Harley’s Second Chance: Chapter 3

(Harley)

A soft moaning woke me from the deepest sleep I’d enjoyed in a long time. I opened my eyes and saw that Mitch was sleeping, his hand was squeezing my right front paw, and his face looked like he was in pain. I yawned. It was dark outside now, but I couldn’t smell the early morning dew yet through the open bathroom window.

Mitch was still dreaming, and it seemed to be getting worse. I wondered if I should wake him, but before I could act, he woke up with a start on his own. I nuzzled my head into his hand, and brushed his fingers through my hair before sitting up and gently nudging me off the couch so he could swing his legs over and get up.

I followed him into the bedroom where he seemingly collapsed onto the bed without even pulling the covers back. I stood with my head resting on the edge of the mattress. Again, I wanted more than anything to jump up, but I knew better. I would wait for my invitation, if it ever came. But, Mitch was already sound asleep again, snoring into the grey light of the moonbeam piercing through the window of the room.

I went into the kitchen where he had put out a bowl of water for me and lapped up a few gulps. I checked my food bowl but it was dry. I had scarfed up my dinner like I was one of those starving kids I saw in a commercial. I licked the empty bowl, hoping for morning and breakfast to come soon. Then I heard that soft moaning sound again and rushed back to Mitch’s side.

Just as I came into the room, I heard Mitch whisper, “Sara.”

Who’s Sara, I wondered? I looked over my shoulder and in the light of the moon, I saw another photograph of the pretty brunette. This time she was in a white flowing dress, and Mitch was standing next to her, gazing at her with eyes so full of love, it made me hope that one day he would look at me like that.

Sara, I thought. The wildflowers. The motorcycle. The nightmares. I was right. She wasn’t coming back, and it was my job to take care of Mitch now that she was gone.

Mitch was still moaning in his sleep, and as much as I wanted to jump up into bed with him, I decided to do the next best thing. I went over to the other side of the bed and licked his toes that were hanging over the side of the bed. He jerked his foot away and mumbled something I couldn’t make out. I looked up to see if he was awake, and sure enough, his eyes were open and he was looking at me.

“Not sleepy tonight?” He asked, rubbing his eyes. “Don’t tell me the snoring bothers you, too,” he smiled.

I cocked my head to the side. He sat up and scratched behind my ear. “Change is hard, girl, but together, somehow, we’ll figure it out.”

He got out of bed and walked into the kitchen, turning the light on. I followed him, thinking maybe he decided breakfast would come early, but no such luck. He took a cold beer out of the fridge. I cringed, but I was just a dog, so it’s not like he noticed. Mitch had already drank more in one night than Charlie ever did in a whole week, but who was I to judge?

Mitch took his cold beer into the bathroom and I heard him start the shower. Wasn’t he planning on going back to sleep? I lay down by the door, and drifted into a peaceful slumber to the hum of the running water until I heard Mitch turn the knobs and the water stop. I sat up, eagerly waiting for him to appear. He did so a few minutes later with a towel wrapped around his waist. “Do you like baths?” He asked me.

I hacked, nearly coughing up a hairball. It was the strongest reaction I could offer that I knew he would understand.

He nodded with a grin. “Gotcha. We’ll have to work on that.”

I followed Mitch back into the bedroom where something caught his eye in the window. I let out a low growl as a warning to whoever or whatever was out there.

“Easy, girl,” Mitch cooed. I think our neighbor is having trouble sleeping too. “Want to go with me to make sure she’s okay?” He pulled on clean clothes that smelled like detergent and ushered me along. “Come on,” he said, before I had a chance to react. He took another cold beer out of the fridge with him.

I was so sure that Mitch didn’t like Daisy when they’d first met. Could I have been wrong? What about Sara? Couldn’t he still smell her scent all over the house? Maybe not. Or maybe he hoped that Daisy would be enough of a distraction so he could finally get a good night’s sleep.

Mitch knocked on the door and it immediately flung open, catching us both by surprise. “Hi,” Mitch said. “I saw your light was on and since it’s like 2 in the morning, I thought I’d do the neighborly thing and make sure you were okay.”

Daisy’s eyes gleamed, and the dimples in her cheeks grew to the size of small craters. “That’s so sweet. I’m having a slight plumbing issue, but I didn’t want to call the landlord in the middle of the night.”

“Oh, I can help you with that,” Mitch chimed in. His enthusiasm took me by surprise since I still wasn’t picking up any pheromones from him, unless hers was drowning his out. But I was sure every dog on the block could probably smell hers.

“Really? Thank you. That would be so awesome. Please, come in,” she chimed.

“Would you like a beer?” He asked, offering her the unopened cold one.

“Love one.” She was melting at the knees, and I was a short second away from hurling at her feet. I followed Mitch into the kitchen where the putrid smell of sewer, old food, and dirt accosted my senses. Yuck!

“Tell me about it,” Chance groaned. “She’s been at it all night. And as much as I love her, I think she’s only making matters worse.”

“So what about you?” Daisy asked Mitch as he picked up the plunger. “What’s keeping you awake at this hour?”

Mitch smiled that sweet, soft, devastatingly sad smile that I only caught a glimpse of before. Then he quickly snapped out of it before Daisy or Chance could catch on and nodded toward me with a silly grin. “I think my girl is too excited to sleep on her first night in her new home.”

I sighed. Suddenly, Daisy, Chance, and even the stench coming from the kitchen sink didn’t matter anymore. I was his girl.

Next…

Is Daisy really falling for Mitch, or is there more to the story than meets the eye? Find out from Chance’s point of view!

Harley’s Second Chance continues with Chapter 4 next Thursday.