The Beginning and the End
She was looking for something.
Brooke Laramie had been looking for something for as long as she could remember. When she was in diapers she looked for anything she could pop in her mouth, much to her mother’s dismay. In middle school it had been the biggest tree to climb or the quickest way to get the best grade with the least work. High school found her looking for ways to improve her tennis game and thereby feeding her need for competition, this time to her parents’ pleasure as it led to a college scholarship. Now, she found herself in her third year of vet school and she was struggling to decide if this was what she had really been looking for. And if it wasn’t, then just what in the hell was? Recently the stress of school and her existing indecisiveness were driving her crazy.
It was moments like this one that enabled Brooke a brief glimpse at contentment. Her ash blonde hair was tangled by a cooler than usual central-Texas breeze, and Dart’s slick, golden Labrador coat brushed rhythmically against her left thigh. Thoughts of pharmacology and clinical pathology and vet school, in general, were a distant thought as the pair wound their way down the park path. They reached the area that was set aside for off-leash play and Brooke asked Dart to sit before unclipping his leash and releasing him to fraternize with the other canine park patrons.
While keeping a keen eye on her companion she headed to a nearby bench and sat. She noticed a new dog in the group of playmates, a graceful giant with a flowing coat of copper and black. The dog was gamboling about with her long, plumed tail flagging and ears flopping enticing Dart to join her in a game of chase. Brooke recognized the dog as a Leonberger, a breed not too common in the United States and one she was familiar with because her best friend back home raised them. Her full lips parted in a smile as she watched the dog exhibit typical Leo playfulness. Curious to see who had brought the dog, Brooke watched as the dog made a dash, with Dart in full pursuit, for a man standing at the far end of the field. He was leaning against a tree, one knee brought up with the foot resting against the bark. The shade of the tree hid his features from her gaze but she could tell that he was tall and had a head full of thick, wavy hair. His relaxed stance was quickly lost as 120 pounds of flying Leonberger came hurtling toward him and, unable to bring herself to a stop, the dog slammed into his knees. Brooke’s smile turned into a chuckle as she watched the man place his hands on the dog’s back to regain his balance.
“Oof! Jezebel, you big galoot!” Gabe Dehart muttered as he rubbed his hands briskly down the sides of his dog.
He looked up at the grinning Labrador standing a few feet away and patted his thigh in invitation. Having never found someone who wasn’t a friend, Dart came forward willingly. Gabe lowered his long frame into a crouch and, with his back against the tree, made friends with Jez’s new companion.
Instead of calling her dog back to her, Brooke decided to go over and meet the man and dog to which Dart was now busy ingratiating himself. By the time she reached the trio the Leo lay beside Gabe with her head up and eyes alert like the regal lion her breed was named for and Dart was sprawled on his back accepting belly rubs like the affectionate clown well-known to his.
Gabe looked up as the attractive blonde approached and pegged her for the Lab’s owner when the dog jumped up and trotted out to meet her. He noticed the way the woman met the dog with a loving hand laid on his head and was impressed when her soft command to heel brought the Lab around snappily to sit at her left side.
Gabe looked the woman over, his eyes lazily making their way from her loose ashen curls, down her womanly curves and back to the gray eyes staring back at him with one eyebrow arched in question at his appraisal. His response to being caught was a quick grin as he raised himself off the ground and walked forward to meet her while dusting bits of grass and dirt off his jeans.
As Gabe walked toward her, Brooke’s annoyance at the man’s insolence quickly vanished as she found she was unabashedly doing the same. She could almost hear herself giving a low moan of female appreciation at the rugged good looks the man in front of her possessed. One might say he wasn’t conventionally handsome; his features were not smooth enough to be pretty. Rather, it was a cragginess of face coupled with a square jaw and heavy brow that was offset by full lips and all that wavy brown hair that stirred a little clench in Brooke’s gut that she knew to be lust. It didn’t hurt that his frame was long, his shoulders were wide and he moved with the lazy grace usually bestowed upon a big cat.
“You must be his.” Gabe said, with a pointed look at Dart.
“I guess you could say that, I’m Brooke Laramie. This is Dart.”
At the mention of his name, the yellow lab looked up at Brooke and gave a soft “woof” of acknowledgement. Jez had stood when Gabe had and was now pressing her large head into his thigh, her body wagging in anticipation of her introduction.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Gabe and this,” he said with one hand fondling a feathered ear, “is Jezebel.”
“She’s a Leo, right?”
