Extreme Honor (6 page)

So cold. Matter of fact. She kind of hated David a little bit for the way he casually talked about Atlas like that. As if it was all about practicality and not about an injured soul.

Her heart ached for Atlas. Part of her wanted to cut him slack, let him have the leeway in his training to ensure he'd be allowed to retire and enjoy life here. But Atlas was a working dog. He might not be happy no longer working. It had to be up to him. Find his balance again and working might be what he lived for.

“You do basic obedience with every dog here, right?” Seemed as if she'd seen the other trainers working with various dogs. Both Alex Rojas and Brandon Forte had been out with various dogs all morning.

“We make sure every working dog here trains for thirty minutes in obedience every day. Then they spend time in their specialization.” Still brisk and all business, David pointed toward the kennels. “Any puppies Rojas breeds are also taught basic obedience as a package deal with the buyers. We use the time in the basic obedience classes to confirm the new owners are a good fit for our dogs.”

Good practice, assessing the owners to be sure they could handle the dogs they were purchasing. The trainers were less likely to lose track of a puppy somebody might decide to abandon. Too many people purchased a dog, invested in training, then dropped it in a shelter rather than admit to the breeder they'd decided they didn't want the dog anymore.

Perhaps she was reading too much into his tone. He was being practical but maybe he wasn't uncaring. She realized she was biased because of her dealings with her stepfather, looking for callousness in David. But David had been very generous with answering questions. Especially considering she'd turned him down earlier, he could've taken a completely different tack. She appreciated his willingness to really work with her.

“How many of your puppies go to private homes?” She'd thought they specialized in working dogs.

David studied Atlas. “Not every dog is suited for military or K9 work. We start assessing temperament right away and do our best to find good homes for the puppies not suited for working. They start training early and we watch them for the right combination of prey drive, aggression, intelligence…all of the traits necessary for them to be successful.”

“And those same traits make them difficult home pets.” High aggression and intelligence made for destroyed homes when those same dogs became agitated in a high-density neighborhood or got bored while owners were away at work or even on short errands. It was amazing what level of destruction a single dog could do in the wrong environment.

David's grin drew an answering grin from her. It was ridiculous how much of a difference his expression made from his previous attitude and how happy she was for them to be on the same page when it came to training. She'd butted heads with other trainers in the past and the experience had been frustrating. She'd really thought he would be another one of those when she'd first met him. This—and seeing him with Atlas—was proving her wrong in the best of ways.

It'd been the right decision not to go out to dinner with him. This level of professionalism was something much better, even if he was also one of the most distractingly attractive men she'd ever worked with.

“Well, I might not have the same commands you'd use.” She figured it would be best to clarify before she confused Atlas. “I did look up the basic Dutch commands but I need to do more studying.”

David swept his arm out toward the course. “Let's give it a try and take those spots where we run into them. I can give you the correct command if Atlas is looking like he's up for the course.”

Good point. First step: see if the dog was actually willing. This entire exercise could end quickly if he only walked up to the first obstacle and sat there.

“All right. Let's give this a try.”

P
lease tell me you're not going to keep her here on a gorgeous Saturday while the rest of you all pretend it's just another day of the week.”

Lyn looked up at the speaker, an extremely attractive Asian woman with way more energy than anyone ought to have at 0500 on a Saturday morning. Seriously, the woman literally exuded vitality.

“Sophie, we are holding no one hostage.” From his position behind the breakfast counter in the communal kitchen, Brandon poured a new cup of coffee. He added cream and sugar then held it out to her.

He was going to give her caffeine? Seemed like a questionable choice.

Lyn wasn't a morning person by nature. Most of her clients preferred to meet at reasonable times in the morning, like nine or ten. However, Hope's Crossing Kennels had a much more active routine than the average home owner. The trainers were up and beginning morning chores by 0500, as they put it. The early morning was filled with feeding, then basic obedience for the working canines and the boarded guest dogs. Later in the morning, people would begin arriving for obedience and agility classes with Alex while Brandon and David took the working canines through specialized training. The afternoon went along the same lines, with various dogs getting individualized attention. Evening saw people arriving for more classes into the night.

The trainers of Hope's Crossing Kennels easily worked sixteen-hour days, with long breaks in the slow times of the afternoon to balance out their long hours.

Lyn's involvement was solely regarding Atlas but she sure as hell wasn't going to sleep in when David was up and getting started with the freaking dawn. What she hadn't anticipated was how ragged she'd feel once the weekend hit and they were all still getting started right on time.

One never appreciated sleeping in on the weekends until one couldn't. It'd been especially hard to climb out from under the comforters this morning. The guest bed was warm, cozy and comfortable. David's bed.

Lyn took another sip of her own coffee. No good could come of her brain being allowed to continue half-asleep at this moment.

“You all may continue with your routine,” Sophie was saying, coffee mug in hand and a stolen piece of bacon in the other. “But your guest here might not know there are options for her. Like actually leaving kennel grounds and enjoying a day off.”

