Page 102 of Bae

He ate them gingerly, like he had all the manners in the world.

I guess he did compared to the two dogs begging at my feet.

Once Murphy was finished, I scratched him again before he sauntered off down the island and hopped onto the floor. The dogs didn’t even bother trying to chase him. Instead they hammered their tails against the floor and stared at me longingly.

I laughed and grabbed the dog bones next.

“Shake,” I told Darcy, who immediately held out his paw for me. “Good boy,” I praised and gave him the snack.

Next, I did the same for Ralph. He didn’t give me his paw. He rolled over and showed me his belly. “Close enough!” I declared and gave him the bone.

Once the coffee was on, the dogs were at my feet again, begging, so I shooed them outside. The morning air was crisp; the scent of fall floated on the breeze. I shivered a little, snuggling down into my hoodie, and settled in the open doorway to gaze out over the property.

It was so beautiful here. Wide open, secluded, and quiet. I watched a few sunny-colored leaves swirl downward before settling in the grass. My cheeks were upturned; the air bit at them, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. I felt refreshed, like I hadn’t been able to enjoy this much of my surroundings in a long time.

Last night had been… Wow.

The feel of him inside me… and then again this morning. Romeo was everything I could ever want.

It surprised me that he seemed to be just as tormented as me the past few months. All this time, we’d been suffering alongside each other, trying to shield the other, when what we should have been doing was working through it together.

No more of that, though. It was all out in the open. I knew it. I could feel it. Last night felt a whole lot like the air tickling my cheeks right now. A fresh start.

Not a do-over.

Not forgetting.

Just beginning again.

Beginning didn’t seem too overwhelming with Romeo at my side.

“Morning!” Ivy chirped from behind.

I turned from the doorway as she stepped into the kitchen. “Hey.” I smiled and pulled the door closed.

Prada was dancing around Ivy the same way Ralph and Darcy had done me. Ivy laughed and gave the dog her bone, then headed for the coffee.

Her hair was wavy today. I don’t know how she got it to look so good. Her face was free of makeup but had the soft sheen of moisturizer. Unlike me, she’d changed out of her pajamas.

Hey, I put a hoodie over mine. That kinda counted as getting dressed… right?

She was dressed in a pair of pastel-pink leggings, gray slipper boots, a slouchy gray T-shirt, and a mint-colored duster that hung down to her knees. It looked soft to the touch and sort of floated behind her when she walked.

“Did you have some yet?” she asked, holding out her mug.

“Not yet.”

“Oh good, then. I’m just in time.”

“Where’s Nova?” I asked, glancing around like I expected her to just walk right in.

“With Braeden. I’m pretty sure he took her to go bother Romeo.”

I snickered.

“Girl time.” She smiled.

We hadn’t had girl time in a while. I missed it.

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