The boy considered.Looked satisfied.Turned back to the puppies.
Gray’d asked him to help them pick out a good puppy today, and he was happy to oblige.Of course, the goal was to get therightpuppy, a healthy one whose temperament matched his future family’s.
Dillon checked the puppies methodically, watching their gaits, dropping his keys on the floor, observing who startled and recovered, who startled and fled, and who didn’t startle at all.
Of course, he was also reading Bonnie and her kids, while he was at it.
Cassidy’s quiet inquisitiveness called for a curious but not anxious puppy.Noah’s loudness required a puppy with a bold but not reactive personality.Having to deal with both kids would necessitate a patient dog with a long fuse.Bonnie kept stepping back to give the kids the floor—not from disinterest, but from a habit of letting her children have things she didn’t have herself.He noted how Gray watched her watching them.
He picked up a chubby, cheerful pup and set him down between Cassidy and Noah.The puppy walked to Cassidy first and sat down in front of her to study her back.Then he trotted to Noah and pawed the boy’s leg.
Dillon nodded.“He’ll be steady with Cassidy and playful with Noah.He’s smart but patient.Confident but calm.He’s the one.”
Noah declared that they should name him Sparky on the grounds that it sounded like a fire dog, and Cassidy nodded in silent approval.“Sparky it is,” Bonnie declared.Gray grinned, looking pleased.
Dillon turned to put his clipboard back in his bag, and overheard Bonnie say quietly to Gray, “So.We’re getting a dog together.”
“You’ve been saying you wanted one for the kids.”
“This is a big commitment.Training.Vet bills.Boarding when we travel.He’ll be with us the rest of his life.Are you ready for all that?”
Gray’s voice was rough with emotion.“Honey, I’ve been ready.I’m just waiting for you to catch up.”
Bonnie leaned in to kiss Gray and Dillon studiously re-read a puppy care brochure he’d had memorized for years.
He scheduled a time with the breeder to give all the puppies their twelve week shots at the clinic the following week.
On the way out, Cassidy, looked up, and said, “Thank you, Dr.Steele.”Apparently, she’d decided he was acceptable.He’d take it.
* * *
A week later, Dillon stood on Bonnie Watson’s front porch with Sparky in his arms and Gray dropping his keys for the second time.
“You okay there, buddy?”
Gray grinned crookedly.“Yeah.Come on in.Bonnie should bring the kids home from school in a few minutes.”
The kitchen was small and yellow and lived-in.Drawings were stuck on the fridge with magnets—one of a fire engine, one of a stick-figure family with four people holding hands that gave Dillon a brief pang of envy.
Dillon set Sparky on the floor, and the pup plopped down to chew his own foot.
He opened his mouth to tell Gray how to transition from wet to dry dog food, but his friend reached into his jacket pocket and produced a small velvet ring box, and no sound came out of Dillon’s mouth.
The ring inside the box was a sparkling solitaire diamond, clear and blue-white, in a setting so simple and delicate it almost wasn’t there.Knowing Gray, he’d exhaustively researched diamonds and this one was the best there was.
“When are you planning to pop the question?”
Gray ran his hand through his hair.“I can’t find the right time.Either I’m coming home filthy from the fire station or she’s exhausted from work.A restaurant is too public.Her parents’ anniversary was last week but it felt like I’d be hijacking somebody else’s day.I keep waiting for the perfect moment, but it’s not coming.”
“Do you trust her to say yes?”Dillon asked.
“I do.”
“Then it won’t matter when or where or how you do it.All that’ll matter to her is you asked.”
“I was thinking about tying the ring around Sparky’s neck,” Gray admitted, producing a length of red satin ribbon from the same pocket.“Is that too hokey?”
“You could have a skydiving clown deliver or put it on her toothbrush in the bathroom, and she’d love it.”
