The obedience demonstrations went surprisingly well, despite a few glitches. Dr. Morgan accidentally tripped on his German shepherd’s foot while demonstrating how to heel and fell flat on his backside, which garnered a great deal of laughter once the crowd realized he was uninjured.
Dixie wasn’t just the judge during our demonstration. She held a microphone and provided color commentary, which kept the audience engaged even during our mistakes.
My only error came when I had a moment of absentmindedness and loosened the slack on Aggie’s leash. Overcome with joy, she took off running, pulling the leash from my hands. She got what we all called the zoomies. She took several laps around the ring, her mouth open and tongue hanging out with a look of pure glee on her little face. She ran at top speed in circles, with me frantically chasing her. Just when I got close and bent down to get her leash, she would make a sharp turn and head in a different direction, her leash trailing behind.
Dixie chuckled for a few moments and then sent one of her poodles into the ring, knowing Aggie wouldn’t be able to resist playing with her friends. When Chyna got close to Aggie, Dixie gave her a command to lay down, which the well-behaved standard poodle obeyed immediately. Aggie dropped into her play bow, with front paws down and butt in the air long enough for me to get a foot on her leash. I quickly scooped Aggie up and carried her away.
I didn’t need a mirror to know that my face was red. I looked for a giant hole to slink into but forced myself to stand by and listen to the laughter from the crowd.
Dixie used the opportunity to explain that Aggie was a young poodle with lots of energy, but that one day she would be as well-behaved as her adopted cousins, Chyna and Leia, with a little more guidance and direction. Dixie finished the event by demonstrating some of the more advanced obedience skills that her dogs knew.
The demonstration took less than thirty minutes, but it felt like hours. Monica Jill and B.J. hugged me when it was over which made me feel worse than if they had just ignored me. Dr. Morgan gave me a sympathetic nod, before he and Max headed out in the general direction of the main house. Stephanie walked over, cuddling Rex. “You look like you could use a hug.” Instead of hugging me, she handed over Rex and took Aggie’s leash from my hands.
Rex cuddled me for a few seconds and then proceeded to give my face a thorough tongue washing which made me smile.
“It wasn’t as bad as you think,” Dixie said as she came up beside me.
“Yeah, right.”
“Trust me, after showing dogs for well over twenty years, I have stories that would make your experience feel like a walk in the park.”
I stared at her. “Try me.”
“During my first conformation show, I showed a beautiful white standard poodle, Candy. She was the most gorgeous dog I’d ever seen and I knew she would win. She just had to. She was incredible.” She paused for a moment as she reminisced about the dog. Then she shook her head and continued. “My mentor told me to make sure I always took my dogs out to potty at least twice before a show. Well, I was rushing, and she’d peed and pooped less than thirty minutes earlier, so I figured it was safe to skip the second potty run.” She tilted her head and gave me a hard stare. “That was a mistake. I got in the ring and all was going well. The judge examined her and she showed beautifully. She was groomed to perfection and I knew it. Then he sent us around the ring so he could check the gait.” She shook her head and sighed. “We started trotting around the ring and that’s when that stinker stopped right there and pooped. I wasn’t paying attention and kept going until I felt the pull on the leash. When I turned to look to see what the holdup was, I was mortified. Unfortunately, I wasn’t watching where I was going, and tripped and fell.” She looked at me.
“Oh no. You didn’t fall into—”
She nodded. “Face first.”
“Oh My God, Dixie.”
“To make matters worse, I was wearing a white suit.”
The mental image of my beautiful, well dressed friend falling into dog poop shouldn’t have incited laughter, but I couldn’t help it. “Oh, Dixie. I’m sorry.” I laughed. “What did you do?”
“I got up, wiped the poop off as best as I could, and kept going.” She shook her head. “You know what the really remarkable thing was?” She stared at me.
I shook my head.
“We won our first major and Best in Show.”
I laughed. “Dixie, I can’t imagine you wearing a poop covered suit all day.”