“Yes, she is. You’re one of the first people to ask that instead of assuming she is just a large mutt.”
Brooke leaned down on a knee and put both hands on the side of Jez’s face as the big dog moved in for the sloppy kiss fest she loved to give. While accepting the long licks and trying not to get knocked over by the dog’s exuberance, Brooke looked up at Gabe.
“I have a friend that raises Leos. They aren’t very common. When I noticed Dart playing with Jezebel my curiosity was piqued. She’s beautiful.”
“Thank you. She’s also about to knock you over. Here, let me help you up.”
His big hand engulfed Brooke’s and brought her to her feet in an easy tug. She found herself face to chest with him. She could smell the spicy, woodsy scent of him and feel the roughened calluses on his hand as he released hers. She took a step back.
“Do you come here a lot, then?”
“As often as I can. I live in a condo not far from here. I don’t have much in the way of a backyard so this is where we come to stretch our legs. And you?” Brooke said,” I haven’t seen you here before.”
“Actually, I’m just here for a week. I came to speak at the Vet School and see if I can’t recruit an intern or two. “
Brooke couldn’t have been more shocked by his statement. This was Gabe Dehart?? Mr. Dehart was set to speak to her and her classmates about his efforts to help the Mexican Gray Wolf once again roam the ranges of New Mexico. He was considered by most to be an oxymoron: a rancher that favored the protection and re-release of wolves into the wild. He had even gone so far as to set aside some of his land for the acclimation of those that would eventually be released.
“Then we’ll see each other again. I’m finishing up my third year of vet school. I’ve been looking forward to your seminar. The rancher-environmentalist with a rare German bred dog. . .you’re quite the mix.”
The tanned skin at the corners of Gabe’s eyes creased and he flashed a self deprecating grin at Brooke’s last remark.
“You don’t know the half of it, Ms. Laramie,” he said.” See you next week, then.”
He snapped a leather lead on to Jez’s collar, ruffed Dart’s head in farewell and walked away.
Brooke stared after him.
----------------
The lump lodged in her throat threatened to choke her. Brooke struggled with the pain and humiliation that were pushing down on her chest like a weighted stone. How could this have happened? Three years of her life had come down to one test and one point. It was all over now. She sat in the floor of her living room, Dart’s smooth head resting on her lap, a glass of wine on the coffee table beside her, and years of dreams swirling around in her head. God, how she wanted to drink herself into oblivion, as if that would somehow change the circumstances that had led up to this point. Exactly four hours earlier she had found out that she wouldn’t be returning to vet school after Christmas break.
Now, the prospect of going home for the holidays was enough to bring an acid taste to her mouth and make her gut clinch in horror. Not only would she have to face her parents but she would also have to retell her humiliation to all the well-meaning people that would ask, with genuine interest, how vet school was going. As her mind struggled to come to grips with the thunderous taunts of failure, a small corner of her conscious whispered of relief.
Submitted by Claire
Showing posts with label Brooke. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Brooke. Show all posts
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Brooke's Story: Chapter 2
Silver lining (n.): A hopeful or comforting prospect in the midst of difficulty
Brooke turned her John Deere green mustang through the gate and onto the narrow dirt road. Her GPS had lost her location ten miles ago, she was tired, hungry, had gotten two speeding tickets on the drive up, and she seriously hoped that she was in the right place, in more ways than one.
She had to give it to Claire, this place was definitely beautiful. Heart-shaped leaves of green fluttered in the breeze, suspended on the graceful branches of the aspen trees from which they hung. There were so many aspens that the white bark of the trunks with their darkened scars reminded Brooke of one of MC Escher’s tessellations. Each trunk forming a pattern with the next until she couldn’t tell where one ended and the next began. Above the trees the sky was cloudless and an unbelievable shade of blue. She rolled down the windows and let the brisk mountain air fill her lungs. Dart stuck his head out of the passenger window and took in deep breaths of the air, too, as if trying to take in every scent at once.
They drove for another quarter of a mile before the trees opened themselves to reveal a small dilapidated cabin set in a flat sea of grass.
“So this is The Silver Lining. Looks like we’ve got our work cut out for us.”
