Chapter 16 Sloane
SLOANE
Iwake up earlier than normal. When I look around, I’m all alone in bed, Beckett nowhere to be seen.
I slowly force myself to untangle from his sheets, grabbing one of his shirts and slipping it over my head.
I head down the hall and pause when I see the light on in his office.
That’s weird, he doesn’t usually work on Sundays.
“Beck?” I ask softly, lightly tapping on the door.
“It’s open,” he says, and I enter. He sits at his desk, dressed in a plain tee and sweats.
“Whatcha doing?” I ask, watching him carefully. He looks like he’s been up for hours. His eyes are a little bloodshot, and his hair is messy like he’s been running his fingers through it over and over.
“I had a thought, and it turns out I might be right,” he mumbles, his eyes glued to whatever it is he’s looking at.
“What kind of thought?” I ask, wrapping my arms around his neck and looking over his shoulder.
“Just something for The Ghost Killer case.”
“Anything you can tell me?”
He looks at me, and I kiss his nose. “Not until I actually know it’s something real,” he explains, and I pout. “Sorry, baby.”
“It’s ok, I understand,” I say, and he gives me a small apologetic smile.
He nods, and I kiss the side of his head as he turns back to his stack of papers. “I’m going to go to the store, so you can work on it until I get back, and then I want you to myself, ok?” I propose.
Maybe it is a little selfish of me to take him away from his work. But it will still be here for him when I am done with him. I never get full days with him, and I’m not going to miss out on having some time alone with him.
“Mhmm,” he hums, and I give his shoulders a little rub.
“I’m going to run to the store to get oat milk and matcha. Do you need anything?” I whisper, feeling him relax as I let my fingers work gently at the knots in his shoulders.
“No thanks.”
“Ok, I’ll be right back,” I inform him, kissing his cheek.
He doesn’t answer me as I go, seemingly just stuck in deep thought. I glance at the papers and pictures on his desk as I leave, but none of it makes sense to me.
I head upstairs and make myself look presentable for the day, pulling my hair up into a messy bun and slipping into some comfy clothes.
I’m headed to the store when a ball of fur off the side of the road catches my eye.
Normally, I wouldn’t pull over, but I do. And I’m so glad that I do, because in front of me is the cutest little puppy I think that I’ve ever seen in my life. White with brown patches, with a few bald spots, and a few very minor-looking cuts.
“Hey, cutie, where’s your family?” I whisper as I squat down on the grass on the side of the road and try to coax him to me. He’s small, still just a puppy, and looks very scared.
There are no houses around here, and I really hope that someone didn’t lose them, or worse, leave them here on the side of the road.
He slowly gets up, and my heart breaks as he limps over to me. I see just how rough of shape he’s in when he gets to me. I almost start to cry when he flops down in front of me, and he’s barely more than just skin and bones, his fluffy coat hiding his real condition.
“Oh, sweet baby,” I whisper, my voice cracking as I pet him.
I sit and scoop him into my lap, and I feel absolutely heartbroken for him. The more that I sit here with him, having no collar and the condition that he’s in, the more I’m sure that the poor baby was just abandoned here on the side of the road.
I gently stand up with him as I open the door to my Bronco, grabbing a little blanket and a water bottle. I only have a pre-workout shaker bottle, but it’ll have to work for now. I rinse it out and fill it with water, setting the little puppy on the floor of the passenger seat.
Some of his fur is matted with dirt, and what I can hope isn’t blood. I know that I can’t possibly leave him here. I’m not really sure what I’m going to do with him, but I know that Beckett will understand.
After he’s done drinking, I pick him up and snuggle him, while he licks my face. I smile and hold him close to my chest, not really caring about my clothes or what diseases the little guy could be carrying. As I hold him, I realize that there’s no way I’m going to be able to put him down.
“Alright, buddy, I guess you are coming to the store with me. Stay right here, and we’ll go get you everything that you could possibly need.”
I set him on the blanket and shut the door, quickly rounding the car and driving to the store.
I take him with me as I grab a cart. The first thing I do is lay a blanket down in the cart where you can put a toddler, and place the puppy on top of it, and make sure to snuggle him up so he can stay warm.
I go to the food section and grab some lunch meat.
I don’t even wait to pay for it. I just take a few slices out and place them on the blanket in case he wants them.
I make a mental list of what I need: food, treats, puppy pads, toys, a dog bed, maybe some more blankets, and whatever else I see.
I pick up a little dog bowl and make a mental note to call the vet on Monday and get him checked out properly.
