Page 109 of Spying Under the Mistletoe
That might be true when it comes to humans, but I’m not sure how much it applies to a puppy. It’s not like he can dig under a fence and come bounding here if he wants.
“You’ve changed your mind, haven’t you?” Mary says, voice soft.
I stroke Whiskey’s fur again and nod. “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize he would grow on me the way he has.”
“That’s perfectly okay. Sometimes it takes the nudge of nearly losing someone to realize how much they mean to you.”
“You’re right. It does.”
In Chloe’s case, I walked away because it was easier than to risk losing her in the worst possible way.
But that’s not true for Whiskey. No one’s trying to kill him. He doesn’t have a contract on his head.
And despite his rough start, he isn’t attempting to push me away out of fear of loving someone.
I ignore the voice in my head, pointing out the irony of the last part. Pointing out that I’m as guilty of doing that to Chloe as she is of doing it to me.
30
Landon
“Whiskey,”I call out. “Walk?”
The bundle of energy comes barreling around the corner, his claws slipping on the hardwood floor.
Guess that answers my question.
He barks and jumps his paws on my legs. I bend down and attach the leash to his collar. His leg is fully healed now, which means we can go for a longer walk.
Which I desperately need.
And once I’ve done that. I’ll go for a hard run.
Emphasis on hard.
I open the front door and am brought up short. Jayden is standing on the stoop, his hand raised toward the doorbell. Sitting next to him, with his tongue lolling to the side, is Mojo, his goofy Mountain Bernese dog.
“Mojo wanted to visit Whiskey.” Jayden lifts his shoulders in a what-can-you-do shrug.
“Oh, he did, did he?” My gaze returns to his dog. “Is this true, Mojo? You begged Jayden to bring you over to visit Whiskey?”
“Woof.”
Whiskey barks excitedly in reply.
Okay, still not buying it.
“We’re just heading out for a walk.”
“Perfect. We’ll come with you.”
Not exactly what I’d planned, but that’s okay. I’m sure he’s dying to get back home to Isabelle, so he can screw her brains out. Which means he won’t be here long.
That doesn’t mean I’m not happy to see Jayden.
But it does mean I have a feeling I’ll want to go for that run even more once he leaves. I’ve known him too long to believe he just came over so the dogs can hang out together.
“What’s really going on?” I ask after we’ve walked a block. “And don’t give me that crap about the dogs spending quality time together.”
