Chapter 5 #2
There was her big heart again, knowing the right thing to say.
“Not sure what they’d think of me now, and I don’t care enough to find out.
Going back isn’t an option, and most of the time I forget all about them.
” Most of the time. “I’ll tell you one thing.
If I’m ever a dad, I’ll be totally different.
My parents taught me what not to be, what not to do, and they showed me how I didn’t want to live my life.
Lessons well learned.” Lessons he’d never forget.
“They wasted so much time and energy on the wrong things.”
“Drinking and fighting.”
“Yes.” He teased his fingertips over her downy cheek, her chin, then tipped up her face so he could look into her midnight eyes, ensuring she understood his conviction.
“I won’t make those mistakes. No child of mine will ever have to wonder if I’ll have a job to support them or to be sure they have what they need.
They won’t have to wonder whether I’ll be sober and reasonable, or whether I’ll take care of them. ”
“If you’ll love them.”
He vowed, “I’ll love him or her so much, they’ll never have doubts.”
The way she looked at him, with so much faith, warmed him even before she spoke. “Any child would be lucky to have you as a father.”
The words finished him off. Where had she been all his life? How had he not known that someone like her existed, or that she’d be so vital to him?
What she said mattered a lot, and he needed time to take it in. “Let’s talk about your childhood.”
Though he could tell she wasn’t fooled by his switch of topic, she humored him.
“Compared to your upbringing, mine was easy. The hardest thing I had to deal with were comparisons to Laylee. Did I tell you my father was a twin? You’d think he would have understood, but he was the”—she made air quotes—“smart twin. That’s how my grandparents characterize him.
My dad was the smart twin and my uncle was the athletic twin.
” She rolled her eyes. “Neither Laylee nor I is athletic. For us it’s the smart, serious twin”—she aimed a thumb at her chest—“and the beautiful, fun-loving twin, meaning Laylee.”
He cupped a hand to her cheek. “It’s a fact of life that even good parents aren’t perfect. The most important things are whether you felt loved and cared for.”
“I did, absolutely. Not just by my parents, but we’re close to our grandparents on both sides, and we have a bunch of aunts, uncles, and cousins that we see often.” Trying to look cavalier, she asked, “Will I get to introduce you to all of them?”
Another promising sign, that she’d even want him to meet her family. He didn’t think Skye would do that unless she wanted him to be a fixture in her life. “I’d be happy to meet them.” If he could win them over, it’d give him an edge.
She blinked, grinned, and ended up laughing. “You are the most amazing man. My family is going to love you.”
“That’s funny?”
“The quintessential bachelor happy to meet my large family? It’s a little funny, but I should have known you’d be fine with it. You’re the most adaptive person I’ve ever met. Nothing makes you uneasy.”
He snorted at that. Everything made him uneasy, most especially the idea of screwing up with her. “You aren’t worried that I’ll schmooze your family?”
“You’re more genuine than you think. Do you not realize how open and friendly you are?
People are drawn to you. They like you immediately.
You say two or three things, and they feel like they’ve known you forever.
You’re automatically a friend.” She leaned in to kiss the corner of his mouth.
“It’s a gift.” Yawning, she settled against him again, curving her body as close to his as she could get. “I like us together, making plans.”
Yeah, he liked that a lot.
He especially liked that she saw in him things he’d never seen in himself. Wonderful things that made him optimistic even though he hadn’t been feeling exactly pessimistic. More like . . . detached. Almost separate from others.
Sometimes lonely.
But now, after sharing details of his life that he’d never shared with anyone else, everything was good, perfect even.
He reached over the side of the bed for the sheet and settled it on them, then pulled up the quilt so she wouldn’t be chilled in the air-conditioning.
Tomorrow they’d bring home the dogs. He’d have Maybelline, he’d have Skye. The future looked so bright.
With one last hug, he kissed her bare shoulder, enjoying the faint way she murmured to him, then closed his eyes in extreme contentment.
This was meant to be.
* * *
Skye flopped down onto the couch, utterly exhausted. She’d been so excited about adopting the dogs, but after only two days, she knew she needed to reevaluate.
“How was your party?” Laylee asked, settling beside her and handing her a bottle of water.
Wearily, Skye turned her head to face her sister. “The party was fine, but the dogs trashed Ford’s house.”
“Ugh. How bad?” Without giving Skye a chance to answer, she said, “It was the monstrous dog, right? She probably ate everything in sight and broke everything she sat on.”
