12. Madison
12
MADISON
I’m not sure what to make of Ethan’s offer. Yesterday, he was cold and standoffish. It was impossible to read him. I felt guilty for crossing into his yard to deal with the crazy dogs in my territory.
But then, after he helped me with Bella, he offered to help me with these unruly dogs. It’s a lot to wrap my head around, and I can’t help but feel like there’s some sort of catch.
The thing I can’t seem to get a handle on is that he’s told me the catch. He wants to sleep with me again. My body tingles at the thought. I liked the way he ran his fingers over my skin and made me feel like all my senses were on fire at the same time.
I want to feel that again.
Honestly, if he had suggested we go inside right then, I might have agreed. I needed to relax after Bella and Bigfoot started making my life so difficult.
When he offered to help, my first thought was no. I can handle things myself—even though I clearly haven’t been able to up until this point .
But as much as I hate to admit it, I need the help. Bella and Bigfoot are proving to be more of a handful than I anticipated, and if there’s even a slim chance that Ethan can keep them under control, I’d be a fool to turn him away.
Besides, Wesley has things to do, and I don’t want to be calling him and waiting for him to bail me out every time these dogs decide to stage another jailbreak.
So, I decide to give Ethan a chance, even if I’m not entirely comfortable with the idea. I do need the help. Even if it’s just once a day, I’ll take any help I can get.
However, when I open the door and let Samson bound on outside, I see that Ethan is striding through the dew-covered grass toward my back porch. I don’t like the way my heart immediately starts thumping harder when I see him.
He’s dressed neatly in scrubs, and he looks…sexy in the light blue outfit. I wonder what type of underwear he’s wearing and if it’s too restricting or if I could see him getting hard if I touched him enough.
I shake these thoughts away.
“Morning,” he says when he sees me. “Ready to deal with these dogs?”
I don’t want him to know how relieved I am to see him, so I just smile and wave. I have Bigfoot on a leash, and Bella is howling up a storm, sure that she’s missing out on the fun.
Ethan jogs over and takes the leash from my hand, leading Bigfoot over to his fenced-in area. I notice that the area under the fence has already been fixed. When did Ethan have the time to do that?
I bring Bella out a moment later and lead her over to the fence. Samson barks, and I take his electric collar off so he can come with us. Ethan opens the gate so we can slip inside without letting Bigfoot out. “Do you really think we can keep these two from causing any more trouble? ”
He chuckles, and the sound is surprisingly pleasant. “I’m up for the challenge. If this fence doesn’t keep them in, then we might have to put a weighted backpack on them or something so they can’t jump. It will tire them out too.”
Bella trots across the backyard, leash trailing after her. At first, she keeps whipping around, trying to see what’s following her, but when she realizes the leash is to stay, she relaxes a little.
Then, she and Bigfoot start running and leaping on each other, having a grand old time. I laugh as they wrestle. Samson barks at them, eager to join in, but not quite sure how.
“I have one more,” I tell Ethan and head back inside for the last, much more manageable dog in the pack. Finally, everyone is in the backyard. I stand close to Ethan, arms crossed as I watch them play.
If I had a fenced-in backyard, dog-sitting would be easy . I imagine just opening the back door and letting them roam free for an hour or two.
“How did they do last night?”
“Oh, they’re quiet at night. They didn’t bother me at all. It’s just that they are strong and have a lot of energy. There’s no turning that energy off.”
“If you want, we could take them on a quick walk around the neighborhood,” Ethan suggests.
I look at him in horror, sure my eyes are as wide as saucers. “Are you talking about these dogs? The ones who slip their leashes and make runs for it?”
“I bet they wouldn’t do that if they had enough exercise.”
I like the thought of parading through the neighborhood with Ethan, but I’m worried that Bella and Bigfoot will make it too difficult.
“What time do you need to leave for work? ”
“I have twenty minutes.”
I glance then at Ethan. “Fine, but I get the two small ones. You get the big ones.”
Ethan grins at the challenge. “Let’s go.”
We take the dogs for a walk around the neighborhood, and Ethan manages to keep them from lunging at every squirrel and passing car. As we round the corner back to my house, he glances at me, a small smile playing on his lips.
“You know, you’re not half bad at this yourself. The dogs might be crazy, but you can tell they like you. They keep checking to make sure you’re back there still following us.”
I snort, shaking my head. “Yeah, right. I’ve barely been able to keep these two under control since they got here.”
“Give yourself some credit. They’re not easy dogs to handle, but you’re doing fine.”
