Dream made Book... maybe

The following is the first chapter of a new romance novel I started based on a dream. We'll see how far I go with Faith and Hope....

            He scratched at the back door, bumping it with his massive head. When no one came, he whined and scratched the door again. A man opened it. He looked down at the big odd-looking dog with distaste.

            “Beat it,” he said, and shut the door.

            The dog considered the closed door for a while. He circled around the pretty house to the kitchen door. That one smelled better. He scratched at that door and whined. This time he made sure he was ready with his most pathetic face. A woman opened the door. She smiled down at him.

            “Hello there, big guy,” she said. She reached out her hand and he sniffed it politely, resisting the urge to slobber and bounce for joy. This was the place. He hadn’t been sure because of the man, but now he was sure.

            “Do you belong to someone?” she asked, looking around the yard. “Did you get lost? You’re awful skinny. Come on in and I’ll give you something to eat. Maybe we can find your owner.”

            The dog sauntered into the kitchen and settled on the rug, making himself at home. This was the perfect place for him to be found.

Chapter 1

            It shouldn’t have been that hard to find a dog that weighed in at one hundred and fifteen pounds and looked like a cross between a Weimaraner an Irish wolfhound and an SUV. In the two years since Tramp had adopted Hope and me, he had never showed any interest in leaving. I blinked back tears while I drove my 1992 rust-bucket Jeep Cherokee down the unfamiliar back-roads. I didn’t have the gas to drive around anymore. I had no money to buy more.

            “Why would he run off?” six-year-old Hope asked.

            “I don’t know. We’ll find him, don’t worry.”

            I had pulled over on the side of the road to stretch my legs and Tramp had waltzed off into the trees. I hadn’t thought anything of it until he didn’t come right back. I had already knocked on five doors looking for him. I wished I could make myself more presentable. I hadn’t had access to a shower in so long, and sponge baths and washing my hair in public bathrooms wasn’t doing the trick. I tied my brown hair back to hide the tangles and greasiness. I was wearing my cleanest t-shirt and jeans, but that wasn’t saying much. I had a grand total of two dollars and twenty three cents in change and had been driving with my gas light on for the past half hour. What the hell was I going to do when I found Tramp? I couldn’t afford to feed Hope and me, never mind the monster sized dog.

            I pulled into the parking lot of Land’s End Bed and Breakfast. The Jeep’s engine sputtered as I turned it off. If I was lucky it would start again. I kept my tears back and smiled for Hope.

            “Let’s check and see if he came here,” I said.

            She dove out of the car, the lights of her sneakers brightly red in the fading light. Her blond curls were a mess, as always. Her little blue sundress was stained with cranberry juice but it was the cleanest thing we had. I followed after her up the stone walkway, admiring the masonry.

            I opened the door, finding the entryway empty. There was a desk with a bell a sign prompted me to ring for service. Hope rang the bell with the enthusiasm of a child until I stopped her.

            A woman in her mid twenties walked in from down a hallway. She was nearly my height, which was a surprise. At six feet, I normally towered over most other women. She wore jeans and a white shirt with an apron tied over it proclaiming ‘If you’re going to harass me please make it sexual.’ She had dark brown hair tied back, wore no make-up, and had stunning blue eyes.

            “Welcome to Land’s End,” she said. “I’m Abigail. What can I do for you?”

            “We lost our dog,” Hope piped up. “He’s big and gray, like the dog from Lady and the Tramp, only he’s wicked big.”

            The woman smiled. “He knocked on the kitchen door about an hour ago,” she said. “I gave him something to eat. I was just about to call the police to see if anyone was looking for him.”

            I blinked tears from my eyes.

            “Thank you so much. I pulled over to let him stretch his legs and he took off. It’s so not like him.”

            “Come on back,” Abigail waved us after her. We followed her down the hall into a warm well-used kitchen. Tramp was sitting on an area rug, gnawing on a chunk of rawhide. He jumped to his feet and barreled into Hope with his usual enthusiasm. I dropped to my knees and threw my arms around his neck, unable to hold back my tears of relief.

