Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 88317 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 442(@200wpm)___ 353(@250wpm)___ 294(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88317 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 442(@200wpm)___ 353(@250wpm)___ 294(@300wpm)
Scottie rocked back and forth, seemingly oblivious to the situation. He held his iPad to his ear and blasted some music. It was probably a good thing not to care one way or the other under sad circumstances. I envied him sometimes.
I sat down on the couch on the other side of the dog. “Bye, Bubba.” Massaging behind his ears, I added, “I’ll miss your extra-special leg rubs.”
The dog leaned in to lick my nose. His breath smelled like biscuits.
“You take him outside, Josh,” Carly said, getting up suddenly.
I stood. “You sure?”
“Yeah.” She paced while wiping her eyes. “I can’t say goodbye again.”
I nodded. “Okay.”
After I handed Bubba to the officer outside, I watched as he put the dog into the back of the car. Bubba—Hank—stared at me from the window. He looked helpless. The freaking dog was making my eyes water now. Damn it. I waved at him and watched as the car took off down the road. Being back in Woodsboro was turning me into a pussy.
When I walked back into the house, Carly was on the couch next to Scottie, looking morose.
She stood, and I walked over, putting my arms around her and bringing her close.
I spoke into her hair. “I’m sorry.”
My chest constricted as I fought the feeling holding her elicited in me. I hadn’t thought it through. It’d just felt like the natural thing to do. But the way my body reacted only confirmed my worst fears.
She looked up at me. “I can’t believe he’s gone.”
I moved back. “We’ll always have good memories of Bubba-Hank. I mean, what the hell would we have done with him when we had to leave?”
“I was planning on taking him back to California with me,” she said.
Damn, she was fucking sweet. I should’ve known. “You were a good dog mama, Pumpkin.” I smiled. “Why don’t you get a dog when you get back?”
“I probably will.” Taking a deep breath in, Carly looked up at me. “You don’t smell like smoke. I just realized that.”
“I resisted the entire time I was away.”
She smiled. “Good.”
My eyes fell to her lips, and I forced them back up. You have no fucking right to this, Josh. Get your goddamn eyes off her.
She cleared her throat. “We should eat.”
“Yeah.” I nodded. “Let’s do it.”
We sat Scottie down with his chicken and perfectly aligned dessert and joined him at the table. Carly served us two heaping plates of gluten-free pasta with sauce while I poured two glasses of red wine.
After we finished dinner, I picked up our empty plates before she had a chance to and brought them over to the sink.
“Did you shower yet today?” I asked her.
“Why?” She raised her eyebrows. “Do I smell?”
“No.” I chuckled. “I was just wondering if you wanted to take one in peace.”
“Actually, I did hold off in the hopes that I could do it alone tonight.”
“Why don’t you go relax and take a long one. He and I’ll go in after.”
“That sounds divine.” Her eyes rolled back.
My dick twitched. Fuck. The way she did that with her eyes… Make it stop.
“Go.” I shooed her away. Please go. “I’ve got the cleanup.”
She beamed. “You sure?”
“Yep.”
After Carly disappeared into the bathroom, I noticed that she’d jotted something down on a notepad next to the sink.
A Thank You from The Trappist Monks of St. Francis:
Proud of you for not smoking.
Grinning, I walked over to Scottie who was still sitting at the table. “You must’ve enjoyed those bikini showers when I was gone, huh, you devil? Probably wishing I’d go away again, aren’t you?” I shook my head. “Brad would have both of our heads if he knew about some of the stuff going on around here lately.”
Scottie squealed, as if in agreement, though I was pretty sure he was reacting to his cookie.
About the time I’d filled the dishwasher, cleaned the pans by hand, and wiped down the countertops, Carly emerged from the bathroom.
I slung the dishtowel over my shoulder. “That was fast.”
“It was really nice. Thank you.” She ran a hand through her wet hair. “Are you still good to watch him tomorrow night?”
I’d nearly forgotten about her plans to go out with that new friend of hers. “Absolutely. Do you know where you’re going?”
She cocked her head. “The Bar?”
Great. That place was a meat market. I nodded. “I know it well. There aren’t that many options in Woodsboro. But they have good live music.”
“And that’s the actual name—The Bar?”
“Yeah. Real original, right?”
It would take all of five minutes for Carly to get hit on in that place.
“You should go out too…one night this coming week or whenever,” she suggested.
“Maybe. I haven’t hung out with my brothers in a while.”
“I would imagine going out in Woodsboro is a lot different for you than it is for me,” she said. “It must be weird running into all these people you used to know way back when…”