Chapter 3
CHAPTER THREE
W e pull up to the house where Benji is being fostered, and I can’t contain my excitement. “I think I’m more excited about this than my first signing.”
Kevin reaches for my hand and kisses it. “You’re going to be the best dog momma there is.”
I lean over the console of the car and grab his face between my hands, planting a loud kiss on him. “Thank you for this, Kev. It really means a lot to me.”
“Technically, I didn’t have a choice.”
I shrug. “You’re not wrong. But I made up for it, though.”
“I don’t know. Maybe tonight you can do it all again and I’ll let you know?”
I laugh. “I’m not going to lie, I need a day to recover.”
Kevin chuckles and kisses me again. “I suppose I can let you off the hook.”
“Did I sign up to be your sex slave when we got married?”
He smirks. “I’m pretty sure it’s there in the fine print somewhere.”
“You’re an ass.”
“I’m your ass. Now, let’s go get us a dog.”
I round the car and Kevin shakes his head. “When are you going to let me open the door for you.”
“Don’t worry, when we’re old and grey and you need to bring me my Zimmer frame, I’ll let you open the door.”
Kevin grabs me and pulls me against him. “I very much look forward to that, Mrs Peyton.” His lips meet mine, and we get lost in each other.
“Now this makes me happy.”
Kevin and I jump apart like teenagers who have been caught making out in the janitor’s closet.
“Oh, don’t stop on my account. Like I said, it makes me happy Benji is going to a loving family.” Dani walks toward us, her hand outstretched. I shake her hand. “I’m Claire. It’s so lovely to meet you.”
“Oh, I know who you are. I didn’t want to fangirl over the phone, but I’ve read all your books. I love them.”
A blush of pure pleasure creeps into my cheeks. “Thank you.”
She turns to Kevin. “Hi, I’m Dani. And you are?” The words are hardly out her mouth when she bursts out laughing. “I’m kidding. I know who you are, too. I hit the jackpot today. A famous author and actor. I’m truly blessed. Now, before I let the little terror out, I want to tell you a few things we’ve learned about him over the last week.”
She leads us to her gorgeous backyard where a peacock is strutting its stuff for us. He calls loudly, and Dani laughs again. “Ignore him, he likes to steal the show. So, Benji is in the back. He knows you’re coming for him today, and he’s very excited.”
Her hazel eyes glisten behind her glasses. It seems like she could use a hug, so I do exactly that. She wraps her arms around me and squeezes tight. “Are you sure you want to do this? You’re attached to him.”
She takes a step back. “I’m sure. I’m just a sap with all this. My hubby says I’m too soft for fostering the pups, but it’s important to me that the dogs don’t have to go to a shelter before they find their forever family. They’ve been through enough.” She sighs. “So, this is what I do. I get to love them with all my heart until someone takes them home. If I kept them all, I wouldn’t be able to do that.”
My heart swells. I’m so glad there are people like Dani in the world.
“Right.” She points to us. “Benji. He’s a picky eater, so you’ll have to get creative with his food. He hates the cold, so I bought him a few stylish jerseys, which he loves to wear when it’s raining. I’m guessing in winter he’ll probably wear one every day. Do you have cats?”
We shake our head. “We don’t, but there are a few at the home. Will that be a problem?”
She waves her hands about. “Oh no, Benji adores cats. Will he be going to the home a lot?”
“We plan on taking him everywhere with us. Does he travel well?”
“He adores being in the car.”
I nod. “Great, then he’ll probably be fine when we travel overseas.”
Dani scoops her luscious brown hair over her shoulder and grins. “You’re not looking to adopt a grown woman, are you? Wait, don’t answer that. That was a bit weird.”
“Not weird at all. You’re sweet,” I say.
“He’ll love going to the home. Kids and cats are his two favourite things. In fact, he thinks he’s a cat, which is probably why he loves them so much.”
“You know, Claire went rogue on this. but I’m starting to fall in love with Benji and we haven’t even met him yet,” Kevin says.