            “Don’t you ever run away from me again,” I said into his shaggy gray fur.

            He licked my tears and began his version of talking. It was a combination of whines, soft barks, moans and similar doggy words. He would carry on at length at times. It was one of my favorite things about him. Sometimes he and I would talk back and forth for an hour or so.

            I looked up at Abigail. “Thank you so much for finding him,” I said.

            “He found me,” she shrugged.

            “He does that,” Hope said. “He found us when I was four. This mean dog was going to bite me, but Tramp scared him away, even though he didn’t know me yet. Tramp started living with us in the Jeep. He keeps me warm at night.”

            I tried to hide my embarrassment in Tramps fur. I glanced up to see confusion in Abigail’s eyes. I stood up, grasping Tramp’s collar firmly.

            “We should be going. I’m sure you’re busy,” I said.

            “Would you like to stay for dinner?” she offered. “We’ve got three guests right now and I was about to put out the meal for them.”

            “Thank you, but no,” I said, hauling Tramp toward the hallway. He wasn’t cooperating.

            “But I’m hungry,” Hope said. “All we had for breakfast were those crackers.”

            “We’ve got some more food in the car,” I said.

            Abigail followed us down the hall and out the front door. Tramp made me drag him the entire way. I needed to get away fast. I couldn’t afford to pay for dinner. I had one last package of crackers Hope could eat. I’d gone without often enough. Tomorrow morning I’d start looking for a waitressing job. Once I had work we’d be fine.

            Abigail was looking at my Jeep with a frown on her face.

            “You girls moving?” she asked.

            “We’re always moving,” Hope chimed in helpfully. “Oh, look at the garden!” There was a beautiful garden beside the house, bordered by a white picket fence. It was filled with freshly planted seedlings. Hope ran over to get a better look in the failing light.

            Abigail stood beside me. Without turning to face me, she said, “Do you have somewhere to sleep tonight?”

            “We’re fine, thanks for finding my dog,” I began.

            “Do you have somewhere to sleep tonight?” she repeated, still not looking at me.

            “I don’t have enough money to stay here,” I said.

            She turned so she was facing me and looked into my eyes.

            “Do you have enough money to stay anywhere?” she asked.

            I wanted to lie to her. My largest fault had always been pride. And if it was just me, I would have lied. But I looked over at Hope who was singing to the baby plants.

            “No, I don’t,” I said, fighting tears. “Hope got sick and my boss fired me when I had to stay home to care for her. Then I got sick and I couldn’t find more work. I was behind on the bills already. I just couldn’t catch up.”

            “How long have you been living in that Jeep?” she asked.

            “Two weeks.”

            Abigail looked at Hope, then back to me.

            “Ok, then. Get your things and follow me.”

            “What?”

            “You think I’m gonna let you drive out of here with no money and no place to go?” she rolled her eyes. “I got plenty of space and plenty of food.”

            “I don’t have any money,” I protested.

            “I also got more work than I can get done,” she continued. “You know how to cook? Clean? Sew?”

            “I can do anything you want. You’re really going to let us stay?”

            “Of course. Tramp picked this place out for you. It needed some new faces.”

            “I’ll pay you back for everything, I promise,” I said, grasping her hand. “I’m a hard worker. Hope is really well behaved. She’ll help out too. And Tramp, well, he’s big, but he’s gentle.”

            “Relax, Honey.” Abigail smiled. “What’s your name?”

            “Faith Turner,” I shook her hand. “And that’s Hope.”

            “Is she your daughter?”

            “Yes,” I lied. The truth was just too complicated. But I hated being dishonest, do I added, “I’ve raised her alone since she was a month old.”

            “Well, Faith,” Abigail put a hand on my shoulder. “I think it’s time you weren’t so alone.”