A Maverick for the Holidays

“Smiley,” he yelled. “Smiley.” Stumbling after the galloping golden retriever, he walked down the street as fast as he could.

A young woman appeared out of a doorway and stood directly in Smiley’s path. Forrest feared the dog would knock her down. “Smiley,” he called again.

“Smiley! Sit,” the woman said.

Wonder of wonders, the therapy dog plopped his bottom on the pavement and wagged his tail, with his tongue hanging out the side of his mouth.

Relief rushed through Forrest as he finally caught up with the dog. “Thanks for stopping him,” Forrest said, grabbing his breath at the same time as he grabbed the leash. “I was afraid he was going to run into that traffic.”

The girl shrugged her shoulders. “It was nothing. I guess he just wanted to come over and say hello.”

“Do you know him?” Forrest asked, still perplexed that Smiley had taken off like that.

The girl studied Smiley for a moment. “Based on that therapy vest, I’m guessing he belongs to Annabel Cates. My sister Haley is married to Marlon Cates and he’s Annabel’s brother, but I have to say I’ve never actually met the dog before.”

“That’s weird, because Smiley headed over here like he knew where he was going,” he said, taking a second look at the girl. He couldn’t exactly nail her age, but she looked young. Her brown hair flowed past her shoulders and her eyes were big and brown, glinting with happiness. She made him feel a little old.

The girl laughed lightly and the sound felt like a cool drink of water on a hot day. “Maybe this dog is just super smart and knew that ROOTS is a great place to hang out,” she said, pointing to the sign in the window. She gave him an appraising look. “Wait a minute. Are you related to Rose Traub?”

“Yeah, she’s my cousin. Why?”

“Rose is married to my brother Austin. I’m Angie Anderson,” she said and extended her hand.

“Forrest Traub. Man, this is one small town. Seems like most everyone is related,” he said.

“You’re right about that. Why don’t you come inside? We’ve got hot chocolate and cookies,” she said.

“That’s okay. I better get Smiley back to Annabel,” he said.

“I’m sure Smiley could use a little rest after the way he was racing down the street,” she said.

His leg was aching like hell, so he decided he could use a break. “If you’re sure,” he said. “What do you do here, anyway?” he asked as he followed her inside.

“I’m a volunteer,” she said. “ROOTS is a safe haven for the local youth.”

“But aren’t you a youth?” he couldn’t help asking because Angie looked so young.

She laughed again, and the sound just made him feel better. “I guess I’ll accept that as a compliment,” she said. “I’m twenty-three and going to college. I work here at ROOTS part-time. How do you like your hot chocolate? Light or loaded on the marshmallows?” she asked.

He almost chuckled at the way she asked. “Light. The bad thing about a sugar high is what comes afterward,” he said.

“Coming right up. Have a seat,” she said and went to a snack and beverage table at the far end of the room.

“Hey,” a teenage boy with long hair said, stepping toward Smiley. “Cool dog. Can I pet him?”

“Sure can. He’s a therapy dog, so he’s trained to be friendly. He may need a little refresher course, though,” Forrest said wryly, giving the golden an affectionate rub.

“What do you mean?” the teenager asked, bending down to pet Smiley.

“He took off while I was walking him today, and he’s not supposed to do that,” Forrest said.

“So he’s in trouble?” the teenager asked.

“His mistress will have to make that call,” Forrest said.

Angie returned with a cup of hot chocolate. “What do you think of Smiley, Max?”

“He’s a cool dog. You should bring him around more often,” he said. “Oh, look, Lilly’s here. We’re gonna do some homework together.”

“Okay, I’ll be right here if you need any help,” Angie said and sat next to Forrest. When Max took a few steps away, she shot Forrest a mischievous look. “I don’t know how much actual homework they’ll get done. Max has a monster crush on Lilly,” she said in a low voice.

Forrest glanced at the teenage boy and girl as they sat at a table together and felt a pinch of loss. He shook his head. “Sometimes I wonder if I was ever that young.”

“Well, you’re not ancient,” she said. “It’s not like you can remember when electricity was invented.”

This time he did chuckle. “I guess. It’s just been a long road since I got back from Iraq.”

Angie’s eyes widened. “You were in Iraq?”

“Yeah, army. I enlisted after high school and earned my engineering degree before my first tour of Iraq. My second tour ended my military career,” he said and took a drink of hot chocolate. “I hadn’t planned on that. An IED took me out of action.”

“IED?” she echoed.

“Improvised explosive device.”

“That must have been horrible.”

“It was worse for some than others. I was in the first vehicle, so we took the brunt of it.”

“So, you’re a hero,” she said, her gaze intent.

“Oh, no,” he said, feeling self-conscious at the admiring expression in her eyes. “Just doing my job.”

“I’m sure plenty of people would agree with me. How long will you be in town?” she asked.

“A while,” he said. “There’s a doc here who’s going to do some more work on my leg. Plus I’ve started doing blueprints for an architectural firm. What about you?” he asked, ready for the attention to be taken off of him.

“I’m hoping to finish my bachelor’s degree in sociology within the next year. I work in the college administration office one day a week. I temp for a CPA during tax season and work part-time for a catering business. And like I mentioned, I volunteer here at ROOTS and for some other charities,” she said and her cheeks turned pink. “I really don’t know what I want to do for the rest of my life,” she confessed. “I wish I did. I wish it would just hit me on the head like it seems to do for other people, but so far, it hasn’t. But I’m not going to sit home waiting to find out, so I stay pretty busy.”

“Jill-of-all-trades,” he said.

“Huh?” she asked, furrowing her brow in confusion.

“As opposed to jack-of-all-trades. You’re a jill-of-all-trades,” he said.

She gave a slow smile that had a surprising edge of sexiness. “I like that. I’m glad Smiley led you to stop here today.”

Forrest felt flattered at the same time that a mental alarm went off. Angie might not be a teenager, but she was still too young for him, so he sure as hell didn’t want to give her any ideas. “Thanks for lassoing Smiley and giving me some hot chocolate. I should walk him back to the library now,” he said, rising. Pain shot through his leg, but he gritted his teeth so no one would see.