To be loved by you, p.4
To Be Loved by You, page 4
Chapter 4
What was he going to do about it? The thought stuck around long after they’d left the conversation behind. Considering how hyperaware he was proving to be of Ava’s presence nearby, the safest thing to do was nothing. While they were at the center, his kids had the rec room in which to shake off excess energy. When they needed to calm down, they could retreat to the contemplation room or go outside to work in the garden.
The problem was, none of that helped them after they headed home. No doubt, this was why his go-to mentor for the program had been encouraging him to work meditation and yoga into their group-therapy time. He didn’t doubt she was right, but he was best off looking for someone else—no matter how often she kept telling him to trust what the universe was sending his way.
The fact was, he had zero doubt Ava would be his undoing if he let her into his world. And he’d worked so damn hard to get to where he was.
His stomach comfortably full of pizza, Jeremy stretched back on the grass, propping himself up on his elbows. Rolo settled next to him with a grunt that seemed to declare he’d been hoping for another few bites of crust before Jeremy finished eating.
At best guess, they’d reached the halfway point with the dogs, and it was nearing four o’clock. Good thing he didn’t have plans tonight. Good thing you never have plans on a Saturday night.
“When I was a kid and my fingers got wrinkled like this,” Olivia said, “I used to worry they’d stay this way forever.” She was sitting on the grass next to Gabe and had twisted to use him as a backrest.
“I’m wondering when you were ever around this much water for your fingers to get this wrinkled.” Ava was walking back from taking their plates to the recycling bin, her flip-flops wet enough to squeak as she walked. “It’s not like we ever passed our summer days lying around anything bigger than a kiddie pool.”
Olivia pursed her lips. “You have a point. Then from baths, I guess. And we played in the creek, remember? Then there was high-school swim team.”
Ava pointed a finger her way playfully. “I forgot you liked high school enough to participate in sports.”
Jeremy was about to ask where they’d gone to high school when Olivia made a face. “Says the girl voted prettiest, best smile, and what was the last one? Most likely to succeed?”
Ava’s gaze flicked Jeremy’s direction for a split second. “That doesn’t mean I enjoyed it.”
Olivia opened her mouth, then shut it with a light shake of her head, heightening Jeremy’s curiosity. All afternoon, they’d seemed as close as sisters could be, but there was an energy in the air now that hinted of a past that wasn’t quite settled.
Still standing, Ava raised her arms overhead and stretched. “If I sit down, I don’t think I’ll summon the energy to get back up.”
Forcing himself to look anywhere but at her, Jeremy reminded himself that chemistry wasn’t necessarily compatibility. He spotted Patrick walking their way, rolling a flatbed cart with an extra-large crate on top. “If you’re ready to get going again, I’m game.”
“How goes it, Patrick?” Gabe asked as he neared.
“It’s going as I anticipated. We’re a hundred and sixty-two dogs in and one hundred and thirty-four more to go. For those who can stay through the end, we have frozen custards from Ted Drewes in eight varieties being delivered at seven thirty.”
“Nice. Who can turn down Ted Drewes?” Ava said.
Patrick’s forehead knit together as he set the crate on the ground near the washing tubs. “I suspect people with egg allergies and those on a sugar-free diet.”
Jeremy pressed his lips into a flat line to keep from breaking into a smile. Patrick had proven not to be one for rhetorical questions, but even with people who knew this, asking them could be a hard habit to break.
Ava’s eyes had widened just a touch, but she seemed nothing but earnest. “True.”
Patrick gave the group an abrupt thumbs-up. “You four are doing well, you two in particular.” He nodded at Jeremy and Ava. “Station three has the record of most dogs washed before lunch, with you two being three ahead of Gabe and Olivia.”
“I didn’t realize anyone was keeping count,” Gabe muttered.
“Have you not checked out my spreadsheet? As a group, you’re two dogs ahead of station one, and five above station two, so you’ve earned bathing these little guys.” He stepped to the side and opened the crate door.
“Puppies!” Ava and Olivia sounded as if they’d just won the lottery.
