The Secret Sin (Return to Indigo Springs 03) by Darlene Gardner

Author:Darlene Gardner [Gardner, Darlene]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Literature & Fiction, Women's Fiction, Contemporary Women, Romance, Contemporary, Contemporary Fiction, Short Stories, Inspirational
Amazon: B009124XYC
Publisher: Mills & Boon
Published: 2012-08-21T16:00:00+00:00

THE DOG leaped in a blur of yellowish-brown fur. Ryan stood his ground, holding the cardboard takeout box above his head while withstanding the assault of oversized puppy paws scratching at his legs.

“Down, boy,” he said.

The dog’s eyes were bright, his tongue hanging from a mouth that looked as if it was grinning. Ryan laughed aloud and reached into his pocket, withdrawing the rawhide bone he’d picked up at the drugstore and giving it to the eager dog.

“Bad boy, Hobo!” Lindsey appeared, pulling the dog away from the door by his collar so Ryan had a path to enter. She slanted Ryan a narrow-eyed look. “Did you just reward him?”

Ryan felt like a little boy caught scarfing down cookies before dinner. “I guess I wasn’t supposed to do that?”

“No, you weren’t. I need to train him not to jump on people. If he’s anything like Angel, it’s gonna be, like, so hard.”

Considering she’d stopped scolding Hobo and was hugging his neck, Ryan silently agreed she could have a tough road ahead. “Is Angel your family’s dog?”

“She was my dog.” The expression on her face suddenly looked too serious for someone so young. “I got her after my mom died.”

Sympathy stabbed at him, not only for Lindsey’s loss but for the woman who’d mothered her through the first years of her life. “What happened to Angel?”

“I had to give her away.” Lindsey’s voice cracked. “My brother Timmy has allergies.”

Ryan heard the resentment in her voice and couldn’t fault her. Giving up her beloved dog must have brought the pain of losing her mother back. He wondered why Lindsey’s family hadn’t pursued other options, such as buying a doghouse or enclosing the back porch.

“I’m sorry,” Ryan said.

Lindsey nodded, her eyes meeting his.

“If you get tough on Hobo, you won’t have trouble training him,” Ryan continued in a lighter voice. “The way he looks at you, you could have him doing anything you say.”

“I hope so.”

He walked through the great room to the kitchen, setting the pizza box down on the table. His stomach rumbled at the spicy smell of sauce and cheese. “Where’s Annie?”

“Changing clothes. She had a busy day.” Lindsey had followed him into the kitchen. Her straight hair fell to the middle of her back. In blue jean shorts and a short-sleeved red top dotted with tiny hearts, she reminded him of the way his sister Sierra had looked as a teen.

He pulled out a chair from the kitchen table and sat down. “How about you? Did you have a busy day, too?”

“Pretty busy.” Lindsey opened and closed kitchen cabinet doors as she talked. “We got Hobo his shots at the vet, and I’ve been trying to housebreak him. He’s going to spend a lot of time at the shop, so I’m shop-breaking him, too.”

Finally finding what she was looking for, she pulled some paper plates and napkins from a cabinet and carried them to the table. Hobo followed closely behind her, clamoring for attention. Ryan bent down to pet the dog.

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