The statement squeezed Ransom’s heart even more, and suddenly in his mind he was looking up in the tree at the terrified eyes of the woman he had been starting to think he couldn’t live without.
If she was that terrified of a couple of adorable puppies, maybe she really wouldn’t ever stop being scared of dogs.
Ransom had gone all in with the business. He’d sunk all his savings and his time into training and breeding. He couldn’t even imagine what he would do to keep a roof over their heads if he didn’t have the dogs.
How can I even dream about being with her when I have no other way to provide for my family?
15
HAILEY
Hailey curled up on the sofa in the living room with a cup of tea in her hands later that night, feeling tired but happy.
Sage and Mal had stayed around to help her clean up after the mini event. Now Sage was sitting cross-legged in an easy chair, and Mal was stretched out on the loveseat, the two of them joining Hailey to celebrate the end of a beautiful day by relaxing together in the cozy living room of the farmhouse with mugs of hot tea and a tray of leftover desserts.
The scent of the wood fire crackling in the fireplace and the sight of the snow flurries swirling past the porch light made her feel like the three of them were living in a Christmas card.
The only thing gnawing at Hailey’s happiness was the fact that Ransom and the kids had disappeared so early in the day. But it was more of an adult gathering. The kids probably just got bored and wanted to go home.
“You okay?” Sage asked her.
“Oh, yes,” she said, shaking her head. “Sorry I zoned out there.”
“I know who you were thinking about,” Mal said, and winked.
Predictably, Hailey’s cheeks heated and she played with the string of the teabag dangling from her mug as an excuse to look down.
“So, what exactly was going on when we got here?” Sage asked. “I mean, I get that the dogs got in, but what were you doing in the tree?”
“Oh, wow,” Hailey said, feeling mortified and uncertain where to begin. “Well, first of all, thank you both again for saving the day. If you hadn’t been here early, I don’t know what would have happened.”
“Friends have each other’s backs,” Mal said. “Besides, it made the day so much more exciting.”
“That’s a nice way to look at it,” Hailey said. “Anyway, yes, the dogs got in. And I was in the tree because I’m scared of dogs.”
“But… they were just puppies,” Mal said, sounding awed.
“I’m scared ofalldogs,” Hailey admitted miserably. “I know it probably doesn’t make sense to you.”
“Like a full-on phobia?” Mal asked.
“My mom definitely has a phobia,” Hailey said. “She would avoid walking around town early in the mornings when people were out with their dogs, and she can’t even watch a movie with a dog in it. It’s not that bad for me, but I guess I just always felt scared of them too.”
“It makes sense that if she was terrified, you learnedto be scared too,” Sage said. “Kids are pretty impressionable about stuff like that.”
“I guess so,” Hailey said, nodding.
“Well, that probably makes it unlikely that you guys are getting back together,” Mal said. “Since Ransom’s whole life is taking care of those animals.”
Her words cut to the quick because they were true.
No one said anything for a moment, and there was only the crackle of the logs in the fireplace to fill the silence.
Hailey had been feeling more and more like she wanted to give Ransom another chance. He was so sweet, and seeing Travis and Mae was always the highlight of her day. People changed, and maybe Ransom had changed too. Surely a settled family man wouldn’t break her heart out of nowhere a second time.
But as she clung to the old oak tree this afternoon, frozen in terror, she had realized that there was more between them than just the past.
Mal was right, Ransom’s whole life was about those dogs.
