Three Year Rule (The Rule Series Book 1) (8 page)

Josh said, “You did the right thing. Even if you reached the gun, it might not have been enough. Running was the best thing to do, and climbing a tree. There’s nothing else you could have done.”

When they reached the veterinarian, Randy and Amy were waiting for them. They rushed to the back of the truck as Josh pulled up. Randy opened the hatch, and Elizabeth climbed out. Randy scooped up Charlie and followed Josh to the front door. Amy began to cry at the sight of Charlie’s blood soaked fur. Elizabeth hugged her, and they rushed inside after Randy. The Vet was waiting for them and had Randy take Charlie straight into the small Operating Room at the back of the building.

The receptionist stepped in front of Josh and the girls and said, “I’m sorry, but you should wait out here. Dr. Morse will speak to you as soon as he’s decided what course of action can be taken.”

She motioned toward the seats that lined the windows. Randy returned as they moved to the seats. Amy went to the reception desk to deal with the paperwork as Josh and Elizabeth sat down. Elizabeth leaned against Josh and buried her head on his shoulder. He held her as she cried, grateful she was not the one rushed into surgery.

Amy and Randy returned and sat beside them as the doctor appeared.  He walked quickly to them and said, “Charlie is badly hurt. The good news is the bear barely clipped her; it’s a single wound, but it’s deep.  She’s lucky to be alive. Most dogs don’t survive a bear attack, but she has lost a lot of blood. However, there is still a chance she could survive if you consent to surgery. There is internal damage. I’ve slowed the bleeding, but we have to act fast. If you don’t want the surgery we should put her down quickly, she’s in a lot of pain.”

“Do the surgery,” Elizabeth said quickly rising. “I’ll sign any forms you need, just save her.”

Josh rose with Elizabeth and asked, “Will she recover fully if the surgery is successful? Will her pain be gone?”

The doctor turned to the receptionist and motioned her near. Then turned back to answer Josh, “If she survives the surgery she should make a full recovery. The question at this moment is whether she’s strong enough. I’ll do everything I can. If you want to wait, you should get comfortable; this will take a couple of hours.”

“Thank you,” Elizabeth said, he turned and walked away.

Josh disappeared into the back and returned a few minutes later with four bottled waters.  Elizabeth was pacing in front of the windows wringing her hands as she walked. Josh handed Amy and Randy a bottle of water, then went to stand in front of Elizabeth, blocking her way. She stopped and stared blankly at him. He took her hand and led her to a seat. They sat down, and he opened the bottled water and handed it to her.

“You need to stay hydrated.” He said quietly, and then asked, “When is the last time you ate?”

Elizabeth glanced at Amy then said, “I was grilling chicken for lunch on the back porch. I just finished setting the table when it happened.”

Josh asked, “If Randy and I run to Sadie’s and get some burgers will you eat?”

Elizabeth leaned back in her chair and sighed, “I don’t think I can. My stomach is too upset.”

Amy and Randy froze in their seats across from them, watching. Amy jumped up and quickly came to sit beside Elizabeth.  She said, “I think food is a good idea. We are going to be here for several hours, and none of us has had lunch. You should try a salad; Sadie makes a wicked Cobb Salad.”

Randy rose and joined in saying, “They also have a great chicken salad sandwich. Come on Josh. Let’s run and grab some food. We’ll be back before you know it.”

Amy chimed in, “We’ll be fine. I’ll call you if anything happens.”

Randy grabbed Josh’s arm and pulled him toward the door.

When they returned Elizabeth ate the salad, and then they sat back to wait. Amy and Randy exchanged glances, determined to keep the conversation away from the fake pregnancy as long as possible. Finally, the Vet appeared and announced that Charlie survived the surgery.

“You should all go home and get some sleep. Charlie will be here overnight. Assuming she does okay, you should be able to take her home tomorrow. My assistant will stay with her tonight. I’m going to keep Charlie sedated. I can call you in the morning with a progress report. If you’d like to see her briefly, I can take you back.”

