Sterile Field by Derick William Dalton

A friend of mine has a short story that is available for free on his website. This is what he has to say about it:  "Sterile Field, may be a good fit for your readers. A minor character from a few key scenes in the novel has a back story that's more a romantic adventure than the novel. The save-the-world conflict in the book takes a far backseat to the relationships of the short-story's protagonist: the golden-haired dog from Iowa and the brown-eyed woman from Washington, D.C."

Take a look at it here if you are interested.