“Well, I couldn’t wear the suit all day. I smelled horrible.” She shook her head. “I ended up borrowing a suit from a friend.”
I bowed. “You win. That is a lot worse.”
She nodded. “After that show I told Beau we needed an RV with a shower.” She shuddered at the memory. “I keep at least three suits and several pairs of shoes in the RV at all times in case of emergency.” She smiled. “If there’s one thing you learn about showing dogs, you better leave your pride at home.”
I gave my friend a warm hug. “Thank you. I honestly, didn’t think anyone could pull me out of the dumps, but you did.”
She squeezed me. “Sadly, that’s not the most embarrassing thing that’s ever happened.”
I pulled away and stared. “You have got to be kidding.”
“Not even close.”
“I can’t wait to hear what could be worse than falling in dog poop.”
“Nope.” She shook her head. “I’m saving those stories for later, when you and Aggie are actually competing for real and not just doing a demonstration.” She laughed.
B.J. tapped me on the shoulder. “I think I see my mark.”
I followed her glance which was directed toward a long black limousine that had pulled into the grounds. A short man dressed in an all-black chauffeur’s uniform, complete with cap, hurried to open the rear door. A couple climbed out and glanced around.
B.J. handed Stephanie her West Highland Terrier’s leash and hurried to the limo.
“I think I just saw mine, too.” Monica Jill smiled big, handed Stephanie Jac’s leash, and hurried over to the couple.
Stephanie deftly juggled leashes for Lucky, Snoball and Jac. After adjusting the dogs, she looked up and gasped.
I turned to see what had caught her attention. That’s when I looked up into the deepest blue eyes I’d ever seen. Standing a few feet away stood six feet and two hundred pounds of pure muscle wrapped in dark jeans and a crisp white shirt which contrasted well with his tanned arms. He had dark, wavy hair and a neatly trimmed moustache and beard.
He smiled at Dixie. “Excuse me, are you Scarlet Jefferson?”
We all stared for several seconds before Dixie collected herself.
“Call me Dixie.” She extended her hand.
He shook her hand. “I’m Eli Goldstein, Archibald Lowry’s lawyer.”
Eli Goldstein waited for an awkward few seconds.
I gave Dixie a gentle push which worked to jar her out of her stupor. “Oh, pardon my manners. This is my friend, Lilly Ann Echosby.”
I shook.
She turned to Stephanie. “And this is Lilly’s daughter, Stephanie.”
The air crackled with static electricity.
Stephanie and the bronzed Adonis shook hands and gazed into each other’s eyes.
There’s no telling how long we would have stayed there staring if Lucky, Snoball, Jac, and Aggie hadn’t broken the spell.
For whatever reason, the golden lunged forward and the other dogs managed to get around Stephanie’s legs. She would have fallen forward if Eli hadn’t reached out to grab her and broken her fall.
Righted, but still wrapped up in the dog leashes, Stephanie worked to extricate herself. Finally, free, she looked down at Lucky who was still lunging at the handsome stranger.
“I don’t know what’s gotten into him. He’s usually so friendly.”
Eli smiled and flashed the whitest, most perfectly straight teeth I’ve seen in quite some time. “It’s just a bit of male possessiveness. He doesn’t like another male admiring his beautiful owner.”
Stephanie blushed and looked around for help. “Where’s Addison?”
Just at that moment we saw Addy coming toward us eating a donut. When she got to us, the dogs got a whiff of the sugar and immediately started pawing at the teen for a bite of the donut.
Dixie took Lucky’s leash. “Why don’t you let us take Lucky and the other dogs back to the RV with the rest of the pack.”
Eli’s eyes widened. “Rest? You mean there’s more?”
We left Stephanie to explain as Dixie and I walked back to the RV. Beau was inside with Chyna and Leia. They were lying on the sofa watching a football game. When we entered, he sat up. “Welcome to the Jefferson travelling pet emporium.”
We chuckled and removed all of the dogs’ leashes and allowed them to mix, mingle and sniff each other’s butts as though they were total strangers. We waited a few minutes to ensure all was under control.
