“Yes.” He nodded and as her gaze started to move to her crated dogs now residing in the living room, he captured her chin between his thumb and forefinger. “I know it’s tough, but I need you to ignore them. Can you whip us up some food too? Or do you want me to order some Pub takeout?”
Emily knew he wanted to work with Queenie with her out of the room.
“No need to order anything. I have some leftover enchiladas I can heat up,” she told him, needing to keep busy. “I usually take the dogs out and feed them first. I’m guessing that’s something you want to do?”
He lifted a shoulder. “Normally, but since this will be stressful for Queenie, you should take both dogs out to go to the bathroom first. If you want, I can prepare their food while you’re out. And when you bring them back in, leave their leashes on, and put Queenie back in her crate, but not Princeton.”
“Okay.”
After showing him where she kept their food and bowls, Emily entered the living room through a doorway accessible from a hallway off the kitchen that also led to the laundry room and a half bath.
Keeping her greeting and actions normal, she took both dogs outside to do their business and pushed aside feelings of guilt when she brought them straight back inside, instead of allowing them to play. Holden had disappeared, but she knew exposure to him was going to lead to a much healthier life, a more balanced life for Queenie as well as Princeton, since he picked up on the Rottie’s moods.
Guilt returned and followed her back to the kitchen along with her tiny chestnut shadow. Holden emerged from the dining room, which prompted Princeton to bark, and Queenie echoed it. As soon as Holden picked up the leash, the barking stopped, and within sixty seconds, he had the dog heeled at his side.
“That was the easy one.” He rose to his feet without the leash and set a hand on Emily’s shoulder. “Queenie is going to panic. She’s going to get loud and hit me with all she has, but I’m going to wait it out, so you need to do the same, okay? Let me have that time with her. It’s crucial.”
She inhaled and nodded. “I know.
So as Holden disappeared into the living room, Emily kept busy by preparing dinner, her heart a little heavy because she knew this trial was going to be difficult for Queenie.
The dog was good with females. She always reacted favorably toward her friends. That was why on Sunday, Emily had made sure they sat at the table on Queenie’s side of the room, and the men were on the other side. The fact that the dog hadn’t barked was a surprise, especially when the tension amped up when Holden had realized it was Hera. But he’d quickly removed his eye contact, relaxed, and then ignored her, which put her dog at ease.
Tonight, though, tonight would be different. She wasn’t there to buffer anything, and that was obvious by the growling and barks she heard coming from the other room. The unbalanced Rottie was affecting her balanced Chihuahua, who had taken off running to aid his woman.
Now both Queenie and Princeton were barking, but she didn’t hear a sound from Holden. Emily managed to pull the enchiladas from the refrigerator and set them on the island but couldn’t help herself. She crept into the hall off the kitchen, and careful not to peek in too far, she stood back and watched.
Holden sat next to Queenie’s crate, with his back against the wall, eyes forward, and his attention seemingly elsewhere. True to his word, he waited it out as Queenie voiced her distrust. Seven and a half minutes later, she ran out of steam, and since Holden wasn’t feeding her any tension or other negative energy, she laid down and let out a big sigh.
Tears filled Emily’s eyes, but she blinked them back and watched as Princeton trotted over to Holden and plopped down on the guy’s lap. All it took was a smile from Holden and some scratching behind the ears for Princeton to voice his appreciation with some adorable noises from deep in his throat before rolling over to show his belly.
While Holden rubbed the happy Chihuahua, he reached over and opened Queenie’s crate. The dog was hesitant at first but came out on her own and sniffed Holden and Princeton. After only a few seconds, she sat next to them and didn’t flinch when Holden used his free hand to stroke her back.
She backed up and inhaled.
I’m not going to cry. I’m not going to cry.
Wrong.
This time, when tears filled Emily’s eyes, she let them spill down her cheek and quietly retraced her steps to the kitchen. What she’d just witnessed was a huge first step for Queenie and Emily was so damn proud of her for being so brave. The dog still had a long road ahead of her to trust again, but that had been an amazing start.
With shaky hands, she prepared two margaritas, only making a mild mess. A drink was in order, not for abitchof a reason, but for a wonderful one.
By the time Holden strolled into the kitchen with both dogs at his sides, Emily was setting the heated enchiladas next to their drinks on the counter.
“So, that was nothing short of a miracle.” She fought the urge to launch herself at the man. “Thank you.”
“No thanks necessary,” he said, helping her carry their dinner to the dining room table. “I’m happy to help. She has a sweet disposition beneath all her fear.”
Emily nodded, forcing down the wave of pity that threatened to take hold. That was a human emotion, not a dog emotion.Queenie would see it as a weakness and would lose respect for her. The dog had come way too far to slide backward because Emily felt sorry about the canine’s past.
“They live in the here and now,” Holden said quietly, as if reading her mind, nodding toward her dogs currently laying on their bed in the corner. He reached out and set a hand over hers. “She let it go. You need to do the same.”
Emily nodded again and lifted her drink. “To Queenie.”
Smiling, Holden clinked glasses with hers and together they celebrated the start of a new chapter in the Rottweiler’s life.
They spent the next half hour, eating, drinking, and laughing. Emily knew the thoughtful man was trying to keep her mind off herbitchmobile, and for the most part, he was succeeding. Especially with tales from his childhood and growing up in a military family in Virginia.
