I make a ‘V’ with my fingers and place it under my eye. “See, I told you it was easy!” I tell the kid, ruffling his short brown curls.
He grins up at me and smiles, placing both of his hands in front of him and circling them forward, then down, then back up over and over.
“I’m happy too, buddy.”
He touches his lips with two fingers and then moves his hand toward me in a ‘thank you’ sign and then he signs my ‘special name’, making a fist with the thumb outside to make an ‘A’ and then quickly shaping his hands like an ‘O’ and bringing them both to the sides of his head before moving them forward in the sign for ‘teacher/trainer’.
I wave his thanks off and give him a thumb up.
He nods seriously, while crouching down to pet Sami.
I point down at him smiling and then sign ‘champion’ by moving one hand like a claw down onto the tip of the index finger of my other hand.
He laughs.
We’re at the end of the training session and his parents walk up to us. We chat briefly about Max and Sami and the progress they’re making working as a team, while the kid rolls around on the grass with his furry friend until it’s time for Sami to go back to his comfy basket in the kennel and for Max to go back home.
“I’ll see you in two days then?” I ask the kid and he nods.
He signs the letter ’S’ for Sami, pats the side of his hip and snaps his fingers, signing ‘dog’; next, he places his hand on his chest, gently slapping it on it to sign ‘mine’ and after, he holds out both of his index fingers and then hooks them together making them ‘hug’ and signing ‘friend’.
Finally, he crosses both hands over the middle of his chest signing ‘love’ as his daddy picks him up.
I smile, feeling my eyes prickle a bit.
Man, I love my job.
I nod at the kid, tapping his nose. “Yes, the dog is yours: your friend. And he loves you too, buddy.”
I shake hands with his parents and fist-pump Max, calling Sami back when he tries to follow his new friend outside the training pen.
“Not yet, pup, but soon… you’re going home with him soon.”
He whines, prancing in place as he sits on his rump, his ears low, his tail thumping on the ground.
He looks toward Max until he can’t see him anymore and then I swear he turns to glare at me.
I chuckle. “Easy, there… let’s go have a lie-down, okay?”
Sami starts to run around like crazy as soon as I mention ‘lying down’.
He hates resting. He is a total dinamo just like Didar and he’s often trying to escape to the point the my wife jokes I should have named him Houdini rather than Sami.
I’m still in contact with the Brennans, they send me monthly updates and pictures of Didar and Phoebe and I even get to see them every once in a while.
They are doing fantastic together and they are the best of friends just like I hoped.
Didar will always be special to me. I mean, I love all my trainees, but Didar will always be in my heart because for a while he was mine, not just my pup to train, but my dog, and because he brought my wife and I together and made us realize what we already were to each other and what we could be.
I couldn’t be prouder of that furry rascal and I know this maniac here will make me just as proud when it’s time for him to leave with Maxwell.
I pet him, clucking my tongue at him. “How about a bowl of water and some treats instead?”
His ears perk up and he gives a single happy bark as if to say: ‘that’s more like it, Axe.’
I laugh as we walk inside the kennel.
Normally, he would run ahead of me, but even the promise of treats, despite making him happy, can’t make him feel eager to be inside. If he could, he would always run all over the place and roll in the dirt outside.
I pat the side of his neck. “Sorry, pup, I really have to go. Tess needs me and I have to take care of the kids.”
He wags his tails at the word ‘kids’ and I smile. He really is super friendly with them.
Man, I can’t wait to go home to my family.
It’s only six p.m. but I’m beat already. Our four-year-old had a nightmare last night around two a.m. and he screamed so loud he scared his little brother.
They both ended up in the big bed with us, along with my wife’s menagerie of cats and Shield, our overprotective Husky. No amount of comfort would do, it seemed, and Shield added his wails to their cries, inconsolable at seeing their distress and giving me the stink eye every chance he got as if to say: ‘Aren’t you like the man of the house, do something, dude!’.
We were up until dawn and then when the kids finally nodded off it was time to get up and go to work.
And it’s not like we had any sleep before they woke us. Tess and I are still completely crazy for each other and were about to start round three when they interrupted us.
I smirk to myself, picturing her soft, creamy rounded body straddling mine.
My wife is a siren on any given day, but, fuck: she’s simply amazing when she’s pregnant.
I guide Sami inside, fishing my phone out of my pocket to text her.
Me: “How is our little Penny treating you today, babe?”
Tess: “Can’t complain. She’s been a true lady. Can’t say the same of your little Demolition Duo. Come home, love. I need TLC :)”
Me: “On my way. Hang on. I have big plans for you.”
Tess: “Naked plans?”
Me: “Do you really need to ask?”
Tess: “Nope. But R U hard right now?”
I look down at my stiffening erection and chuckle.
Me: “Yes.”
Tess: “Then mission accomplished…”
Epilogue 2
PART 2
TESS
I plunk myself on the sofa with a sigh, smiling at the screen of my cell.
I just sent Joyce on her way and my sons are finally napping now, both sprawled inside the Spider Man tent they forced their babysitter to put up in the middle of the living room.
That poor girl says she loves my boys to pieces. She is an utter saint and didn’t as much as said a word when I asked her to stay over a few hours more.
These days I don’t work full time anymore since this pregnancy is not exactly being kind on my body, I had it much easier when I carried Mickey and then Jackie.
Today I was supposed to be at the clinic only for three hours, but then someone brought in a pet Angora rabbit for an emergency surgery —the poor little thing broke free of her owner’s leash while they were strolling in the park, got scared by a dog and jumped into the street, the driver never saw her coming.
We kept Hermione under knife for three hours straight and then we needed another forty-five minutes to stabilize her. She’s fine fortunately and now I can finally rest.
I can’t wait for my hubby to get here so we can pick up from where we left last night.