“That was brave.”
“Brave…stupid…a little nuts…all of the above? Yeah. I rented an apartment, and a local real estate agent eventually found me this place. I had enough for a down payment and to cover the renovations to make a safe doggie daycare. But I still need to find more regular clients to keep from going under, and this mess won’t help. Having the cops at my door doesn’t exactly engender trust in my ability to keep dogs safe.”
Slowly, Arthur nodded. “I’m sure, once truthful word gets out, that everything will be okay. All our friends know what’s going on. Gaynor Beach is a small town—if bad news travels fast, surely good news will as well?”
I blinked. “What good news?”
“Well, they’re going to catch Harvey. He has New York license plates, even if none of us remembered the number. Every cop in town will be looking for him.” Arthur offered the smallest of smiles. “He doesn’t seem like the shiniest penny in the jar.”
“No, he’s not. It’s just…I’m not feeling optimistic right now, Arthur. When I left New York, I swore I’d never look back. I swore I’d be someone who embraced life and only saw the good. Harvey, Denver, and the rest of my fucking family are dragging me back to that dark place.” I took a ragged breath.
“Remember Cheyenne.”
My gaze snapped to his.
“She’s part of that past. She’s also your future, Brooklyn. You’ll figure out how be positive because you need to take care of her. That’s your mission, now. I know you. You’ll do whatever it takes, and if that means confronting your past once and for all, then that’s what you’ll do. But here’s the great part.” He smiled.
There is no great part. There’s only shit piled on more shit?—
“You’re not alone anymore.”
And with those simple words, my heart lifted. I blinked.
He gripped my hand even tighter. “We’re together, Brooklyn. For whatever that’s worth?—”
“That’s worth everything.” How could I express how much this meant to me? It’d barely been two weeks, and yet I knew I’d found the person I was meant to be with. The man who might give me the strength to save myself. I blinked rapidly.
He caressed my cheek. “Why don’t we lie down? I want to cuddle you tonight, okay?”
I threw a glance at the door, still wound up tight, and somehow, Arthur understood me.
He thumbed my lip, then lowered his hand and squeezed my fingers gently. “You go check on Cheyenne first if you need to, and I’ll get under the covers. I’ll be waiting for you.”
He understands. He’s not turning away from me, despite the drama of my fucking life. He gets that I’ve tried to be sunshine for so long, but that today it’s cloudy and that’s okay. “Yeah, I’ll look in on her. Sadie and Chili as well. And then, yeah, I’ll come to bed.”
Slowly, I withdrew my hand from his. I slipped from the bed, took a deep breath, and eventually exited my bedroom. I checked on Cheyenne who was fast asleep—sharing the double bed with Eb while Twain slept in a dog bed on the floor.
Arthur would likely have a conniption fit about Eb.
So I wouldn’t tell him. Sometimes secrets were okay. I’d just told him fucking everything. Instead of running for the hills—or at least back to the shelter—he was preparing to hold me all night.
Sadie and Chili didn’t stir, snoozing peacefully in their crates when I peered around the doorframe to see how they were doing.
I double checked the alarms and, finding everything was set, I headed to bed.
To be with the best man I’d ever met.
CHAPTER 21
ARTHUR
“I’m sick of this!” Cheyenne kicked the kitchen chair, and it fell over with a bang. Out in the family room, Sadie yelped. Cheyenne looked stricken. She called, “Oh God, sorry, baby. I’m so stupid. I can’t do anything right.” She knelt, scrabbling at the chair to get it upright.
“Hey, hey.” Brooklyn came back from the front door, where he’d been returning an adorable pair of Corgis to their owner. “What’s wrong?”
“Everything.” Cheyenne rubbed her eyes. “I feel like a prisoner. Harvey’s out there, somewhere, doing God knows what. And in a week, the judge might send me back to my parents.”
I tried to be optimistic for the girl who was starting to feel like my own little sister. “There’s been no sign of Harvey for two days. The cops have his license number now, and he’s wanted for attempted kidnapping by every law enforcement group in California. Surely he’s just washed his hands of you and headed back to his safe zone in New York?”
