“Let’s go get ready.”
We make our way up the stairs. I have to admit that the grips do make it safer to navigate the stairs. Once in the room, I quickly get dressed and do my makeup. “How do I look?” I do a little twirl.
I jump when I hear Jason howl. I bend to give him a hug. “You silly boy. But you do know how to make a woman smile. Let’s hope Human-Jason likes it.”
It feels good to just be Violet, girl getting ready for a date, instead of Violet, navigating a world that hates disabled people. I can’t wait for him to arrive.
I’m rearranging the plates for when the food is ready—fingers steady now, senses tracking every little sound, when I hear Dog-Jason pad toward the door.
He scratches, then sits.
“You want to go out?” I ask, kneeling. I find his harness, unclip it. “You’re off duty. Go have fun. Smell things. Knock over trash cans. I don’t know what dogs do for fun.”
He snorts.
“I’ll leave your dinner out.”
He nudges my cheek affectionately.
“Love you too,” I whisper before my brain catches up.
He freezes, then gives my hand the tiniest lick before trotting off into the night.
The door closes behind him, and suddenly the house feels too quiet. Too still. Too full of possibility.
The doorbell rings.
I jump, nearly knocking over the plate. My pulse bolts up my throat like it’s trying to escape.
“Okay,” I whisper to myself, smoothing my shirt on the way to the door. “Okay. Be normal. Be charming. Don’t be a disaster.”
I open the door.
“Hi,” Jason says.
Just one word.
One simple syllable.
But it hits me low in the stomach, warm and deep. His voice is soft, a little breathless—as if he rushed here. He smells like cool night air and something faintly woodsy beneath it.
“Hi,” I echo, trying not to sound like melted chocolate.
“You cooked,” he says, with something like awe in his tone.
“I said I would,” I say. “You know. Bare minimum.”
“I’m honored.”
I blush. I can feel it warming my cheeks. “Come in,” I say quickly. “Before I lose my nerve.”
He laughs, and the low, velvety sound makes the butterflies in my stomach riot.
I think tonight’s going to be great. Maybe I am brave.
Chapter 15
Violet
