Healing Hearts Read Free

call it. You don’t want to be responsible for more pups, do you?”
    Sarah swallowed and saw dollar signs going ‘ka-ching’ in her head. “And just how much is that going to cost?”
    Since you’ll be working here, we can do a trade. See you tomorrow.”
    Sarah gave in and smiled weakly at the vet. “I get off work at two. I’ll be here by two-thirty.”
    “Fine.”
    She knelt down and picked up her new friend, along with the starter bag of food and temporary leash and collar. “Come on buster, let’s get you home.”
    Grant could have kissed her as she left the clinic, but he didn’t. He simply walked to the plate glass window and watched her fit the dog into the woven plastic basket attached to the front of her bike chained out front. The old-fashioned red girl’s bike suited her just fine. She bunched her skirt up around her knees and settled herself on the seat, answering his question as to how she rode the darned thing.
    As she struggled to pedal away, he wondered if he should have mentioned how big the puppy would be when he grew older. Probably not. Sarah didn’t look like she needed any more surprises right now.
    He turned and walked back to his office to catch up on some paperwork but couldn’t keep his mind on the task. The vision of a certain blonde kept intruding. The same blonde who’d officially become part of the team until her debt was paid off.
    Sarah. Another worker he couldn’t really afford. He sighed. Looked like he’d done it again. He’d picked up another stray—a two-legged kind this time. When Gillian found out, she’d kill him.

 
     
    Chapter Two
     
     
    Sarah struggled to hold on to her newfound pet that evening. She’d named him Rocky, after the man of her dreams—Rocky Balboa. Strong, dedicated, a fighter. He never gave up when he was down and neither would she, even if she was soaking wet from head to toe.
    Obviously, Rocky didn’t like baths, and at this moment, Sarah didn’t either. She reached up and pulled a wet strand of hair out of her eyes, glad she’d shut the bathroom door before she’d started. If she hadn’t, Rocky would have run through her tiny apartment, leaving a trail of water behind him. He’d already jumped out of the tub three times, and what water he hadn’t splashed out with each bounce, he’d shaken all over her and the pale, beige walls.
    The picture on the bottle of shampoo was a lie. The smiling dog siting calmly in the blue tub had to be a fake, or drugged beyond belief. Maybe she should have asked Dr. Morrison if doggie Valium existed, but then again, she’d had no idea how hard a simple bath could be.
    She lunged at Rocky again, determined to get him in the tub if it killed her. Her beloved little monster still stunk to high heaven and there was no way she’d let him run loose until she washed off every speck of dirt from his cold, damp nose, to the tip of his golden tail. He skittered around the small room and settled behind the toilet.
    “Come here, Rocky, sweetie.” She crawled toward him. “I won’t hurt you, honest.” Rocky stared at her, panting, his tail thumping against the white, peeling linoleum.
    “Okay then, if begging won’t do it, maybe a treat will.” She reached over and grabbed a liver snack out of the bag she’d added at the last minute to her grocery cart, instead of that bottle of nail polish she’d been coveting.
    Sarah dangled what she supposed was some tasty little treat—that’s what the label said but now she knew labels lied—in front of Rocky’s face. He licked his chops and stared at her, but he didn’t move.
    “C’mon, boy. Look what I’ve got.” She inched the morsel closer to his nose, praying he’d take it. He looked at her with brown, sad eyes…and stayed where he was. “C’mon, Rocky. I can’t have you smelling up my place.”
    She continued to dangle the liver treat in front of him. “Please? You can sleep with me tonight if you’ll just take a silly little bath.”
    The