“He really is an awesome dog. Just be aware that he probably will want his paws rubbed more than your wife wants her feet rubbed. He’ll steal all your Pringles and sweets. He insists on his own chair at the dining room table and takes up most of the bed even though he’s still a puppy.”
“Dibs on the main room with the dog.” We both say simultaneously, and we all burst out laughing.
“You guys are so cute,” Dani says. “Ready to meet him?”
A lump forms in my throat. “So ready.”
Dani walks to the side gate and whistles for Benji. “Benji, baby. C’mere, boy.”
“Why am I so nervous?” I whisper.
“Because this means a lot to you. I’m sorry you gave you a hard time about adopting him.”
I snort. “I’m not.”
Kevin shakes his head in faux exasperation. “I married a twelve-year-old boy.”
A furry black ball of speed comes bounding out the gate and straight to us. We both get on our haunches, and Dani shouts “I wouldn’t do that if I were you” just two seconds before I’m slammed onto my back and assaulted with puppy kisses. I struggle to turn my head. I don’t at all mind the slobber, but I’m being smothered to death by something that probably weighs under ten kilograms. He even has his paws on my face.
Kevin lifts him off me and cuddles him as I stand and wipe the grass from my clothes. “Hey there, little guy. The only one who gets to smooch my wife like that is me. Do we have an understanding?”
Benji responds by licking Kevin’s face just as eagerly as he did mine. “Fine. If I get the same amount of love, then we’re good, little buddy.”
Dani brings over a dog basket filled with toys, his bowls and the jerseys. “Here’s all his goodies. It will make him feel better if his scent is on everything.”
I grab the basket. “Thank you.”
“This is his vaccination card.” She places it on the pile. “Would it be terribly rude of me to go inside? You can take as much time as you need, but I have to go inside as soon as I say goodbye.”
“Of course. We’ll probably head on home. The sooner we get him settled, the better.”
Dani nods and walks over to Benji. “You be a good boy, Benji.”
“We’ll send loads of pics, if that’s okay?”
“Please do.”
She gives Benji one more kiss and smiles at us. It’s clear she’s having a hard time keeping it together. It reminds me of how Kevin and I feel when a boy gets adopted. It’s the most incredible feeling, but it also hurts to see them go because we know we’ll miss them.
When Dani gets to the gate, she turns back. “Thank you for being good humans.”
We both smile. “Shall we get our new baby home?”
“Yeah.” I look down at the basket I’m holding. “Wanna trade?”
Kevin gives me the side eye, but eventually relents. “Don’t get any ideas that I’ve grown attached already. It’s just that the basket looks heavier than Benji.”
I put the basket on the grass and reach for Benji. “If I wasn’t on to you, I’d be thinking I married a winner. Such a gentleman, Mr. Peyton.”
He leans down, and I think he’s going to kiss me, but he kisses Benji instead.
I narrow my eyes at him. “So, it’s like that now.”
“Don’t worry, when he’s asleep I’ll show you just how much I love you.”
“You better.”
“Jealous of my dog, are you?”
I splutter. “Your dog? Nice try, buddy. He’s mine.”
Kevin gently bumps his shoulder against me, and Benji takes the opportunity to lick him on the cheek. “You were saying?” He smirks.
I give him a mock glare, but inside I’m so happy. This is exactly how I wanted things to go.
The End
Ryleigh Sloan is a romance author with a masters degree in being an indecisive control freak. Her favorite pastime is driving her friends crazy by writing multiple books at once.
Following the advice of established authors to read, read, read in order to hone one's craft she does just that and engrosses herself in as many romance novels as she can get her hands on. Her bad habit of writing more than one book at a time carries over to her reading and she can be found reading, and listening to multiple titles at once and enjoying every moment.
If you’d like to read about how Kevin and Claire got to their HEA you can follow their journey by reading Cliché.
https://books2read.com/u/bxnQPJ