I just mumble a quick thanks and focus on getting the dogs back inside. Once we’re in the yard, Ethan kneels to give them each a pat on the head before I usher the dogs inside. I can’t help but notice how naturally he interacts with them. It’s like he was made for this, and I kind of like seeing a soft side of him.
Maybe I’ve misjudged him. Maybe there’s more to Ethan than I’ve been willing to see. But just as I start to entertain the thought, he stands up and turns to me with that same easy smile.
“I’ve got to get to work now, but don’t forget about dinner. I’ll see you at six for the dogs and at seven for dinner. If you still want to.”
“Yes, I still want dinner.”
And I want what he’s promising me afterward, but I don’t say anything about that. Finally, the last dog is inside, and it’s just Ethan and me.
He stands there for a second. His scrubs are a little more wrinkled than they were before, but he still looks sexy as anything. He leans a little closer. “Can I kiss you before I go?”
“Please.”
He leans closer and presses his lips against mine. It sends a warm buzz through me, a little feeling of desire that sparks up some crazy ideas in my head. When Ethan pushes his tongue through my lips, my body responds automatically.
I wrap my arms around him and pull him closer to me. I feel something stiff between us, but then, Ethan pulls away. “See you tonight.”
I watch as he walks back across the moist grass to his house. Before he reaches his driveway, I turn and head inside. The dogs are draped all over the furniture, and they barely lift their heads when I come into the room.
Good, Ethan was right about one thing. They are tired out.
I work on fixing myself some breakfast, thinking about how that kiss with Ethan affected me. The best explanation I have is that it’s been too long since I’ve had good sex with anyone. That must be why I’m so desperate to spend time with him tonight.
Now that the dogs are tired out, my day stretches in front of me without much to fill it.
As I’m sitting down to eat breakfast, my phone buzzes in my pocket, and I instinctively pull it out to check. It’s a text from Aurora in the group chat: Emergency at Groovy Grounds. Need everyone there at six!!!!!!
I quickly glance at the screen and then tuck my phone back into my pocket, pretending I didn’t see the message. The last thing I want right now is to deal with whatever “emergency” Aurora has cooked up. I’m not even sure what it could be, but I don’t know if I can face Aurora after what I’ve done with her father. Even just thinking about Aurora jumpstarts the guilty feeling in my stomach.
The group chat suddenly comes alive with messages.
Zoey: What’s going on?
Mia: I’ll be there.
Stella: Aurora, if this is another excuse to make us all bring you chocolate, it’s not going to work.
I decide to take a shower so that I’m not tempted to pick up my phone every time it buzzes. I make the mistake of bringing it into the bathroom though, and as I’m rinsing off, I can hear it buzzing against the counter every few seconds. I know my friends will wonder what’s happened to me if I don’t respond soon. I’m the only person without a “real” job, so if I don’t respond, they’ll start to turn their attention toward me. And I don’t need any extra attention.
I close my eyes and try to block out the buzzing as I rub the bar of soap all over my body. I imagine that it’s Ethan’s hands, coming up my side and finding my breast, then moving down between my legs.
My phone buzzes again, and the mood is broken.
I sigh and step out of the shower, dripping everywhere as I silence my phone and read the string of texts that has come through since I started showering.
Aurora: I can’t give details right now. I’m about to be at work. But I need you all there.
Stella: You know I have nothing else to do. I’ll be there. But I’m not bringing any chocolate.
Aurora: Enough with the chocolate. I’ll buy you a coffee, Stella.
Stella: I’ll be there. Calm down.
Zoey: I’ll be there too, but I might be a little late. I have an extra client today .
Mia: I assume Theo isn’t invited. Girls only, right?
Aurora: Girls only! This is supposed to be the Spinsters’ Society. You’re the one who decided to mess that up by getting a hot guy.
I roll my eyes and scroll through the next four or five messages without reading them. I love my friends, but for some reason, everything that Aurora does right now seems to annoy me.
The last message has my name. They’re starting to wonder why I haven’t responded.
I finally tap out a response. Sorry. I’m dealing with two giant dogs who are more trouble than they’re worth. Maybe I should charge by the pound instead.
Stella responds immediately. That makes it sound like you’re going to eat them.
I turn my phone on silent, deciding not to tell them I won’t be arriving at Groovy Grounds. It’s easier to ask for forgiveness than permission, and I don’t want to explain that I’m having dinner with Aurora’s dad.
None of them would get it, especially not Aurora. I push thoughts of my friend aside, because if I start to think about her, then I start to feel guilty.
And I can’t afford to feel guilty.