In the months since she’d left vet school Brooke had run an emotional gamut. She had gone from devastation to relief and back again. Now she was taking a gamble on a dream and she desperately hoped that the business venture she and Claire were about to embark on would not lead her to more disappointment. The way things had fallen into place for the purchase of the land was almost too good to be true and Claire claimed it could be nothing other than God’s plan. On what had seemed like a million bus rides that Claire had taken while coaching she had formed a friendship with the bus driver. Lewis was ex-Navy and had the faded tattoos to prove it. He had also grown up on a ranch in the mountains of New Mexico, near Cloudcroft, that his great-great granddaddy had homesteaded. He still owned the land and would go there when he got free time. Real estate developers had been bugging him for years to sell but sentimentality and stubbornness had kept him from making profit on his ancestral home by selling to “those money hungry leaches”. Instead, he had offered it to Claire for a pittance with the stipulation that he be able to come out whenever he wished. He seemed both pleased to help Claire with her dream and relieved to not have to fight with the developers personally anymore.
Now, here Brooke sat in front of a ramshackle cabin ten miles from a neighbor and twenty miles from the nearest town. Her future lay in The Silver Lining, a retreat consisting of five yet-to-be-built yurts that would be rented to vacationers looking for a rustic mountain escape, a lodge, and stables. Being the consummate pet lovers that they were, Brooke and Claire had decided to gear their retreat toward those that shared their love. Dogs and horses were welcome and even encouraged. Trails would be marked, and guided rides and hikes would be offered for those that didn’t care to venture out on their own. There were lots of wrinkles that needed to be ironed out, but for the first time in four years Brooke felt a tingle of excitement.
-------------
Excitement quickly turned to exasperation as Brooke struggled to set the cabin to rights. Not only had years of neglect taken its toll on the wooden building, but Lewis had apparently been using the cabin as a catch-all. The living room, kitchen, bathroom, and single bedroom were packed wall to ceiling with any manner of junk. ‘One person’s trash may be another’s treasure’ and all that, but Brooke was thinking maybe the whole place should just be torched and save her the trouble of the treasure hunt. A full week of sorting, cleaning, and hauling had resulted in a spotless cabin, but all the junk from inside was now out, and the lovely meadow rivaled the yard in Sanford and Son. Hands on her hips and hair in her face, Brooke surveyed the mess before her.
“Well, Dart, do we take a break and wait on Claire to get here, or do we forge on?”
Head cocked to the side and tail wagging, Dart looked up at her with a doggy smile.
“Right, we forge on.”
With the decision made Brooke grabbed her purse and she and Dart headed into town to find someone who might be willing to haul off the refuse in The Silver Lining’s front yard.
Submitted by Claire
Brooke turned her John Deere green mustang through the gate and onto the narrow dirt road. Her GPS had lost her location ten miles ago, she was tired, hungry, had gotten two speeding tickets on the drive up, and she seriously hoped that she was in the right place, in more ways than one.
She had to give it to Claire, this place was definitely beautiful. Heart-shaped leaves of green fluttered in the breeze, suspended on the graceful branches of the aspen trees from which they hung. There were so many aspens that the white bark of the trunks with their darkened scars reminded Brooke of one of MC Escher’s tessellations. Each trunk forming a pattern with the next until she couldn’t tell where one ended and the next began. Above the trees the sky was cloudless and an unbelievable shade of blue. She rolled down the windows and let the brisk mountain air fill her lungs. Dart stuck his head out of the passenger window and took in deep breaths of the air, too, as if trying to take in every scent at once.
They drove for another quarter of a mile before the trees opened themselves to reveal a small dilapidated cabin set in a flat sea of grass.
“So this is The Silver Lining. Looks like we’ve got our work cut out for us.”
In the months since she’d left vet school Brooke had run an emotional gamut. She had gone from devastation to relief and back again. Now she was taking a gamble on a dream and she desperately hoped that the business venture she and Claire were about to embark on would not lead her to more disappointment. The way things had fallen into place for the purchase of the land was almost too good to be true and Claire claimed it could be nothing other than God’s plan. On what had seemed like a million bus rides that Claire had taken while coaching she had formed a friendship with the bus driver. Lewis was ex-Navy and had the faded tattoos to prove it. He had also grown up on a ranch in the mountains of New Mexico, near Cloudcroft, that his great-great granddaddy had homesteaded. He still owned the land and would go there when he got free time. Real estate developers had been bugging him for years to sell but sentimentality and stubbornness had kept him from making profit on his ancestral home by selling to “those money hungry leaches”. Instead, he had offered it to Claire for a pittance with the stipulation that he be able to come out whenever he wished. He seemed both pleased to help Claire with her dream and relieved to not have to fight with the developers personally anymore.