Elizabeth and Amy followed him to the recovery area. Charlie lay sedated on a padded table. IV fluid dripped slowly through a narrow tube from the plastic bag that hung next to Charlie’s head into a bandaged area around her neck. Amy broke down as she reached out to touch Charlie’s head.  She stroked her ear and said, “Good girl Charlie, you saved mama.”  Then turned and hugged Elizabeth.

Elizabeth turned to the Vet and said, “Thank you for saving her. She’s the sweetest dog I’ve ever known. She was determined to protect our home from the bear.”

The Vet smiled and said, “She was very lucky.  Most dogs that confront a bear are dead before they reach my office.”

Elizabeth reached out and stroked Charlie’s back, forcing the tears back. Amy released her and headed back to the waiting room. Elizabeth leaned down, kissed Charlie’s nose, and whispered, “I love you Charlie.”

                                                                      ************                                                                     

The two couples chose a booth on the far side of Sadie’s dance floor. Josh ordered a pitcher of beer and a glass of iced tea for Elizabeth. They sat in silence waiting for their drinks. Amy snuggled up against Randy and sighed, then gazed over at Elizabeth.

Josh put his arm around Elizabeth and pulled her near as the drinks arrived. Randy poured the beers as the girls sampled their wine. As if on cue, the jukebox rang out with a slow, soulful tune.

Elizabeth leaned against Josh, then pulled back saying, “Don’t think I’ve forgotten what happened.”

Josh’s face filled with sadness. He gazed at her.  She looked so incredibly beautiful. He couldn’t remember ever seeing her so vulnerable before.  She slipped from his grasp, and he pulled his arm back.  He could see the pain in her eyes, pain she thought he produced.

Josh said softly, “Beth, there is no other woman in my life.”

Randy took that moment to ask Amy, “Would you like to dance?”

Elizabeth waited until they reached the dance floor then answered, “Josh, what other reason would you have for denying me entry to your house that night?  I could hear laughter and a woman’s voice as I walked up to the door.”

Josh sighed and held her gaze, “That was my ex-wife.  She was dropping off my children.”

Elizabeth frowned; she should have known. So it began, the fall of the pseudo persona and it only took a few months. “Your children live with your ex-wife?” She began as she slipped into her research mode.

Josh flashed an irritated look and said, “No, they live with me full time, but visit their mother out of state for most of the summer. I get them back for the 4
th
of July, and they return home in time for school. Aren’t you going to ask me about them? How many I have? Are they boys or girls? How old are they? Do you even care?”

Elizabeth was startled. There was a depth of purpose in his eyes, sincerity. He wasn’t offering any excuses for the divorce or trying to reason away the birth of the children as an accident, or a byproduct of the marriage. He wasn’t trying to assure her the kids wouldn’t get in the way of their relationship. He wasn’t embarrassed that he was divorced with children. He was proud of his children. He wanted to share them with her. Her expression softened as all thoughts of the pseudo persona left her mind.

She said, “I’m sorry. I do want to know about your children.  It’s just such a shock.  Why didn’t you tell me about this before?”

Josh reached out and took her hand. He said, “I’ve learned you don’t drop the kid bomb on the first date and frankly, I haven’t been sure where this relationship was going. Then after the speech you gave on TV I was sure you considered this a casual fling. I don’t introduce my kids to anyone I date. I don’t think it’s a good idea for them to form an attachment to someone who might only be in their lives for a few months. Now with the baby coming I just don’t know what to think.”

Elizabeth’s head was reeling. She stammered, “You’re ex-wife is pregnant?”

“What?” Josh said staring at her in confusion. “No!
You
are pregnant.”

“What?” Elizabeth’s eyes opened wide in shock, and then she began to laugh.

Josh glanced over at Randy, then back to Elizabeth.  She took a deep breath and smiled at him. “I’m not pregnant.”

Josh smiled in relief. He shot Randy an angry glare and turned back to Elizabeth, “Can we start over? This whole thing’s gotten out of control.”

