Page 7 of Micah

Our gazes lock for several seconds, an unspoken promise. Such trust exists in those beautiful eyes. Avery lifts one corner of her mouth and nods. If this moment isn’t proof that this connection between us surpasses friendship, I don’t know what is.

Henry pounces, front paws landing on the dashboard. The squirrel he’s fixated on effectively severing the moment.

“Did Haley mention anything about a squirrel fixation?” Avery asks.

“He’s a dog,” I point out. “Don’t they all have squirrel fixations?”

The sound of her laughter warms me from the inside out. Three seconds of that beautiful sound would be enough to keep me warm in the most brutal winter storm. God I love thiswoman. And hopefully by the time this week is over, she’ll admit she’s in love with me too. “Got his leash on?”

“Yep.”

“Then let’s go for a walk.”

5

AVERY

“Guess Haley wasn’t kidding,”I say, shaking my head. We’ve tried every known dog trick there is—treats, toys, encouragement, stern mom tone, and even a promise of chasing a real live squirrel—to get Henry to move from his spot since he decided halfway around the park loop that he was simply done. His furry butt may as well be cemented to the grass. “He really is stubborn.”

“Stubborn doesn’t begin to describe it,” Micah teases, his thumb brushing mine.

We’re sitting in the grass, leaning back on our palms with legs stretched forward as we’ve done hundreds of times after long walks or on the rare occasions Micah’s convinced me that going for alight jogwas a good idea. But that doesn’t stop the tingle of electricity caused by his simple, barely there touch.

“What do we do?” I ask, staring at Henry. Because if I look at my hand, I might do something I will later regret. Like crawl into Micah’s lap and kiss him. The sensible thing to do would be to pull my hand away. But I haven’t exactly been sensible lately.

“There’s only one thing we can do.”

“What’s that?”

Micah pops to his feet, and oddly, I notice the absence of him beside me immediately. As though someone yanked away a cozy blanket I’d had wrapped around me. I inwardly shake my head, not willing to untangle that thought. He’s…comfortable. Familiar. That’s all.You’re just full of lies today, aren’t you?

“I’ll carry him,” Micah says.

“He’s seventy pounds!”

“Your point?”

It occurs to me that he’s trained to carry human beings out of burning buildings. A stubborn old man dog who weighs less than a young adult should be nothing. “But your truck’s halfway across the park.”

Micah scoops the senior golden into his arms and stands, as though the dog weighs nothing at all. I gulp a swallow, wondering if he’d be able to sweep me off my feet just as easily if he was suddenly inclined to carry me down the hall to his bedroom. Would he do it as effortlessly as he’s carrying Henry halfway across the park now?

Get it together, Avery!

But Henry, held like a baby, has the audacity to fall asleep in Micah’s arms before we reach the truck. His chin resting on Micah’s shoulder. I can’t resist the urge to snap a couple of photos.

Micah’s not even breathing heavily when we reach his truck and he sets the tired pup in the back seat. With eyes still mostly closed, Henry stretches out, releases a heavy sigh, and drifts right back to sleep.

“We didn’t walk that far,” I point out, buckling my seat belt as Micah gets in the driver’s seat. I know he’s a senior, but I can’t help my feelings of concern. If he was my dog—don’t go there, Avery.

“Maybe he’s just not used to all the stimulation,” Micah answers. “Or maybe he’s just a stubborn old man who knows what he likes.”

“Which is?”

Micah glances in the back seat, then locks his blue eyes with mine as that crooked grin graces his lips. Lips I’ve secretly fantasized about kissing since college. But until the past couple of weeks, I’ve been able to keep that desire shoved way down. “Naps.”

I glance back at Henry and swear I see a sleepy smile.

“Where to now?” I ask.

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