Now, here Brooke sat in front of a ramshackle cabin ten miles from a neighbor and twenty miles from the nearest town. Her future lay in The Silver Lining, a retreat consisting of five yet-to-be-built yurts that would be rented to vacationers looking for a rustic mountain escape, a lodge, and stables. Being the consummate pet lovers that they were, Brooke and Claire had decided to gear their retreat toward those that shared their love. Dogs and horses were welcome and even encouraged. Trails would be marked, and guided rides and hikes would be offered for those that didn’t care to venture out on their own. There were lots of wrinkles that needed to be ironed out, but for the first time in four years Brooke felt a tingle of excitement.
-------------
Excitement quickly turned to exasperation as Brooke struggled to set the cabin to rights. Not only had years of neglect taken its toll on the wooden building, but Lewis had apparently been using the cabin as a catch-all. The living room, kitchen, bathroom, and single bedroom were packed wall to ceiling with any manner of junk. ‘One person’s trash may be another’s treasure’ and all that, but Brooke was thinking maybe the whole place should just be torched and save her the trouble of the treasure hunt. A full week of sorting, cleaning, and hauling had resulted in a spotless cabin, but all the junk from inside was now out, and the lovely meadow rivaled the yard in Sanford and Son. Hands on her hips and hair in her face, Brooke surveyed the mess before her.
“Well, Dart, do we take a break and wait on Claire to get here, or do we forge on?”
Head cocked to the side and tail wagging, Dart looked up at her with a doggy smile.
“Right, we forge on.”
With the decision made Brooke grabbed her purse and she and Dart headed into town to find someone who might be willing to haul off the refuse in The Silver Lining’s front yard.
Submitted by Claire
Friday, January 29, 2010
Brooke's Story: Chapter 3
Since she needed to buy a few groceries anyway Brooke decided the local superstore was as good a place as any to start inquiring for help. Somewhere along the way the few groceries she had needed had somehow morphed into a cartload as she made her way to the checkout. An older woman with a poof of startlingly dyed black hair greeted her with a crooked smile as she wheeled up and began unloading her cart’s contents onto the conveyor belt. The woman’s green smock hung on her slight frame but her movements as she scanned and bagged each item were both graceful and efficient.
“I’m Marilyn Anthony.” the clerk said “You’re buying too much for a weekender. . .must be planning on staying around a while.”
“I hope so. A friend and I just moved out to the old Lewis homestead. I’m actually looking for someone that would be willing to help me haul off some of the stuff I’ve cleaned out of the house. You don’t happen to know of anyone, do you?”
“Matter-of-fact, I do. Gabe Dehart lives about 10 miles up the road from the Lewis place. Reckon he’d be more than happy to hook up a trailer and come down to help a pretty thing like you.”
Marilyn finished her last sentence with a sly wink but Brooke was too dumbstruck by the mention of Dehart to notice. A flashback of dark hair, hazel eyes and a lean body ran through her mind.
“Hold on and I’ll get his number for ya.”
No sooner had she left than Marilyn returned with a scrap of paper waving in her hand.
“This oughta do ya. Need me to get someone to help you with them bags?”
“Uh, no. I’ve got them. Thank you for help.”
“Not a problem. Good luck!”
Brooke unloaded her purchases into the trunk of the green Mustang, slid into the driver’s seat and turned to look at Dart, who was sitting upright in the next seat with a patient but bored look on his face.
“It’s a small world, Dart. Sometimes I forget just how small.”
Submitted by Claire
“I’m Marilyn Anthony.” the clerk said “You’re buying too much for a weekender. . .must be planning on staying around a while.”
“I hope so. A friend and I just moved out to the old Lewis homestead. I’m actually looking for someone that would be willing to help me haul off some of the stuff I’ve cleaned out of the house. You don’t happen to know of anyone, do you?”
“Matter-of-fact, I do. Gabe Dehart lives about 10 miles up the road from the Lewis place. Reckon he’d be more than happy to hook up a trailer and come down to help a pretty thing like you.”
Marilyn finished her last sentence with a sly wink but Brooke was too dumbstruck by the mention of Dehart to notice. A flashback of dark hair, hazel eyes and a lean body ran through her mind.
“Hold on and I’ll get his number for ya.”
No sooner had she left than Marilyn returned with a scrap of paper waving in her hand.
“This oughta do ya. Need me to get someone to help you with them bags?”
“Uh, no. I’ve got them. Thank you for help.”
“Not a problem. Good luck!”
Brooke unloaded her purchases into the trunk of the green Mustang, slid into the driver’s seat and turned to look at Dart, who was sitting upright in the next seat with a patient but bored look on his face.
