Page 59 of Single Mom's Mountain Men
Charlie shoots me an amused somewhat triumphant look.
This can't be happening.
"Guys." I can't believeI'mthe voice of reason here. "We don't even know where this thing came from. It could be wild. Or it could already have an owner who's looking for it."
"It doesn't."
"How do you know?"
"Because I called the number on the tag. When they answered, I told the man that I had his dog. He said 'keep it' and hung up." Charlie shrugs. "Safe to say he doesn't want it anymore."
"Poor thing," Patty sighs.
"Poor thing?" I frown at Patty. "He probably doesn't want it for a good reason. Maybe the dog is crazy. It was growling at me the entire time."
"Because you had a threatening aura. He’s been nothing but sweet to me," Charlie says and proves it by patting the dog on his head. And when Maddie reaches over to pat it too,ignoring her mother’s warning call, the dog doesn’t so much as bare teeth at her. Instead, it licks her palm.
"Aww," Patty says. "Isn’t he precious?"
I look at her, incredulous. Am I screaming into the void? Is no one listening to me here?
She shoots me an apologetic look. "Sorry. The girls are just excited because they've always wanted a dog."
"So? Get another one. Get a cute little poodle or something."
"I want this one!" Maddie says
"Me too," Katie concurs.
Patty presses her lips together, still looking apologetic but happy all the same.
And just like that, I know I’ve been outvoted.
Mitch, the traitorous bastard, even grins at me. "I guess that’s settled then."
I inhale and blow out a loud breath.
Then, I pivot and head back to my room. I don’t even feel like going to Cockrey’s anymore. I didn’t feel like going in the beginning but now my mood is completely soured.
Within minutes, there's a knock on my door that sounds like Charlie's. Measured and annoyingly considerate
"Fuck off," I say but he opens the door anyway closing it behind him.
"We need to talk."
"I don’t want to talk to you," I grumble. I know I'm acting like a child, but somehow I can't help it.
"Too bad," Charlie says flatly.
"No matter what you tell me I'm not going to be happy about the dog."
"I'm not here about the dog," he says leaning back against the wall. He's calm, speaking in his annoying Charlie voice. "I'm here about Patty."
I turn to him. "What about her?"Please don't tell me you proposed and she said yes.
Charlie runs his hands through his hair. "Look I'm not great with words so I'm just going to lay it all out. I like her and you like her too, right?"
I nod, wondering where he's going with this.
