Page 11 of Quake

“Okay, great. So each of you will hold one end of the pool noodle. You can stay seated so you don’t have to grapple with the dogs too much, though they look pretty content,” I tell them, gazing down at the puddles of mush and fur melted on the ground.Both Pickles and Tank are happily snoring despite the commotion in the room.

They each do as I instructed, taking a seat and anchoring the piece of foam between themselves. “Like this?” Kat asks.

“Yep, just like that.” I unleash Tiny, folding it and placing it into the back pocket of my jeans. “Stay,” I instruct, stepping over the piece of foam to face Tiny, who is now standing between a seated Kat and Kas.

Extending my arm out in front of me, I place my hand palm down and motion for Tiny to lie down. He does so without a verbal command, but I explain this further. “I’ve had him since he actuallywasTiny, so he tends to sense what I’m about to ask him to do before I even give him a command. You guys might need to start by having them sit, then teaching them to lie down and work on crawling later.”

I wouldn’t want them to feel bad if either of their dogs doesn’t follow commands well. They’re sweet dogs, but following these complex commands can take a lot out of them in the first several classes as their minds stretch to accommodate so much new information.

They each nod their understanding, so I continue, grasping my clicker in my right hand so I can use my dominant hand for commands. “I don’t usually use a clicker unless it’s a brand-new trick for him, but I’ll do it this time so you can see how to use it.”

“Okay, crawl.” Tiny ducks his head between his front paws and army crawls his way toward me, right under the pool noodle. When he passes through, I immediately click. “Good boy!” I praise him and reach into my pocket, retrieving a treat for him. He munches it happily, slobber pooling out of his droopy lips.

“Jesus Christ, you’ve got the GI Joe of dogs!” Kas says excitedly, his hazel eyes lit from within as he claps for Tiny.

I laugh at that. “I promise they’ll get it eventually too! This is five years in the making right here.”

“You’ve been coming here for five years?” Kat asks.

“Yep, I rotate between which of my dogs I take with me, though Tiny comes far more often than Rex because he’s kind of a spitfire and doesn’t always get along well with others.” I roll my eyes.

“How come you can’t bring both? I thought Gi mentioned you had a boyfriend. Can’t he be one of their handlers?” Kas asks me. The question sends a sour feeling to the pit of my stomach. This is one of the many sore subjects between Tyler and me.

“Yeah,” I mutter. “Tyler works a lot, though, and he likes to have his weekends off.” I don’t mention the fact that he works from home and has never worked a weekend in his life. “Besides, they’re my dogs,” I tell them, doing my best to cover up the disdain I feel tingling at the tip of my tongue. I wish he’d be more involved with them.Shouldn’t he be interested in what I like?

“Oh, sorry to hear that,” Kat tells me, a hint of something lacing her words. Sympathy, maybe?

Waving her off, I walk to her side, re-leashing Tiny. “Your turn,” I tell her with a tight smile.

***

By the time the hour class is over, I’ve actually started to really like both Kat and Kas. I think I was right about her from the beginning.She seems really sweet, and she manages to surprise me with her sense of humor.

As we head out to the parking lot, she stops me. “Hey, would you want to grab dinner or something soon?”

Smiling at her, I work to pull my cell out of my pocket. “That’d be really nice. Go ahead and give me your number, and we can plan something.” I hand her the phone, watching as she meticulously inputs her information, and a moment later, she’s handing me the phone back, a ping going off in her pocket.

“I sent myself a text so I’d have your number too.” She smiles, but it falls from her face in a second flat. She turns abruptly toward her car, dragging Tank behind her as quickly as his arthritic legs will take him.

“Okay,” I breathe out, a little confused by her sudden need to get away from me.

Kas sidles up beside me, following after his sister more idly. He chuckles as he explains, “Kat has social anxiety. She’s been working on it and doing a lot better, but she probably just realized how bold a move that was to text herself and chickened out after the fact.”

My lips flatten, and I draw a breath through my nose, nodding my understanding. “Ah, I know that feeling all too well,” I answer honestly. “Please tell her I didn’t think anything of it, really,” I say, wanting to be sure this isn’t something that keeps her up at night.

His full lips turn up in a broad smile. “Will do. Have a good weekend, Lark.” My name rolls off his tongue, smooth like butter. God, is this woman just surrounded by sexy men? I know he’s her brother, but I’ve also seen the rest of the De Laurentiis family in passing, and those men, hell, the women too, are all gorgeous.

***

Thankfully, Tyler’s gone by the time I get home with Tiny. He didn’t tell me where he was going, but I can only assume he’s out with the guys and won’t be returning anytime soon.

Kicking off my shoes at the front door, I pad across the worn wooden floors, grab my Kindle from the side table, and collapse onto the couch.

I’ve got six days to finish this book before the book club, and it’s the perfect thing to help me unwind from the long week.

Pulling a blanket onto my lap, I’m about to snuggle in and get to reading when that familiar feeling of frustration settles in.

A groan slips past my lips, and I drop my head to the back of the couch when I realize I have to get up. You’d think after fourteen years of this shit, I’d be better at sticking with a schedule.

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