After Love Read Online Free Page A

kennel’s number, a little more viciously than necessary, and put the phone on speaker. Nick knew this would be a ridiculous waste of time, but, what the fuck, he could play along. He closed his eyes and rubbed them. This congressman thing was potentially a ticket out of Austin, and not in the right direction.
    The phone rang for the third time and then stopped. Thinking it was the answering machine, Nick was about to hang up when a female voice came through.
    “Woof Gang Kennels. This is Jamie. How may I help you?”
    “Ah…yeah. This is DEA Special Agent Nick Archer. I was directed to call you about getting a dog.”
    “Bobbi told me you’d be calling today. I had almost given up.” There was a hint of reproach in her tone.
    “Yeah, sorry…Jamie, is it? Listen, I can call back tomorrow.”
    “May I call you Nick, Special Agent Archer?”
    “
Sure. Or maybe the day after tomorrow, if that works better for you?”
    “I’d rather talk to you in person…tomorrow. Bobbi insisted that this was to happen on a fast track. What time can you come in?”
    “I’ve got an appointment in the afternoon in Austin, so maybe about noon?”
    “Noon? That’s too late. I need five hours the first time to get you started correctly. Bobbi wants an update tomorrow, and I want to be able to report something more than that we talked on the phone.”
    “Bobbi’s a pain in my ass,” Nick muttered. “Listen, just pick me out a dog, and I’ll drop by, load it up, and go.”
    “That’s not how we do it here. First there’s an interview so I can assess your readiness, then count on about four hours to work with the dogs. And of course there’s the training.”
    “You mean the dogs aren’t trained?” Nick heaved an exasperated sigh.
    “Of course the dogs are trained. I was talking about you.”
    It was the second time today that Nick had realized he was completely out of control…a feeling that made him very uncomfortable.
    Jamie continued, as if completely unaware of his distress, “I want you to meet several dogs and see which one is the best fit…you know, demeanor-wise. We’ll run you through a couple of routines, and then we’ll find the one dog that will pass the audition.”
    “Routines? You expect me to prance around like I’m performing in the Westminster dog show or something?”
    Jamie laughed. “God, no. You’ll see. Wear comfortable shoes.”
    “Shoes? Sure. Okay, what time works for you?” Mentally Nick admitted defeat…at least for now.
    “Midmorning, so we have time to let the dogs do their thing.”
    “Some don’t pass the audition?”
    “Most don’t. But I think you have the wrong impression. Actually, it’s you who will be auditioning for the dogs. How about eight?”
    “Great.” Nick didn’t try to hide his sarcasm. This just kept getting worse and worse. Not only was a dog being forced on him, but he could suffer the humiliation of not being selected by the fucking mutts. Sort of like getting picked last for kickball in second grade. He was too old for this shit. “See you tomorrow…at nine.”
    “Bye, Nick.”
    He ended the call and flipped Jamie’s business card toward the passenger-side floor. It immediately disappeared in the pile of fast-food wrappers and bits of paper with addresses and phone numbers of leads scribbled on them. The unconventional filing system worked for him, although it had driven his ex-partner crazy. Better men than Jamie had tried to change him and failed. He snorted. She didn’t know who she was dealing with. Fuck her and fuck her dogs. They were the ones that would have to pass
his
test.
    Back to business,
he thought with a mental shake. He’d already lost enough time on Bobbi’s harebrained idea. Tonight he was going to try to score some loosies.
    The term
loosie
had been coined on the streets of New York. Because of the exorbitant sales tax on cigarettes and the crackdown on sales to minors, entrepreneurs got around the laws by selling cigarettes