Page 133 of Hound Dog
“Mom,” I cut her off quietly. “You paid for a matchmaker. So, you’re getting a match.Anda dog.”
She looked terrified as her eyes ping-ponged back and forth between Lady and me. “But—”
“Love is always a risk. But it also comes with rewards,” I repeated her exact words back to her with a satisfied smile. It was rare that I got to throw something back in her facesosoon.
She scrunched her nose and stood up, staring me dead in the eye. “All right, Hound Dog. Show me what you’ve got.”
Chapter Forty
Haylee
The house was quiet.Not just quiet…silent.
Growing up, with only my mom and me in our house, it was typically pretty quiet most of the time.
But this was different. I didn’t have a TV to watch to pass the time. Only my iPad and laptop which I could use to stream a show if I wanted to.
But I didn’t.
I had one lamp left. An air mattress. A large pizza on its way, and a bottle of wine.
And, of course, Freckles curled up beside me.
That was it.
And tomorrow, I turned the keys over to the new owner.
Maybe I should have bought a second bottle of wine.
In my gut, I knew selling the house was the right choice. But that didn’t make it hurt any less.
There was a knock at the door, and Freckles leaped off the air mattress, charging the front door barking.
I sighed, relieved that Maisie was finally here. She was supposed to be packing for Europe, but she promised me she would at least come by for a slice of pizza.
Even though I didn’t want to admit it, I didn’t want to be alone tonight.
As I stood up from where I was laying on the air mattress, my mind wandered to Finn, and not for the first time today.
I missed him.
Maisie knocked again, louder this time.
I rolled my eyes and picked up the pace, jogging down the short hallway to the front door.
Scooping Freckles into my arms, I swung the door open. “You are so impatient, you know that?”
My whole body locked up tightly. Instead of Maisie standing there, it was Finn.
I had to be dreaming. Because he had been haunting my dreams for over a month now.
Yep, that’s what happened. I fell asleep on that horrible, dusty air mattress. Because there was no way Finn was actually here in front of me.
“Really? I thought I’d been pretty patient this month, giving you your space,” he said, gripping two paper cups in his hand.
Wake up, Haylee.
But I didn’t. Because it wasn’t a dream. He was here. He was actually here, standing in front of my childhood home. Which as of 10:00 a.m. tomorrow would no longer be mine.