“We take days off.” Alex sat at the table across from Lyn and gave her a grin. She lifted her mug in acknowledgment.

Sophie scowled in his general direction.

David slid a plate of eggs sunny side up and bacon in front of Lyn and her attention snapped to the wonderful smell of breakfast. She lifted her fork. “Thank you.”

“No problem.” David was already digging into his own plate of food.

He'd been incredibly considerate through the entire week. Breakfast was always like this at the kennel. They ate together, went through the day's schedule and any potential issues. Lyn was included as a contributing member. Maybe not one of the inner circle, but a part of a team. It was refreshing, interesting, as compared with the solo work she usually did in her training and consulting business.

“The least you could all do is introduce us properly.” Sophie had a plate of breakfast by now and she seated herself.

Brandon sat next to her, absently passing a plate of iced breakfast rolls over to Lyn before offering it to Sophie, too. They smelled heavenly and Lyn immediately bit deep into golden, pillowy goodness. When blueberries burst across her tongue, complemented by the vanilla lemon icing, Lyn closed her eyes to focus every fiber of her being on enjoying the flavors.

Alex chuckled. “Pretty sure Lyn's going to be your friend forever if you keep bringing baked goods on your visits while she's here. And you know who Lyn is because as soon as you noticed we had a guest you followed Brandon around until he told you. Not sure any other introductions are needed.”

Lyn finished chewing and swallowed, coming up for air before taking another bite of happiness. They all accepted the other woman with an easy air of long acquaintance. She was like a little sister, running around bugging her big brothers for attention. Brandon glanced at Sophie as she reached over him for salt and quickly stuffed his own breakfast roll in his mouth.

Well, mostly big brothers. There was something else going on there but it wasn't Lyn's thing to get into the middle of those situations.

“Lyn, it's a pleasure to officially meet you.” Sophie extended her hand across the table. “I'm Sophie and I do the accounting for the kennels.”

“She also keeps giving us all reason to keep up our cardio, otherwise her baking would make us fat.” Despite his commentary, Alex helped himself to another sweet roll.

Lyn quickly wiped her hands on her napkin and reached out her right hand to accept the handshake. “You made these? They're incredible.”

“It's a hobby.” Sophie's slender hand caught hers in a firm grip.

Nice. Lyn hated limp handshakes.

Sophie gave her a friendly smile. The sort of open, genuine smile Lyn couldn't help but return. “I was going to do a little shopping in New Hope today. Why don't you join me?”

“Oh.” Lyn glanced at David. “I don't want to miss any work with Atlas.”

“Today's his rest day. No plans besides easy exercise time and relaxing with him.” David didn't look up from his plate. “You can always spend time with him after you get back.”

The week had been interesting, learning how to take Atlas through the various specialized training. They'd only covered agility and scent training this week, with one session on bite work. David had asked a friend from the local police force to come and wear the big protective suit when they'd done the bite work.

It'd been frightening and fascinating to see Atlas spring into action. She'd worked with K9s in the past but Atlas, as an Air Force military working dog, was on a different level. His aggression was higher if at all possible, and his speed was heart stopping. Plus, there'd been a distinct difference between biting to apprehend the way K9s did and biting to kill the way a military working dog needed to.

“Can we speak privately for a minute?” She put her fork and knife on her plate. “So we're on the same page about Atlas.”

David didn't respond but pushed his chair back and rose.

In minutes, they were down the hall in his office. She still couldn't stop blushing when she looked at the door. Eavesdropping hadn't been the greatest moment of her life.

“Is this because of yesterday's bite work session?” She wasn't going to waste time circling the question.

David met her gaze directly. “What is this? And why do you think it is?”

“I was surprised by the directive to bite to kill.” She'd been transparent about it because it seemed to be the way they worked best together. “I've appreciated the way we've been able to work together up to yesterday but it seemed like yesterday's session broke something.”

Silence. Then David sighed and dragged a hand through his hair. The gesture only made her want to run her own fingers through.

“It was a reminder about how different civilian dog behavior is from what we need Atlas to be for military work.” David didn't sound happy about admitting it. “And your anxiety can transfer to the dog. Atlas needs to be able to do those things without hesitation.”

Atlas hadn't seemed to hesitate or consider at all the day before. In fact, Lyn had been elated because his response had been the best she'd seen all week. “There was no delay in Atlas obeying any command yesterday.”

“No,” David agreed. “Not a fraction of a second of hesitation. He was almost too eager to kill something threatening you.”

Lyn blinked. Closed her mouth on what she'd been about to say.

“You were nervous. He responded to protect you with deadly force.” David shoved his hands into his pockets. “It's excellent in terms of his engagement and the progress you're making with him. It was almost dangerous for my friend while you weren't used to controlling what Atlas could do.”

True. The protective suit was more than sufficient in most cases but if a dog really wanted to kill the man inside, it could eventually happen.

