He chuckles. “I understand. Like I say, I’m not expecting you to make a decision today. Take your time. Speak to your boyfriend, then get back to me whenever.”
Boomer lifts his head to look at me. He looks all dopey with his tongue sticking out the side of his mouth, and his ears have gone all floppy. I bury my hand into his soft fur. I want to keep him so badly, but I now know impulsiveness is one of my weaknesses.
“Can I call him?” I find myself asking, then quickly clarify, “Hunter.”
“Sure. I’ll go grab a coffee.” He stands and rounds the desk, and pauses when he gets to the door. “It’s unlocked. I won’t be using the auto-lock anymore. I’m sorry for the distress it caused you that day, Elliot. I didn’t think about the risks in case of an emergency. It was foolish of me to use it. I hope you can forgive me.”
Tipping my head back, I give him a cheesy grin. “There’s nothing to forgive, Coach, but thanks.”
He claps me on the shoulder before leaving the room. I manage to pull my phone from my pocket without jostling Boomer too much and fire a quick text to Hunter.
Are you free?
Thirty seconds later, the three dots appear, letting me know he’s typing.
Hunter
Yeah. Is everything ok?
Can I call you?
My phone buzzes in my hand a moment later. I slide my thumb over the screen to answer, and I smile as his handsome face appears.
“Hey.”
“Hey, is everything okay? How did the meeting go?” he asks.
“Everything’s fine. It went okay. You were right, though. They said I have combined ADHD?” I frown, trying to remember what they said, but nothing comes to me. I really did zone out. “They tried to explain it, but my brain kinda shut off, and I can’t remember anything they said.”
He lets out a heavy breath. “Oh, El. Are you feeling okay?”
“Yeah, I’m okay. I’ve got Boomer.” I angle the phone to show an upside-down Boomer.
Hunter laughs. “He looks really comfortable like that.”
“I know. He’s so floppy.” I grin, bouncing my arm slightly to make his head wobble. “While we’re on the subject of Boomer, though, I kinda have a question.”
“What’s up?”
I keep my eyes on Boomer, shifting him into a more comfortable position. “Coach asked me if I’d like to take ownership of him. He usually lives with Colleen, who’s our PR lady, but Coach mentioned her situation has changed and asked if I would like to keep him.”
Hunter’s silent for a moment, and when I glance back at my phone, he’s smiling softly. “Are you asking for my permission to keep him?”
“No? Maybe?” I sigh, dropping my head back. “Yeah.”
He chuckles. “You don’t need to ask me, El.”
My head snaps back up. “But we’re a couple now, and couples should, like, talk to each other, especially about big things. And getting a dog is a big thing. Like, I’m on the road a lot, and you work twenty-four-hour shifts. I wanted to check with you beforeI said yes because he wouldn’t just be mine…” I trail off, chewing on the inside of my cheek before saying, “He’d be ours.”
A slow, wide grin appears on his face.
“What?” I ask.
“You teased me the other day for talking about our future, and you’re already proposing we get our first fur child?”
A burst of laughter escapes me. “Our first fur child? Does this mean we can have more?” I gasp, widening my eyes. “We could have a hockey team of dogs!”
“Well, I think that might be taking it a little too far,” he says with a chuckle.
