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"No We operate an eating-and-drinking establishment," Preacher said

"A, Dad! Dad, co I’ll sleep with him I’ll make sure he’s nice Please"

"Christopher…"

"Please Please? I never asked for anything before"

"You ask for everything, as a et ," someone said

"Teaches responsibility and discipline," was another comment

"It’s not like he’d be in the kitchen all the time"

"I run a ranch Little hair in the potatoes never put hter sounded all around

Four of the eight pups were doing real well; they riggling around with renewed strength and had lapped up so to recover froed to get a little food into the, their hearts beating, but not only were they small, they eak and listless She dripped a little food into their tiny mouths and then tucked thehtif old Doc Jensen would ever show

When yet another gust of wind blew in the opened front door, Annie ot all about the puppies So while had just walked into Jack’s bar He looked vaguely familiar, too She wondered ifHe walked right up to the bar, and Jack greeted hi? You get those plane tickets yet?"

"I took care of that a long ti forward to this forever Before too long I’ on a Nassau beach in thebikinis I dreas?" Jack asked

"Nah" He laughed again "A few people from school I haven’t seen most of them in years We hardly keep in touch, but one of theether and, since I was available, it sounded like an excellent idea The guy who ot one of those all-inclusive hotel deals--food, drinks, everything included except activities like deep-sea fishing or scuba diving--for when I’ around at beautiful wo suits"

"Good for you," Jack said "Beer?"

"Don’t mind if I do," Nate replied And then, like the answer to a prayer she didn’t even know she’d uttered, he carried his beer right over to where she sat with the box of puppies "Hello," he said

She sed, looking up It was hard to tell how tall he was fro position, but certainly over six feet Annie noticed things like that because she was tall His hair was dark brown; his eyes were an even darker brown and surrounded with loads of thick black lashes Her mother called eyes like that "bedroom eyes" He lifted his brows as he looked down at her Then he smiled and revealed a dimple in one cheek

"I said hello," he repeated