"Anything. What do you do when you're not saving animals or cleaning up after my disaster attempts at helping?"
She laughs. "That implies I have free time."
"Come on. There must be something."
"I read," she admits. "Romance novels, mostly. The trashier the better."
"Seriously?"
"Don't judge me. Sometimes a girl needs to escape into a world where the hot guy always gets the girl and nobody's life is held together with duct tape and coffee."
"I'm not judging. I think it's cute."
"Cute?"
"Yeah. The idea that you believe in happy endings, even after..." I trail off, not wanting to ruin the moment by bringing up the past.
"Even after you broke my heart?" she finishes quietly.
"Yeah."
She's quiet for a moment too long, and I worry I've pushed too far. But then she squeezes my hands.
"Lucky for you, I still believe in happy endings," she says. "Maybe that makes me naïve, but I've seen too many broken things heal to give up on the possibility."
"Like the puppies."
"Like the puppies. Like the three-legged dog who learned to run again. Like the cat who was so traumatized she wouldn't let anyone touch her, but now she sleeps in my office every night."
"And like us?" I ask quietly.
She looks up at me, her hazel eyes serious in the soft light. "I don't know yet."
It's not a no. And right now, that's enough.
"Speaking of healing," I say, my heart hammering against my ribs, "I have something to tell you."
"Oh God. What did you do?"
I laugh and throw my head back. She knows me too well. Even after all this time.
"Well… On Saturday night, the game against Montreal… Sophia and Lucy have helped me organize something."
Her eyes narrow suspiciously. "What kind of something?"
"A fundraiser night. For Tails & Paws."
Mia stops skating so abruptly I have to grab her arms to keep us both upright.
"You what?"
"A fundraiser event at The Nest. All proceeds go to the shelter." The words tumble out in a nervous rush. "I know you hate accepting help, but I couldn't just watch you run yourself into the ground trying to do everything alone."
For a long moment, she just stares at me. And then, to my absolute horror, her eyes fill with tears.
"Mia, shit, I'm sorry. If you don't want to do it, we can call it off. One message to Sophia and it's finished. I should have asked first, but I wanted to surprise you, and—"
"Shut up," she whispers.