Donut consumed, Addison sat on the floor and played with the dogs. Dixie and I stood near the window, looking out at Stephanie and Eli as they stood together and talked. From our viewpoint, the two looked to be enjoying themselves and made a great looking pair.
“What do you think about that gorgeous hunk?” Dixie inclined her head toward the pair.
Before I could respond, Beau stood up, puffed out his chest and rubbed his stomach. “Thank you, I’ve been working out. Glad you noticed.”
We laughed.
After I regained my composure, I took another glance at Stephanie. “Well, I don’t know. He seems nice and he’s definitely handsome, but…I don’t know. I really like Joe. He’s such a good guy and—”
Dixie sighed. “Oh, thank goodness. I feel the same way.”
We glanced at each other and chuckled.
“He’s great to look at, but…well, he’s more eye candy than the settle down, clean the bathroom and let’s weather the storms of life together kind of man.” She glanced lovingly at Beau who had returned to the sofa with Aggie, Rex and Snoball lying on his chest. Chyna, Lucky and Leia were sprawled out on their sides on the floor next to him. Periodically, Beau would toss a red rubber ball to the back of the RV and Jac would leap into the air and chase it. Eventually, he would return the ball and Beau would repeat.
“That’s exactly what I mean.” I smiled as we quietly headed to the door and walked down the steps.
Eli and Stephanie turned toward us as we approached.
“Mr. Goldstein, I’m so glad you were able to make it today,” Dixie said.
“Please, call me Eli. Mr. Goldstein is my father.” He flashed a smile that caused each of us to giggle. “I’m glad to be here, although I wish it was for a more pleasant occasion.”
We wiped the smiles off our faces and nodded, now that we were brought back to the seriousness of Mr. Archibald Lowry’s death.
I awkwardly mumbled condolences, but Dixie truly shone when it came to expressing grief and knowing the appropriate thing to say in all situations. She placed one hand over her heart and another on Eli’s arm. “Please accept all of our condolences. We didn’t know Archibald very well, but it must be horrible for those of you who did know him. Were you very close?”
Eli nodded. “Well I wouldn’t say that Archibald Lowry allowed himself to get close to anyone, but I’ve worked for him for a number of years.”
“Are you in private practice?” Stephanie asked.
Eli nodded. “Yes, guilty as charged.” He chuckled. “I’m afraid a small practice isn’t nearly as exciting as working for a big firm in a city like Chicago.” He gazed at Stephanie with awe and a healthy dose of respect.
She shrugged. “I don’t know about exciting, but it’s definitely interesting.”
He gazed at Stephanie. “Maybe, we could compare notes over dinner.” When she hesitated, he hurriedly added, “Unless there is a Mr. Echosby or someone other than the golden retriever I need to contend with.” He reached down and held her left hand. “It’s just I didn’t notice a wedding ring, so…” He shrugged.
Stephanie gazed into his eyes for several seconds. She reached out a hand and picked two strands of red hair from his shoulder.
Eli took the hairs and dropped them, then dusted off his pants. “I must be covered in dog hair after the greeting I got today.”
Stephanie smiled. “Dog hair comes with the territory.” She shrugged. “As to dinner…sure, why not?”
He turned up the smile wattage and beamed. “Great.” He tucked her arm in his and they ambled over to the tent which was set up for lunch.
Dixie and I walked slowly behind the couple, but were halted by a commotion. We turned to see what was happening.
Dr. Morgan and Max were marching toward the tent, followed by a petite Asian woman with a long ponytail wearing forest green rubber chest waders that were held up by suspenders that went over each shoulder. She was accompanied by a medium-sized dog with unusual coloring.
Dixie gasped. “What a beautiful border collie.”
“It is beautiful, but I thought border collies were black and white, like Jac,” I said.
“Black and white is very common but they can come in a variety of colors. Red, black, sable, saddleback sable, white and black, liver and white, blue tricolor, red merle…there’s a ton of different colors.” She inclined her head toward the regal beast that was circling behind the two humans. “That’s a red merle.”
