And his smell…God, he smelled good. I don’t know what it was about his cologne today, but I couldn’t seem to get enough of it. Every chance I got, I would brush my nose over his shoulder, taking in a deep inhalation. I would’ve loved to bury my face in his neck, but I wore flats, so he was too tall for me to reach.
I wore another Joy selected outfit, this time a pale-yellow sundress embroidered with pink flowers along the hem and sweetheart neckline. It flared out around my waist and draped down to my knees, making me feel kind of like a 1950s pinup girl. A pair of sparkling pink floral ballet flats complimented the dress. My hair was wrapped up in a French twist and I felt rather pretty. With Mark next to me, my self-confidence grew as we walked to the back of the store, so I stopped hunching my shoulders. For the first time in my life, I held my head high.
We reached the pharmacy counter at the back and settled into line behind an elderly woman and a young mother with a toddler in her arms.
When the little boy, who was probably around three years old, saw Vali, he went ballistic.
“Doggy!” he shrieked, and I swear my teeth vibrated at the high pitch he’d managed.
His mother turned around, rubbing her ear as she grimaced at us. “Yes, honey, that’s a doggy.”
“I pet doggy?” he asked in the sweetest voice.
“Oh,” the mother began, “I’m sure he’s busy, honey. See that vest he’s wearing? It means he’s on the job.”
“I pet doggy?” the little boy asked again, turning on the waterworks with a pout that would have broken the Grinch’s heart.
The woman’s gaze met mine, and I gave her a friendly smile. “It’s okay with me and Vali, if he wants. If it’s all right with you, I’ll help him pet Vali.”
The mother clearly was uncertain, but she relaxed when Vali simply sat next to me, panting happily.
“He’s okay with kids?”
“Oh yeah. Vali doesn’t have a mean bone in his entire body.”
The mother shifted, and the old lady at the counter continued to talk to the bored looking pharmacist. “All right. Jamie, you have to be slow and gentle, remember?”
The boy nodded as his mother slowly let him down, and he practically sprinted over to me in his little space-themed t-shirt and shorts.
I held out my hand, and he took it with a smile. “Ready?”
“Ready,” he mimicked back.
Holding his hand in my own, moving slow for the mother’s sake, I helped him pet Vali’s big head a couple times, judging if he’d be okay on his own or not. When I saw how gentle he was, I let Jamie’s hand go, and he rubbed Vali’s head until my dog groaned in pleasure. Jamie jumped back at that, and his mother and I laughed.
“It’s okay, that’s his happy noise. You know how kitties purr?”
Jamie nodded. “We has kitties.”
“Well, dogs can’t purr, so sometimes they growl to show how happy they are.”
“Why he has jacket?”
“Vali is a special working dog; his job is to help keep me safe.”
“Why?”
“Because, sometimes, I find big groups of people I don’t know really scary. Vali helps remind me that I’m okay.”
Jamie seemed to think about this for a second. “Vali keep you safe.”
“Yes, he keeps me safe.”
“Jamie,” the mother said, now with a prescription bag in her hand. “Time to go.”
Right away, Jamie wrapped his arms around Vali. “I love you, Vali.”
My heart melted as his mom and I exchanged an ‘awww’ look.
“Thank you for letting him pet the dog,” she said as she took Jamie’s reluctant hand. “Have a nice day!”
After grabbing my prescription, we made our way out of the store. Mark said, “You know, you’re really good at that.”
“At what?”
“At explaining Vali and his job in a way that makes it not scary and relatable.”
I shrugged as the doors slid open, letting us out into the parking lot. “If people are curious, I’m more than happy to explain how he helps me. I always think that maybe the next time they see a service animal, they’ll be a little more understanding and accommodating.”
“You’re really good at it.”
“Thank you.”
We stopped at the back of the dark blue Jaguar SUV. Mark opened the trunk, then picked Vali up and put him inside after turning on the air conditioning. “How are you feeling?”
I barely heard him, instead staring at him as he slid on his sunglasses. Something about hiding his eyes made him look intimidating. I liked it. Call me screwed up, but I loved the fact that Mark looked like he could kick anyone’s ass. On a primal, cavewoman level, I found it very, very arousing.
This big, hulking man who intimidated the world loved me.
Moving a step closer, I went on my tiptoes and threw my arms around his neck. “I love you.”