It took a bit of cajoling, but Kelsey finally curled up on a couch in the main front room after the morning volunteers headed out. She was asleep in minutes, and Kurt figured it was as good a time as any to run a few errands.
He nodded to Tess as he grabbed his keys. “Call me if you need anything. William should be here soon. He usually comes earlier in the day, but I told him I wouldn’t be here this morning. He’ll be happy to see you, even if he won’t show it.”
Tess grinned. “I’ll be happy to see him too, and I won’t be afraid to let him know it.” She stepped out on the porch after Kurt as he headed out. “Since you won’t ask, I’m just going to say it. I like her. A lot. I can see her being good for you.”
He paused midway down the steps but didn’t turn around. “Things slow down around her. Everything gets clearer. Like with the dogs.”
Tess crossed over to the railing, locking her arms over her chest as she studied the house across the street. Several painters were there this morning, as well as an electrician’s van.
“That pretty much says it all.” Her smile faltered enough to let him know there was something she wasn’t telling him. Something she was hiding behind that bright-as-the-sun demeanor of hers. He wondered if it was tied to why she’d run off to Europe for a year.
He closed his hand around the metal banister. “Tess, if you ever need to talk…”
She gave a playful wave of her hand, and her smile returned. “If I need to talk, I’ll grab Kelsey or someone else with an inherent gift at two-way conversation. Now go, get your butt out of here to do whatever it is you need to do. The day’s a-wasting, as they say.”
Kurt smiled and tapped the banister with his thumb. As a kid, he’d wished Tess and Rob were family. The older he got, the more he understood it didn’t take being a blood relation to make someone that. “Yeah, yeah,” he said aloud because the bluff was easier than speaking the truth. “If you’re not here when I get back, I’ll be seeing you. Rob says you’re thinking about sticking around.”
She gave a single-shoulder shrug. “Yeah, maybe. I didn’t come home with that intention, but you know how it is, family’s family.”
He headed out, thinking how unexpected it was that everything he could possibly need was all congregating in one city, and most of it was right here, occupying a couple thousand square yards of land. A little over a month ago, as he boarded the first flight home, if anyone had told him that a life he could care deeply about was within easy and short reach, he’d never have believed them.
Chapter 26
It was getting harder to put Zeus and several of the others into their kennels for the night now that Kelsey knew the dogs so well. The animals wanted companionship as much as they did the playtime, care, and training they were given each day.
Earlier this week, Rob had confirmed that the trial was being expedited, which meant good news for many of these guys. Even when they were deemed ready to enter the shelter’s adoption program, the dogs couldn’t leave the house until the seven people suspected to be integral in the elaborate fighting ring had been tried in court for the felony crimes of dogfighting and animal cruelty.
Kelsey hoped the evidence would be heard quickly and the case wouldn’t drag on. Kurt had confirmed that four of the dogs—Zeus and three others like him who were young enough and lucky enough not to have seen much, if any, time in the ring—could head to the shelter when the go-ahead was given.
As the evening wore on and it was time for the last shift of volunteers to head out, Kelsey’s palms began to sweat in anticipation. How would things change now? At Kelsey’s initial request, she and Kurt had held off on taking their relationship that final step. She’d wanted time and a special occasion.
Although the special occasion had turned into an even more extraordinary one, it hadn’t resulted in any magical fireworks below the belt. She’d seen the miraculous birth of nine adorable puppies, and Kurt had saved one puppy’s life, so she regretted none of it. But how would Kurt want to move forward from here?
In case his answer was in line with hers, she quickly rummaged through her overnight bag for a toothbrush and deodorant after seeing the volunteers out. Kurt had been upstairs the last fifteen minutes, and she was hoping he’d stay up there long enough for her to have a quick refresher. Just in case.
Sorting through the bag, she bumped against something hard and cool. Her fishing float. In all the commotion, she’d forgotten about it. Taking it out along with her toiletries, she dropped it off on the kitchen windowsill before making a dash for the bathroom. For some reason, the idea of getting caught with a necessities bag containing a toothbrush, toothpaste, and deodorant in her hands felt akin to getting caught shoplifting.
Earlier in the day, she’d showered and changed into a fresh, cute pair of underwear that wasn’t quite as sexy as last night’s. Whatever happened tonight, at least she wasn’t going into it in day-old panties.
A few minutes later, toiletry bag in hand, she headed out of the bathroom for the front room where she’d left the rest of her stuff. Dusk was setting in, and a
