Page 69 of Better Luck Next Time

Maisie grinned. “We’ll need to use a bucket of treats, especially for the surlier ones, but I like the way you think. People have trouble ignoring sad-eyed photos. As they should.”

Adalia brightened even more, like a dimmer lamp turned up on high, and Finn wanted to photographher. He wanted to always remember how she looked in this moment, when she was letting her creativity, her passion, freely flow. When she wasn’t trying to shut it down.

She glanced at him. “Maybe I can even see if Blue will knit one of them. That would be beyond incredible. You know she could do it.”

“Blue Combs?” Maisie asked.

“Yeah,” Finn said. “Do you know her?”

“She’s good people.” She smirked. “I set her up with this enormous Flemish rabbit someone had brought to the shelter. I usually only take in dogs, but I couldn’t turn him away. He had to stay in this playroom until Blue took him home, because I was worried how the dogs would react.”

“Shewouldhave a giant rabbit,” Adalia said fondly, and Finn had to laugh.

“If you keep talking about her like that, I might get jealous,” he said.

“Maybe you should,” she said, nudging him.

River shot them another look, but he didn’t say anything. At least he didn’t look pissed. Finn got the impression he intended to leave them to sort this out—whateverthiswas—and he appreciated it. It was a trust he didn’t deserve.

Maisie studied Adalia for a moment, then said, “Maybe the three of us could meet for a drink sometime. You, me, and Blue, I mean—not these losers.”

River’s gaze shifted to Maisie, and Finn saw a gratitude in his friend’s eyes that he keenly felt too. If Adalia was going to stay in Asheville, and oh God, he wanted her to stay, she would need to make connections. To grow roots, as River would say, and Maisie, despite whatever she might feel about Georgie, was offering that.

“I’d like that,” Adalia said.

Her phone buzzed then, and she jumped a little before she bent over to check it.

“Ha!” She set the phone on the table and turned it so they could all see the screen.

He could see Adalia’s text, which, sure enough, read:I want to foster a dog. You down?

Jack’s reply was beneath it:I’m gone two days, and now you’re getting a dog? Sure. Why not. Make sure Jezebel doesn’t eat him.

“Welcome to Winterfell, Tyrion,” she said, grinning.

“Why not King’s Landing?” River asked.

“Duh. Huskies prefer the cold.”

“Who’s volunteering to restrain Jezebel?” Finn said. “Because,not it. I still have scars on my arms from when I tried two months ago.”

“Oh, you’ll do it,” Adalia said. “Youknowyou will.”

She was right. He’d do it for her, and much more than that too. And a part of him was terrified at the thought.

Chapter Twenty-Three

“Welcome to your new home, Tyrion,” Adalia said, as she opened the back door to Finn’s fancy car, which now had tufts of hair all over the leather.

Would Finn be upset? She mentally shrugged.Love me. Love my dog.

Then she realized she’d said the L word, which was problematic, even if it was only in her head. That was leapfrogging many steps ahead, but she really liked him. She could see it might be a possibility in the future.

Out of self-preservation, she considered telling him to go home, that she wanted to get Tyrion acclimated to his new home alone, but most of her wanted him there. She liked the bubble of happiness that surrounded her whenever he was close.

The dog jumped out, sniffed the grass next to the driveway, and promptly lifted his leg.

“Well, he’s not running yet,” Finn said, walking around to her side of the car. “I take that as a good sign.”

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