Chapter 5
Izzy
Izzy led Chase past the hay ride and several more food and craft booths, making a right onto Main Street. The booth at the corner was for their local radio station, 96.1’s The Beaver Jam. As providence would have it, she immediately recognized the pop song blasting from the large speakers.
Chase turned to her and smiled. “Speaking of …” He hummed the intro, then began softly singing the first verse of “The Best Thing”.
Picking up the pieces stained with tears,
Nothing to go on, nothing left for me here.
When out of the brokenness and pain,
You found me, dear.
Heart beating fast, Izzy held her breath as she listened. She’d always wanted to see Chase in concert, and here he was giving her a personal performance—of her song, no less. If she were a teenage girl again, she’d no doubt be swooning in his presence. Even though she kept her emotions in check, she couldn’t help but stare open-mouthed at Chase. His voice, raspy with yearning, had her hanging onto every single lyric.
Hearing him sing online or on the radio always left her teary-eyed, but now that she knew the story behind why he’d chosen her song, she was overcome with emotion. Sorrow for the little boy who had grown up without a father. Tenderness toward the man who’d loved and lost his dog. But most of all, fear for herself. She was falling for Chase, and falling hard.
Despite their age difference, they shared a connection. The physical attraction was undeniable, but there was more than that. She’d only met this man, but she understood him. And perhaps he understood her.
“This song gets me every time, too.” Chase had slowed his steps and stopped singing. He held her stare, concern darkening his blue eyes. “Are you okay?”
Izzy swallowed past the lump in her throat. Before she could respond, Chase reached over and wiped away a tear on her cheek. The pad of his thumb lingered, leaving a warm trail on her skin. They had stopped walking by then, and for a minute the sounds and scents of the festival seemed to fade away. There was only her and Chase, with his gaze lingering on her lips. Was he going to kiss her?
“Izzy—”
Woof! Woof, woof!
A low growl raised both of their heads, interrupting their intimate exchange.
“What—” Chase dropped his hand into his jean pocket and cleared his throat. He turned in the direction of the incessant barking. “Is that a dog?”
Nodding in relief, Izzy answered, “Yeah, that’s actually where we’re headed. It’s right over there.”
They walked up to a large white tent set up on a grassy field. A sign hanging overhead read Finding Forever Animal Shelter. The rectangular covering provided shade for about two dozen animals in kennels of various sizes. Nearby the tent was a parking lot with a corral for horses. The area smelled like a farm or a petting zoo. Along with several breeds of dogs, there were also cats, small rodents and even a few pot-bellied pigs.
“What is this?” Chase asked. “It looks like a place for lost animals.”
“That’s exactly what it is. One of the main reasons we have this festival is to help raise funds for the town’s animal shelter.”
He raised his brows. “I’ve never seen a pig at the shelter back home. This is amazing.”
“It’s pretty cool. I love coming here to see all the animals. I thought since you’re a dog lover, you’d like it, too.”
“I do, thanks.”
The billboard smile he flashed her way made her stomach drop. It was a good thing there were all these cute creatures around because she needed to be distracted by something other than Chase. She couldn’t believe he’d almost kissed her, or the fact that she’d wanted him to.
Amid the chatter of the animals, a lone bark caught her attention. It was the dog they’d heard earlier. She walked over to one of the closest kennels where a black Labrador had his nose pressed against the wire door. “Hey sweetie, what’s your name?”
Whining, the dog scratched the crate with his front paws. His movements grew more frenzied by the second.
Izzy knelt and placed one hand against his nose. “You want to come out, don’t you?”
Chase lowered himself beside Izzy. He leaned close to the crate and lifted the brim of his baseball cap to get a better look. “Poor dog. Do you see his back leg?”
Before he could elaborate, the dog began barking wildly. He backed away as far as the kennel would allow and growled, baring his teeth in Chase’s direction.
“Let's give him some space.” Izzy took a few steps away and pulled Chase with her. She spotted his name on the information card attached to his crate. “Thor. His name’s Thor.”
“Seems more like Thor’s evil brother, Loki, if you ask me.”
Shooting him a stern look, she admonished, “He’s not evil, just scared. A lot of these animals came from bad homes before they were brought here. Who knows what he’s been through.”
“I didn’t mean he was evil. Thor’s blond; his brother’s dark-haired. That’s the resemblance I was referring to.” He pointed to the crate’s left side. “You’re right; something happened to him. His back leg’s missing some hair.”
Izzy spotted the area Chase mentioned. Without fur covering it, part of Thor’s hind leg was as hairless and pink as a raw piece of chicken. Why would anyone mistreat such a sweet animal? She felt an unexplainable compassion for the dog and wanted to find out his story.
