the instant love and adoration Curly shared with Harley. While she found nothing more fulfilling than matching a pet with its perfect owner, she couldn’t help the stab of jealously she experienced when those animals found their loving forever families. Especially as she’d never find hers. The dogs were so much more adaptable than she was. They had the incredible capacity to trust again when shown consistent love and respect.
Brooke didn’t think any amount of love would work to soften her toward a relationship.
Ugh, none of that.
She cleared her throat. “Think she approves. All right then, Harley it is. I always recommend keeping the name they are used to, but sometimes owners insist on a new one. It can help them connect and bond with the dog, but it can make training trickier.”
He rose to his feet, still cradling the big puppy to his chest as though she were a lapdog instead of a big ol’ girl, and Brooke’s heart melted. There was nothing sexier than seeing a tough man be tender with something or someone smaller and vulnerable.
“Come on, Harley. Let’s get you settled at home.” He set the dog down, clipped on the leash she’d gifted, then hefted the bag of supplies Brooke provided to all new owners. “Oh, before I forget. Tomorrow night my guys will be going to a bar where Jinx will try to make a connection with Prick. Pulse’ll be with him. Guys' night out. Me and the rest of them are gonna go hang there too so we can observe. We’ll keep away from Jinx and Pulse, so Prick doesn’t suspect we know each other. We may rile shit up a bit to throw him off and get Jinx on Prick’s good side.”
Brooke’s heart sped up. Yes. This was the first step in ensuring she didn’t end up with any more injured dogs. Though part of her worried one of the men would get in trouble on a mission she’d initiated, the majority of her couldn’t wait to get the inside scoop on Prick’s operation. “Yes! I want to be there.”
Curly laughed. “Ain’t happening. Especially since Prick knows who you are.”
Brooke jammed her hands against her hips. Gone were the days when she blindly followed a man’s orders. Now, the only one to direct her actions was her. Curly was about to find that out. She had as much right as he did to be at that bar. And she wanted to see Prick go down in the worst way. “I’m going,” she said with finality.
Curly’s eyes narrowed, and he stepped closer. She had to tip her head up to find his eyes. Without the gleeful puppy at his side, he’d have been intimidating as hell, but the adorable dog softened his edge.
Until he spoke.
“I get that you’re independent as fuck, and I respect the hell outta it, but there is no way in fucking hell I’m letting you anywhere near that bar tomorrow night.”
This man was about to reap all the benefits of Brooke’s therapy and hard-won control over her own life. Poor man.
She gave him the sweetest smile she could muster as she said, “You think so, huh?”
CHAPTER TWELVE
CURLY ALTERNATED HIS death glare between Jinx and Pulse over at the bar and Brooke seated next to him, sipping her beer and yakking with Ty. He still had no idea how she’d gotten the upper hand in their argument. One minute he was in complete control, refusing to let her anywhere near this shitshow, and the next, she was wearing a sugary smile and sweetly telling him to fuck off.
Two minutes later, she had Ty on the phone—of course, she’d known he owned the tire shop, goddammed small towns—and Ty was spilling the name of the bar and time they were meeting. When Curly had shown up at the tire shop ranting and raving at his cousin, Ty just laughed and asked how it was possible for him to be pussy-whipped without having access to the pussy.
Asshole.
Now the two of them chatted and laughed like they were fucking besties without a care in the world while Curly stewed over the five million ways the night could go wrong and harm could come to Brooke.
Fucking stubborn woman.
“Will you relax?” Tracker murmured from the other side of him. Loud rock music made it difficult to hear the man’s muffled comment. “You’re tense as fuck and gonna draw attention to us. Ty isn’t gonna home in on your territory, man.”