Page 151 of Scarlet Promise
“You like?—”
“The wedding was magical,” I say, cutting him off.
He leans down and bites my lip. “I didn’t finish. Do you like this house?”
“It’s nice.”
“The grounds are huge. They have horses, a full live-in staff. And I was thinking of giving them more to do. Maybe hiring a full-time vet, setting up an adoption center, shelters.”
“In this town?”
“Here,” he says. “You were talking about an animal sanctuary where dogs and cats can come and live out their days if they don’t get adopted. We could turn it into something special. Like you want.”
My heart picks up speed. “Like the cat cafes we have and the doggy day centers?”
“Like a place they can call home. The ones people don’t want, they can stay here.”
We’ve done a lot already. Eva runs a bigger, better shelter now, one with more facilities, more foot traffic, and more room to take in more dogs. We hired staff, too. I also have three other shelters, plus some cat cafes and the dog equivalent, where the social dogs can play with people and get their activity fix while hopefully getting adopted.
We save a lot of dogs from death. Cats too. But I’ve been looking for a big space to have a sanctuary…
“This place, Ilya?”
He nods. “My gift to you. This would be perfect, right?”
I look at him in wonder. Albert barks as Katerina babbles, grabbing at her daddy.
I kiss him. “I love you so much, Ilya Belov. You’re my heart.”
“And you’re mine.”
“This place is perfect,” I say.
I know he’ll be there to help me.
But I bite my lip. “I didn’t get you a wedding present.”
He kisses me softly. “You have.”
“I have?”
“Albert. Katerina. You. I have you.”
Always, I think, snuggling against him.
And forever.
