Annie Claydon - Festive Fling With The Single Dad

Aksel squatted down on his heels, in front of the ten-week-old brindle puppy, his face impassive.

‘Hi, there, Dougal.’

Dougal was nosing around the porch, his tail wagging ferociously. At the sound of his name he looked up at Aksel, his odd ears twitching to attention. He circled the porch, to show off his new red fleece dog coat, and Flora stepped over the trailing lead, trying not to get snagged in it. Then Dougal trotted up to Aksel, nosing at his outstretched hand, and decided almost immediately he’d found a new best buddy. Finally, Aksel smiled, stroking the puppy’s head.

‘I’m sure we’ll manage. Why don’t you come in?’

Two whole sentences. And the sudden warmth in his eyes was very hard to resist.

‘In that case… Thank you.’ Flora stepped into the hallway and Dougal tugged on his lead in delight.

He took her coat, looking around the empty hallway as if it was the first time he’d seen it. There was nowhere to hang it and he walked into the kitchen, draping it neatly over the back of one of the chairs that stood around the table. Flipping open a series of empty cupboards, he found some packets of coffee and a small copper kettle, which seemed to be the only provisions he’d brought with him.

Dougal had recovered from his customary two seconds of shyness over being in a new environment and was tugging at the lead again, clearly having seen the young chocolate-coloured Labrador that was sitting watchfully in a dog basket in the far corner of the kitchen. Flora bent down, trying to calm him, and he started to nuzzle at her legs.

‘Kari. Gi labb .’ In response to Aksel’s command, the Labrador rose from its bed, trotting towards them, then sitting down and offering her paw to Flora. Flora took it and Kari then started to go through her own getting-to-know-you routine with Dougal.

‘She’s beautiful.’ The Labrador was gentle and impressively well trained. ‘This is Mette’s assistance dog?’

Aksel nodded. ‘Kari’s staying with me for a while, until Mette settles in. She’s not used to having a dog.’

‘Part of the programme, up at the clinic, will be getting Mette used to working with Kari. You’ll be taking her there when you visit?’

‘Yes. I find that the canine therapy centre has some use for me in the mornings, and I’ll spend every afternoon with Mette.’

‘It’s great that you’re here to give her all the support she needs.’

He nodded quietly. ‘Mette’s sight loss is due to an injury in a car accident. Her mother was driving, and she was killed.’

Flora caught her breath. The rumours hadn’t included that tragic detail. ‘I’m so sorry. It must be incredibly hard for you both.’

‘It is for Mette. Lisle and I hadn’t been close for some years.’

All the same, he must feel something… But from the finality in his tone and the hint of blue steel in his eyes, Aksel clearly didn’t want to talk about it. She should drop the subject.

Kari had somehow managed to calm Dougal’s excitement, and Flora bent down to let him off the lead. But as soon as she did so, Dougal bounded over to Aksel, throwing himself at his ankles. Aksel smiled suddenly, bending towards the little dog, his quiet words and his touch calming him.

‘Sorry… I’ve only had him a couple of days, I’m looking after him for Esme Ross-Wylde.’ Aksel must know who Esme was if he was working at the canine therapy centre. Charles and Esme Ross-Wylde were a brother and sister team, Charles running the Heatherglen Castle Clinic, and Esme the canine therapy centre. ‘He’s a rescue dog and Esme’s trying to find him a good home.’

‘You can’t take him?’ Aksel’s blue gaze swept up towards her, and Flora almost gasped at its intensity.

‘No…no, I’d like to but…’ Flora had fallen in love with the puppy almost as soon as she’d seen him. He’d been half-starved and frightened of his own shadow when he’d first been found, but as soon as he’d been given a little care his loving nature had emerged. The strange markings on his shaggy brindle coat and his odd ears had endeared him to Flora even more.

‘It wouldn’t be fair to leave him alone all day while you were at work.’ Aksel’s observation was exactly to the point.

‘Yes, that’s right. I drop him off at the canine therapy centre and they look after him during the day, but that’s a temporary arrangement. Dougal’s been abandoned once and at the moment he tends to panic whenever he’s left alone.’

Aksel nodded. A few quiet words to Kari, that Flora didn’t understand, and the Labrador fetched a play ball from her basket, dropping it in front of Dougal. Dougal got the hint and started to push it around the room excitedly, the older dog carefully containing him and helping him play.

Aksel went through the process of searching through the kitchen cupboards again, finding a baking sheet to put the mince pies on and putting them in the oven to warm. The water in the copper kettle had boiled and he took it off the stove, tipping a measure of coffee straight into it. That was new to Flora, and if it fitted exactly with Aksel’s aura of a mountain man, it didn’t bode too well for the taste of the coffee.

‘I hear you’re an explorer.’ Someone had to do the getting-to-know-you small talk and Flora was pretty sure that wasn’t part of Aksel’s vocabulary. He raised his eyebrows in reply.

‘It said so in the memo.’

‘I used to be an explorer.’ The distinction seemed important to him. ‘I’m trained as a vet and that’s what I do now.’

‘I’ve never met anyone who used to be an explorer before. Where have you been?’

‘Most of South America. The Pole….’

Flora shivered. ‘The Pole? North or South?’

‘Both.’

That explained why she’d seen him setting off from his cottage early this morning, striding across the road and into the snow-dappled countryside beyond, with the air of a man who was just going for a walk. And the way that Aksel seemed quite comfortable in an open-necked shirt when the temperature in the kitchen made Flora feel glad of the warm sweater she was wearing.

‘So you’re used to the cold.’

Aksel smiled suddenly. ‘Let’s go into the sitting room.’

He tipped the coffee from the kettle into two mugs, opening the oven to take the mince pies out and leading the way through the hallway to the sitting room. As he opened the door, Flora felt warmth envelop her, along with the scent of pine.

The room was just the same as the kitchen. Comfortable and yet it seemed that Aksel’s presence here had made no impact on it. Apart from the mix of wood and pine cones burning in the hearth, it looked as if he’d added nothing of his own to the well-furnished rental cottage.

Kari had picked the dog toy up in her mouth, and Dougal followed her into the room. She lay down on the rug in front of the fire, and the puppy followed suit, his tail thumping on the floor as Kari dropped the toy in front of him.

‘He’ll be hot in here. I should take his coat off.’ Flora couldn’t help grimacing as she said the words. Dougal liked the warm dog coat she’d bought for him, and getting him out of it wasn’t as easy as it sounded. Perhaps he’d realise that they were in company, and not make so much of a fuss this time.

Sadly not. As soon as he realised Flora’s intent, the little dog decided that this was the best of all times for a game of catch-me-if-you-can. When she knelt, trying to persuade him out from under the coffee table, he barked joyously, darting out to take refuge under a chair.

She followed him, shooting Aksel an apologetic glance. His broad grin didn’t help. Clearly he found this funny.

‘He thinks this is a game. You’re just reinforcing that by joining in with him. Come and drink your coffee, he’ll come to you soon enough.’