Page 72 of Sneak Attack

“You’re quiet today.”

I jumped at Sarah’s voice, where I was huddled in a corner of the indoor playroom, letting puppies climb all over me.

“What?”

She laughed and pointed to Lucy, the boxer mix who was going to her new home today. “She’s eating your shoelace.”

“Oh.” I tugged it out of her mouth and brought her into my lap. Her paws immediately went to my face, and she gave me a giant slurp with her tongue up my cheek.

Sarah laughed. “Ready to say goodbye to her?”

I hugged Lucy to me and pushed out my bottom lip. “Not really.”

She rolled her eyes, but instead of taking her from me like she needed to, she plopped down next to me. Three of the pit mixes lunged for her and while she tried to give them all attention, asked, “Did you talk to Cole the other night?”

Like every time I thought of two nights ago, my cheeks burned, and I shoved Lucy back into my face, so Sarah didn’t see. “I did.”

He’d also called me last night like he promised, but it was late, I’d already had two glasses of wine, and I was getting ready for bed. I could have easily picked up the phone, but I let it go to voice mail. Partly for fear of us crashing and burning, mostly because I was worried if I talked to him, I’d do something stupid, like tell him to come to Marley’s, sneak in like he was a teenager all over again.

I did, however, do exactly what he said that night I got him and thought of him very vividly while I slipped my hands beneath my sleep shorts and finished what he started.

I also did it again this morning, moments after I saw hisGood morning, Eden. Hope you dreamed of me last night because I had a fantastic dream about you…text.

I snapped him a selfie of me, barely awake, head on my pillow, hair a complete bird’s nest of a disaster in response.

“What’d he say about Selma?”

“What?”

She bumped into my shoulder. “Are you always so spacey?”

“Never. Sorry, things on my mind.”

Her teasing smile wiped clean away. “Marley?”

“No.” It was probably the first time since I’d been back she hadn’t been. “Life. The past. The future.”

“Oh, so nothing heavy.”

“Not at all.” I laughed.

“I asked about Selma. What’d Cole have to say about that?”

“He’s dealing with it. Like Nate said, he was glad I told him.”

I wished for a friend who I could vent to, let loose about everything that happened the other night, everything Selma did and driving drunk to Cole’s and wanting Jasper to leave with her, but gossip would spread soon enough after Cole went to the police department if it hadn’t started already and none of it would come from me.

Selma hating me was bad enough. I didn’t need to add fuel to the fire.

“That must have been one hell of a phone call. You okay with it? I mean, I know what you said the other night, about Hilary and everything, but I hope you’re not still blaming yourself. I know that sounds trite, but sometimes shitty things happen to really good people.”

“Yeah.” I stretched out my legs and rolled my shoulders.

Easy to say. Harder to live it.

“All right.” Sarah clapped her hands together and wiggled her fingers. “I need to get Lucy to her new home. The mom said her husband is taking their kids out for an early dinner so Lucy can be there when they get home.”

I gave Lucy one last squeeze, accepted one last cheek kiss and handed her over. “Have a good new home, Lucy.” I tapped her nose.

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