Free The Second Chance Hero by Jeannie Moon Page B

almost back to where they started their walk by the harbor, and that’s when he heard it.
    Barking.
    Yelping.
    More barking.
    The town green couldn’t have been more picturesque, right down to the gazebo overlooking the water. The barking was coming from an adoption fair sponsored by a local rescue agency. Something clicked inside Owen. A dog. He needed a dog.
    He tugged his sister’s sleeve. “Let’s go look.”
    Mel looked up at him and smiled. “Yeah?”
    “Yeah.” As they got closer, a dozen puppies and young dogs contained in small fenced-in areas playfully yipped and barked at the passing pedestrians. He had no idea what he was doing or what kind of dog he wanted, but he figured if the right dog was there, he’d know.
    “They’re going to want to details about what you’ll do with the dog when you’re at work all day.”
    Owen stopped and thought for a second. “I’ll take it with me.”
    “Really? Can you do that?”
    “I own a third of the company,” he said, smiling. “I can do what I want.” And he could. He’d never do anything to cause anyone harm, but he was sure there was some evidence someplace that having a dog in the workplace could be a good thing. It would be good for morale. And stress reduction.
    They wandered around the pens and he saw more cute puppies than he could handle. Finally, Owen was approached by one of the organization’s volunteers. A petite blonde woman named Elena smiled and picked up one of the little fuzz balls for him to see. “This is Sheba. She’s a Golden-sheepdog mix. Very sweet—around four months old.”
    Sheba was adorable. Very cute, but he could see all that gold fur sticking to his dark suits. He kept looking, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw a little black flash. Turning, he saw it again. In one of the far pens there was a little black dog jumping straight up into the air. No lie, the dog was going vertical. He walked over and saw a pink collar around the puppy’s neck. She wasn’t very big, and she wasn’t what he would call pretty, but as she sat there, her long tail thumping against the grass, he knew. Turning to the volunteer, he motioned her over. “What can you tell me about this girl?” The puppy was looking from him to the volunteer and back again. Alert, aware—
smart.
She was waiting patiently, still wagging her tail, and damn it if the dog didn’t look like she was smiling.
    The volunteer hooked a leash on the dog and lifted her out of the pen. Owen crouched down and the puppy wiggled right over to him. “This is Casey. She’s a lab mix. Based on her bounce we think she’s mixed with some kind of small terrier.”
    “Hey, Casey. Hey, sweetie.” The dog’s ears were flat against her head and she was getting right in Owen’s face, giving him lots of kisses. Then she sat and flopped on her back. “She’s ten months old, spayed, has all her shots, and is housebroken.”
    “Will she be big?”
    “We’re thinking this could be as big as she gets. She’s about forty pounds. Loves to play catch. She’s very affectionate, as you can see.”
    “What do you think, Casey? You want come to my house?”
    Mel was standing behind him. “God, she’s got you wrapped around her paw already.”
    “Totally.”
    “Are you his wife?”
    “No, sister,” Mel responded. “He’s not married.”
    “Are you going to be available to take care of her, sir?” the woman asked.
    “Yeah, I work from home time to time, but I can bring her with me to the office. Everyone will love her there.”
    “Oh.” Elena looked skeptical. “That won’t be a problem?”
    “Nah.” He nodded toward Mel. “I reminded my sister, I own the company. The dog is perfect.”
    He filled out the paperwork and got a list of supplies. He tripled the requested donation and gave the volunteer his business card. “Please let the director of the rescue know, if she needs anything, please reach out to me. I’m happy to support the work.”
    Elena looked like