“What’s merle?”
“Merle is created when a gene in one of the parents is incomplete. It’s hereditary and it takes a dominant gene and dilutes it creating a splotchy, swirl pattern.”
The group got closer and I got a better look at the dog who had a very intense stare. “Border Collies give me the creeps. The way they stare. Does that dog have blue eyes?”
“She does have blue eyes. Border collies can have blue or brown eyes. Just like in humans, brown is more common and the stare is normal. They are remarkably intelligent dogs, bred in Scotland as working and herding dogs. They’re sometimes called Scottish sheep dogs.”
“Not surprising. Archibald Lowry loved all things Scottish.”
She smiled. “She’s watching, waiting for something to move so she can herd it.” She paused. “They’re amazing working dogs and great with obedience, agility and other performance events. In fact, they are so dominant in agility, some clubs are hosting Border Collie only trials. This breed is definitely not one for lounging on the sofa watching television. These dogs need a job, or they can get into trouble.”
When the doctor got close enough to us, we could see his face was red and his heavy breathing had nothing to do with the walk he’d just taken. He was angry.
He marched up to where Dixie and I were standing, turned to the woman and said, “For the last time, I’m not a veterinarian.”
Undeterred, the woman pulled herself up to her full height, which appeared to be about five feet tall and pointed a finger in his face. “You’re a medical doctor and Maisie needs medical attention. The least you can do is try and help.”
The border collie sat by her owner’s side, staring. Surprisingly, Max, who was normally very active, sat by his owner’s side and stared at the border collie.
Dr. Morgan turned to us and held out his hands. “Can you please tell this…woman, that I am a medical doctor and do not work on cows.”
Dixie’s lips twitched, but she quickly collected herself and turned to the woman. “What’s wrong with Maisie?”
The woman scowled at Dr. Morgan. “She’s giving birth, but something’s wrong. Our usual vet is in the middle of emergency surgery. So, when this guy,” she turned to give Dr. Morgan another scowl, “came wandering by, I thought he would help.” She spat. “Instead, he just said, I’m not a vet,” she said in a beautiful clipped British accent and then folded her arms across her chest.
Dixie turned to Dr. Morgan. She softened her face and her eyes pleaded. “Couldn’t you just—”
“No. I couldn’t just. I don’t know the first thing about birthing cows.”
Dixie glanced at me and the twinkle in her eyes told me she had the exact same quote going through her head that went through mine. Eventually, we were unable to contain ourselves and burst out laughing.
Dr. Morgan stared from me to Dixie as though we’d suddenly lost our minds. “What on earth is so funny?”
Dixie recovered first. She turned up her southern accent and said in her best Butterfly McQueen, Gone with the Wind accent, “I don’t know nothing’ ‘bout birthing babies.”
Dixie and I started laughing again.
Dr. Morgan didn’t see the humor, although I thought I detected a slight quiver at the lips of our Asian friend.
When we collected ourselves, Dixie turned to face the woman. “My name is Dixie Jefferson. You must be Mr. Lowry’s gamekeeper.”
The woman uncrossed her arms and nodded. “Yes. My name’s Mai, Mai Nguyen.”
They shook hands.
“I love your accent. Where—”
Mai straightened up to her full height, five-feet-nothing, and tilted her head. She then bowed her head in a subservient fashion and spoke in broken English. “Ah, you expect me talk like Vietnamese servant.” She bowed several times but then stood up, put a hand on her hip and stared. “Sorry, they didn’t teach me to speak that way at Cambridge.”
Dixie held up her hands in surrender. “I didn’t mean any offense. I just love your accent. I’m very sorry. I wasn’t trying to insult you in any way.”
Mai nodded. “I’m sorry too. I guess, I shouldn’t have assumed you were as bigoted and close minded as some of the people I’ve met since I’ve come here.” She held out her hand. “Please forgive my rude behavior.”
Dixie shook. “Only if you will forgive mine.” All was forgiven. Then she inclined her head toward the border collie. “And who’s your friend?”
