Groomless - Part 1 (21 page)

Chapter 1

  “Nobody. Nobody.”  I heard myself repeating the words over and over, absently stroking Colt’s neck as he sat by my bedside. He was my faithful companion, always there for me when the nightmares threatened to take over my reality. At least once or twice a month I had the same dream, leaving my body clammy and my head aching for a release from the pain of deep loss.

Carl had trusted me, and I had let him down. Now Colt trusted me; would I let him down as well?

“Hey, buddy. Yeah—you’re a great dog. I know. I know. You’ll protect me; yes you will. I’ve got your back too, you crazy hound.”

Colt continued to sit by my bedside and whine his discomfort at my obvious physical and emotional burden. I reached up to touch the scar on my left cheek. It was a visible memory of my failure, and I wore it with self-loathing. It was not only the end of my career with the Navy Seals, but it was the end of the man I thought I was, the man I could have been. The only one who loved me, no matter what, was Colt, and for the life of me I couldn’t understand why. It was simply another early morning with nothing to alleviate my haunted memories.

“Okay Colt, how about you and me having us a workout and going for a walk?”  It was only 5:00 a. m., and I’d been awake for hours.

It was always the same—memory of the mission, failed attempt to change the outcome, wake up in the middle of the night with Colt trying to comfort me, then get up and get busy to avoid any more inner turmoil. This had been a particularly vivid reliving of the nightmare. It was necessary to do something physical to work off the pain, to rid myself of the ongoing night terrors I called life.

I discovered the only way to minimize the thoughts that preyed on my emotions was to maximize the exercise that kept my body rock hard and Navy Seal ready. Even though I got out of the Navy Seals after the mission, I couldn’t get the Navy Seals out of me. I was still edgy, still walking the line between sanity and sainthood, still living life as if there would be no tomorrow—partially in hopes of forgetting about yesterday. Colt knew the routine, and he followed me to gym-hell to work out my demons.

I spent hours in my garage, torturing my body until my biceps bulged in protest and my thighs burned to signal sweet surrender. Because last night’s activities were so relentless, this morning’s activities would be more of the same. It was one of those days that would require a special form of exorcism. I couldn’t get relief until my body was wet and my mind was spent, until I ached for mental release. That’s when Colt brushed against my leg, asking for a little breakfast and a soothing walk in the wooded area surrounding the community.

This morning, not even Colt could distract me from my revelry. I pumped with more gusto than usual, searching for blessed relief. My senses hadn’t dulled, but my body was too busy trying to persuade my mind to give up the war I waged.

Out of the corner of my eye I noticed a woman motioning her moving van to park just so, the girl none of my concern nor her desire to move into my quaint little neighborhood. I glanced up fully as the van pulled across my drive, its air brakes hissed their wake-up call to me and the entire neighborhood.

I had lived in Flagstaff, Arizona for a year, and I had yet to say more to a neighbor than a weak two-word greeting as Colt and I headed for our walks or went to work at my K-9 Boot Camp. Even there I was aloof and distant with staff and customers, preferring to be alone with my thoughts and the attending dogs I trained. I shook my head in an attempt to clear my wandering mind and focus on the weights, the lifts, the pulleys and bench that supported my hardened body. I let go of my inner turmoil, only to be replaced by the moving van’s outer aggravation. The men were fighting and cursing over a dresser that had hit the ground.

“You put a ding in it!” a man shouted. 

“Not my fault.  You let go!” The second guy lifted his hands in the air, waving them about with gusto. 

“What the hell?” I marched to the end of my drive, hands on my hips, ready for a pissing contest with the little raven-haired tease posed perfectly at the edge of my property line.

It was still a bit chilly in the early morning, and I could see her pertness through the clingy white material that stretched across her full breasts. I hated the fact that I was having difficulties keeping my arousal in check all of a sudden. I was trained better than this.

I decided tact wasn’t going to be my strong suit as I attacked her verbally. “I can understand getting a head start. But this damn early?”

She turned toward me, twisting her torso. Her shirt pulled tighter and exposed the soft flesh beneath, the creamy-white top of her breasts on display for me and anyone else in a ten foot radius. 

“I’m so sorry. I didn’t realize they’d be here this early.” She shrugged as her cheeks colored pink. She was incredibly pretty. I could give her that, but pretty wasn’t going to cover the disruption to my workout.

I wiped the sweat off my forehead. “Just try to take it down. This is a quiet neighborhood.”

