A Hero to Love. Gail Chianese
in his eyes. “How’s she doing?”
He cleared his throat and looked down at the dog. “I think she’s in a lot of pain.” She tried to scoot closer and started whimpering. “She came down hard on the dog walk. You don’t think she’s bleeding internally, do you?”
Risa had no way of knowing at this point, but telling him wouldn’t help him or Bella, and she needed a calm assistant. “No, I think she may have a broken rib or hip, and that’s why she’s so still. I’m going to give her a shot of pain meds, and then we’ll move her into the other room. Okay?”
Risa gave her the injection. Within a few minutes, Bella settled into a deep sleep. Together, Jackson and Risa lifted the dog on to the board and carried her to the X-ray table. Jackson stuck close to Bella’s side.
“Sir, you’ll need to step back here behind the shield with me,” Risa said.
“Please call me Jackson or Jax.”
Jax. She liked the sound of that, especially the way he said it with his southern drawl.
“Where you from, Jax?” She absently asked as she took the pictures necessary to see what was going on inside of her patient.
“Promise you won’t laugh?”
It was the first smile she’d seen and wow! It was a good thing she wasn’t walking or operating heavy equipment. He was a good looking guy, maybe not quite in Hugh Jackman’s league; then again, in her opinion, no one was. His hazel eyes were striking in that they were neither blue, nor green, nor brown, but a mix of all three colors. The hair at his temples had started to gray, yet it blended well and made him look distinguished. But it was his smile that got her. When his lips tilted upward, the result was devastating.
“Cross my heart and hope to die, or however that goes.” For good measure, and to keep the smile in place, she drew a big X across her chest.
He took a deep breath and let it out on a chuckle. “Jacksonville, Georgia, ma’am.”
She cringed and laughed. “Please, thirty-three is much too young to be called ‘ma’am,’ and I hear it way too often with all the young kids in sub school around here.” She stepped out to change the film and angle of the machine. “So Jackson from Jacksonville? I like it. Guess your parents didn’t want you to forget where you came from, huh?”
“Technically I was born in Stuttgart, Germany—Army brat—but I think my mom was homesick at the time.” He watched her every move as he monitored Bella’s sleep.
“I’m almost afraid to ask if you have siblings and, if so, what are their names?”
He moved out of her way as she slipped back behind the screen for the next set of pictures. “Just a sister—Missy Grace.”
“That’s… sweet. Did you live in Mississippi when she was born?” Risa slipped back out to grab the films, stopping to rub Bella’s ears before taking care of the X-rays.
Jax stroked his dog’s back. “No, we were in Georgia by then.”
She looked up, puzzled. “So why not—”
“I have no idea why she didn’t pick Georgia, other than she might have been afraid she’d get about five or six girls come running every time she yelled for us.”
Risa couldn’t even imagine one other classmate with the same name, much less her extremely British mother yelling. Then again, as long as Risa had done well in school and had been home in time for dinner, neither of her parents had worried much about her or her life. She was given instructions and expected to follow them to the letter, which she’d done until college rolled around. Or so her parents thought, because in Risa’s mind, if she didn’t get caught, she wasn’t guilty. College changed everything. The Professor and Mr. Reynolds still weren’t over the fact that she’d turned down Oxford.
They just didn’t understand. England was entirely too far from her animals.
“I’m guessing by the slight accent that slips through, you’re not a native of Connecticut either,” Jax said.
“Guilty. Born just outside of London, where we lived until I was about five. Then my American dad was transferred back to the states and, of course, his fair English bride packed up her life, said good-bye to her homeland, and dragged me here.”
“Did you ever want to go back to England?” he asked.
“No. This is home now.”
Risa slid the X-ray into place and turned the light on, forgetting the conversation. She scratched at the side of her neck as she studied the image.
Good. Very good. But the pictures didn’t explain Bella’s behavior.
Jax had moved quickly and quietly across the room until his body was within an inch of hers. He didn’t touch her or push her out of the way. She wasn’t sure how to explain it, other than the heat radiating off of him, along with his commanding presence, forced her to notice him.
He pointed to a section on the screen. “What’s going on there?”
“She’s fractured her hip, either when she hit the walk or the ground.”
Every muscle in his body tensed up and he looked over his shoulder toward Bella. “Will she need surgery?”
“She shouldn’t. It’s a clean break and should heal on its own in a few weeks. She will need someone watching her, as she won’t want to put weight on her leg. So she may need assistance getting up to eat or to take care of her business. Is that going to be a problem?”
He shook his head. “No. She’ll probably consider it a vacation.”
What an odd thing to say. “I’ve heard of some military working dogs being given an honorary rank and even awards, but I’ve never heard of them earning leave time.”
“They don’t. My girl’s been a little stubborn lately, not wanting to listen to the other handlers.”
That tidbit caught Risa’s attention. “How does she do with you? Does she follow your commands?”
Risa moved back to the table where Bella was still sleeping, thanks to the analgesics she’d given her. She checked her vitals again.
“She went after the Frisbee. That’s how we got into this mess.”
“Yes, but did you give her any working commands, or was it a play date?”
“A play date?” He crossed well-developed arms over an equally well-developed chest and stared down his nose at her. “Lady, I’m a chief in the U.S. Navy, not a five-year-old. Bella’s my partner. Everything we do is training or work.”
“Didn’t you just say you were playing Frisbee?” She ignored the stare-down and the bulging muscles, along with the sneer and sarcasm. If she hurt his pride, he could get over it, because what mattered here was her patient’s health—both physically and mentally.
Risa continued her exam and glanced up at Jax, waiting for him to answer her question.
“Fine. Call it what you want. She loves to fetch.”
Risa ducked her head to hide her smile. He was trying so hard to come across as the tough military guy.
“Like I said, she’s been a little stubborn lately.” His voice softened as his big hand stroked the dog’s fur like he was caressing a newborn.
“Jax, I’m just trying to help.” She reached out and gave his hand a quick squeeze to get his attention before letting go. Stepping over to the cabinet, she reviewed the labels before pulling out the right bottles. “It wasn’t your fault she got hurt.”
“Let’s hope the Navy agrees with you.”
Risa stopped in the middle of filling the prescriptions to look at him. She hadn’t thought he’d get in trouble for an accident. “If you need, I can explain