“It’s a small world, Dart. Sometimes I forget just how small.”
Submitted by Claire
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Brooke's Story: Chapter 4
A Change of Plans
The empty stock trailer banged and jumped along behind the truck as it made its way up the drive to the old Lewis homestead. Jezebel sat in the passenger seat next to Gabe, her upper body leaned against the door and her right foreleg draped out of the open window. The breeze parted the dense hair on her ruff and chest and lifted her ears while her head hovered just above the mirror. Her eyes were slanted in bliss as she took in the sharp mountain air.
Gabe whistled in awe when he rounded the bend and saw the piles of garbage stacked outside the cabin. The call from Brooke Laramie had come as a surprise, to say the least. He had given his presentation at Texas A&M Vet School months ago and still remembered the encounter at the dog park. He also recalled how Brooke had sat in the back of the auditorium her gray gaze direct and focused on him throughout his spiel. She had put in an application to intern with him for the following year, which would have been taking place now. Unfortunately, before he’d ever had a chance to actually get the sanctuary on its feet the negative emotions of his neighbors and the townspeople along with some mishandling of the release program by the government had brought him up short. As he backed the trailer up to the nearest pile he wondered what Brooke was doing here.
From the front window of the cabin Brooke watched as the truck came to a halt and Gabe got out, followed by the Leonberger. Dart let out an excited whine and then bounded out to meet Jez as she opened the door. Brooke was a little less exuberant in her greeting of Gabe. She was not looking forward to answering the questions that she knew would come when he found out she was no longer in vet school.
“Hey, thanks for coming. I was half afraid you would turn your rig around and drive back out when you saw all this junk.”
“It is something. Looks like Old Carper was saving up for the next Depression.”
“I’m not sure you could call this stuff necessary for survival but he was definitely saving.”
He smiled and met her eyes as she reached out her hand to shake his. Though brief, the contact was enough to cause a clench in his belly. Her skin was devoid of makeup and flawless. Her gray eyes looked out at him from beneath dark, naked lashes and her thick hair was swept away from her face and tied in the back making her graceful cheekbones prominent. He let go of her hand and motioned to the various appliances and boxes of periodicals that his trailer was backed up to.
“Well, guess we better get started.”
“Yeah, guess we better.”
Brooke and Gabe worked together in companionable silence lifting, lugging and dragging. After an hour the sweat had matted the wavy hair to Gabe’s forehead and pooled in spots to darken his navy blue t-shirt. Brooke watched out of the corner of her eye as he lifted a box of old magazines. His biceps bunched and the sun glinted off the golden sprinkle of hair on his forearms. Dang, but the man was sexy. As masculine as the hard labor had made Gabe look she had no doubt it had made her look less than feminine. In anticipation of the dirty work ahead she had left off her makeup and had pulled her blonde hair back into a simple ponytail. Her jeans and tank top had both seen better days. She tried to tell herself that she didn’t care. That she had dressed to work and that’s what they were doing and that to do anything else would have been silly. Which was true, except that the woman in her wished she had taken the time to at least put on some mascara and earrings.
“So, how is the wolf release stuff going?” Brooke asked as she carried her own box into the trailer.
“It’s not. I had a few setbacks that made me decide that maybe the timing wasn’t right.” Gabe shrugged his shoulders and continued on to lift an antiquated microwave.
Brooke puckered her eyebrows in disbelief at Gabe’s nonchalant tone. He had spoken so eloquently about how the wolf had as much, if not more, right to roam the land as the cattle and humans that had overtaken it. He had said that he knew that they would be a threat to his livestock and therefore, his livelihood, but he found that only fair considering the lopsided history between man and wolf.
“What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be an intern somewhere?”
“Let’s just say I had a few setbacks of my own,” Brooke replied.
At that they both returned to their work. The trailer was jammed full when Gabe finally fastened the gate and turned to face Brooke.
“I’ll take this load and dump it. Then I’ve got some work I need to do at my place before the sun goes down. I’ll be back tomorrow to get the rest.”
“Alright. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate your help. All this junk was driving me crazy.”
“Not a problem,” he said with a grin then he turned to call for Jez.
At his call the two dogs, one shaggy and one slick, came flying out from the trees with tongues hanging. Brooke laughed at their obvious joy and Gabe found himself drawn to the lusty sound and her blithe expression. He let Jez into his truck, climbed in himself then started the engine and began the drive out. In his side mirror he could see Brooke standing in the road dust, her arms hugging herself and Dart smiling at her side.
