Page 11 of Bae

On either side of the large reception desk and built into the purple wall were two doors. Each hallway led back to the animal quarters and back storage room and pantry.

The animals had all-tile “rooms” with solid floors (I despised the cage-type floors because little paws always got stuck in them) and glass doors that allowed them to see out clearly. The rooms were stacked on top of each other, which utilized vertical space.

Not every single room was like that, though. The larger dogs got tiled suites as well but with wrought-iron doors and all of them ground floor.

The wash and pantry rooms were basic but clean. The laundry facilities were all equipped with brand-new washers and dryers—a donation from Valerie and Tony.

Behind the shelter, outside, was a large fenced-in green space where the dogs could run and play. There were benches for the staff, and then off to the left was a separate fenced-off area, which was actually Braeden and Ivy’s contribution last summer.

It was a dog pool. An in-ground, walk-in pool for the dogs to swim and exercise in during the warm summer months. Eventually, I hoped to have it enclosed so it could remain open all year round.

Yeah, I know. A pool. Pools are sort of my nemesis. All water, really. Braeden practically choked on his pancakes when I told him that’s what I wanted to build with his donation money.

But this wasn’t about me. It was about the dogs. And some of the older pets we had here really benefited from the nonimpact exercise.

I didn’t oversee pool time; the other people who worked here did.

I was proud of this place. It was my home away from home. I spent a lot of time here and so did some of the animals.

It was already after closing, the doors were locked up, and the animals were secured for the night. When I closed, I always stayed about an hour after the place was shut down. I liked to clean up, straighten the pantry, and finish up the last bit of laundry. It was peaceful here at night, and sometimes I enjoyed the busy work.

Especially when Romeo was away for preseason.

He would be home in the morning, though, and just thinking about it made my stomach flutter. I didn’t think I would ever not anticipate Romeo’s presence.

It was another reason I was closing up tonight and making sure everything was done. I wasn’t coming in tomorrow or the next day. This was it for Romeo and Braeden, the last bit of time off they would have before the season was officially underway. After this, it would be almost constant traveling, with little time off between games. If I could be home, I was going to be; nothing else was as important to me. Besides, the staff here was more than capable of running things.

I flipped off the back lights, making sure the night lights were all illuminated, and walked out toward the front.

Molly was still here, at one of the small desks at the side of the room. My eyes went right to her sitting there with her chin in her palm and a cup of what looked like tea at her elbow. She was one of two full-time employees we had here (besides me); the rest were volunteers from Alpha U and around town.

Molly was tall, nearly six feet. She had a slim build, and her blond hair was styled in this adorable pixie cut. I kind of envied it because she probably didn’t even have to brush it when she got out of bed. The rumpled, messy look went with that cut.

I mentioned cutting my hair like that to Ivy once. She told me I was insane because my hair was gorgeous and gave me a really long lecture about hair care and hair texture, blah, blah… I never mentioned it again.

I mean, it didn’t matter, because I didn’t always brush my hair when I got up anyway. I smiled a little to myself at the thought. A wistful type of feeling breezed through me. I combed my hair a lot more these days than I wanted to.

‘Cause, you know. Reasons.

“Molly! I thought you would have left by now,” I said, coming around the large counter.

She jerked a little and pressed a hand to her chest. “Rimmel! I didn’t hear you come out of the back.”

I was slightly amused. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

She blew out a breath and grinned. “I need to stop watching scary movies at night.”

“Probably not a bad idea.” I agreed. “Whatever you’re finishing up, just do it tomorrow. No need to stay this late.”

She cleared her throat and glanced down. A flash of something passed behind her expression, and my stomach tightened.

“I’m actually all finished. I was just waiting on you.”

“On me?” I puzzled.

“Yeah, until your brother gets here.”

It was a thing. A total embarrassing but necessary thing. When I closed or worked late, Romeo or Braeden met me to escort me to my car. Well, if Romeo was in town, he just drove me. If Romeo and B weren’t here, then Trent or Drew came. If none of the boys were in town, I didn’t close.

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