Page 30 of A Cowboy's Bride
Jinx? I can handle that. Come to the animal rescue building first. She may as well get to know the lay of the land.
Petra nodded as she turned to Jinx. “We’re all set. On to the barn.”
It was clear Jinx didn't have a lot of experience with animals from the way she kept looking around the barn with wide eyes—but wide eyes full of curiosity and not fear.
She let Petra guide her in petting the nose of a horse. She scooped up a couple of the kittens one after the other and gave them cuddles.
But it was when they met the beautiful golden retriever by the fire pit that something bloomed on the girl’s face.
Aiden held the dog’s lead, but it was clear that was more for show than anything else. The dog stopped perfectly when he did, slipping forward silently when he adjusted his stance a few feet to the right.
“Jinx, I'd like you to meet Dixie. Dixie,” Aiden spoke down toward the animal. The dog looked up at him instantly, her full attention fixed intently. “This is Jinx. Guard.”
The dog’s rear wiggled as her tail wagged, but she didn't move from the spot, tilting her head toward Jinx and panting lightly, the edge of her tongue hanging out.
“Put your hand out,” Aiden directed. “Then say,Come, Dixie, and she'll come to you. If your hand is out, she might give you a lick or two, but then she’ll sit down and wait. You take your time getting used to her. You can scratch her along the muzzle or between the eyes if you’d like, but as long as you let her take a sniff and say hello, that's all you have to do.”
“Sound okay?” Petra asked.
Jinx nodded, pushing her hand forward far quicker than Petra expected, though she did swallow big before following Aiden’s instructions. “Come, Dixie.”
Dixie crossed the distance, bumping her nose into the centre of Jinx’s palm. Then her butt was back on the ground, her tail thumping again as she sat and offered a wide doggie smile.
Jinx tentatively lifted her hand to stroke the dog’s head, but Petra’s gaze drifted to the brothers. Watching three grown men try and make themselves smaller was amusing, or it would be if the reason it was necessary wasn’t so sad.
Still, the introduction was going well, and when Jinx looked up at Declan and offered a real smile, hope bloomed in Petra's chest.
“She’s nice. What else do I need to know?”
Declan tipped his head toward his brother. “Aiden will have to teach you. Dixie is his girl more than the rest of ours.”
“But don't worry about that,” Aiden hurried to add as Jinx's expression clouded. “We have other dogs, and we’re going to have more, so it's okay to share one with you. Dixie is a special girl, and the rule is whoever needs her the most gets her.”
“She's a cuddler.” Declan shook his head as if somewhat disgusted. “Dogs aren’t supposed to be cuddlers.”
Jinx dropped her gaze, but Petra heard a snort, and when the girl glanced up at Declan, a bit of amusement lingered in her eyes.
They made their way back to the house. Jinx stuck close to Petra, but with Dixie pacing close enough to brush her legs and nudge her nose against the hand Jinx held at her side, it was a more positive trip than Petra had hoped for.
Aiden and Declan settled onto the bench on the porch to take off their boots when Jinx’s calm seemed to vanish between one breath and the next. Petra glanced around to see what might have caused the change.
“What are you doing?” Jinx asked.
Aiden tucked his cowboy boots under the bench then glanced at her, confusion on his face. “We don’t wear work boots into the house.”
“That’s the surest way to get a towel snapped at your butt,” Jake agreed, using the boot jack to remove his own footwear.
It was the same rule Petra had grown up with, so it was only natural to lean down to prepare to loosen her own laces. She paused though, as Jinx eased her way to the edge of the porch, no longer sticking to Petra’s side like glue.
It was sheer instinct that made Petra straighten at the exact second Jinx twirled and fled down the stairs and onto the gravel, headed for the main road at an all-out sprint.
“Jinx.”Petra’s shout echoed even as she threw herself off the porch after the girl.
“What the hell?” Jake snapped, trying to jam his feet back into his boots so he could chase them.
Didn’t see that one coming,Aidenthought. He too was shoving his feet back in his boots when Declan laid a hand on his shoulder. “Petra’s got her.”
The three of them stood there on the porch feeling rather useless as the two women talked about halfway down the drive. Jinx stood in one spot, staring at the ground while Petra waved her arms vigorously. No shouting, but obviously some very intense communication, at least on Petra’s part.