Jeremy stood and wiped the back of his shorts, chuckling at the girls’ enthusiasm. He could see an entwined mess of ginger-colored fur inside the crate. A closely knit jumble of puppies was sleeping, but two were awake and hiding out in the back.
“Yes, puppies,” Patrick answered. “I estimate this litter of goldendoodles to be between nine to ten weeks old.”
“I couldn’t think of a better after-lunch pick-me-up, Patrick.” Ava grinned.
Patrick paused, not seeming quite sure how to respond for a second or two. “Megan is bringing over a portable play yard so they can get some energy out while you’re bathing their littermates. And I would give them the opportunity to go to the bathroom before you place them in the tubs.”
“Good idea,” Jeremy said.
As Patrick took off, Jeremy headed over to check out the puppies with Rolo trailing closely after him, no doubt hoping he was heading back over to the pizza boxes still on the snack and drink table. Rolo lost his cool when it came to pizza crusts.
Ava and Olivia were squatting in front of the crate door and cooing. Gabe caught Jeremy’s eye and winked. “You’d think they hadn’t just washed more than a dozen dogs under the age of one.”
“Oh, don’t be a spoilsport!” Olivia stood up with a chunky puppy in her hands. “Though fair warning, this guy doesn’t smell so great.”
Gabe warded her off by putting his hands out flat in front of him. “I think I’ll hold off on snuggles until after their baths.”
“More snuggles for me then.” Olivia headed for the strip of grass as Megan, the director, came out the back door of the shelter carrying the collapsed play yard by a handle strap.
“It turns out one of the vans was full of a lot of little ones, so you’ll be needing this play yard for a while. I’m guessing we’ll be able to move a bit faster, too, judging by their smaller size.”
“Well, no complaints here if they’re this cute.” Ava was cradling one of the puppies as well. “Though Olivia wasn’t kidding about the smell.”
“Poor things are overdue for their first bath, that’s for sure.”
Jeremy followed Megan to the grass and helped set up the play yard. Rolo walked along the circular pen as it was unfolded and snapped into place, sniffing the lingering scents from the last time it was used.
“Thanks for giving us your whole afternoon, Jeremy,” Megan said. “Does it feel odd without your kids here?”
“It did at first. They’d have loved helping out today, though I understand why they couldn’t. Honestly, them not being here has me thinking about fostering a few of these guys for you, assuming you still need foster help.”
Her face brightened. “We’re bulging at the seams with all of these guys we’re taking on. If you’re serious, you can have your pick, for sure.”
After Jeremy promised he would, Megan headed off to take play yards to the other washing stations.
After all five puppies were inside, they stuck together like they’d been Velcroed. They took in their new surroundings with wide eyes, sniffing the ground and squatting to use the bathroom in a way that made it seem like they were taking turns. When a bucket was dumped at the neighboring wash station, the resounding splash had them scattering to the far side of the pen.
Rolo, who’d been hanging nearby, was looking back and forth between the people and puppies as if trying to determine what the fuss was about. He barked a baritone woof, making them scatter again.
Jeremy chuckled. “They’re cute, that’s for sure.” They were a mass of awkwardly long legs, slim bodies, dark-brown noses and eyes, and a sea of dirty fur of varying shades of ginger and blond. “I bet this is quite a shock for them, isolated as they’ve been.”
Ava clicked her tongue. “Thankfully, they’re young. They’ll adjust quickly, don’t you think?” When Jeremy agreed, she brushed her fingertips against his arm. “How about you pick one to start with?”
“Sure.” Anyone else could’ve touched him like that and not sent heat racing through his veins. He scooped up the nearest puppy to find that she immediately went limp and stayed frozen until the first spray of water connected with her feet. As Ava moved the hose higher, the terrified thing whimpered and cried and turned into a wiggly, hard-to-hold ball in his hands. “Something tells me none of these guys were offered baths until they were headed to meet a potential buyer.”
