ZINA
I hookedthe leash to Buster’s collar and handed it to Alex. “We’ll take this slow. Some of the dogs don’t enjoy having a bath but I want them all to look their best for Saturday, so try, okay?”
Alex took the end of the leash and looped it over his hand. “Can you tell me which ones don’t like to get wet?”
He looked so unsure of himself I wanted to laugh out loud. But I didn’t want to scare him off, so I bit back my grin. “I’ll give you the easy ones.”
“Gee, thanks.” He appeared to be less than thrilled at the task ahead. I didn’t blame him. Bathing the dogs was a pain in the ass and I usually relied on my volunteers to take on the brunt of it. But with so many dogs to take care of, they were busy walking and feeding the ones who remained inside.
“Buster loves his baths. He’ll be a good one to start with.” I leaned over and scratched the big lug behind his good ear. “You take it easy on Captain Jaybird, okay?”
Buster’s tail thumped against the grass in agreement. I wished someone would open their hearts to him. He’d been at the shelter the longest, about six months at that point. He wasn’t the cutest dog we had available. Not with his shredded ear and the scars crisscrossing his nose. But he was one of the sweetest,despite his tendency to let loose a little extra flatulence every once in a while.
“Here goes nothing.” Alex moved over to where I’d hooked up the hose. He turned it on and began to spray Buster.
I laughed as the dog jumped and spun, trying to bite the spray of water. Then I turned to get the next dog out of her crate. The young female that Dolly named Aurora didn’t seem too sure about a bath based on the way she cowered at the back of her kennel. “It’s okay, sweetie. I think you’ll like it.”
I carried the pup out to where Alex stood with his hands full of soapsuds. Buster must have had at least a few inches of bubbles coating his back. He looked like an abominable snowman under all the white. “You might want to go easy on the shampoo.”
“Yeah, I figured that out after I’d sudsed him up,” Alex said. “You’re right, he seems to be enjoying himself.”
The dog stood still, his eyes half-closed like he’d reached some state of internal Zen. Alex turned the spray on to rinse him off. When he was done, I took the hose and he grabbed a towel to run over Buster’s back.
“Your turn, little girl.” I set Aurora down on the grass and turned the water pressure down so just a small dribble of water came out of the end. The pup sniffed at it. Her curiosity was a good sign. I held it out to her while her pink tongue lapped at the water.
“You’re really good with her.” Alex moved closer, Buster’s leash in his hand.
“Lots of practice with scared animals unfortunately.” I held my hand up to shade the sun and take a look at him. His shirt was soaked through thanks to Buster. While I watched, he lifted the hem and pulled it over his head.
“Didn’t think I’d get so wet.” He turned and flung his shirt onto a bench.
I drew in a deep breath as my gaze roamed over the defined muscles of his back. What did the man do to keep cut like that? Life wasn’t fair. I’d give just about anything to run my hands over those shoulders.
“Everything okay?” He’d turned and was making his way back to me.
“Huh?” Pulled from my illicit musings, I glanced down. The pup had moved, meaning I’d been dripping water onto my jeans for the past several moments, creating a nice wet patch at the apex of my thighs. “Oh no.”
I immediately tossed the hose to the ground, which released the kink I’d formed to make the water flow slower. The hose twisted and turned, spraying water everywhere.
“Catch it.” I reached for it, coming up empty-handed.
Alex let go of Buster’s leash and stepped on the hose, then bent to grab it with both hands. His laughter bounced off the building and echoed around me. “I got it.”
“Good job.” Embarrassment flooded my face with heat. Even though water dripped down my hair and I shivered slightly, my cheeks flamed.
“What happened?” He kinked the hose again, preventing the water flow.
“I don’t know. I guess I was distracted.”
“Mmm.” His brow furrowed. “By what, exactly?”
Oh hell, he knew I’d been checking him out. I could tell by the hint of humor that sparked in his eyes. Nice eyes. Eyes I wouldn’t mind gazing into for a few minutes or a few hours or even a lifetime. Best not to go there. I shook off any warm fuzzies that threatened to encroach on my bubble of safety.
“I think Buster must have let one rip.”
“So you were distracted by the farting dog?” He moved closer.
“He’s really got a problem. Have you heard him? I think it’s why he hasn’t been adopted yet.”
