Page 85 of Sometimes You Stay

Finn quickly waved off her concerns as he leaned against the porch’s white railing. “Everyone’s fine. I just needed a ... I needed a little breather.”

“Oh, sure.” Marie’s face fell, and he knew he’d never have to speak Cretia’s name if he didn’t want to.

Which he didn’t.

Except he did.

“Have you heard from her?” He cringed as the question slipped out, like far too much inside processing had lately.

Marie glanced at her husband, who reached over and squeezed her hand. “She wired me some money for her room at the inn. She must have sent it as soon as she landed in Toronto because she’d barely been gone six hours. The message just said ‘Thanks.’”

That sounded right. Cretia, who didn’t want to rely on anyone else, had called him out on his own unwillingness to ask for assistance. He’d point out her pot calling his kettle black the next time he saw her.

Ifhe ever saw her again.

He needed that distraction. Big-time. “I guess that means I still owe her a favor if she paid for her own room. And you still owe me one.”

Marie’s smile broke through. “I don’t know about that.”

“Hear me out? I have an idea.”

Seth leaned forward, resting his forearms on his knees, and Finn took that as an open invitation.

“Cretia had this idea that tourists might want to come see my barn. Maybe I could teach them about how to care for the animals and give them a whole experience. Let them hold bunnies and pet cows and bottle-feed kids.”

“Oh, Finn.” Marie jumped to her feet. “That’s a wonderful idea. We can recommend you to all of our guests. When will you open?”

“I’m hoping for next summer.”

“Oh.” Marie’s excitement simmered. “I guess we can wait.”

“But I’m going to need some help around my place. There’ll be a lot to do to get set up, and I didn’t know if”—he shot a look over his shoulder at Jack and Joe—“maybe Jack would like to help me out. It might be a little more work than summer camp, but I could use another set of hands. Especially with eleven puppies to train.”

“Really? You want me to help train puppies?” Jack’s footsteps pounded up the stairs as he barreled toward his dad, his dark curls blowing in the wind. “Can I? Please!”

Seth looked up at his wife, who didn’t even try to hide her smile. “Are you sure, Finn?”

“Jack’s as good with the dogs as I was at his age.”

Joe joined them on the porch, bumping his nose against Finn for attention. He gave the dog a good scratch behind his ears. “I’m pretty sure Joe agrees.”

Marie caught her husband’s gaze, unspoken words passing between them.

“I’m thinking three or four hours a day, five days a week.I can pick him up and drop him off, and I’ll pay him a small salary.”

That offer made Marie choke out a laugh. “Are you serious? You can’t pay him to have more fun than he’d have anyway.”

“Besides, if you pay him, how are we doing you a favor?” Seth asked.

“Well ... um...” Finn scratched at the couple days of growth on his chin. “He still needs your permission.”

“Fine.”

Jack let out a whoop of joy and ran up to hug him about the waist. “Thank you, Mr. Finn. I promise, I’ll work hard and listen and take the best care of your dogs.”

Putting a hand on top of the kid’s mop of hair, Finn smiled. He was sure he would.

Finn woke early the next morning before the sun had even deigned to make an appearance, not exactly eager to get out of bed. But at least he had a goal in mind, something to work toward. And he knew he had his father’s respect and his approval to try a new business model.

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