Free Shotgun Nanny by Nancy Warren

eyes, never moving from his seated position even though he quivered with alertness.

    “He’s a beauty,” Mark said to the trainer, resisting the urge to run his hand over the silky fur. This was a trained police dog, never meant to be a pet. Only amazing good fortune and Brodie had made him aware that a couple of this season’s dogs hadn’t made the final cut for the K-9 squad.

    Usually there was some slight flaw that made the dog ineligible for the crack dog squad. Mark was here to find out just where this one had failed. And if the animal would be any help in keeping his wayward nanny on a leash.
    “What’s
    his
    name?”

    The uniformed officer who’d brought the dog out consulted a clipboard. “Kitsu.”

    At his name, the dog perked his ears even higher, but he never moved. Mark liked his discipline. Already he was getting a good feeling about this dog. Still, it wouldn’t do to be too hasty. “Why didn’t he make the cut?”

    The officer flicked through several pages on the chart. “You could call the regular trainer. He’s on shift again Tuesday. Kitsu got top marks for just about everything. But there’s a note at the bottom in handwriting. ‘Dog distracted on occasion.’ And a word I can’t read. Looks like ‘squiggle.”’

    With a shrug, the officer handed the clipboard to Mark, who flipped through it. The dog was clearly intelligent and had taken well to basic training. He was noted as being outstanding in scent training. He could be a first-class tracker, or maybe a bomb or a drug sniffer. Obstacle course, apprehension, all good. His lowest mark was in obedience training, although he still scored pretty high.

    Mark had no idea what “squiggle” meant. But he wasn’t looking for a dog who could sniff out drugs, only one who could guard two wayward females. His ferociouslooking presence would be a deterrent to potential troublemakers.

    “Mind if I put him through a few paces?”

    “Be my guest.”

    Mark approached slowly, letting Kitsu get used to him. He clipped a leash to the collar and stood to the right of the dog. “Heel,” he commanded, and began walking. The dog followed, sticking close to his left heel, keeping perfect pace with Mark.

    On and off the leash, the dog was perfectly obedient. Stop, sit, stay, come—Kitsu followed each command immediately and thoroughly.

    At the end of the session, the dog gazed at Mark expectantly, tail wagging and sharp brown eyes never leaving his face.

    “He looks like he’s trying to tell me something.”

    “He wants his treat. Here.” The trainer tossed a dog cookie Mark’s way, and Kitsu’s tail wagged harder. Still, he waited until Mark offered him the bone-shaped biscuit before delicately taking it with those sharp teeth and then crunching it.

    The session over, Mark allowed himself a few minutes to pat the dog. “Good boy.”

    Already he could feel some of the tension leaving his shoulders as he thought about this dog watching over Annie and Emily. Annie was clearly too much of a flake to take the protection part of her duties seriously. He’d spent a big part of a sleepless night thinking about getting someone else. But every time he reached the decision to hire another nanny, he remembered the way she was with Emily.

    In the fun-and-games department she couldn’t be beat. Emily was acting more carefree than she had in a year. And, he had to admit, he enjoyed having a clown around the house. He never knew what she’d say or do next. She was fun, funny and sweet. This morning, she’d not only managed to get out of bed on time, she’d made pancakes for Emily and then decorated them to look like cartoon characters.

    She’d cooked him one in the shape of a Mountie.

    And she’d done it all while wearing some kind of tight skimpy top that definitely didn’t have a bra underneath and a pair of shorts that showed off her slender long legs and her belly ring.

    He’d almost choked on that Mountie.

    Oh, he liked having