Page 21 of Sometimes You Stay

Cretia followed the sound of playing dogs across the yard and toward the big red barn. The sliding door on the front side was closed, so she tiptoed around the end of the building, running a hand along the bright wooden planks, the paint smooth and unmarred by time and sun.

The barks grew louder and more frenzied until Finn broke through them. “Sit.” He cleared his throat. “George.” He sounded both mildly annoyed and amused, and Cretia hurried toward him, curious if his expression matched his tone.

“Good boy, Ringo.” His praise was immediately followed by the telltale sounds of a dog devouring his crunchy treat.

When Cretia finally rounded the corner, the scene before her was not what she’d anticipated. Finn stood in the center of a small fenced-in corral, a fluffy black puppy under one arm and three identical copies around his feet, jumping at his knees. Behind him, a full-sized Newfoundland was rooting for something in his pocket.

“Joe, stop it,” Finn said over his shoulder.

She barely recognized Joe Jr., all dry and fluffy, his tongue lolling out of the corner of his mouth. The dog’s big nose didn’t stop his mission.

“I’m going to put you inside,” Finn threatened.

Joe remained undeterred. But suddenly his nose tipped into the air, and he looked around Finn’s leg. With a guttural woof, he bounded toward her, nearly tripping over his own feet. He wasn’t nearly as scary on land when she didn’t think he was about to jump on top of her. But he was still a beast—immense and intimidating.

Except there was something like a goofy grin on his face and maybe a bit of joy in his bark.

He plowed into the chicken-wire fence, shaking his head over the top and sending drool flying toward her. She raised her elbow as a shield just in time for his slobber to coat her arm instead of her face.

“Cretia!” Finn’s eyes flew open wide, and he fought his way free of the three puppies trying to trip him. “I’m sorry. Joe isn’t used to having—That is, what are you doing here? How’s your ankle?”

With one hand she held out his flannel while trying to surreptitiously shake her other arm dry without wiping Joe’s slobber on her clean sweater. “It’s fine—much better today. Marie asked me to bring this ... Actually, I wanted to say thank you. To you and Joe.” The latter happily accepted her rub of his head. “You didn’t have to pull me out of the water or take me to Marie’s, and I wasn’t very ... appreciative yesterday.”

“More than understandable. That was quite an ordeal. And I was a little bit ... well...”

“Judgmental. I think the word you’re looking for is judgmental. And nosy.”

A grin broke through his beard, crinkling the corners of his eyes as he finally took his shirt. “Yes. Those things. I’m sorry about that.” He adjusted the puppy under his arm with a shrug of his shoulder. “Maybe we can start over?”

“All right.” She moved to shake his hand but realized they were both full. “I’m Lucretia—Cretia—Martin.” She laid heavily on the last syllable again, emphasizing the longe.

His eyebrows rose and his forehead wrinkled. “Mar-teen?”

She nodded firmly. “It’s Spanish.”

“And I’m Finn Chaffey.”

“Finnegan,” she clarified.

He frowned. “To my parents and a select few women who enjoy bossing me around.”

“So, just Finn?”

The puppy under his arm wiggled, apparently bored with their conversation, so Finn put him down and he joined his identical siblings.

“Marie doesn’t have internet at her place right now. But she said maybe I could borrow yours to order some new equipment.”

“The rice didn’t work?” He didn’t sound particularly surprised, but there was a note of sadness in his voice.

“No. They’re all shot. My phone won’t even pretend to turn on. I think the salt water demolished it. I need to borrow a computer with internet. It won’t take me very long.”

His gaze darted toward the house. “I’m ... Can you wait an hour? I just started with the puppies, and I’d like to keep them on schedule.” Something like hope flashed in his eyes. “You can join us.”

Cretia looked around for evidence of what they’d beenup to but spotted only a few tennis balls scattered across the green grass. “For what exactly?”

“Puppy training.” Finn waved at the four pups. “Or, more precisely, puppy socialization. It’s good for them to be around other people, to get used to various voices and smells.”

“And I’m other people?”

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