“I’m betting you’re right.” After handing the shared hose off to Olivia when she was finished, Ava eyed the puppy skeptically. “She’s pretty wriggly. Want to keep your hold of her, and I’ll wash her?”
Jeremy agreed, but as she stepped in close again and he was no more immune than he’d been before the pizza break, he racked his brain for a scrap of the advice he was always passing out to his program kids. Breathe, yeah, that’s one.
He focused on the puppy’s slight body underneath her soaked, sudsy cream-colored fur. The unhappy animal continually picked up her feet like she was in a high-legged dance. “She looks like one of those trick horses, picking her feet up like that.”
“She does.” Ava laughed. “It’s probably a good thing I’m absolutely not in the market for a dog.” She used her shoulder to wipe at a mess of suds on her cheek. “This little girl is almost too cute to be real.”
“Why no dogs?” Maybe talking would help divert his attention from the way the small bubbles of soap were clinging to the delicate bones of her wrists like a bracelet.
She shrugged sheepishly. “Technically I’m homeless right now and shacking up with my sister. Her one-bedroom apartment has all it can handle with Morgan—her dog—my cat, Cleo, and us.”
“That makes sense.”
“Hey, we’re ready for the hose whenever,” she called to her sister. To Jeremy, she added, “It’s both a plus and minus of being a real estate agent. I think I know every fabulous nook and cranny this city has to offer in terms of great places to live. I was crazy about my condo in Kirkwood. It was right on Kirkwood Road and no more than a few hundred yards from a Kaldi’s Coffee. It wasn’t until recently that I realized my daily coffee purchases rivaled my monthly car payment.”
He laughed. “I’m sure if I counted my morning trips to my corner coffee shop down the street from me in Lafayette Square, I’d be in the same boat.”
“You’re in Lafayette Square?” When he nodded, she added, “That’s one of my favorite city neighborhoods.”
“Oh yeah? Well, you’ll hear no complaints about it from me. It’s been a great place to live and work.”
“I bet. Had I realized I’d be selling my condo a little over a year after I bought it, I would’ve made different decisions all around.” She waved a hand dismissively and, after her sister passed her the hose, she began to rinse off the squirming puppy. Jeremy couldn’t help but notice how naturally they began to move around each other again, like today was a dress rehearsal after a string of practices. “One of them would’ve been not getting married in the first place, but that’s the gift of hindsight, right?”
His gaze went automatically to her ring finger. Catching the direction of his gaze, she added, “I’m recently divorced.”
“He’s a total prick, FYI,” Olivia said, making it clear she and Gabe were following along with their conversation. She stopped washing their puppy and shook her head exasperatedly. “Like seriously, the biggest ever.”
Ava smiled softly. “I love that you have my back, Sis.” To Jeremy, she gave a one-shoulder shrug. “The marriage was a mistake on my part. The way it fell apart proved it—and proved I was best off with it ending when it did.”
“Yeah, you were.” Olivia flicked a hand dismissively. “His loss, no question.”
Then Ava exhaled, her shoulders dropping an inch or two. “My sweet sister will never forgive him, and I don’t blame her. My ex stood me up on our first anniversary, and shortly after, he sent a text saying he wanted a divorce.”
“Ouch. That’s rough.”
Olivia tsked loud enough to be heard over the spray of the hose. “Isn’t it? I blocked him on social media after that.”
“It was inconsiderate, no question. So was immediately shacking up with a woman he works with—someone he’s known even longer than me.” Ava looked at Jeremy again and shrugged. “Turns out, our marriage was the catalyst they needed to realize they wanted to be together.”
In Jeremy’s line of work, he could typically find words for just about anything, but for some reason, the best he could do was take the hose and offer her the towel to wrap up the puppy. As soon as he let go of the unhappy thing, the puppy shook wildly, showering them with a fresh spray of water.
He wiped his face as dry as he could with a cleanish-looking spot on the back of his arm and forced himself to start talking, trusting the words would make sense. “These things—when they happen—for the most part we end up being thankful for them later.”
Ava met his gaze, her eyes blue and bright enough to shorten his inhale. “Thanks, and honestly, for the most part, I already am.”
