Total pages in book: 142
Estimated words: 133849 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 669(@200wpm)___ 535(@250wpm)___ 446(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 133849 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 669(@200wpm)___ 535(@250wpm)___ 446(@300wpm)
“Nic did that.” Grim started for the row of cages. “He took to her. I hope he’s house trained because they’re in love.”
Nicole put a hand to her heart, and her whole body softened. “He’s so sweet. And scared. Someone treated him awful, and he’s a baby who needs a good home.”
Yep. She’d spent too much time with his momma. “Well, it’s not like we can have too many dogs.”
“You would let me keep a dog?” Nicole asked.
“Why would I ever stop you from… Your husband wouldn’t let you have a dog,” Josh surmised.
“Micah was not a pet person.” She stopped in front of him, her chin tilting up as she looked him over with a sassy expression on her face. “You obviously are. I think we can take care of Buddy better at home so he doesn’t get… What did you call it, babe?”
What the hell miracles had Grim been working?
“Kennel cough,” Grim called back, and then he was walking toward them with a scrap of a canine in his arms. “The sedative worked fast. The good news is his leg’s solid. He’s got a scrape on his paw. It’s why he was limping. I’m going to clean him up and we can take him home.”
“Do you need help?” Nicole asked.
Grim didn’t look back. “No, I’m good. I’ll be ready to go in less than half an hour. Why don’t you and Josh go into the storage room? We’ve got a couple of crates and some food and water bowls. Get this guy a nice dog bed, too.”
Nicole stepped back. “All right. I can do that.”
Did she only want to be alone with Grim? God, he had to stop going there. Grim and Nic had a connection he couldn’t truly understand. He loved them both. If she wanted Grim and not him, then he would step back and let them be together.
Bandit let out a meow signaling the end of their session. The cat jumped out of his arms and lazily started to follow Grim, taunting the dogs in their cages with his feline freedom.
Nicole seemed to have learned the layout of the shelter quickly since she rounded the hallway leading back to the big storage room they kept stocked with everything a pet could need.
He followed her. “Are you okay? Do you want me to stay out here?”
She frowned as she turned his way. “Why? I mean I could probably use another set of hands. I know Buddy is small, but like all small things he needs a lot.”
She disappeared behind the doors, and he could see the light coming on.
He walked into the storage room. “I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.”
She stopped in the middle of the room and turned to him, frowning as though she was trying to decide how to handle him. “You make me uncomfortable all the time, Josh.”
Well, that was a kick in the gut. “I don’t mean to.”
“I’ve had a lot of time to think, and my problem is really with you. I think if it was just Grim I was dealing with I wouldn’t be so scared.”
His heart felt like it was twisting in his body. He took a step back. “You don’t have to be scared of me. Baby…I mean, Nicole, I want you to have what you need. I don’t want to be one more man who makes your life misery. If you want Grim, you should have him. I know I said we were a packaged deal, but the truth is we’re not. He loves you.”
She went still, staring at him. “I thought you loved me.”
“I do. And I love Grim. So when I work the math in my head, I know I should step back. I want something more than my own happiness. I want yours. I want his.” He was fairly certain he would never be happy without her, but it didn’t matter.
Her arms crossed over her chest. “So you would let me and Grim find an apartment in town and go about our lives?”
“No. I would move into the big house and let you have the one we’re in now,” he replied. “Why would you… Nicole, I would never ask my brother to leave. I wouldn’t ask you to leave. If you don’t want either one of us, you should stay in my parents’ house as long as you need to.”
“Even if that’s forever?”
She needed a family, and he needed to know she was happy. “Forever. We’ll find a way through it. We’ll find a way to be friends. I promise. This is going to be okay, Nicole. It’s your decision, and you can’t make a wrong move except for walking away.”
“Because I found the high life and I would be stupid to leave it?” There was a challenge to her question.
He wasn’t sure what she was talking about. “Because you have a home and people who love you. Because you could have a future here. It doesn’t have to be with me, though I deeply hope you’ll still let me be your friend.”