Page 37 of Love It or List It
“Maybe he has game after all,” Alex suggested.
Austin rolled his eyes and dusted off his hands.“Come on.Your father’s got to go deal with his wood situation.I’ll take you to meet Pepa.”
The kids dutifully followed him through the kitchen to the breezeway door, which they’d closed to keep Pepa contained and warm.She didn’t look like she’d moved much, not that Austin blamed her, and the dressing on her back leg was still clean, which was a relief.
But her eyes were open, and now that he was standing in front of the door, he could hear her soft whines.
“Maybe one at a time,” he decided.“She’s not feeling great, and we don’t know what her history is like.She might not like people.”
She liked Joe, but everyone liked Joe.And she seemed to like Austin too, which was a gift Austin wouldn’t take for granted.
“Me first,” Gavin said, shoving forward.
“Will first,” Austin corrected.“He’s the quietest.Let’s ease her into you.”
Will flushed with pleasure.By some miracle, Gavin didn’t argue.
Despite the general lack of insulation—something on the mile-long list of things to address—the breezeway was plenty cozy with the space heater from the trailer set up in a corner and blocked off by a couple of chairs they’d dragged in from the garage so Pepa couldn’t accidentally burn herself.
She raised her head when she saw Austin, and her tail thumped on her bed, but she whined too.Poor thing.Austin had memorized Linda’s instructions by now—no more pain pills until evening.
“Hi, sweet girl,” he said, kneeling next to her and gesturing Will to come closer.“This is Will.I guess he’s your half brother.”He held out his hand for Pepa to sniff; she licked it.
Will copied Austin’s greeting, and Pepa consented to gentle ear pets.“Did she really fight a coyote?”
“She started it,” Austin agreed.“Or, well, maybe the coyote did.Joe ended it with a two-by-four.”
“Seriously?”His blue eyes went wide.Then he lowered his voice and glanced back toward the door, which Austin had closed behind them to keep the heat in, and said conspiratorially, “Sounds hot.”
Jesus, these kids were going to kill him.“I’ll tell him you said that,” Austin threatened, barely holding in a laugh.
The blood ran out of Will’s face.“Oh God, please don’t.Someone will ask if I have daddy issues.”
Austin kind of assumed daddy issues were a prerequisite of being one of Joe’s kids.Then again, if Willdidn’thave any, it was probably down to Joe.
Will stroked Pepa’s head again.“She’s sweet.I always wanted a dog.”
“Me too.”
Not just a dog, of course.Parents who loved him, siblings, a partner.But just because you wanted something didn’t mean you’d get it.He’d learned that hard lesson.And you could lose anything you did get.Austin was better off alone.
But Pepa was better off with him.He could take care of her.He couldn’t let her suffer.He didn’t want her to be alone.
Besides, dogs were loyal.Pepa would never leave him.
She licked his hand once again as he stroked her neck.“All right.Let’s give Alex a turn.”
WITH THEaddition of Pepa to their family, having a habitable house where they could safely and comfortably sleep and eat was more urgent than ever, and Joe and Austin stepped up their efforts to cross things off the to-do list.First up was patching the stairs, which Joe did the day they brought Pepa home.
The day after her arrival, Austin watched Pepa take her first steps, and her unhappy first fall.Miscalculating her weight, she overbalanced and landed on her bandaged hip, letting out a pained yelp.Austin was at her side, petting and soothing, before he thought about it.As she panted in his arms, he buried his face in her fur and hid his own tears.
Thank God she quickly picked up how to manage a three-legged walk.Austin didn’t think he could take seeing her in such distress again.
On Tuesday, the exterminator came to deal with the mice.
Since neither Joe nor Austin could get their work done in the house, they spent the time at their day jobs.Nervous about leaving her alone, Austin brought Pepa to the garage and kept her snugly cooped up in his office.Between changing the oil on a Ford and replacing the carburetor in an old Chevy, Austin popped next door to his neighbor and asked if he was still thinking about renting a place closer to his work.
At home that evening, they got to work implementing the rest of the exterminator’s advice.Joe took the lawnmower and weedwhacker to plant life near the house, and Austin picked up airtight containers for food and garbage.
