The puppy grew and finally opened his eyes. He could also hear and crawl around a bit. She was impressed with herself, learning to care for Carl. By four weeks, he could follow her around the store for a bit before getting tired and going back to his bed. It was also that long before Liam showed his face in the store again. He really must like being alone, she thought. She almost missed him and his stupid mind games.
It was July, and nearly 65 degrees everyday. She had arranged a lounge chair in a spot in the backyard of the store that got enough sun during the day to help her start to tan. She was laying in the sun, in her bikini, Carl napping on her stomach, when he appeared. She felt a shadow fall on her and a hand reached down and grabbed the puppy. "Hey, little guy." she heard Liam say. She opened her eyes and looked up.
"You are blocking my sun and give me my dog. We are sleeping."
Liam looked down at her. "I never did say you could have this puppy. You just took him."
Gen sat up, ready to fight with him once again. "Excuse me?" she said. "You were..."
Liam starting laughing. "Relax. I'm not taking Carl. But, he's old enough now that should be with the other puppies. He needs to learn to be a dog. Bring him by, let him play. It's important. Especially if you want him to be a great sled dog. He needs to get along with the other dogs."
Gen reached up for the puppy. "He will NOT be a sled dog. He is going to be my baby." She took Carl and held him up so they were touching noses. "Aren't you, baby?" Carl licked her nose with his tiny baby tongue, making her laugh.
"Uh, okay." Liam said, rolling his eyes. "But he still needs to socialize. Bring him by. Tomorrow. Okay?"
Genny nodded, closed her eyes and resumed her tanning session. She wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of paying attention to him. Liam watched her for a second more before turning and walking away.
Her dad let her use the truck and told her how to get to Liam's place. She drove out, Carl sitting by her side, ears trying to perk up, but still not quite there. He was still mostly white, with some brown marking on his nose and around his eyes. He looked a bit like a baby wolf, especially with his new sharp teeth. He chewed on everything, including her. She had chew marks on fingers to prove it.
She pulled into Liam's yard and stopped the truck. She looked around, once again admiring the cabin. Then she shook herself out of that thought. Until she saw Liam. He was on the side of the cabin, shirt off and tucked into the waist of his jeans, chopping wood. She stood and admired him for a second, watching him lift the ax up, throw it to the side, then up and bring it down, cracking the log in two, before he noticed her, looked up and smiled. He set down the ax and walked over to her, not bothering to put his shirt back on. She looked at his sweaty muscles and gulped. He was a beautiful man. "Hey! You came. Let's take his little guy into the barn to meet his brothers and sisters. I've already sold the girls, so I'm glad he's coming to see them before they leave." He took the puppy from her arms and gave him a quick nuzzle, rubbing the soft fur between his eyes.
"Sold?"
Liam nodded, walking Carl over to the barn. "I don't need the girls. I really only need 10 to 12 good dogs for the races I want to do. I've got Lucy and May if I want to breed more. I sold them to a nice family in Fairbanks. They are coming up in two weeks to get them. They will be happy. I love my dogs, despite what you seem to think. I'd never give them to someone I didn't trust."
Gen followed him, doubting that he even had heart, let alone loved anything and watched as he set Carl down in the middle of the puppies. They sniffed each other and began to play around without any problems. She sat and watched them on a bale of hay, nearby. Liam stood over them, just in case something happened. "If you love them, why do they stay outside? Why not let them in the house? It's cold outside!"
Liam laughed at her, again. "Really? Ten dogs and four puppies in my house? Plus, they are working dogs and need to be used to the cold. They have nice dog houses and in the coldest part of winter, I moved them all into the barn. Someday, I'd like to quit working and just race and breed dogs. Not there yet." He looked back down at the puppies. "They are fine, let's leave them for a bit." Liam walked out of the barn, pulled his shirt out of his waistband and over his head. "Follow me." He walked down to the river and stood on the rocky shore, looking over the water. "I should hunt today. Great day for duck hunting. Heck, I should be up in the mountains, hunting the wild goats. I've gotten lazy, worrying about the puppies. Lucy is a first time mom. Need to make sure she is okay, you know?" He turned back to the house and grabbed a fishing rod off the porch. "Come on."
Feeling that she had no choice, she wasn't leaving her dog with him, Gen followed him as he walked down the river a bit. He stopped by a large boulder, pulled off his shoes and socks and sat with his feet in the water. She copied him movements, but her feet didn't touch the water. "What are we fishing for?" she asked.
