“I’m going in the opposite direction.”
“Then make a U-turn.” I take a seat before the sky opens up above us.
He doesn’t answer me as he shuts my door with a small smile.
“What—” My reply is cut off by a dog barking.
I check out the back seat and find a massive dog attached to some kind of animal car seat. He is covered in fur from head to paws, and I can barely make out his eyes due to his giant poof. I’m surprised he can even fit in the back seat based on the sheer size of him.
“Whose dog is that?” I ask when he opens his door.
“Ours.”
“Ours?!”
The dog barks with a reply.
I’m not even going to touch that comment. Instead, I search the directions for the nearest Starbucks on my phone. “Take me here.”
He completely ignores my map as he turns in the opposite direction.
“Declan!”
“I know I don’t deserve it but give me ten minutes of your time.”
I’m thrown back into the memory of the last time he asked for ten minutes but gave me ten words instead.
I am falling in love with you, Iris Elizabeth Kane.
The memory makes me compliant enough to keep quiet as he drives us down the road. Gray clouds part above us. Rain falls against the windshield, and Declan is forced to turn on the wipers to see clearly.
The dog whimpers at the sound of thunder. “What made you get a dog?”
“You said you wanted one.”
My mouth drops open, and no words come out.
“It took me eleven shelters to find the one that fit your exact requirements, but somehow I pulled it off. I just hope you like him because there is no way he is ever going back to that god-awful place. They would have put him down if it weren’t for me.”
A laugh bursts out of me before I can swallow it. When I made up the story of the dog, I never really thought Declan would actually go out and find one for me. Let alone adopt one that is the size of a bear.
“Why would you do that?” My voice cracking mirrors my resolve.
“Why not? You wanted it, so I made it happen.”
“And the minivan?”
“I thought we might as well have one ready to go for all the kids you want one day.”
My vision turns misty. “You can’t possibly mean that.”
“I do, and I plan on showing you.” He stays silent as he presses a foot on the accelerator.
The rest of the ride is a bumpy one. I’m grateful when Declan stops the van before I throw up from carsickness. He parks us in front of an old farmhouse with boarded-up windows and a porch that looks about ready to collapse. With the way he gets out of the car without an umbrella, I could almost forget it’sraining.
He doesn’t seem the least bit bothered by it as he opens my door and holds out his hand. “Come with me.”
I blink up at him. “It’s raining.”