Page 33 of Hound Dog
“And a commute that will add thirty minutes to my day.” He paused, his tone softening. “We’ve been through this, Haylee. It makes more sense for you to move here. Your mom’s house is nice, but it’s outdated. It would take six figures to renovate the kitchen and bathrooms alone.”
Your mom’s house.
After all these years, was that all that home was? Was it still not mine? I guess I hadn’t really made it my own. It still had mom’s curtains. Mom’s furniture. Her dishes and silverware.
The only thing I had updated was the master bedroom. And even that had taken me three whole years before I was able to move in there myself.
I ripped a few squares of paper towels and sprayed down the countertops. The irony didn’t escape me. Here I was, in a position similar to Aunt Meryl. Someone I loved was trying to nudge me into selling and moving for ‘my own good.’ But this was different, wasn’t it? Aunt Meryl’s health was in jeopardy. Whereas, Ben was just being practical.
“I don’t want to think about selling it yet,” I said, moving the flower centerpiece out of the way to clean beneath it. Maybe, just maybe, I’d consider renting it to someone while Ben and I tried living together. But selling felt too finite. Too permanent.
“We can talk more about it when I come to visit next weekend.”
I froze, clutching the damp paper towels. “Weekend? I thought you were coming for the whole week?”
Tense silence grew on the other line. “Iwas. But with this new client, I really need to stay and get some work done. I’ll drive up Friday afternoon, though, and I’ll be there until Sunday.”
I exhaled slowly, counting to three before I answered. “Okay. If that’s the best you can do.”
“I need to go, babe. I have to finish up these notes for Jim. But I’ll talk to you soon. Love you.”
“Love you, too.” I’d barely gotten the words out before he hung up.
I tugged the earbuds free, slipping them back into their case. Was this the life I’d signed up for, being with a man like Ben?
He wasn’t a bad guy. He was a hard worker. Smart. Driven. And with that personality came a negative side—that he was a workaholic. Which was fine… for now. But what about when we had kids someday? Would he ever be able to walk away from work? Ever be able to take family vacations? Or God forbid leave work at the office for the weekends to spend real quality time with his family?
My thoughts strayed to Finn for the briefest moment.
And though my mind might have been unintentionally, momentarily traitorous,Iwasn’t. I wasn’t a cheater.
I stared down at the promise ring he’d given me when he was two months away from graduating law school and brushed my thumb over the small sapphire chip in the plain silver setting. At the time, it symbolized so much for us.
The promise to stay with each other. To love each other.
The promise of an engagement ring to come.
Unwelcomed, Finn’s face popped into my mind once more.
The problem was, it was a promise I wasn’t sure I wanted Ben to keep anymore.
Chapter Nine
Finn
I stoodin front of Meryl’s house—the same house where I picked Haylee up for a date all those years ago.
What am I doing?Was I this desperate for work that I was going to resort to taking on fourteen random dogs that the crazy animal hoarder in our town had collected just so I could keep my new business afloat?
My phone buzzed in my pocket. I yanked it free and discovered a text message from Greg waiting for me.
Big date night tonight. Would have never happened without you. Which tie should I wear?
Attached to the text message was a selfie of Greg holding two ties up to his shirt.
And in the background, two dogs sat staring at him intently. The newly adopted Newfoundland… and Chewy, the fluffy little dog Greg had claimed not to want.
He’d fallen in love with that little ball of fluff while we were out trying to score numbers, and he’d adopted both.Andhe managed to get a date for tonight, too.
