Luxe Glamour (The Glamour Series Book 5) (21 page)

“Listen.” Trick tilted his head toward me. “There are some things about my past. Things that I don’t want you to be surprised by, things that—”

I held up my hand and halted Trick’s words. I smiled a knowing smile. Then I reached out and took the ball from Estrella’s mouth full of long sharp teeth. Teeth that I was aware of but from which I no longer flinched or recoiled. No, Estrella would never hurt me, of that I was certain.

“I’m an adult,” I said. “Besides, it’s not like we’re in a relationship.” I laughed out the final word as though it would be absurd for me or for Trick to consider the idea. Sure the sex was phenomenal. And we got along great. He finished my sentences and I finished his. He knew Daddy and understood the Industry. Yes, we had a lot of those things in common. But the primary thing we shared, the thing that made this okay, was that neither of us wanted a relationship. Both of us accepted that my stay at Pawtown was temporary and that Trick would never leave Pawtown. No problem. Our completely contained sex-fest would last approximately another two weeks.

“Right,” Trick said. His brows creased and he crossed his arms over his chest.

A tingle crashed through me. That golden skin and the muscles in his forearms … damn. Trick was one good-looking man. I would miss him.

“Listen,” Trick said. “I may not have been completely honest about some of my feelings and it’s part of my recovery to—”

“Where’s Estrella?” I turned in a circle. I’d been so caught up listening to Trick that I hadn’t noticed that Estrella hadn’t returned the ball to me.

Trick swiveled and turned. Both of us checking out the fenced in doggy run. “I don’t know how she got out, but she can’t get far. Pawtown is completely fenced.”

I nodded but a falling sensation hit my chest, knowing that by letting Estrella escape my watchful eye I’d completely messed up in my duty to her.

“Looks like the far gate is open,” Trick said. He nodded toward a gate on the far side of the run. From this angle you could hardly see that the gate wasn’t flush with the fence.

“You go by my place and I’ll head out the way she must have gone. Text Mary in administration and tell her Estrella is loose.”

Panic laced my insides. Sure, if you were a dog and you were going to get loose, Pawtown was the ideal place to do it. Everyone at Pawtown knew Estrella, and she was microchipped. There were quite a few cars around because of the film crew, but they were all parked in one area along with the maintenance vehicles and the few visitor vehicles. Plus the entire ranch was fenced, but there was lot of land to cover. Rocks, rattlesnakes, coyotes—

“Don’t,” Trick said. “Don’t do that. I see your mind beginning to spin. The worry is already on your face. A dog usually gets loose about once a month around here. Remember three weeks ago it was Domino? Got him back in twenty minutes.” He bent forward and kissed my lips. “We’ve never lost one yet. And it’s too early in the year for snakes. Okay?”

“Okay.”

“Let’s go.” His lips brushed against mine a second time. This location was too public for me, even if we were the only people at the dog run.

“Text me if you find her,” Trick called and jogged toward the open gate. I turned and exited through the gate that Estrella and I had entered. I retraced our steps back to Trick’s bungalow. 

“Estrella!” I called. “Come here girl! Come on girl!”

I arrived at Trick’s bungalow hoping that she might have come back here. No luck. No Estrella. Nothing. No wagging tail, no flopping ears, no happy smile to greet me. She was good about coming to me when I called her name. I knew that if I was calling her and she wasn’t coming that she wasn’t close by. Darkness hovered on the western horizon. Finding Estrella in the darkness would be hard. Plus there would be coyotes to contend with at night.

I turned from Trick’s bungalow and headed into the main part of Pawtown. Two other volunteers had also mobilized and were working the perimeter off in the distance. I could hear them calling Estrella’s name.

I was afraid. Where could she have gone? Estrella wasn’t a runner or a digger. She didn’t slip her collar, or try to get away from her lead. She always barked and ran toward me when I called. She really was an amazingly well-behaved pup.

Damn. Estrella was a great dog. How typical that in her absence I realized how great she was. How attached I’d become to her. How much I wanted her with me now.

“Please let me find her. Please,” I mumbled to myself as my boots scraped over the gravel walkway. The red kennel was in front of me. I stopped. I hated this place. I hated the sign on the front door. I hated how the dogs barked and bared their teeth when you walked by their fences. I hated how they jumped and hated knowing that if the fence were missing they’d grab you by the throat without a second thought.

