Page 46 of Love in Training
“Deal.”
I rise from my chair and pick up Rufus’s leash, bracing myself to face the throngs of his new fan club. If I can just make it to my desk and start sifting through complaints in the inbox, I’ll have less space to wonder if I’ve just made a huge mistake.
“Oh, I have one other assignment for you,” Randall says as I reach the door. “We were asked to cover an event in Castle Rock this weekend. Might be a good palate cleanser after the Vanderpool thing.”
I look back at him with a raised brow. “That sounds more enticing than it probably is.”
He shrugs. “There are a couple of doctors handing out a new scholarship in memory of their son. Seemed like a decent feel-good story.”
Something about this pings in my gut. Probably because I know a couple of doctors from Castle Rock who lost a son. “What, ah... what’s the name of the family?”
Randall checks his computer and looks up at me. “Forbes?”
My stomach knots. And now I’m right back to believing the planets have aligned to ensure my demise. I wouldn’t be surprised if I walked outside and got hit by a meteorite. But even as these thoughts swirl through my mind, I hear myself say, “Sure, a scholarship. I’ll cover it. That’s definitely not sex or dating.”
When I return to my desk after a detour outside for Rufus to pee, I open my browser in an effort to collect myself. Or at least figure out what I’m doing. But when I find the event I committed to covering this weekend, the world seems to shrink.
Saturday, March 21st- Castle Rock High School:
First Annual Kyle Forbes Scholarship Award Ceremony
Suddenly, I’m sitting here at my desk a year ago, combing the internet for topics to write about when I stumbled on a social media post from a high school friend that rocked my foundation in three words:RIP, Kyle Forbes.
On some level, I’d probably seen it coming. Only it felt like a sneak attack. Was this really how I would learn the man I’d been in love with since I was sixteen was dead? But when I clicked with numb fingers, the internet confirmed the news. Kyle had already been gone a week. I’d lived seven entire days on this earth without him, and I hadn’t even known.
Because no one had bothered to tell me.
Something lands on my thighs, jarring me into the present. I look down to find the Kong toy in my lap and a pair of gold-colored eyes looking at me that seem to echo the emptiness in my heart. He was there. He was with Kyle when he did it—he must have been. And I’m furious he didn’t stop him. If thisanimal is as smart as everyone says, couldn’t he tell how bad it was? He could’ve alerted someone. Donesomething.
Rufus rests his muzzle on my leg, and I’m about to shove him away when our eyes meet again, and I pause. Because there’s something else I recognize that’s hard to describe. We stare at each other for another moment. And then, slowly, I place my hand on his head. Run my fingers over the velvety fur on his ears.
Because maybe he’s also hurt. Maybe he misses Kyle as much as I do.
CHAPTER
SIXTEEN
I borrowLydia’s car for the second time in a week, exchanging it for a quart of peanut butter cup ice cream and a dozen promises to fill it with gas, until she reminds me it’s electric. While there was no way to strap Rufus to my Vespa for the thirty-minute drive to Castle Rock, I’m trying to ignore how the dog has increased my need to own a vehicle.
Wind tosses the naked tree branches when I pull into the driveway of my childhood home. The sky is darkening, and the faint odor of petrichor hangs in the afternoon air. But it’s March in Colorado, which means the forecast could go any number of ways. It might rain, but we might also have three feet of snow by tomorrow. Or it might be sunny and clear in an hour. The weather forecasters were so vague on the drive down, I gave up and listened to music instead.
“Hi, thanks again for doing this,” I say, avoiding Mom’s eyes when she opens her front door. She’s dressed as casual as she ever gets, with wide-leg pants and a loose sweater draped over her slim frame. Her dark hair is swept back in a way that makes her gray streak even more dramatic against her pale, rose-dusted cheeks. “I don’t have much time, but here’s his Kong toy and some extra treats.”
She ushers us inside and takes the leash, immediately offering one of the cheese squares to Rufus. “Oh, he’s a sweetheart. But he looks just like one of those police dogs, doesn’t he?”
“Uh, sure.” I hesitate, glancing to where he’s straining at the end of the leash, scanning her modest living room with his sharp, golden eyes. “Here, he likes to do this thing...”
I unclip the leash, and Rufus immediately darts around the house, sniffing the furniture and sticking his nose in every corner the way I’ve gotten used to him doing each time we enter my apartment.
He’s already panting heavily, and for a second, I bite my lip, wondering if it’s a mistake to leave him here. What if he loses his mind and destroyshercouch after I go? I have to cover this scholarship ceremony—want to, if I’m honest with myself. But Rufus is technically not a service dog, and I don’t want to risk bringing him anywhere near the Forbes family.
“I’m just going to get a few quotes and come right back,” I say.
“I’ll be fine, Caprice. Remember, I had a springer spaniel before you and your brother were born.” She hesitates, then adds, “I wish I could go with you.”
I glance up, and her hazel eyes are so full of feeling, I have to look away. We’ve hardly talked about Kyle since he died, but I know Mom loved him. He spent more time at our house growing up, either with me or Theo, than he probably ever did at his own. He would offer to help her with chores and always called her “ma’am.” She took pictures of us here when he picked me up for prom.
“Sweetheart?” Mom says as I reach for the door. “You look really nice.”