She called out to a volunteer worker carrying a clipboard. “Excuse me?”
The woman with the name Jessie on her name tag approached them. “Can I help you?”
“Can you tell me what happened to this Lab’s leg?”
Jessie glanced at her clipboard and flipped through the paper attached to it. She stopped on the third page and furrowed her brows. “It says here that Thor was found roaming the streets on the outskirts of town. Brent, the owner of the shelter, guesses he got hurt from being dragged along the road”—she winced—“by a car.”
“That’s horrible.” Izzy turned to Chase with a frown. “No wonder he’s a little jumpy.”
“Jumpy is putting it mildly,” he replied warily. “He’s still showing me his teeth.”
“He’s really a sweetheart,” Jessie cut in, “but he does need some time to trust people. Once he gets to know you though, you’re guaranteed a friend for life.”
Curiosity pushed Izzy closer to Thor’s crate again. She took a few slow steps and knelt, patiently waiting for the dog to approach. When he did, she placed her hand against the wire and let him sniff her. Loud whining filled the air as Thor once again pawed at the door.
“He’s never been this eager with anyone before,” Jessie exclaimed. “He likes you.”
“Well, she is a likable person,” Chase agreed. “This dog has good taste, that’s for sure.”
Izzy glanced over her shoulder and caught the sparkle in Chase’s eyes. Heat rose from her neck into her cheeks. The man was sure skilled at making her blush. “Thanks.”
“So …,” Jessie piped up with a hopeful smile, “are you interested in Thor?”
“What?” Izzy spun around. "You mean do I want to adopt him?”
“Yes. I assumed that’s why you were here, to adopt an animal.”
“Oh no, we were just looking. I’d love to have a dog, but I can’t right now.” Even as she said those words, her maternal instincts kicked into gear. Why couldn’t she take Thor home? Having a dog around the house would make the days less lonely. Especially when Chase left Romance … which he inevitably would.
“That’s too bad—”
“Actually, why not?” Izzy stood to her feet and faced Jessie. “I’ll take him.”
“You will?” Jessie and Chase asked at the same time.
Placing her hands on her hips, Izzy declared, “Yes. I can give Thor a good home and he can give me what I’m looking for: a loyal friend. It’s a win-win for both of us.”
“That’s awesome,” Jessie squealed. “Let me get you started on the paperwork. You can take him home today.”
Minutes later, Izzy had filled out the forms, paid the adoption fee and received Thor’s medical papers. She waited expectantly as Jessie prepared to take him out of the kennel.
“This is a great thing you’re doing,” Chase remarked as he stood with her. “You’re going to make a huge difference in his life.”
“I hope so. It’s partly a selfish thing, too,” she admitted. “It gets pretty quiet at the inn when no guests are around. Business slows down a lot in the fall and winter months. At least I’ll have someone to keep me company.”
Chase nodded, his brows drawn together. “I wish I could stick around longer, but I need to head home tomorrow.”
He was leaving already? She tried to hide the disappointment in her voice. “Of course. I didn’t expect you to stay forever.”
“I need to be back in the studio next week to start recording my new album.”
“Sure. You’re a pop star. That’s what pop stars do.” And she was a single mom who owned a Bed and Breakfast … and now a dog.
Jessie walked toward them with Thor on a leash.
The dog peered up at them, his ears cocked in curiosity. His brown eyes flitted back and forth from Izzy to Chase, giving them a thorough once-over.
Izzy took hold of the leash with one hand and allowed Thor to sniff her other. “Hi, Thor. I’m Izzy. You’ll be coming home with me.”
“Bye, Thor. Thanks so much for adopting him,” Jessie gushed before she left them.
Thor licked Izzy’s hand and happily wagged his tail. She took that as a good sign that he felt safe with her. They were going to get along just fine.
“Hi, boy.”
At the sound of Chase’s voice, however, Thor began growling and barking. He shrank back and hid behind Izzy’s legs.
“Thor, it’s okay. This is Chase. He’s a friend.”
“Hey buddy,” Chase tried again, “I won’t hurt you.”
The barking continued. No amount of consoling would calm Thor. Only when Izzy took a few steps away from Chase, did he finally quiet down. “How strange. I don’t know what it is. Maybe you remind him of someone he doesn’t like?”
Chase held up his hands in a gesture of peace that seemed to rile up the dog even more. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and backed up. “That’s for sure. You know what, you take care of the dog. I’ll catch a taxi back to the inn.”
“You sure?” she called out to his back.
“No worries,” he answered over his shoulder. “I’ll see you later.”
Izzy watched Chase walk away, her heart conflicted. It was better this way though. She’d gotten too attached to him already.