Submitted by Claire
The empty stock trailer banged and jumped along behind the truck as it made its way up the drive to the old Lewis homestead. Jezebel sat in the passenger seat next to Gabe, her upper body leaned against the door and her right foreleg draped out of the open window. The breeze parted the dense hair on her ruff and chest and lifted her ears while her head hovered just above the mirror. Her eyes were slanted in bliss as she took in the sharp mountain air.
Gabe whistled in awe when he rounded the bend and saw the piles of garbage stacked outside the cabin. The call from Brooke Laramie had come as a surprise, to say the least. He had given his presentation at Texas A&M Vet School months ago and still remembered the encounter at the dog park. He also recalled how Brooke had sat in the back of the auditorium her gray gaze direct and focused on him throughout his spiel. She had put in an application to intern with him for the following year, which would have been taking place now. Unfortunately, before he’d ever had a chance to actually get the sanctuary on its feet the negative emotions of his neighbors and the townspeople along with some mishandling of the release program by the government had brought him up short. As he backed the trailer up to the nearest pile he wondered what Brooke was doing here.
From the front window of the cabin Brooke watched as the truck came to a halt and Gabe got out, followed by the Leonberger. Dart let out an excited whine and then bounded out to meet Jez as she opened the door. Brooke was a little less exuberant in her greeting of Gabe. She was not looking forward to answering the questions that she knew would come when he found out she was no longer in vet school.
“Hey, thanks for coming. I was half afraid you would turn your rig around and drive back out when you saw all this junk.”
“It is something. Looks like Old Carper was saving up for the next Depression.”
“I’m not sure you could call this stuff necessary for survival but he was definitely saving.”
He smiled and met her eyes as she reached out her hand to shake his. Though brief, the contact was enough to cause a clench in his belly. Her skin was devoid of makeup and flawless. Her gray eyes looked out at him from beneath dark, naked lashes and her thick hair was swept away from her face and tied in the back making her graceful cheekbones prominent. He let go of her hand and motioned to the various appliances and boxes of periodicals that his trailer was backed up to.
“Well, guess we better get started.”
“Yeah, guess we better.”
Brooke and Gabe worked together in companionable silence lifting, lugging and dragging. After an hour the sweat had matted the wavy hair to Gabe’s forehead and pooled in spots to darken his navy blue t-shirt. Brooke watched out of the corner of her eye as he lifted a box of old magazines. His biceps bunched and the sun glinted off the golden sprinkle of hair on his forearms. Dang, but the man was sexy. As masculine as the hard labor had made Gabe look she had no doubt it had made her look less than feminine. In anticipation of the dirty work ahead she had left off her makeup and had pulled her blonde hair back into a simple ponytail. Her jeans and tank top had both seen better days. She tried to tell herself that she didn’t care. That she had dressed to work and that’s what they were doing and that to do anything else would have been silly. Which was true, except that the woman in her wished she had taken the time to at least put on some mascara and earrings.
“So, how is the wolf release stuff going?” Brooke asked as she carried her own box into the trailer.
“It’s not. I had a few setbacks that made me decide that maybe the timing wasn’t right.” Gabe shrugged his shoulders and continued on to lift an antiquated microwave.
Brooke puckered her eyebrows in disbelief at Gabe’s nonchalant tone. He had spoken so eloquently about how the wolf had as much, if not more, right to roam the land as the cattle and humans that had overtaken it. He had said that he knew that they would be a threat to his livestock and therefore, his livelihood, but he found that only fair considering the lopsided history between man and wolf.
“What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be an intern somewhere?”
“Let’s just say I had a few setbacks of my own,” Brooke replied.
At that they both returned to their work. The trailer was jammed full when Gabe finally fastened the gate and turned to face Brooke.
“I’ll take this load and dump it. Then I’ve got some work I need to do at my place before the sun goes down. I’ll be back tomorrow to get the rest.”
“Alright. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate your help. All this junk was driving me crazy.”
“Not a problem,” he said with a grin then he turned to call for Jez.
At his call the two dogs, one shaggy and one slick, came flying out from the trees with tongues hanging. Brooke laughed at their obvious joy and Gabe found himself drawn to the lusty sound and her blithe expression. He let Jez into his truck, climbed in himself then started the engine and began the drive out. In his side mirror he could see Brooke standing in the road dust, her arms hugging herself and Dart smiling at her side.
Submitted by Claire
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)