“Heidi, follow along and help, baby? Show them what to do?”
“Heidi, there are leashes…” Connor pointed to a pile of brand-new leashes on the kitchen counter.
“Got it!” She grabbed two and ran after the boys.
Connor grabbed a paper towel and some urine-b-gone type spray. Thank god they didn’t have carpet.
“Here.” He got a fluffy puppy as Connor went to clean up. “I have pee pads if we need them, but mostly I guess they can be outside. The boys usually are.” Connor was surprisingly not stressed. If this had happened in their place in Denver, Connor would have pitched a fit. That was one of the reasons they didn’t have pets in Denver.
“I’m having a dog run put in, so that’ll be easier.” Early scratched fluffball under the chin.
“Oh, that’s a good idea. Wow that’s a lot of pee for a little guy.” Connor tossed the paper towels and washed his hands. “Thanks for sending your daughter out to help.”
Martha smiled. “She good with kids.”
“And dogs,” Early added, earning himself a laugh.
“They are, basically, the same thing.”
Connor took Sophia back and unwrapped a matching pink camouflage collar and leash. “Hey, little girl. You should probably go outside too for a bit, huh?”
Pink camo. That was adorable. Early couldn’t be more in love.
“How cute. I’d have pegged him for a big dog kind of guy.” Martha watched Connor go. “Listen, I hate to do this, but I have to ask you something.”
Early nodded, frowning slightly. That sounded more serious than just puppies. “Sure.”
“So… I hesitated to bring them out today, honestly. I’d heard some things in town that concerned me, but other people speak so highly of you… I decided to go with my gut and hope that I’m not making a mistake.”
“Concerned you?” What the fuck? What theactualfuck? Early forced himself to not get all defensive. “Like what? Demming will vouch for me and mine.”
“I know. A lot of folks did, but…” Martha shrugged. “There’s a rumor about how you treat your animals.”
Early saw red, and one of his hands clenched into a fist. What? Him? That was ridiculous. “Martha, I’ll let you go right now to see my barns, the herds. You can talk to Dr. Maslin or anyone in her practice. I’ve never hurt an animal in my life.”
She reached out and patted his arm. “Look, I’m here, aren’t I? I didn’t really believe it, but I’d be remiss if I left the dogs here and didn’t bring it up. And anyway, I thought you should know.”
“Do you know who? Or who you heard it from, so I can weed this out?”
“I don’t know. I was in the post office and a couple of guys were talking about it. Uh…youngish shorter guy with sandy hair, a taller skinny guy in a cowboy hat, oh and Percy Albertson, you know him? He runs the big feed store down the way.”
“Percy, huh. Okay. I’ll go chat with him.” He was going to kill someone. “I don’t know why someone would spread lies. It ain’t right.”
“I’m sorry, Early. I hope I didn’t insult you.” Martha shrugged, heading for the door. “I’m sure you understand I had to bring it up.”
“Hey, I appreciate it. Very much. I can’t tell folks what the truth is if I have no idea someone’s being evil.” Early found her a warm smile, leaning in and shaking his head. “I’ve got little boys. I want them to know their daddy is an honest man.”
“You keep those puppies happy, and I’ll vouch.” She gave him a wink. “I’d never heard a bad thing about Rick either.”
“I’ll keep the puppies healthy and happy.” He wasn’t an asshole, not a bit.
“I know. Thank you, Early.” Martha stepped out onto the porch. “I’m going to keep my eye out for something I think you might like.”
The boys were running in the yard with the puppies, and Connor’s little ball of fur was sniffing around on the end of the pink leash.
He loved the smiles on all his guys’ faces. All three of them were beaming, love pouring from them.
“Heidi, honey. Time to go.”