Diego let out a loud, deep-throated growl.I immediately dropped to the ground, motioning Kimberly to do the same.The dog was staring intently out at the ocean, which didn’t give me a warm, fuzzy feeling.It had already been the day from hell, my arm was starting to feel like it had been on the losing end of a fight with a meat grinder, and I really didn’t feel like going another round or two with those damn poachers.Right now, I’d just as soon shoot them all and to hell with due process of the law.Enough already.
We stayed perfectly still, staring out at the endless expanse of ocean.It was probably nerves that made us all jump so badly when the whale breached, sending spouts of water high up in the air.
Diego let out another throaty growl, and both Kimberly and I broke out in laughter as the tension broke.A whale.Of course, the dog would consider the large mammal a threat.
The dog gave us a reproachful look and plunked himself down on his haunches.
“I’m sorry, fella.”Kimberly raised her arm to give him a scratch behind his ears.“We’re all a little bit overwhelmed here, and we thought the bad guys had come back.A whale is a much better alternative.”
“Much better.”I agreed one hundred percent.“How about we go get those emergency supplies and find ourselves a place to bed down for the night?”
“Sounds like a plan to me.”Kimberly got back to her feet, and motioned Diego to resume his position on point.
* * *
Kimberly
With the supplies in his well-stocked medi-kit, I helped Ryland disinfect and properly bandage his arm before finding a comfy spot to sit down out of the way.Ryland used a tarp to improvise a roof over the sleeping area.He’d padded the ground with a layer of pine needles, covering them with the solar blanket from his emergency kit.As promised, the life jackets were being pressed into service as pillows and a second solar blanket would do to cover us while we slept.
I just had one question, and I wasn’t sure how to ask without sounding like an idiot.Honestly, I wasn’t sure what I hoped the answer would be.“Ryland?”
He looked up, his eyebrow lifted.“Yes?”
I avoided meeting his gaze.“How come there’s only one bed?”
That irresistible grin lit up his face.“Sadly, it’s not what you might think, or what I might hope for.One of us needs to keep watch so we’ll take turns sleeping.Hence, only one bed.It’ll keep warm when we switch positions.”
I tried to hide my disappointment.After all, Diego was a damned good watchdog.He’d let us know if there were any threats.
The big mutt looked like he’d read my mind.He sat in the center of the clearing, his huge ears swiveling at every sound from the surrounding bushes.I was sure he’d give us plenty of warning if anything dangerous came within hearing distance of our little camp.
I tried to sound matter of fact.“So, you and I are going to take turns standing guard?”
He glanced at his wrist.“Yes.I’ll take the first turn since if the poachers come back, it will probably be sooner rather than later.It’s almost dark now, so I’ll wake you up at midnight and we can switch.”
I reached out to scratch Diego behind the ears.“What about you?You standing first watch or are you going to sleep now and help me later?”
The mutt tilted his head and let out a short bark.
I gave Ryland a wry smile.“I don’t think he trusts either of us on our own.He plans to stay up all night.”
“You got all that from one bark?”
I nodded.“It was a very eloquent bark.”
Ryland raised his brows.“It must have been.All I got out of that was ‘where’s my treats’?”
I shook my head in mock reproof.“You need more practice at dog-speak.Poor guy needs his dinner, since there’s no treats to be had.”I looked around for something to use as a dog dish.There hadn’t been a lot of dog food in the emergency pack in my kayak, but it would have to do.
Diego let out an impatientwoof, and I decided to let him help himself out of the margarine container I’d used to pack the kibble.Not like it mattered if he put a few teeth marks in it.Putting the food down a little distance from the sleeping area, I turned to Ryland.“I noticed you were using hand gestures with him earlier.How did you know he’d understand them?”
Ryland paused, looking up from his position on the ground.“I didn’t think about it.I sometimes worked with the K-9 unit when I was in the military, and those are the signals they used with the service dogs.When Diego responded to them, I just kept using them.And I think I do fine with dog-speak.You just have a different way of listening to him because he’s your companion.”
“He is that.”I eyed the big mutt fondly.“He’s my BFF and my bodyguard and my confidante, all rolled into one.And bonus, he never ever repeats anything I tell him.”
“So asking him how you feel about me isn’t going to get me any answers?”
I raised one brow.“I barely know you, so it’s kind of a non-question.But even if that weren’t true, no, you wouldn’t get any answers from Diego.”