“I figured a day off from the more intense training would be good for both of you.” David brought her attention back to him by tapping a finger on the big calendar he had on his desk. “You can come back later today and spend some quiet time walking the grounds but let's give him some time to unwind and you some time to get more comfortable with his capabilities.”

“Okay.” She hesitated. “I thought you might…”

“You're doing great.” He cut her off before she could voice the self-doubt. It was one of the only times he did interrupt her. “Seriously, we couldn't have made this much progress with Atlas without you.”

“We're doing great,” she countered, happiness filling her as he smiled at her assertion. “I couldn't do this without your expertise either.”

“So go take a day and hang out with Sophie. New Hope's a nice town to walk around.”

She gave him a bright smile and walked out of the office. The idea of a day out to clear her head and be around another woman was suddenly a fantastic change of pace.

Sophie was still in the kitchen with Brandon and Alex, chatting about the various dogs. When Lyn re-entered, Sophie stopped. “So. Conference complete. Are you allowed to come out to play or do you still have homework to do?”

“My schedule looks open for the day.” Lyn snagged an extra piece of bacon from the plate on the breakfast counter. “But I'm looking for a more adult kind of fun day.”

Brandon choked on his coffee.

Alex cracked up laughing.

David stopped in his tracks behind her.

Lyn kept her gaze on Sophie, refusing to look back to see David's expression.

Sophie's smile broadened into a crazy grin. “Oh, New Hope is the
perfect
place. Wear comfortable shoes.”

“That tea set was amazing. Why didn't you buy it?” Lyn asked as they waited to be seated.

“No place to display it right now.” Sophie sighed. “I love tea sets and I've got an everyday set at home to use, but a set like that one? It needs to be displayed and used. Too gorgeous to tuck away in a cabinet.”

“That wasn't the first time you've gone to look at it, either.” The shop owner had recognized Sophie.

Sophie grinned. “The goldfish set is my favorite, but I always stop in to see the new pieces she has on display. The designer has a catalog and comes out with new themed pieces every year. The new Phoenician bird design is incredible. Oh, and there's this older ladybug themed set of teapot, cups, and platter.”

The way Sophie chattered on about tea sets and good afternoon tea services made Lyn's stomach growl.

Sophie laughed. “We'll have to go someplace for afternoon tea sometime, or maybe I'll put together one at the kennels and Boom can join us.”

“Sounds good to me, especially if you're baking again.” Lyn hoped she'd be around long enough, but then, her project with Atlas was open-ended based on his progress, so it was a possibility.

“Question for now is, what will you have here?”

“You haven't led me wrong yet today.” Lyn settled into the seat and set her shopping bags at the side of the little table. “What do I absolutely have to try?”

Sophie had been a fantastic shopping companion for the morning, whisking Lyn off to New Hope to explore quaint shops up and down a historic main street. They'd browsed and chatted, exploring locally made clothing and art. With Sophie as a guide, Lyn had learned more history about the area than she'd ever thought possible.

“Hmm.” Sophie pondered for less than half a second. “The boys have been feeding you mostly hot subs and pizza, I'm guessing. Maybe some Chinese takeout.”

Lyn groaned. “Yes. Do any of them cook? Ever? I've had more General Tso's this week than I've had in the last two years combined.”

She hadn't wanted to insist on fresh salads or grocery runs when she was only a guest.

“This one, then.” Sophie reached across the table to point out a sandwich. “It's roast turkey and cornbread stuffing and cranberry, all on toasted white bread. So good.”

It sounded delicious. “Perpetual Thanksgiving.”

Sophie nodded. “Not a bad thing, as far as I'm concerned. But feel free to pick anything that looks good. With this restaurant, you can't go wrong with anything on the menu. Plus, it's a fun place.”

It was obviously popular. Every table was taken and the servers bustled between seated customers. The atmosphere was warm and the servers were good-natured. Friendly in the way only people who enjoyed where they worked could be.

Their orders were taken by a cheerful girl who looked to be high school age, maybe first year of college.

“What's the story here?” Lyn had no doubt Sophie would know. The morning had been a fun, quirky litany of stories.

“Hah. This place has an incredibly young owner, who is also the chef.” Sophie nodded toward the back. “Came up with the concept when he was…fourteen, maybe? It's the nation's first restaurant completely run by young people.”

“Really?” Lyn raised her eyebrows. The menu was well put together with some complex flavors in those items. “That's young. Very young to be starting a business.”

She wasn't familiar with labor laws for minors in this state but it seemed far-fetched.

Sophie nodded. “It's an inspiring story and they had the support of friends and family. Dinner is all fixed price style, European influence now. It's a definite romantic hot spot.”

“And have you been here for a particularly good date or two?” Despite chatting about shopping preferences and art, they hadn't touched much on personal life. Lyn wasn't sure if it was off-limits but she figured it couldn't hurt to ask.