Mai gave a genuine smile. “This is Skye.”
“May I?” Dixie asked.
Mai nodded.
“That’s a good Scottish name.” Dixie squatted down and permitted Skye to sniff her. When she was satisfied, Dixie ran her hands down the dog’s coat and whispered soothing words of nonsense to her. When she’d finished, she gave the dog a pat.
Dixie stood up and I nudged her.
“I’m sorry, this is my friend, Lilly Ann Echosby.”
I extended my hand to Mai and we shook.
Dixie glanced quickly at her watch and then took Dr. Morgan by the arm and Mai by the other and started slowly walking back in the direction they’d just come. “Now, I’m sure we can figure out a solution to this problem if we just put our heads together.”
Skye, Max and I followed as Dixie guided Dr. Morgan and Mai back through the woods, all the time talking. She alternated between asking questions and making statements designed to stroke egos and de-escalate the situation. She chatted nonstop about everything from Mai is a beautiful name. What’s the origin? to Dr. Morgan is so intelligent, I just know he’ll be able to help us come up with a solution.”
It didn’t take long before we came out of the woods to a fenced field with cows.
We climbed over the fence and walked toward a large cow that was lying on its side under an oak tree.
I assumed this had to be Maisie. Based on the amount of noise she was making, she wasn’t happy. She had a steady drip of mucus and what appeared to be a hoof coming out of her rear.
Mai went to the animal and stroked her head, whispering calming words. Skye paced back and forth, anxiously awaiting someone to move.
I was a city girl and wasn’t very fond of farm animals, but even I felt compassion at the sounds coming from that poor animal as she struggled to give birth. I turned to Dr. Morgan. “She sounds miserable. Surely, there’s something you can do to help her?”
Dr. Morgan stared at each of us and then handed me Max’s leash. He pulled out his cell phone and walked a short distance away as he pressed the buttons.
If I hadn’t been holding Max, I might have been concerned that he meant to leave, but when he finished, he marched back over and rolled up his sleeves. “Okay, I’m going to need a towel and some rope.”
Mai nodded and ran toward a barn followed by Skye.
Dixie knelt down and took her place, stroking Maisie and whispering sweet nothings into her ear.
Dr. Morgan positioned himself at the business end of the beast and said, “Dixie Jefferson you owe me big time for this.” He shoved his arm into the cow’s rear and reached inside. “The calf is backward. I need to turn it.”
He gave a tug. Maisie mooed and I struggled to keep from puking.
Mai ran back from the barn carrying rope and several towels. She placed everything at Dr. Morgan’s feet.
Dr. Morgan was still shoulder deep inside the cow’s rear, but that didn’t stop him from giving orders. “The calf is twisted. The head needs to come out first. I’m going to try and turn it.” He finagled something that caused Maisie to moan even more loudly.
Dr. Morgan made another twist and then gave a pull. He slowly removed his arm. Like the creature coming out of Sigourney Weaver’s stomach in the movie, Aliens, something pulsed and twisted and eventually popped out of the cow’s rear. Dr. Morgan tied one end of the rope to the hoof and tugged.
Maisie pushed and eventually a head appeared, covered in a film of mucus. Maisie gave one more big groan and then pushed the calf out onto the ground.
Dr. Morgan removed the rope from the calf’s foot and pulled some of the film away from the head.
I held my breath and waited while Dr. Morgan and Mai worked. It was only when I saw the calf move that I released the breath I’d been holding.
Mai was so excited she reached up and gave a hoop and then threw herself in Dr. Morgan’s arms and hugged him. The doctor seemed dazed, but managed a one-armed hug. When she released him, he used one of the towels to clean himself up.
We stood by and watched as Maisie licked away the remaining mucus and the calf struggled to adapt to its new environment.
Dixie squatted down and had a few words with Mai and then she stood up and smiled at Dr. Morgan. “I knew you could do it.”
“I need a shower,” he mumbled.
Dixie stood up. “Let’s go back to the RV. You can get a shower and I’m sure Beau has some extra clothes you can wear.”