Free Follow Me Home by Cathy Woodman

your dogs?’
    â€˜Since they were pups. Mick and Miley are working collies.’
    â€˜Miley?’ I interrupt. ‘Is that after Miley Cyrus?’
    â€˜No, it’s because she can run for miles. I trained them both from scratch. They work with the sheep and compete at trials. I love my dogs. I wouldn’t be without them. What happened to put you off them? You seem genuinely frightened.’ He smiles again. ‘You really did seem to prefer the idea of suicide to getting into the pick-up with the dogs the other night.’
    â€˜Uncle Nobby’s terrier used to lie in front of the fire with its ears going pink and stinky, and farting with as much gusto as my uncle does – not endearing traits – and then one day, when I was ten, he bit me.’ I shudder as I recall the small bundle of teeth and muscle and wiry coat turning on me and grabbing me by the ankle, hanging on while I screamed for help. ‘The pain! I’ve never felt anything like it. Uncle Nobby hit him with a poker, making him let go for just long enough for me to shut myself in the bathroom where I fainted, banged my head on the side of the bath and knocked myself out.’
    â€˜Why did he go for you?’ Lewis asks.
    â€˜You aren’t one of those people who always blames the victim, not the dog, are you?’ I say suspiciously.
    â€˜There’s usually a reason for a dog to turn.’
    â€˜This one growled and barked at everyone apart from Uncle Nobby, but I don’t know why he suddenlyturned on me. Maybe I took him by surprise or got a bit too close, I don’t know,’ I shrug. ‘Anyway, he made me wary of dogs. I still have the scars.
    â€˜Even now, if I see someone walking their dog, I’ll cross the road to avoid them.’ I smile ruefully. ‘I don’t know what it is about me and animals. My gran’s cat wants to kill me.’
    â€˜What happened to your uncle’s dog?’
    â€˜He couldn’t bring himself to have him put down. The rest of the family weren’t happy: they cut him off for a few years until the dog died a natural death. I’m glad, though, because I would have felt guilty somehow. I wasn’t looking for revenge.’
    â€˜It must be hard for you. You must come up against dogs when you’re doing house calls.’
    â€˜I let everyone know so they can keep them away. There was an issue when one of my mums-to-be wanted their pet present at the birth, but she saw sense in the end.’
    â€˜What do you do when you go out for a walk? There are hundreds of dogs around here – I’ve never seen so many.’
    â€˜I don’t do much walking.’ I glance down at my figure. ‘Can’t you tell?’ I say lightly, trying to make a joke of it. Inside, though, I’m cringing. What a stupid thing to say. Emily’s right – men love women who love themselves, and it isn’t attractive to tell everyone how you feel too fat, even if it’s true. Why does it matter, anyway? I gaze at Lewis – he’s hot. Oh, yes, seriously hot.
    Don’t go there, Zara, I tell myself. There is no pointfor many reasons, but now I look at Lewis properly, I find that I can’t remember a single one.
    â€˜So it wouldn’t be any good me asking you out for a walk along the river for a drink at the pub,’ he says, ‘or a wander along the beach?’
    â€˜I’m all right on the beach in summer when dogs are banned.’
    â€˜I won’t be here in the summer,’ he says lightly. ‘Have you had any support to overcome your fear of dogs?’
    â€˜I had some counselling afterwards, but it didn’t help.’
    How would you feel if I brought Mick over here on a lead right now?’
    â€˜Panicky. A little sick.’
    â€˜I don’t want to put you under any pressure, but Mick’s a good boy. He’d never hurt you, I promise. I don’t have to bring him right up to