“And I get that,” Blaine’s voice echoed as he stepped around the corner and stood at the desk.
My mouth dropped open, and I looked over at Leena, who was looking back and forth between both of us. She looked over at me and signaled for me to wipe my eyes, since my makeup was probably streaming down my face at that point. I took a deep breath and fixed myself, slowly walking toward him. Leena looked uncomfortable and started to back away.
“I’ll be in the kennel if you need me,” she whispered.
I nodded my head and walked up to the desk, putting my head down and wringing my hands together. I didn’t know what to say beyond what he had already heard. I wanted to hug him, kiss him, and thank him for coming here, but I wasn’t even sure why he had come back. I watched as he looked around the lobby at the different pictures of animals on the walls. I could tell he was nervous being there, but he had put on his brave face and come inside to talk to me. I didn’t want to be presumptuous and start talking, but the silence was killing me.
“What are you doing here?” I asked.
“I’m not fully sure,” he said, smiling. “I mean, I was really angry with you, like really angry, but once I calmed down, I started to understand better why you did what you did.”
“Blaine, I never meant to back you into a corner,” I said, shaking my head. “I care about you so much, and I was terrified that me owning this business was going to make you want to break up with me. In the end, you ended up breaking up with me anyway. I should have come to you, sat down with you, and explained what happened. I guess I’m not very good at these things yet, and I tried to help you instead of realizing that you were strong and independent and didn’t need my help.”
“That’s not necessarily true,” he said, smiling. “I think you had a really good idea going there. I think that you may have been on to something. So, I didn’t just come here to apologize for lashing out at you and beg you to be my girlfriend again, but I thought maybe you could show me around. Who knows? I might actually see a puppy I want to pet.”
I walked around the desk and ran right into his arms, hugging him tightly and kissing him on the cheek. After all of that, he really did care about me like I thought he did, and he was willing to forgive me for what I had done. I was more than ecstatic.
“You don’t owe me an apology,” I whispered. “And of course, I want to be your girlfriend. Come on. Let me show you around.”
I took him by the hand and led him through the building, showing him the different rooms, including the kennels. I could tell he wasn’t quite ready to face one of the adult dogs, so I showed him into the room where Mr. Floppy was tormenting his brothers and sisters. I picked him up and walked over to Blaine, watching him timidly put his hand out and then relax as the puppy licked his fingers. It was a really amazing moment between the two of us. It didn’t mean I could expect him to go start a farm for dogs or even get near the kennels anytime soon, but it was a start. By the end of the day, he was walking around, holding Mr. Floppy under his arm and watching as we did our work.
“All right,” he said, handing me back the puppy and leaning in to kiss my lips. “I have to get going. I have work I missed today, but thank you for all of this. It was nice.”
“Anytime,” I said, smiling. “This is where I am five days a week, sometimes more.”
“So, do you want to come over tomorrow night and have dinner?”
“I would love to,” I said, smiling big.
“Great, I should be there by six, and I’ll get take-out, so you don’t have to cook,” he said sheepishly. “I would cook, but no one wants to see that happen.”
“All right.” I laughed, waving as he turned and walked out of the building.
&nbs
p; I picked the puppy up to my face and kissed his nose, congratulating him on a job well done. That man was so full of surprises, and I couldn’t believe how much my day had turned around. I really cared about Blaine, even more than I thought I did before, and from the looks of his change of heart, he felt the same way too. I couldn’t wait to see what the future would hold for us.
Chapter 21
Two Months Later
Blaine
“Hey, sweetie,” I said with worry in my voice. “How are you feeling?”
“Like death,” she said. “I don’t know. I just feel like my stomach is being bulldozed over, anytime I even move.”
“Are you eating anything?”
“I’ve tried, but it doesn’t even make it to digestion before it comes back up,” she said weakly. “It’s like the stomach flu from hell.”
“Aww, well stay inside, stay warm, and just lay there on the couch,” I said. “It sucks now, but I’m sure it will pass. These things don’t tend to stick around long.”
“I miss my puppies,” she whimpered.
“Well, I’m sure they miss you, too,” I replied. “Get some rest. I’ll check on you at lunch.”
I hung up the phone and smiled, not because she was sick, but because I got to hear her voice. It had been two months since I went back to her shop and met Mr. Floppy. We actually came to find out a week later that Mr. Floppy was actually a Miss, but either way, I loved that little fur ball. Reese and I had spent almost every day together after that, not wanting to miss a moment of time. Being broken up for less than a day ended up being the worst twelve hours of my life, so I wasn’t willing to be apart from her anymore. Her being sick had actually been the first time in those two months that we were apart, but she insisted, not wanting to give me what she had.