After Gabe took a short call from the project manager who was remodeling the building next door for his and Yun’s new veterinary center, talk turned to the upcoming grand opening.
By the time the dogs were bathed, numbered, fed, and either transferred to the foster families and representatives of other shelters who began arriving in late afternoon or were set up in one of the shelter’s available kennels inside the building or in the two new temporary trailers, everyone’s energy was all but drained.
“Normally when I’m this tired and dirty, I soak in a warm bath,” Olivia said, “but I may well break out into hives the next time I even hear that word.”
Everyone laughed, including a few of the volunteers within earshot.
Gabe pulled his phone from his back pocket. “You’ve got to give it to Patrick. He was dead-on about the time. We finished up a little before seven forty-five.”
After washing up in the bathroom, Jeremy stuck around to have some custard, refusing to admit it had little to do with the custard and everything to do with a bit more time with Ava. Over the course of the day, he’d gone from seeing her as the woman behind the photo on the bench to a real person who was as kind and personable as she was stunning. At the refreshment table, he lifted aside the brown paper bag of dry ice at the top of the box and picked a cup at random.
“What’d you pick?” Ava asked, joining him. Now that the work was done, the groups were beginning to mingle with one another, but she didn’t appear any more eager to part ways with him than he did with her.
He flipped it over to read the bottom. “Muddy Mississippi. You ever tried it?”
“Multiple times. Great pick. And trust me, I know. I have a thing for sugar.” She closed a hand over her lower belly, making him wonder if she appreciated her goddess-like figure. “I bet I’ve tried every flavor they have at least once.”
“What’d you pick?”
“The Dottie. A personal favorite. It’s got mint, chocolate, and macadamia nuts.”
While they headed over to two empty chairs, Rolo lingered by the refreshment table in hopes of a handout. Spotting him, Megan stepped over and dug through the box until she found what she was looking for.
“I meant to give you this,” she said, walking over to Ava and Jeremy as Rolo followed at her heels, as if sensing he was about to score. “He was so great today, I ordered him a plain vanilla, so long as that’s okay with you.”
“Yeah, sure. He’ll love you forever.”
Megan peeled off the lid and placed it on the ground at Rolo’s feet. As soon as Megan’s hand was out of the way, he went to town licking the semisoft custard inside the cup. Like a pro, he locked the cup between his front paws and sank to the ground, stretching out against both Jeremy and Ava.
“Someone’s day has been made,” Ava said. “And how sweet; he’s actually lying on my toes.”
“He’s big on physical connection. No matter what room I’m in, the second I sit or lie down, there he is right beside me—or on me. If he were fifty pounds smaller, he’d make a great lap dog.”
While the worn-out group of dog washers began to eat, Megan finished thanking everyone for their hard work, and Patrick wrapped up with a few stats of his own, including announcing that Jeremy and Ava had held on to their lead of most dogs bathed and offering everyone at station three a ten-dollar gift card to spend in the shelter’s gift shop.
Ava raised her paper cup of custard to toast against his own. “Well done, partner.”
Jeremy grinned. “I couldn’t have done it without you.”
“I think I’ll use mine on those homemade tuna-and-catnip croutons. My kitty loves them.”
“Oh yeah? In good conscience, with as long as Rolo’s been here today, I can’t leave without taking home a bag of the sweet-potato-and-salmon bites that he goes crazy for.”
As Patrick continued talking, Ava bent down and gave Rolo an appreciative pat. When Patrick’s laundry list of stats no one else in the world would think to share seemed to be nearing an end, Ava offered her cup of custard in Jeremy’s direction. “Wanna try?” she whispered.
Dipping his spoon into her cup was a different sort of intimacy than accidentally brushing against each other as they washed the dogs, but he found himself doing it anyway. In six and a half hours, she’d broken down some of his barriers faster than he’d like to think possible. “It’s good.” He offered her his, which had turned out to be blended with peanut butter, chocolate chips, and pieces of sugar cone.