I avoided this place every day. I always took the long way around to avoid these killing machines. Hearing me approach, two dogs lunged out the doors from their kennels and jumped at the fence. One bared his teeth and the other ran back and forth along the fence line, growling and barking. They didn’t need to tell me twice.

My body trembled. A cold sweat filmed my palms. My heart beat like it would explode from my chest. I glanced at the bared teeth. These dogs could dismember me piece by bloody piece. How did anyone at Pawtown believe that they could turn these ferocious creatures into loveable pets?

I turned the corner. There was Luis. He’d just exited the red-collar kennel with a pit bull on a lead. I stopped. She was gargantuan. A monster. She caught my eye and the fur along the ridge of her back stood on end. A low deep-throated growl came from her throat. 

“Easy girl,” Luis said. “Rose, it’s okay.” He looked from her to me. He took a slow step back and pulled on her lead. She was close enough that if she lunged, if she jumped, if she didn’t listen to Luis she might take out a chunk of my flesh. I didn’t move. I barely breathed. And as much as I didn’t want to transmit fear to this animal standing only a couple of feet from me, I couldn’t contain what I felt.

She had to smell my fear.

She barked. She growled. She lunged toward me. The flash of white fur caught my eye. Fast. Quick. Like lightning Estrella bolted straight for this beast.

“Estrella, no!”

I yelled. She came at the killing machine ready to take on this red-collar that was known for killing dogs. Estrella didn’t stop. She showed no fear. She growled and bared her teeth.

Luis yanked on the leash trying to pull the red-collar away, but the red-collar was jerking hard, so hard. She jumped for Estrella and pinned her to the ground. I was frozen. Frozen still as the fighter sank her teeth into my Estrella. A loud cry came from Estrella and still she pulled and tried to bite at the beast that had her pinned.

“No, no, no!” I yelled, unable to help, unable to move. I pressed my hands to my face. “Stop! Stop!” I screamed. Tears fell down my face.

A thick stream of water jetted from a hose and Luis pulled on the red-collar’s lead and got her off of Estrella. Trick had grabbed the hose and pointed it at the vicious dog. I ran forward and dropped to my knees beside Estrella.

“Oh no, please, no.”

Estrella lay still, two bite marks on her neck. Covered in blood, she didn’t move, her eyes were closed.

“Come on,” Trick lifted Estrella and put her into the back of the Pawtown golf cart. I climbed in and put one hand on Estrella who still hadn’t opened her eyes. “This is my fault, this is all my fault.” I looked up. In front of the golf cart was Charlie, with his cameraman, and a boom operator.

My heart hammered in my chest. My nostrils flared. I thought about the open gate. The open gate at the run that was never open? Could it be …?

Trick pressed the accelerator and we headed toward the clinic.

“Text Doc and let her know we’re on our way.”

My body was numb.

“Sophia!”

I jerked my gaze away from the camera and from my thoughts that Charlie was somehow responsible for this drama. I turned my attention to my hurt Estrella.

“Text Tessa now.”

I pulled my phone from my back pocket and put in the letters to form the words that Estrella was hurt and that we were on or way. My heart hoped that Doc could find a way to save my friend.

Trick

The cameras followed me into the volunteer room. Sophia sat on a couch with her feet tucked up and her arms wrapped around her shins. Her eyes met mine and then her gaze slipped past me to the camera. Her eyebrows creased. This was reality TV. The moments, all the moments, good, bad, and ugly, were captured for another person’s entertainment.

I took a deep breath and walked to the couch and sat beside Sophia. I took her hand. She looked at me with hope and fear. We’d waited here for closing in on three hours, for as long as Estella had been in emergency surgery.

“She’s going to be fine,” Tessa said as she stood in the doorway leading to the surgical unit.

Sophia pressed her hand to her mouth. A tiny gasp passed over her lips. Big tears slicked her eyes. “Oh my God. Thank God.”

She leaned forward and pressed her face into my shoulder. I wrapped my arms around her and settled my chin onto the top of her head. The cameraman skirted around the couch so that he could get a clear shot of my face. The desire to jump up and rip the camera from his shoulder jolted through me. What good would that do? Charlie was going for viewers. Life or death drama would definitely cause folks to tune in once a week.