"Right now? Salmon. I hope. Maybe trout." He threw his line out into the water and slowly reeled it back. He repeated this several times before she asked how long it took to catch a fish. She was already bored. He laughed. "I'm not really trying very hard today. I have a fish wheel downstream a bit. I'll take you there and you can see how I really catch fish. I need tons to get my dogs through the winter."
"What in the name of god is a fish wheel?" she asked.
"Well, Genny," he said, his voice laced with sarcasm, "It's just what it sound like. A big wheel that catches fish. You'll see. For now, I think I might have something." He stood up and started to reel in the fish, then letting it go, then reeling it again. She watched as his muscles strained against the pull of the fish. She really did enjoy looking at him, despite his vicious comments about her.
Finally, after the fish stopped fighting, he pulled up a huge salmon, It was at least as long as her arm. "Dinner!" he exclaimed. He pulled the hook out of it's mouth and held it up for her to see. "Just wait until you taste this! There is nothing better than fresh fish." he said. He put the fish down on a shady rock, pulled off his shirt and jumped in the river. "Come on! Quick swim before I feed you!"
"Is it safe? Aren't there fish in there?"
Liam threw back his head and roared with laughter. "That's great. Can I use that? Aren't there fish in there!" He paddled around on his back, still laughing at her.
Gen straightened her shoulders and decided to show him that she wasn't afraid. She pulled off her shirt and shorts. Standing on the rock, she took at deep breath and jumped. As soon as she hit the water, her arms and legs began to burn with pain. The water was freezing. Her legs went numb almost immediately. "It's cold!" she yelped, treading water, desperately trying to keep her head above water. "Help me." she said, teeth chattering.
Liam quickly swam to her. He wrapped one arm around her, under her arms, helping her stay afloat. He leaned back, letting her use his body to lay against and rubbed her arms up and down. "You are covered in goosebumps. I forgot that you might not be used to this. It's deep here, so it's still cold. Come on." Pulling her along on her back, he swam back over to the rock, helped her out and then pulled himself out. "Lay back. Let the sun warm you up." Gen did as she was told, her undergarments drying in the warm sun. He pulled her close to him still rubbing her arms and legs, trying to get her blood flowing again. It figures, she thought, she finally got him to hold her again and it was because she nearly froze to death.
She must have fallen asleep because she was bolted awake by the sound of the dogs barking and a horrible smell. Liam had an arm around her and was whispering for her to not move or make a sound. She looked up and saw a huge grizzly bear eating the fish Liam had caught. She could feel panic rising in her chest. Bears were dangerous. A bear in town meant that people stayed indoors until it was chased off or killed. She began to shake. "He doesn't want us. Relax. He will finish the fish and leave. I'm sorry. Careless of me to not have a gun AND to leave that fish out." She nodded her head slightly and tried not to move.
The bear finished the fish, throwing the bones aside, and sniffed the air. Out in the water a fish jumped, making the water splash and the bear lumbered toward it and into the river. As soon as he was in the river, Liam grabbed her hand and pulled her off the rock and ran to the cabin. He made her go inside while he got his shotgun out and went back to where the bear was. "Don't kill it!" she pleaded, running onto the porch.
"He would kill you! I need to keep him out of my camp! He would eat the dogs, Genny." Liam said.
"Please, Liam. Please?"
Liam rolled his eyes and fired at the bear from the cabin. There was no way he could hit him from this range, but the noise might scare him off. As soon at he fired, the bear roared and moved father down river and away from Liam's house. "If he comes back, he's dinner. Got it?"
Gen nodded. "Thank you." she said. "For keeping me safe and not killing him."
"I damn near got you killed. I need to keep basic safety in mind. You mess with my brain." he replied. "I can't think straight when you are around."
Gen looked at him, eyes wide. "Me? You hate me."
"Uh, no. I think you are a completely spoiled, high maintenance, pain the ass. But, for some reason, the more I see you, the more I want to see you. Maybe you can learn that there is more to life than nail polish and fancy coffee. Maybe I can make you into a actual human who cares about something other than herself. Kissing you wasn't that bad."
Gen raised one eyebrow at him. "Kissing you WAS that bad. No thanks on the 'making me human' offer, asshole. Go get my clothes and my dog. I think it's time I went home. I will NEVER share my candy with you!"
So, this is like my third story when Liam doesn't like my main character at first and/or she doesn't like him. What is wrong with me? Maybe I secretly want Liam to hate me. - Eva