Page 29 of Love's Harvest
“Okay, why don’t you take Luke out to the backyard so he can play,” said Sarah, making sure all three were happily active before starting to fix dinner.
Looking around, seeing that some of her wedding gifts were relegated to giveaways, Sarah let out a sigh of satisfaction.She felt freer to have them gone.She and Jesse had had some good times in the beginning.She understood that.But it was time to set even those memories aside if she was going to move forward.
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After the excitement of playing outside with the dog fizzled, the girls came inside.
“Okay, you girls can help me feed the dog,” said Sarah, “and then it will be time for dinner.”
From the refrigerator, Sarah pulled out the dog food Gage had told her to buy and sprinkled the proper amount of food into a bowl.“Dr.Martens told me Luke might be too excited about being here to eat much.Let’s see.”
Sarah put the dish of food down next to the water dish, and the girls huddled close by.
“Give him some space.Dogs don’t like to be crowded when they’re eating.”
Left alone, Luke dug into his food.
“Good job,” said Emily when the dog had finished.
“All gone,” Mia said, patting him on the head.
“Okay, now it’s time for us to eat.Wash your hands and climb up in your seats,” said Sarah.“We’re having your favorite—spaghetti.”
“Luke, lie down in your bed,” said Sarah, hoping it was a command he understood.
He looked at her and then did as she said.
“Good dog,” cooed Sarah.She served their meal and then sat at the table, unusually hungry after her busy day.Gage had said he was an excellent dog, but having him with them was much easier than she’d thought.
“Can Luke sleep with me?”asked Mia.
“No, he’s going to sleep with me,” Emily said.
“I think he should sleep on the floor between your beds.That’s fair,” said Sarah.“But if he wants to choose somewhere else, we’ll let him.We want him to be comfortable, right?It’s bath time.You have school tomorrow, and we want to be ready.”
“Can Luke come with us?”asked Emily.
“Let’s let him decide what he wants to do and where he wants to be,” said Sarah.The dog hadn’t had much rest since the girls came home.
To the girls’ delight, Luke was curious enough to walk into the bathroom and sit nearby to watch them as they played in the tub.
And later, when Sarah led the girls into their bedroom, he followed them.And after each girl had climbed into her bed, Luke lay down on the rug between their beds and stayed there as Sarah read to the girls and even after Sarah kissed the girls and headed for the door.
She left the door open a crack as usual.If Luke wanted to leave, he could.
As she was cleaning the kitchen and preparing snacks for the girls for the next day, she was surprised by a phone call from Gage.
“Hi, Sarah.I’m just calling to see how my latest placement is going.Is Luke happy there?Getting along with the children?”
“He’s a dream dog,” said Sarah.“Thank you so much.He’s fitting in fine with the family.He ate all his dinner and is now sleeping on the rug between the girls’ beds.We’re thrilled to have him.”
“I’m glad to hear it.As you can imagine, his previous owner was very sad to have to let him go.But I promised her I’d see that he went to a good home.I almost took him myself, but I already have two dogs of my own.”
“I appreciate your letting us have him,” said Sarah.“Are you going to be at Jake’s this week?”
“I’m going to try,” said Gage.“Glad things are working out for you and the dog.See you later.If you have any questions for me, please feel free to call.”
“Thanks,” said Sarah, just as the doorbell rang.She clicked off the call and hurried to the door, hoping not to disturb the girls.