Skye locked her teeth until she could speak reasonably. “Actually, no. Maybelline is a gentle sweetheart, and the worst damage she did was to dig around on Ford’s bed, rearranging all his bedding to create a nest.”
Laylee choked. “I specifically remember you two buying a massive bed for her.”
“I think she wanted Ford’s scent. When he leaves for work tomorrow, he’s going to try leaving a T-shirt in her bed to see if that helps.”
“Well, he does smell nice.”
“Right?” Skye agreed. Ford was absolutely delicious. Secretly, she wanted one of his shirts to sleep with, too. “It seems my little rascal did most of the damage.” She wrinkled her nose. “He peed. On everything.”
“OMG.”
“Ford said he was marking his territory. If so, he owns the whole house now.”
Laylee burst out laughing.
“Luckily, he couldn’t get on the bed, the rascal.
” Aggrieved, she gave a long sigh. “When I tried to bring him home with me, you’d have thought I was taking Maybelline’s heart, the way the two of them carried on.
Ford suggested they just stay the night with him.
” Which made her feel as if she’d abandoned him to deal with everything.
“So let’s see.” Laylee eyed her critically. “Knowing my sis like I do, I bet you helped to clean up everything before you left?”
“Of course, I did. My dog made the messes. Believe me, we’d be able to tell the difference between him piddling and Maybelline.
” Groaning, she put her head back on the couch.
It was after midnight, and she’d hoped to have some private time with Ford, but there was no way either of them would have closed the dogs out of the bedroom, not after they’d just spent all that time alone, and sleeping with both dogs basically meant not sleeping.
So Ford had kissed her, then insisted she go home to get some rest. Tomorrow was another day.
“I think we can still make this work,” Skye said, trying to infuse some optimism into the words. “It’s just that the dogs don’t do very well being alone for so long.”
Laylee raised her hand. “So maybe I can offer a solution.”
Barely keeping her eyes open, Skye said, “Let’s hear it.”
“I’ll be your dog sitter.”
Skye got one eye open. “Come again?”
“Your pup is adorable, and he loves me.”
“I can’t take him from Maybelline.” The little scoundrel might tolerate it, with Laylee to love him, but Maybelline would be miserable. Never would she do that.
With less enthusiasm and conviction, Laylee promised, “I’ll watch Maybelline, too.”
That got both of Skye’s eyes open. “You’re scared of Maybelline.”
“A little, but I’m sure I’ll get used to her.”
Sitting straighter now, Skye scrutinized her sister. “Why?”
“I’m not ready to return to my apartment yet. If I’m going to freeload here, I can at least try to be useful.”
Chewing that over, Skye decided it might be a good solution. “It would only be while we’re away at work.”
“And when you get home at four, you can take over again. See? Problem solved.”
Grabbing her phone, Skye texted Ford the plan.
He liked it—or at least he was willing to give it a try, and that was good enough for now.
She turned to her sister with a smile. “Ford agreed, and I’m okay with it.”
“Yay.” Laylee hugged her. “I have a purpose. Now I can stop eating all your ice cream.” While Skye laughed, Laylee stood and then pulled her to her feet. “You’re slap-happy. Time for you to get some sleep.”
Sleeping with Ford again would be better, but honestly, she was so tired, she was more than ready to crash.
One way or another, this would all work out. The dogs just needed a little more time to settle in, and with Laylee’s help, they shouldn’t have a repeat of today’s total destruction.
* * *
One week later, Ford was ready to pull out his hair.
He’d envisioned plenty of private time with Skye, not necessarily in the bedroom—though he sure wasn’t opposed to that—but sitting together on the couch, the dogs cuddling with them.
Or long walks talking while the animals got fresh air.
Playing fetch in his backyard. Swimming in his pool, with Maybelline and Tank lounging on the deck in the sunshine.
Ha!
Everything that could go wrong, had. The dogs, who’d been oh-so angelic at the shelter, had a terrible time adjusting to being “home.” He still loved them, and he didn’t regret having them.
God, no. He looked at Maybelline and no matter what, his heart felt full.
Even Skye’s dog, that little rascal, still amused him.
But the destruction. It occupied most of their time. Cleaning up dog poo with Skye somehow wasn’t as appealing as the scenarios he’d had in mind.
He had hoped that Laylee’s offer to puppy sit would solve the problem.
But no, it most definitely had not.