Everyone felt the hurt when he’d gone missing.
He hadn’t come out on the jobs with me, but when we’d work in the yard, I’d bring him and leave him in the office.
“Who has him?” Jesper asked.
“I don’t know,” I said. “It was a text.”
“Call him,” Jesper suggested.
So I did, while twenty men stayed quiet waiting to hear the news.
“Hello?”
The voice, like raspy, sex on a stick, sent a jolt of awareness through me.
It also had a familiarity to it that I couldn’t quite place.
“Hey.” I barely contained my tears. “You have my dog?”
“Yeah,” he said. “I work a lot and didn’t think about the dog being registered with a microchip. Thought he was dumped. Had a friend look into him for me a few days ago, and we found you on social media. Since I don’t have it, I hadn’t thought to look.”
I was trembling. “Can I come get him now?”
“I’m at work,” he sounded apologetic, and hesitant. “I can bring him into town after I get done, though.”
“When and where?” I gasped.
“You live near Sawtooth?”
Relief shot through me that he was close. “Bear Pass.”
“I can bring him to you, but it won’t be until around seven. If you can meet me in Sawtooth, it’ll be earlier.”
I fist-pumped the air and repeated my earlier statement. “When and where?”
“Ever been to Meridian?”
I couldn’t stop the instant lip curl.
Several of the guys chuckled at my reaction.
They knew my instant dislike for that place.
“Yeah.”
“There at three.”
“I’ll be there,” I said excitedly.
When I hung up, I couldn’t stop myself from jumping up and down in excitement.
Several of the guys joined me, and we had a mini girl-out for a few long seconds before I settled down.
“Good news, Watts,” Big John said. “Now, let’s get to work. It’s a maintenance day.”
Everyone grumbled but did as he suggested.
And for the next seven hours, I counted down the seconds.