“Ok, little guy, what else do we need?” I think out loud, looking at the aisle and my cart.
He nibbles on the piece of lunch meat, and I smile, glad that he’s eating something.
I grab some pet safe soap, flea wash, pet tape, and anti-infecting spray in case he has any injuries before heading back into the grocery section.
I move on to what I came here for, and decide that in order to sweeten Beckett up to the idea of a dog, I’ll have to make his favorite foods for lunch and dinner.
We get in line at the Starbucks after we checkout. I get some drinks, some water, and a pup cup. I’m browsing the menu while waiting for my drink, and it hits me.
Mocha.
“Oh my gosh, that’s perfect!” I say out loud, looking down at the little fur ball who sleeps peacefully in his little bed.
When my name is called, I pick up my drinks, the little cup I got for Mocha, and we make our way out to the car.
I load him into the front seat, still asleep, even after I load everything into the trunk.
“Alright, little guy,” I say, running my fingers through his fur. “Let’s go home.”
“Hey buddy, wake up,” I say, petting him softly when we get to the house.
He blinks his eyes awake, and when he sees me, he all but jumps into my arms. “Ok, ok. Here, I got you a treat,” I say, picking up the pup cup and offering it to him.
He looks at it for a second, then up at me, then back at the cup before giving it a little taste, quickly devouring the whole thing.
I sit out in my car, trying to build up my courage to go inside and face Beckett after my very reckless decision. I give Mocha some more lunch meat and let him drink all the water I got from Starbucks.
“Hopefully, this goes well, Mocha,” I whisper, kissing the top of his head. I pick him up and carry him close to my chest, feeling very nervous all of a sudden.
“Beck, I’m home,” I say, calling from the front door. Mocha lets out a little bark, and I freeze.
“What was that?” Beckett asks, coming from the kitchen and freezing once he sees me.
“Beckett, meet Mocha. Mocha, meet Beckett,” I say, introducing them, feeling extremely nervous as he stares at me holding the cute little fluffy animal.
“That’s not matcha,” he says, narrowing his eyes.
“No, but this is,” I say, holding up my green drink with a small, nervous smile.
He stares at me for a long time. I could crack a joke, but I don’t think that’s the right move.
“Do I want to know why you have a dog?” he asks, causing me to laugh awkwardly.
“I found him on the side of the road,” I say, stepping closer to Beckett. Mocha and I both give him puppy dog eyes.
“And you brought him here?”
“He didn’t have a collar, and look at him, Beck!
We don’t have to keep him, but I couldn’t leave him.
I just got this feeling in my gut that he needed to come with me.
I’m sorry, I know that I should have asked you, but it was hot, and he’s cut—” He cuts off my ramble by pressing his lips to mine in a soft kiss.
I let out a soft sigh.
“I’ll take him to the vet tomorrow so that he can get his shots, get checked for a chip, fleas, and anything else he could possibly need. But he needs a place to stay, and I’ll take care of him, I swear.”
“You’ll need food and a bed.” He goes to list things, but I cut him off by grabbing his hand and pulling him towards the front door.
I set Mocha on the grass when we get outside and let him run around.
“Oh, you got a bunch of stuff already,” he says, as I open the back of my Bronco, showing him the small fortune I spent on a dog I wasn’t sure I would be able to keep.
He’s quiet for a long moment.
Mocha comes over, sits down in front of him, and looks up at him with big puppy eyes.
Beckett lets out a huff and bends down to pick him up.
“He’s some kind of Aussie,” he mumbles more to himself than to me.
Mocha’s tongue darts out and licks Beckett’s nose. I swear I see a ghost of a smile on his lips. The two of them stare at each other for a long time before Beckett breaks the silence. “Fine, but you have to train him, and you have to clean up after him.”
“AHHHHH!” I squeal, doing an excited dance and jumping into Beckett’s arms. He catches me easily, despite his arms being full.
He carries us both into the house as we attack his face with a million kisses.
“Ok, you two.” He laughs, putting us down on the couch.
I smile up at him, and he has a tender, almost affectionate look in his eyes.
“Go give him a bath, and I’ll bring all his stuff in and see what you got,” he says, turning back towards the door.
“Beck.”
“Yeah?” he asks, pausing for a moment with his hand on the door.
“Thanks,” I say before he nods and walks outside.
“You are going to be the bestest, most well-behaved pup in the whole world,” I coo, smooshing Mocha’s cute little face.
I go outside and carry an armful of stuff in, mostly just looking for soap.