The very thought of it makes me want to cry. There has to be a way to give these sweet things a home. “You just want someone to love you, right?” I ask the overweight basset hound as I rub behind his long, floppy, brown and white ear.
It dawns on me I’ve practically isolated myself from the male population. It’s only a dry spell I muse stroking the pup’s soft hair. My career needs to be my main focus right now. I haven’t completely given up on dating, but the relationships I had with men during college were subpar at best. Sure, there could be some truth to Callie’s teasing that it’s hard for any guy to stand a chance when compared to a teen girl’s infatuation.
An enchantment I made larger than life.
My crush was fueled by my brief wide-eyed teenaged interactions with Jason. That and an imagination worthy of a Christmas Hallmark movie. None of it was rooted in reality. For all I know he could’ve been a lackluster boyfriend, and that’s why Corinne set her sights on Ian. But deep down, I don’t believe that. Yet now that my brother has destroyed their relationship and probably any chance of Jason trusting anyone again, I need to keep my irrational fantasy tightly locked away.
Reaching in to cuddle an overweight rabbit named George, my mind flicks back to bumping into Jason at the café recently. How angry his expression became when he noticed our family walking in the door.
Will that ever go away?
“Oh, Joy would love you, George.” My sweet niece, who has a smile for everyone she meets, loves animals. I think she’d enjoy the feel of the bunny’s downy fur against her skin.
My niece is the only good thing to come out of that awful time. I knew all along that Ian making a move for his best friend’s girl would come back to bite him. Karma is a cruel bedfellow. How do men get so entranced by a pretty smile, Barbie hair, and big boobs?
Yet for all of his mistakes, Ian’s a great dad. It’s infuriating how that awful woman walked away from her daughter, only to drag the divorce on and on, purely to drain my brother of every red cent. Wish I could get a front seat to Karma’s plans for Corinne.
Between my dad raising the two of us as a single father, and now Ian, it made it even more important that I do well in school. I made the decision to pursue a degree in marketing from one of the best colleges in the area so I could start a business and make a life for myself. This girl is not going to let any man leave her high and dry.
I return George to his temporary home, and move a few crates over to find a one-eyed Schnauzer named Henrietta. Unlocking the cage, I carefully place my hand inside for her to sniff and wait patiently for her to creep closer. Cupping the face of the sweet hound with a little white beard, I pet the gray dog gently until she inches closer. Her plight makes me so sad.
We’re all just one step away from being rejected for all eternity, right?I’ll never make it through this charity event without adopting one of these guys.
“Hey, you make some new friends?” I jump, startled by Corbin’s voice, grateful I hadn’t been holding Henrietta when he walked in. “Oh, I’m sorry, Quinn. Here you go, bringing some much-needed love to these guys, and I practically give you a heart attack.”
I laugh. “It’s so quiet. I guess it speaks to how little interaction they receive that they don’t even bark when a stranger is here.”
Corbin’s solemn face reflects the truth in my statement. “It’s a really great thing you’re doing with this fundraiser, Quinn.” He comes closer, giving Henrietta a scratch behind her ear. “Hey, are you free tonight? I’d love to take you to dinner to thank you for everything you’re doing. It might give us more time to go over your plans. I didn’t expect to get so tied up with the vet this afternoon.”
“Oh, it’s okay, Corbin. It’s not like I had an appointment. Yeah, dinner would be great,” I answer, closing Henrietta’s crate. Corbin’s an attractive man in his mid-twenties. But, as is usually the case, there’s about as much spark with him as a match in the rain. But I’ve never gotten an unprofessional vibe from him. This feels strictly like a business dinner. He could be dating someone for all I know.
Besides, I’m holding out for a healthy relationship where there’s unparalleled chemistry. With a partner who respects me. I’m only twenty-two. I just need to let go of any thought that could be Jason Bristow.
But I can still look, right?
Chapter 12
Jason
“I cannot believe we had to respond to that,” John mutters. “These people are absurd.”
We’d been dispatched with sirens blazing for a fall at the Hayes Resort. Turns out it wasn’t the elderly patient who fell. It was the old fart’s scotch.
His wife and daughter were out shopping, and he claimed he rang 911 because the broken glass was a safety risk. I think it was so we’d clean it up his mess before they got home. Then as if that wasn’t bad enough, the crotchety old man had the nerve to ask us to make him a new one.
“Hey, turn that up,” Layton shouts over the sound of a nonemergency EMS call being dispatched as we attempt to grab lunch.
“Is that Quinn on KMAG?” John asks.
“Yeah. I think it’s a replay. This is the morning show.”
We all listen, Layton and John beaming with pride, as Quinn describes all of the events planned for the upcoming Bathtub Party Day festival. Her sweet voice is bubby and engaging. I have to give it to her. Short stuff has grown into a kick-ass businesswoman.
“Quinn is really going for it,” John exclaims from the rear seat. “Man, she’s working her ass off to make the calendars and festival a success, and we have a lot to gain from it.”
“Hell, just getting our reputation fixed would be enough. But to have the increased funds for supplies and a new ladder truck would be phenomenal,” Layton adds.
I have to admit, their conversation, coupled with her enthusiastic stint on the radio, gives me a twinge of guilt about being the only holdout.Not enough, I’d change my mind.There’s no reason a cute Dalmatian couldn’t take the last month of the calendar.
