He nodded, his eyes roaming over the dogs as if taking a silent inventory, and then left as quietly as he had come. Kate had the feeling he would have stuck around longer had she not been there.
“Kate!” Sam entered, smiling from ear to ear. “Is it true? You’re going to be staying with Mad Dog for a few days?”
Kate returned her genuine smile with one of her own. “It is.”
“Awesome. We can definitely use some more female energy around here.” Sam got down on the floor with her and eyed her cast and sling. “Sucks about the circumstances though. I heard you got knocked around pretty good. How are you feeling?”
“Not bad, considering. Sore mostly.”
“I guess that’s to be expected. You were very lucky.”
“Don’t I know it? If it wasn’t for these guys, who knows how long I would have been stuck out there?”
It was a sobering thought and one that had been lingering in the back of her mind. She couldn’t help but wonder how long it would have taken for someone to come looking.
A dark shadow crossed over Sam’s features, and Kate wondered if she was thinking about the trouble she’d had a year or two earlier. Some psycho had been stalking her or something, and there were a series of fires in which Sam had actually been a suspect, but it’d turned out it was her emotionally disturbed stalker who’d been setting the blazes. Kate didn’t know the specifics, but the general consensus among the Ladies Auxiliary was that there was a lot more to the story than the official version Lenny Petraski liked to tell.
Maybe, someday, Sam would feel comfortable enough to share that with her, but until then, Kate would respect her privacy.
“Everything happens for a reason, Kate.”
“You sound like my grandmother.”
“I’ll take it. Your grandmother was a sharp woman.”
“So ... not to overstep my bounds or anything, but is there any chance I could help you out in the kitchen while I’m here?”
Sam’s eyes lit up. “Are you kidding me right now?”
“No. I’ll need something to keep me busy while Chris is off doing, uh”—she frowned slightly—“whatever it is he does.”
Sam laughed. “Don’t take it personally. Being closemouthed about what they do is part of their DNA, I think. You get used to it.”
“Duly noted.” At least it wasn’t just her.
“But I can tell you, these guys put an awful lot of time into planning and renovating, and Mad Dog is right in the thick of it. I’ve seen some of the concept sketches he’s done. He’s incredibly gifted. By the time this place is complete, it’s really going to be something.”
Her chest swelled with pride on Chris’s behalf, and she made a mental note to ask to see some of those plans. “It’s already something, and if the kitchen and dining room are any indication, I can’t wait to see what else is in store.”
“They’re concentrating on inside stuff now because of the weather.”
“Chris showed me around the grounds when we went snowmobiling. It was breathtaking.”
“Incredible, isn’t it? Wait until you see it in the summer. And the fall? Absolute perfection.”
Kate hoped she’d still be welcome in a few months. She had to caution herself against expecting too much, too soon.
“Chris was talking to my father about ordering supplies for a greenhouse.”
“Yes! There’s a long-range plan for several actually,” Sam said. “But Mad Dog suggested we do a prototype first to work out the kinks before committing to anything on a large scale.”
“Sounds awesome, but why? There’s certainly no shortage of farms and markets in the area that provide fresh produce.”
Sam hesitated and bit her bottom lip. “True, but not all of them are willing to contract with Sanctuary.”
Kate knew exactly what she was referring to, but she didn’t understand the why of it and told Sam so. “It just doesn’t make sense to me. These guys are doing something amazing. Why wouldn’t the locals support it?”
“You can probably answer that better than I can.”
Sam’s response confused her.
“Why do you say that? You’re as much a local as I am. Sandy, too.”
Sam gave a little smile. “We might be from the same town, but you’re plugged into the community far more than we were.”
Kate shook her head. “Not true. Everyone in town came to Santori’s because of you, Sam. And Franco’s hasn’t been the same without Sandy. Don’t even get me started on the township office! Mona’s got everything so messed up, no one can get anything done.”
“Who can’t do what?” Smoke asked from the doorway.
Duke pushed past him and made a beeline for Kate, his back-end wiggling so hard that he almost fell over.
“Well, it looks like someone’s glad to see you,” Sam commented, her smile bright once again.
“I’m glad to see you, too, buddy,” Kate assured Duke, scratching behind his ears. “I don’t know though ... he’s not going to want to come back to my place after living here.”
I might feel the same way after a few days.
“It’s been awesome, having them around,” Sam said. “When I’m feeling stressed, I just come in here and pet the dogs for a few minutes and feel instantly better. I’m not the only one who feels that way either. It’s therapeutic.”
Kate certainly thought so. Hearing Sam say that made her feel slightly less guilty about leaving them here.
Chris returned, smiling when he saw her on the floor with the dogs. “Having fun?”
“Yes. Join me?”
He lowered his body with an easy, masculine grace and picked up a puppy. She loved that those big hands could be so gentle.
“Did you talk to Matt?”
He nodded. “Yes. We can head back whenever you’re ready.”
“Maybe I’ll just sleep here,” she teased, rubbing noses with another pup.
“Not tonight, baby.”
He put his tiny charge back in the puppy playpen area and then did the same with the others, one by one. Kate pursed her lips into a mock pout, which made him laugh.
“You’re here to rest and recover, remember?”
She sighed and let him help her to her feet. “Yes, I remember.” She was tired, and the aches and pains from just that slight movement reminded her that she was due for another dose of painkillers.
“See you tomorrow?” Sam asked, now tucked against Smoke and smiling at the two of them.
“Yes! I’m looking forward to it.”
Kate was yawning nonstop by the time they got back to Chris’s trailer. After she took her meds and brushed her teeth, Chris helped her undress. His touch was light and non-sexual, though she caught the heat that flashed in his eyes, and it thrilled her. She liked knowing she wasn’t the only one wishing she were feeling better.
“Did you bring those sexy flannel pajamas?” he teased.
“As a matter of fact, I did. But I was kind of hoping you’d let me sleep in one of your shirts.”
Approval shone in his eyes. “You got it.”
He reached into a drawer and pulled out a long-sleeved shirt. His arms were so much larger than hers; she had no problem fitting the sleeve over her cast. The soft, comfy cotton slid over her skin, smelling like laundry detergent and man.