Good Guys Love Dogs Read Online Free PDF Page B

him.
    Smidge managed an exaggerated limp
over to her bowl
    where Mabel had a dish ful of
leftover chicken waiting for
    her. No dog was a bigger ham when a
little sympathy could
    be conjured up.
    â€œNow if she'll
just stay out of the blackberry bushes,
    Ian said.
    â€œShe's lived in
the city al her life, Mabel replied in the
    dog's defense. “Been
running around like a wild thing set
    free since you got here. She'l learn
soon enough.
    â€œLet's hope so,
Ian said doubtful y. Only a few days
    before, they'd found her in the
creek behind the house, hip
    deep in mud and howling.
    â€œDid you get to
meet Colby? Mabel asked.
    â€œDr. Williams?
    â€œFunny as that
sounds to me, yes. The older woman
    chuckled, stirring the contents of
the pot simmering on top
    45
    INGLATH COOPER
    of the stove. “Known
her since she stood knee-high to a
    grasshopper. Stil can't believe
she's old enough to be called
    doctor.
    â€œShe seemed very
good. Ian opened the refrigerator
    and took out the pitcher of lemonade
Mabel just made that
    morning.
    Colby Wil iams didn't fit his
stereotype of a smal -town
    veterinarian. She was attractive.
Very attractive, if different
    from the women he knew in New York.
Her style said casual,
    a blue cotton shirt tucked into
slim-fitting Levi's, her straight
    blond hair in a ponytail,
emphasizing a face with nice
    cheekbones and expressive green
eyes.
    â€œEven as a little
girl, she wanted to be the first female
    vet in town, Mabel said. “And
she was. We're lucky to
    have her.
    Intrigued, Ian said, “She
mentioned having a daughter.
    How old is she?
    Mabel ladled out a bowl of soup from
the pot on the
    stove and set it in front of him.
“A little younger than Luke,
    I believe. Colby raised her by
herself. Nice kid, so she must
    have done a good job.
    â€œShe's not
married? The question popped out before
    he even realized he wanted to ask
it.
    Mabel turned to look at him, both
eyebrows
    disappearing beneath gray bangs.
“As a matter of fact, she's
    not.
    Ian swal owed a spoonful of soup and
burned his mouth
    in the process.
    46
    GOOD GUYS LOVE DOGS
    â€œCareful there.
Mabel eyed him with a thoughtful look
    on her face. “It's
hot.
    â€œYou're right, it
is. He washed away the sting with the
    lemonade and wondered at the glint
in his housekeeper's eye.
    â€œGood, though.
    â€œGlad you like
it. After my Thomas was gone, there
    was just me, and food doesn't taste
nearly as good if you're
    not cooking it with someone other
than yourself in mind.
    It's a real pleasure to have you and
Luke to cook for.
    â€œThomas was a
lucky man. You'l spoil us if we're not
    careful, Ian said with a smile. He
knew what she meant
    about eating alone. When Sherry had
died, he thought he, too,
    would die of loneliness. Knowing
that the smal , helpless
    infant who was his son needed him
had been the one thing
    that kept him going. Despite what
Luke thought, Ian didn't
    know what he would have done without
him.
    Mabel dropped the soup ladle into
the sink and turned
    to give him an assessing look.
“That's al right by me. I
    know you said you and Luke would
only be here until he
    finished high school, but if you and
Colby happened to hit it
    off, you might not want to return to
the big city.
    He nearly choked on his soup. Mabel
scurried across
    the kitchen floor, whacking him on
the back. “You okay, Mr.
    McKinley?
    Once he'd gotten his coughing under
control, he
    nodded and wiped his eyes with his
napkin. Not wanting
    her to get any ideas, he said, “If
you remember, Mabel, I
    mentioned that I recently got
engaged.
    47
    INGLATH COOPER
    â€œOh, yes, you
did, didn't you? the older woman said
    with a deadpan expression.
    â€œShe's coming
down this weekend. On Saturday.
    â€œI didn't mean to
be making any untoward suggestions,
    Mr. McKinley, Mabel said hastily.
“And if your intended is
    planning a visit, then I'd better
quit yakking and get