaving today?” She directed the question at Derek, bypassing Harrison entirely. “I’ll need about an hour to pack and make arrangements, but I don’t foresee any problems. In fact, it’s fortuitous timing. My mom came for an unannounced visit this morning. Aprolongedunannounced visit. You’d be doing me a favor by letting me come along.”

Derek, who Harrison knew visited his mother almost every day for no other reason than his pure delight in her company, shuddered. “Oh, shit. It doesn’t get much worse than that. Is she a gorgon?”

“No.” Sophie sighed. “She’s the nicest woman in the world.”

Derek laughed. “I wouldn’t want to subject anyone to such horrors. By all means, let’s get you packed up and out of the way.”

“Yes, please.”

As if suddenly realizing that her plans hinged on Harrison’s acceptance, she turned to him and smiled prettily. It was the same look Bubbles had given him when he’d wrangled her into the goddamn sweater. “That is, if you don’t mind my coming along,” she added. “My reasons for wanting to go are selfish, I won’t lie, but I do think it’ll be good for you—and for the puppy. Give her a taste of what it’s really like out there.”

Harrison glanced doubtfully at said puppy and then back at Sophie. Both of them stared at him expectantly, like all their hopes and dreams hung on his willingness to play along. He couldn’t decide if it made him want to laugh or howl. It wasn’t as if he had any say in the matter.

“Fine. We can all go on the stupid camping trip. But,” he added before the bright light in Sophie’s eyes toppled him over, “you have to help me figure out what to pack for this creature. I have no idea what a skittish, traumatized service puppy is going to need for a three-day stay in the wilderness. There are cougars out there, you know. And coyotes.”

Sophie nodded solemnly, but it was impossible to miss the gleam in her eyes or the way her suppressed excitement made her whole body come alight. This was not a woman who got out much, that was for sure.No oneshould be this excited at the prospect of a weekend in a tent with the wildfire crew. He sure as hell wasn’t.

Well. Maybe he was a little now.

“It’s a deal.” She extended her hand and held it there. If it wasn’t for Derek standing there, watching the interaction with unholy glee lighting his face, Harrison might have been able to avoid taking her hand. As it was, he was forced to slip his palm against hers, once again feeling that sharp juxtaposition of his own rough skin and her soft, supple touch. “You and Bubbles won’t regret this.”

Which showed just how little this woman knew. He was regretting it already.

Chapter 13

“She’s okay like this, isn’t she?” Harrison asked with a worried look at his lap, where Bubbles stood at full attention, her tongue lolling and her ears perked. “She doesn’t need to be in a…car seat or anything?”

Sophie barely managed to tamp down an unseemly giggle. For such a self-sufficient man, Harrison sure lacked confidence when it came to his puppy. “Do you feel comfortable with her on your lap?”

He cast a doubtful glance at the animal. “I don’t have any choice in the matter. She refuses to sit anywhere else.”

Sophie could have pointed out that, as a two-hundred-pound human being with opposable thumbs and a stare that could bring down a forest, he had the power to make Bubbles do anything he wanted—up to and including riding in a crate on the floor.

But Sophie didn’t. Shelikedthat he was so much at the puppy’s mercy. It was sweet. It also made her feel as though she too might have a shot at worming her way into his heart.