Page 57 of Her Unflinching Warrior (Omega Sky)
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“Huh?”Jada stretched like a sleepy kitten—all soft, cute, and cuddly—but Gideon knew there were pinpoint claws that could tear the shit out of him.
“I told you we were here,” Gideon said again.
Jada blinked a couple of times, then lifted her head off her jacket. “How long was I out for?”
“An hour. Traffic was bad.”
“Where’s Jonas?”
“He’s already taken off in his tiny little car,” Gideon scoffed.
“Huh? Tiny? But he’s huge.”
Gideon laughed. “That’s what makes it so funny. German boy insisted on a German car built in the states. Go figure. Do you need help getting out of the car?”
Jada shook her head, then regretted it. Gideon winced. “Words, Angel. Don’t nod or shake your head. Use your words until we get you some meds and rest.”
He undid her seatbelt then bolted out of the car and was at her side before she could blink. He slowly opened her door, as if she would fall out of it or something.
“Let me help you out.”
“I don’t need help. If you need to be a Boy Scout, go find a little old lady to help cross a street or something.”
Gideon shook his head. Yep, the kitten’s claws were showing again. But Jada wouldn’t be kittenish for long. He’d better enjoy it while he could.
“You live here?” Jada asked. She sounded incredulous. Then her head cocked. “Is that a dog barking?”
“Are you okay with dogs? I should have asked before bringing you here.”
Smart move, Smith.
“Yeah, we grew up with a Great Dane when we lived in California. He died before we moved to New York. Mom got Tuesday when we moved to Queens, she’s a Scottie dog.”
“Good, so you’re used to big dogs. But I think I’ll put off having you meet Lucy until your head is feeling better. She can be exuberant when she meets new people.”
Jada turned to him as they started up his walkway to the front door. “Please, can I meet her now? I think she’d be better than ibuprofen.”
Gideon’s lips twitched. “Okay, but don’t say I didn’t warn you.” He pulled his key fob out of his pants pocket and clicked it. The mudroom door opened and they were met with three excited woofs, before the big black mound of hair bounded her way toward them. Gideon moved a couple of yards to the right, away from Jada so that Lucy would aim for him. She hit him full bore.
Her front paws hit his shoulders.
“I missed you too, you pretty monster,” Gideon crooned. He heard Jada’s giggle. It wasn’t laughter, it was actually a giggle, and he loved it.
“Oh my God, what type of breed is she?”
“A Chornyi Terrier, also known as a Black Russian Terrier.”
“She’s huge!” said with a gleeful smile. “Come here, girl.” She patted her thighs.
Lucy lunged off his chest toward Jada and he saw a problem of epic proportions about to occur. Jada was about to be knocked on her ass. Normally that would be just fine, but not when she was hurting like she was.
“Lucy, Stop.” He said loud and firm. His big dog stopped in her tracks, then looked over her shoulder at him. Gideon knew he was getting a what-the-fuck look from underneath her long black bangs.
He walked over to her and ran his hands through her fluffy curls. One of the Ellis girls must have groomed her in his absence. “Lucy, soft.” He knew that wasn’t a normal command, but it worked when he wanted Lucy to do a soft approach with smaller animals, or children. Immediately his dog took shorter steps and led with her nose, making a snuffling sound. As she got to Jada, she looked up at her, pandering to be petted.
“Oh, you’re just a big ole marshmallow, aren’t you?” Jada chortled as she sank her fingers into Lucy’s ruff and started scratching. Lucy was in heaven. Of course, she was—all that attention from Jada, who wouldn’t be?
