Page 19 of Falling Inn Love
“I’m so glad you found them,” she says, her eyes glassy.
We pull up to the inn and she parks. She leans in for a closer look. “Looks like one is a boy and this one,” she says, lifting up its back legs, “is a girl.” She holds the girl close and speaks softly to her, stroking the puppy’s head.
“Let’s get them inside. Kase is going to love this,” I say as I pick up the male and we head into the kitchen.
Sasha turns from the oven and takes one look at us. “Nuh-uh. Not in my kitchen, Evan Thomas. Get those dogs out of here. I’m not getting a health code violation.”
I roll my eyes but smile as we head to the front, where I fill their bowl and set it down. They stretch, drink more water, and sniff at our hands.
“I wonder if Sasha has any tuna in the kitchen,” I muse.
Beth stares at me like a deer in the headlights. “I’m not going back there. She’s not happy,” she says, showing her palms. “You can fight her for some tuna.”
“Fight who?” Sasha says, walking up behind us. She hands us a bowl of cooked ground beef. She runs a tight ship in the kitchen, but I knew there was no way she’d turn down anyone or anything that is hungry. She’s a softy.
“Thanks, Sasha,” I say gratefully as I take the bowl and set it on the floor.
“Where did you find them?” she asks, squatting down to pet them.
“Someone stuffed them into a trash bag and dumped them off Childers.”
“Monsters,” Sasha says. “You’ll have to run into town to get them dog food. I can’t be giving them any more of my good ground beef. But they sure are cute.”
“Thanks, Sash,” I say, picking up the boy and nuzzling him under my chin.
“I love her,” Beth coos, holding the female and kissing her head. “Can I keep this one? You can keep that one,” she says with a hopeful, peaceful glint in her eyes.
I sit back and watch her with the puppy, her usual sadness, even if just for now, replaced with joy. I want her to keep feeling that joy. Maybe this is a great way to make her want to stay. After sixty days, she won’t want to leave. I have no shame. I’ll use puppies to get her to see me.
“But why would you want to split them up? Don’t you think you should just stay here with her?” I tease. My gaze drops to her mouth, I want to kiss her so badly.
“Sixty days, Evan.” She sighs and goes back to kissing the puppy’s head. Something tells me by the way she’s smiling that she’s trying to convince herself of that, not me.
“Sixty days to make you fall in love with the inn,” I correct her as I pick up the other puppy and hold it to my cheek.
“You are a sly fox, Evan,” she says with a chuckle.
“Is it working?” I ask, inches from her face, testing to see if she’ll let me kiss her. Her eyes darken into bright emerald pools, but she doesn’t move. Of all the moments we’ve shared so far, this feels like the right one, so I go for it.
I kiss her, and she leans into me, kissing me back. I keep kissing her mouth, sucking on her bottom lip until she’s breathless. The way she reciprocates my kiss, her arms roaming up my chest and around my neck, I know she’s into this. I start moving my kisses down her neck until I hear thunderous footsteps approaching. This is theonetime I could definitely not have Kase be present. Little cockblocker.
“Sasha said you got two puppies!” Kase shrieks, running to us. Beth turns her attention to the little boy, but my eyes never leave her face. Now that I’ve kissed her, I know this is real.I know.This must be what women talk about when they say their ovaries ache, because she hits me right in the feelers. I’m in deep now.
Kase leans in and pets the puppies. I know just how to make his day. “Hey, buddy. Do you think you could watch them for me while I run to the store to get some supplies?”
“Yes! I can. They need toys, too, Evan,” he tells me, his small voice tinged with authority. “My friend Jack has a dog and he has lots of chew toys. And treats,” he adds.
“That’s a good idea, buddy. I will get plenty of chew toys for them. What do you think of them?”
“I love them,” he says, smiling as he pets them.
I notice Beth is smiling sadly at Kase and I wonder what she’s thinking about. I nudge her and say, “Every dog needs a boy. They’re going to be so happy here.” I hope she can see herself happy here, too. She may not see it, but I’ll do my best to show her. With puppies or whatever else it takes. I will work for this woman.
“What do we have here?” Pete asks from the doorway, looking over our shoulders. “Puppies! Aww, they’re going to eat all our shoes, aren’t they?”
I nod. “Probably.”
“Evan found them abandoned. I think we’re keeping them,” Beth says, grinning. “I claim this one,” she informs him, picking up the female, whose black and white pattern is slightly different than the male’s so it’s easy to tell them apart.