She smiled. “Are you with the neighborhood watch? Pounce on anything that makes noise before dawn?”

“Maybe I don’t like noisy neighbors.” 

“Looks like you were up bright and early anyway. Pumping iron? Just blast your music. It’ll drown out everything. Trust me. That’s what I do.”

“Just blast your music? Right! How about next time give them a time and tell them to stick to it?” I growled.

I turned to go inside, but Colt had a plan all his own. He trotted over to the woman like she was his new best friend, and that made me recall him with more harshness than usual.

“Colt, come! Now, I said!” Rarely did I have to call him twice when I used my warning voice, but this time Colt chose to ignore my request. I stepped toward him with a menacing look, and this time he thought twice about being disobedient. He stopped for a moment and looked back. “Don’t even think about it, Colt.”

“Your dog is beautiful. I see he takes after his owner. What’s your name, boy? Colt? Is that your name?” she asked, bending over to stroke his back and cup his awaiting cheeks in her hands.

I felt desire rising up through me, as my eyes traveled the length of her. Not only were her breasts protesting the confines of her shirt, but now she was showing off her long, slender legs.

A beautiful golden goddess; not a tan line anywhere. Yep, if I was a bettin’ man, I’d bet she’ll be teasing the neighbors as she tans naked around her pool.”

I turned and walked back into the garage, calling for Colt once more as I pressed my hand to the front of my workout pants. What the hell was the matter with me? How long had it been since I had taken a good looking woman to my bed? Obviously too long by the movement of my cock, jerking as if trying to get the girls attention. I glanced back at the sound of Colt’s low growl. 

“What now?” I muttered and walked back into the driveway as the girl moved a few steps back. 

Colt had the two movers trapped inside the truck, his growl aggressive and a warning at best. I hadn’t witnessed Colt in protect-mode for quite some time, and I was surprised to see him ready to spring into action over nothing. Or perhaps it wasn’t nothing. Dogs had a sense about people, and Colt was especially tuned to the smell of danger.

This time I commanded Colt in German, suspecting something with these guys was not quite kosher.

“Nein! Geh rein,” I spoke in a softer voice, which carried much more weight with Colt. He followed my instruction and, with just a slightly raised lip to the movers, he slowly and stealthily moved until he reached the garage. I knew he wanted to keep an eye on the men, so I allowed him to patrol to the garage door, but no further.

“Wow!  I’m impressed. I shouldn’t be, though. That voice almost made me want to slink back into my garage. What language was that, anyway?” She ran her fingers through her dark hair and took a tentative step toward me. 

“That was the language that told him to mind his own business,” I said, as I turned back to my garage. I was more frustrated with myself than with that slip of a girl next door. I was used to beautiful women. What I wasn’t used to was the way I had reacted to the obvious actions of this pretty piece.

“I’ve been too long without a woman, Colt. Sorry buddy. You took the brunt of it, huh?”  I bent toward Colt to escort him into the house, and found his attention still drawn to the girl. “I know how you feel. Me too. Come, Colt. Let’s get ready for work, boy.”

The rest of the day was much like any other day, with staff working like crazy registering all the new clients and their dogs. The first day of training was always tougher on the owners than the animals. Some wanted to coddle their dogs, while others expected stardom and refused to allow their canines to work at a pace comfortable for them. It was great to have Colt there to model the proper behavior, and to take the attention off me when my patience shrunk to nonexistent.

I had a habit of wearing my displeasure all over my face, and that expression was not a warm and fuzzy one for the generously paying clients. I could trust Colt to sense when he needed to come to my rescue and take over when I was forced to handle more crap than I could reasonably tolerate. Never crap from the dogs. They were my saving grace, and seemed to be on alert with my need for them to run interference between me and their unsuspecting, overbearing owners.

Finally, the day was over. I was more than ready to return home and enjoy an evening with two of my favorite things—Colt and a shot of Tequila. I needed to restore my good humor, well, perhaps I was fooling myself with the notion that I had a humorous bone in my whole body. I didn’t. As I pulled up my drive, I just about lost it. 

The new girl had stacks of boxes sitting in my driveway. How many boxes can one woman have, for shit sake? “Okay, we’re going to put an end to this mess, Colt.”

Colt barked and wagged his tail, much to my displeasure. I scoffed at him and opened the door, climbing out and reprimanding him as we moved across the street. 

“Look at you—all eager to see your girlfriend again. You sure know how to pick ‘em.”

End of Sample.

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