Her Rocky Mountain Protector

Lori rushed across the room, wrapped her arms around him and rewarded him with a tender kiss. “I thought you weren’t coming home until tomorrow,” she said.

“My family needed me. So I made it happen.” He walked over to Gina and pulled her into a big hug. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t here for you and Zack.”

She nodded. “It’s okay, Jace. We got him back and that’s all that matters.”

That was when they heard a child’s cry from the other room. Gina jumped up and hurried to the sofa bed.

“It’s okay, honey.” She sat on the edge of the bed and pulled her son into her arms.

There were tears in her son’s eyes. “Mom, I dreamed Dad was coming after me.”

“Never. He’s never going to get near you ever again.” She looked up at Lori and Jace. “Hey, Uncle Jace came home so he could be with you.”

Jace walked to the sofa. “That’s right, partner. I heard you had a rough few days.”

The child nodded eagerly. “Yeah, I got tied up in a cave.”

Gina saw her brother-in-law stiffen, working to control his anger. He kept his voice calm. “Man, that’s bad. I’m proud of you for being smart enough to handle it.” He messed the boy’s hair. “So you spent the night in a cave.”

The boy’s eyes grew wide. “Yeah, but Scout was with me. He’s a big German shepherd. I didn’t get scared too much because he was there to protect me from other animals and bad people.”

“Sounds like Scout is a pretty neat dog.”

Again the child nodded. “He was in the military. He’s a hero like Grady.” Zack looked at his mom. “I wish I had a dog like Scout. I wouldn’t be afraid then.”

All eyes turned to Gina. “Yeah, Mom,” Jace mimicked. “A dog would be good protection.”

Gina had always planned to get her son a dog once they were settled. Her house had a fenced-in yard. “I guess a dog wouldn’t be a bad idea.”

Her son nearly jumped into her arms. “You’re the best mom in the whole world.”

Those words were enough to completely sell her on the idea, and to remind her how close she’d come to losing her son. “And you’re the best son in the whole world.”

The next morning was Saturday, and as Gina promised, she drove her son out to the cabin to thank Grady. Even for her small all-wheel-drive vehicle, it was slow going over the pitted dirt road. She wasn’t sure that she was headed in the right direction until she came through a grove of trees and finally saw the cabin in the clearing.

“Oh, boy.” It wasn’t much of a clearing. More like a junkyard. Something she hadn’t noticed when she was here before. Suddenly she was rethinking her decision to come, wondering if Grady Fletcher just wanted to be left alone.

“Grady might be busy, Zack. I’m not sure if we should just drop in on him.”

“Come on, Mom. We don’t have to stay long. I want to give Scout my present.”

They’d spent all morning shopping for a reward for the dog. “Okay, but if he doesn’t have the time, then we leave. Mr. Fletcher is a busy man.”

Then the cabin door opened and the German shepherd came out and greeted them with a bark, but stayed on the porch. Gina’s heart skipped a beat when the tall man stepped through the door. He was dressed in jeans and a dark thermal shirt, showing off his muscular build. Her body reacted, not in fear but in awareness. Well, darn.

“Scout!” her son called and jumped out of the car. Zack took off running to the dog before she could stop him.

Grady stood rooted on the porch, surprised to see Gina Williams again. Then she stepped out of her car and he found his heart suddenly beating faster. He wasn’t happy about that, or about the lack of sleep he’d had since the night she’d invaded his cabin.