She emerged, as beauty sometimes does, in the wake of an ugly moment.
Young marriage. Stupid argument. I slammed the door to walk it off in the Alabama night. As I stomped through the moonlit neighborhood, I heard footsteps in the street behind me. A black-and-tan puppy bounded up and licked my salty cheek. I went back home with a lighter step and a warmer heart.
“I think we should get a dog.”
The next morning, we were sipping coffee on the couch and watching the morning news when the Pet of the Week came on, an armful of a different black-and-tan puppy. Her name was Reba. We sprang up and drove straight to the shelter, where they gave us a funny smile. “Reba’s not back from the