Elizabeth squeezed Josh’s hand and said, “Hello, I’m Elizabeth.  I’m an author. I’m also divorced, I have no children, and I’m not pregnant.”

Josh laughed and kissed her, then answered, “I’m Josh.  I own a construction company. I’m divorced, and I have two great kids, a boy named Jake who’s twelve, and a daughter named Molly, who just turned six. I am also not pregnant.”

Randy and Amy returned and sat down across from them as Josh added, “I might be spending the night in jail once I drag the local Sheriff out back and beat the crap out of him.”

Randy glanced up from his beer and looked from Elizabeth to Josh and back, then pointed at Amy and said, “It was her idea.”

Josh shook his head and smiled, adding, “Well, then, it’s up to Elizabeth.”  He turned to her and asked, “You want to take Amy out back or should I?”

Elizabeth ignored his question and rose her wine glass in a toast saying, “To Charlie,”

The others followed suit and raised their glasses answering in harmony, “To Charlie,”

They drove back to the cabin, arriving just as Josh’s men were heading down the drive back out to the road.  They flagged Josh down and pulled off the narrow driveway.  Instead of waiting for them to pass, the driver got out of the car and waved Josh over.  Josh climbed out of the truck and went to talk to them. Elizabeth glanced up at the crystal blue sky that was beginning to grow cloudy as it gently induced the treetops to sway in a slow dance to its whispered sound.  Josh spoke to his men briefly, then returned to the truck.

Elizabeth asked, “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah,” Josh offered quietly, “They boarded up the window and tossed the bear carcass in the back of the truck.  Mike said to warn you that the place is pretty torn up.”

Randy and Amy followed in his truck behind them. Josh pulled up in front of the house and helped Elizabeth down out of the truck.

Elizabeth stood gazing down at the dark stain in the grass where the bear died. She glanced up the tree, following the branches to the roofline.  Her heart pounded in her ears. Only then did she realize how close she and Charlie both came to death. Josh came to stand beside her; she turned to gaze into his eyes.

Her eyes grew moist with tears; she whispered, “If you hadn’t come when you did, and that bear had reached the roof...”

“Don’t think about it.” He pulled her to him and wrapped his arms around her.

Elizabeth said softly, her voice deep and husky, “You saved my life.” She wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned against him as their lips met. Once again, Elizabeth forgot about her rules and theories and allowed her emotions to surge upward. Her kiss was deep and passionate. Josh pulled her hard against him. His manhood quickly swelled in response to her passion. Elizabeth’s heart raced as his hands slowly ran down the length of her back to push her harder against him.

“Having sex in public is discouraged in these here parts.” Randy’s amused voice came from behind them. He squeezed Amy’s hand, delighted their strategy appeared to be working.

Josh reluctantly released Elizabeth and slid his arm around her waist. He shot an amused frown at Randy then turned back to her and asked, “Are you ready to go inside?  My boys boarded up the window, so it’s safe.”

Elizabeth glanced at Amy who smiled weakly and nodded her encouragement saying, “Let’s go take a look.”

Josh opened the front door and went in first, followed by Elizabeth and the others.  They stood in the entrance, taking in the chaos. The bay window stood boarded over with particleboard, blocking all view of the backyard. The dining table was a pile of wood. Several items were scattered throughout the room along with the remnants of lunch and the table setting. The sofa sat on its side; the coffee table lay in pieces before it. A musty animal smell hovered about the room mixed with the scent of the particleboard. Elizabeth moved closer to the dining area and slipped on the wood floor. She glanced down and gasped in horror. She had stepped in a pool of blood.

“Oh, Charlie!” She moaned and turned to the others, “This is where the bear caught her! My poor Charlie, she must have been so scared!”

Amy rushed to pull her back from the pool of blood saying, “The important thing is that Charlie got away from the bear, and she’s going to be fine.”

Elizabeth allowed Amy to pull her back into the kitchen. Elizabeth asked, “Why?  Why did the bear do that? I’ve never heard of a bear breaking into a home before.”