He has to find good in the world again...
Warmhearted Kate Everly is a veterinarian with a special love for dogs. But she’s about to find out if her inner strength and unique “puppy whisperer” skills extend to healing wounded humans, too.
Florida state trooper Nick Stanton, a struggling single dad, is former military, and his army exploits led him to avoid dogs with a passion. Then a fateful rescue on a lonely back road brings the veteran and the veterinarian together over a gravely injured dog. Before long, Kate has her hands and heart full with a man coming to terms with his traumatic past...
“I think he’s depressed,” Nick said. “It happens to military dogs when they lose their handler. They lose interest in training...forget how to play.”
“I’ve heard about that, but never treated it.” Kate watched the shepherd. “Well, now that we know more about him, we can handle him better and start to rehab him. Who knows? Maybe we’ll even find him a forever home.”
Ben looked up at her. “A forever home?”
“That’s what we call it when a dog finds people who will love it and make it a part of their family for the rest of its life. A forever home.”
There was a heartbeat’s pause. “So...some homes aren’t forever?” Ben’s eyes darkened as the meaning of that hit him. “Some people get dogs, then decide they don’t want them anymore and just...” He glanced up at his dad, then jumped down from the fence and headed for the sanctuary office.
Kate stared after him, speechless. She would never have expected to hear such hurt from a vibrant and seemingly well-adjusted child. Had she totally misread Ben’s relationship with his father?
“What was that about?” she asked Nick.
“It’s not exactly a secret.” Nick’s tone flattened as he spoke. “Ben’s mother left us after I returned from my last deployment. He had just turned four. He doesn’t talk about it or about her. But sometimes...it comes out.”
“So his mother is...”
“Not in the picture.” He produced a tight, humorless smile. “It’s just him and me.”
Animals have always been a big part of our family life, especially dogs. When the last of our beloved schnauzers passed away, we felt the loss keenly, but weren’t sure we wanted to go through another puppyhood. We searched online adoption sites for an older dog and found a golden retriever that touched our hearts. When we went to meet the dog, we found the “rescue” to be a very odd place that had household items stacked on upper and lower porches. But our attention went to the sweet golden girl who was to become our Gracie. After taking a short walk around the yard with us, she headed for our car and stood beside it as if to say, “Let’s go home, guys.”
Gracie is loving, attentive, mannerly and a world-class food mooch. But it was clear from certain behavior that she had been abused in her former life—she was frightened of human feet and cowered whenever we approached with something in our hands, even a food dish. With time and love, she has grown more confident.
Then one day we opened the local paper to find that the “rescue” where we had gotten Gracie was being investigated for animal hoarding. The stacks of household stuff were a symptom of good intentions gone terribly wrong. As the story played out, we watched on the evening news as volunteers removed animals from the place, and we could hardly believe what we saw. That experience led me to do eye-opening research. When a new shelter opened in our county, I knew I had to write about the people who give so much of themselves to make the world a better, safer place for animals. And about how rescuing an animal can sometimes rescue us.
I hope you enjoy this story of the veteran and the veterinarian!
Betina Krahn
Soldier’s Rescue
Betina Krahn
Bestselling author BETINA KRAHN is a mother of two and owner of two (humans and canines, respectively) and the creator of dozens of satisfying happily-ever-afters. Her historical romances have received numerous reviewer’s choice and lifetime achievement awards and have appeared regularly on bestseller lists, including the USA TODAY and New York Times lists. Her books have been called sexy, warm, witty and even wise. But the description that pleases her most is “funny”—because she believes the only thing the world needs as much as it needs love is laughter. Visit her online at www.betinakrahn.com to learn more about her and her books.
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For Kate and Nicholas
May each of you find a love that helps you become the person you are meant to be.
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