“Hey.” I pulled away and tilted my chin down to her. “It’s okay. Estrella is okay.” Sophia nodded. She leaned away from me and pulled two tissues from the box on the table in front of the couch.

“I know.” The muscle in her jaw flinched. She blamed herself. There was a whole lot she wanted to say. I could feel it, hell, I’d been spending so much time with her, I could almost read her thoughts, but the cameras kept her quiet. I understood her need to keep her inner thoughts away from public consumption. I definitely didn’t want to have a heart to heart with her in front of the entire crew.

“Can I see her?”

Doc nodded. “She’s not awake but you could come on back for a few minutes.”

Sophia stood and pressed her hands into her back pockets. I placed my arm around her shoulder and we headed to the door. Luis stood in the doorway. His face bent into odd angles of pain.

“I’m sorry.” He looked as if he might cry. He was completely beaten by the feeling that this was all
his
fault. Sophia reached out and hugged him.

“Don’t be sorry,” she said. “You didn’t do anything wrong. She was trying to protect me. Everyone was in the wrong place at the absolute worst time.”

Luis’s gaze flicked from Sophia to me. “Rose was doing so good, too. She’d come so far.” I nodded. The last thing that Sophia would want to hear was how great Rose was doing.

“Let’s go.” Sophia and the two cameramen followed me into the hall. I wished Charlie’s final day had been yesterday and not tomorrow. We went into the clinic where Estrella was sedated and asleep on a comfy doggy bed. She had a huge bandage on her neck.

“It nicked her jugular,” Doc said. “If she hadn’t been at Pawtown she wouldn’t have made it.”

“If she hadn’t been at Pawtown this wouldn’t have happened.” Sophia reached out and ran her hand across the top of Estrella’s head. “She’s going to be okay?”

Doc nodded. “She’s going to be okay.”

A huge sigh escaped Sophia’s lips. Her feelings for the dog were pretty obvious. She loved Estrella.

“Why don’t you go grab some dinner and then come back? I’m going to be around here until she wakes up. I want to make sure she’s comfortable before I head home.”

“I’m not hungry,” Sophia mumbled. She stroked her fingers over Estrella’s side.

Doc looked at me. She wanted Sophia to get some air, take a walk, maybe eat, get out of the building and out of this headspace.

“Come on,” I said. I put my arm around Sophia’s shoulders. “We’ll just grab a little fresh air.” I gently pulled Sophia toward the door. Her gaze lingered on Estrella, but she came with me without a protest.

*

I took Sophia over to Angie’s house. I didn’t want her to be alone and I was hoping that Angie might be able to get a little food in her. Angie waved me off with a smile—I knew she would take good care of Sophia. I walked to the volunteer bungalow and found Charlie standing on the front porch with a cigarette in his hand, laughing with one of his cameramen. I caught his eye. “You got a minute?” I called.

“For you, Trick, I’ve got two.” He bounded down the steps and we walked to the far side of the bungalow. By now, darkness had fallen, so we stopped in a pool of light at the edge of the gravel path that lead back to the admin building and the vet clinic. 

“I think you got enough footage tonight,” I said. Charlie tossed his cigarette onto the ground and stubbed it with his boot. He opened his mouth to speak but I cut him off. “No. Really, Charlie, you have enough. Don’t make me call Dillon and Choo. Sophia needs some time. You’ve filmed her for almost eight hours today.” I tossed her mic pack towards Charlie. He reached out and caught it. “I think you’re almost done here anyway, right?”

“We’ve got two more days on the schedule. I don’t think we’re anywhere close to being done.” He held the mic pack under his arm and pulled another cigarette from his shirt pocket.

I closed the distance between us. He needed to know, he needed to be really clear that I wasn’t making a request; I was giving him an order. “I know you need a story and I know you need drama, but I also know that the run gate was left open by someone and it is
never
open.”

He pressed his hand flat to his chest as though he was seriously shocked at what I was saying.

“I won’t go so far as to say it was intentional on you or your crew’s part to leave the gate open at the dog run, but I can guarantee there is no one on the Pawtown staff that would be so careless. We keep it padlocked and someone would need a key to open it.” I pulled a damaged padlock from my back pocket. Luis had found it when he did a final check of the grounds this evening. Someone had taken a hammer to it.