Pappy’s hand reached down to fondle the dog’s ears. “Yeah, I know,” he mumbled.

An hour later, Sam walked out of the shower wrapped in a ratty old robe to see her teammates carrying in a tacky, three-foot-high, silver-plated paintball gun. “It goes with our decor,” Slick giggled as she set the trophy on the mantel. “C’mon, Sam, tell us what happened out there.”

Sam told them. All of them choked with laughter as they pounded one another on the back. “Chalk one up for Team Three!”

Sam was left alone with Hawkins while the others headed for the showers. “I did it, Hawkins, I pulled him free. He’s got to weigh at least 180 pounds. If I can do that, why can’t I climb the frigging rope and scale the wall?”

“Because you had your feet working with you would be my guess. You were on solid ground. And you were using your back muscles. Hell, I don’t know, Sam. I weigh what Pappy weighs. I’m a guy, and I’m on par with you. How do you think I feel? I’m going to toss out an idea that might help you. When you’re climbing the rope and scaling the wall, pretend that your ex-husband is at the top and you get first dibs on him.”

Sam’s jaw dropped. “Sometimes, Hawkins, you are so smart you boggle my mind. I’ll give it a try. On the shooting range it’s Pappy’s face in the bull’s-eye.”

Hawkins laughed. “Yeah, I know.”

Pappy entered his quarters, Alpha at his side. He looked down at his hands and was surprised to see he was still holding Sam’s flight suit. He tossed it on the couch before heading for the shower. His thoughts were chaotic as he turned on the tap. Steaming hot, then ice-cold. Shivering, he stepped out of the glass enclosure fifteen minutes later, wrapped a towel around his middle, and walked back out to the sitting room. He was stunned to see the big dog cradling Sam’s flight suit in his paws, his monster body lying half-on and half-off it. He looked up at Pappy and whined.

Pappy dropped to his haunches. “It smells like strawberries, doesn’t it? I was this close to Sam. I could count the freckles on her nose. She saved me, Alpha. If I’d gone over that edge, I could have broken my neck or my back.” He stroked the big dog’s head for a long time as he struggled with his memories.