“Only that I get it now. This isn’t about a broken heart. It’s about a bruised ego.”
“That’s not true,” Zeke argued, even though the words lacked any real conviction. “It’s more than that. It’s—I trusted Lilah and Patrick.” And Mollie. He’d trusted Mollie more than anyone. “If I can be that blind to what’s going on right under my nose with the woman I was going to marry and my best friend...who’s to say it won’t happen again?”
Matt shrugged a broad shoulder. “I’ll say.”
“And you know this how?” If Zeke wasn’t a mind reader, he was pretty sure his friend didn’t have a crystal ball.
“Because this time, it’s Mollie. The woman you’re in love with is your best friend.”
Zeke choked on a swallow of beer. “I’m not—I mean, sure, I love Mollie, but I’m not in love,” he insisted, denying all the signs, even as memories flashed in front of him.
The jealousy that had eaten him alive when Mollie went out with Josh Sylvester. The rush of excitement when Arti successfully found Mollie hiding in the woods. And what about the panic that had sent his adrenaline into overdrive when he thought Mollie had fallen from the ladder?
Not to mention the amazing night they’d spent together.
Zeke swore as the realization hit him, leaving him feeling so weak and boneless he was surprised he didn’t slide right out of the booth and fall flat on the floor. He was in love with Mollie McFadden.
“This wasn’t supposed to happen,” he muttered helplessly.
Matt smirked a little as he clinked his bottle against Zeke’s. “You’re lucky it did. Mollie’s an amazing woman. One who would do anything to protect you...including bear the burden of a secret that was never hers to keep.”
* * *
This time, it’s Mollie.
The words echoed through Zeke’s thoughts after he’d said goodbye to Matt and left the Grille. Circling around in his mind long enough for him to finally recognize they weren’t quite right.
It had always been Mollie.
Other women had come and gone from his life, leaving no lasting marks on the terrain of his heart. Somehow, without his realizing, Mollie had already etched a permanent place there, and nothing and no one was going to smooth over the deep grooves.
All of which made the secret she’d kept from him so much harder to bear.
He’d planned to go back home but soon found himself heading out of town, not stopping until he’d reached the wrought-iron gates of Spring Forest’s cemetery. He’d been to visit Patrick’s grave several times during the past two years but always with Mollie.
As he parked the car and made his way across the lush lawn to the familiar plot without her by his side, he expected to feel alone. He didn’t. Instead, for the first time in a long time, he felt Patrick’s presence beside him.
He gazed at the name and dates etched into the white marble. Beloved son, brother and friend who gave his life in defense of his country.
His grave, along with many in the surrounding verdant hills, was marked with a small flag in honor of the upcoming day of remembrance. The red, white and blue waved in the late afternoon breeze, testament to all those who had served.
Everyone wanted to see Patrick as a hero.
“You could be a real SOB sometimes, you know that?”
His mother had raised him to think first, to keep his mouth shut if he didn’t have something nice to say, and to never, ever speak ill of the dead. If she’d been standing by his side, she would have told him off. But the sound he heard in the wind whispering through the stately oaks lining the cemetery was not his mother’s scolding.
It was Patrick’s laughter.
“You cheated at cards.” His voice gained strength as he went on. “You were the dirtiest basketball player on the court. You were a lousy drunk, and I swear to God, you still owe me that fifty bucks you borrowed when we went down to that music fest in Charleston.”
After the words rushed out, Zeke sucked in the first deep breath he’d taken in months, it seemed. Maybe years. The raw honesty left him aching, even though the statements were completely true and nothing he hadn’t said right to his friend’s face before.
But the ache inside wasn’t from what he’d said. Instead it was from what he’d left unsaid. Sucking in another deep breath, he exhaled and let go of the burden he had carried since the day his friend died. “Not a day goes by that I don’t miss you...” Buoyed on the same breeze that rippled over the tiny flags, his words drifted across the silent cemetery. “And I forgive you.”
* * *
Mollie squinted as she gazed out across the dog park. Even hiding behind a pair of large-framed sunglasses, her eyes felt overly sensitive and too exposed to the bright summer day. Of course, that probably had more to do with the buckets of tears she’d cried the past several days than the midmorning sun.
She would have liked nothing more than to stay in bed with the covers pulled over her head, shutting out the rest of the world for, well, the rest of her life. But, unfortunately for her, her dogs didn’t give her that luxury. They still needed to be fed and groomed and walked, which meant Mollie also managed to feed and groom and walk herself, even if none of those efforts met with one hundred percent success.
She was officially out of ice cream, dressed in some of her oldest clothes, and she’d agreed to meet a new client only because the Whitaker sisters had begged her to.
“We’ve just had a nice young man adopt a dog from us this morning,” Birdie had explained.
And Bunny had added, “The woman he’s in love with is a dog lover and...well, he’s in somewhat over his head. He could use your help.”
Mollie wanted to say no. A head over heels in love client? Not exactly someone she wanted to take on, but her dedication to Furever Paws and the shelter pups surpassed her own heartbreak. She could return to wallowing after giving this new pet owner a remedial training session.
Zeke hadn’t called or texted her since riding off with Bobby in the ambulance, and she was starting to wonder if he ever would. Spring Forest was a small town and they knew all the same people, so they were bound to run into each other eventually.
Bad enough she couldn’t go anywhere without some memory of Zeke pouring salt on the open wound of her heart. The thought of seeing him again, of seeing the hurt and anger and betrayal reflected in his hazel eyes again, was enough to make Mollie want to pull her own disappearing act. But running off to Europe wasn’t exactly feasible when her dogs, her business, her friends and even her parents were all in Spring Forest.
She would have to find a way to move forward on her own. Without Patrick. Without Zeke.
As she watched the dogs romping in the yard, a small tan pup broke away from the pack and raced toward her. As the dog drew near, she recognized the short-legged chiweenie. Despite the tears blurring her vision, she managed a smile as she knelt down to greet a familiar friend.
“Hey, Tucker.” She laughed a little as the dog jumped up to give her a quick lick on the chin. Tucker had been a long-time Furever Paws resident until he’d been adopted by Ryan Carter for his son, Dillon.
“Honestly, Tucker,” Ryan said as he walked across the grassy park toward Mollie, “is that any way to greet a lady?”
“He’s just saying hi to an old friend,” she said as she gave the small dog a quick scratch on his back, setting his slender tail off and wagging. Pushing to her feet, she greeted Amanda’s fiancé. “Are Amanda and Dillon here with you?”
“No, Dillon’s spending the weekend with my former in-laws and Amanda’s checking out the fresh fruits and vegetables at The Granary, so this guy and I are on our own this morning.”
“Well, it’s a great day for hanging out at the park together.”
“It is, and I’m glad to run into you. I was planning to give you a call later today.”
“Oh?” Gla
ncing down at Tucker, who was sitting like a perfect gentleman and seemed to be smiling so innocently up at her, she asked, “Are you needing some help with this guy?” At one time, Tucker had been a little on the standoffish side and rather particular about his humans, which had led to his return to the shelter after failing to connect with his adoptive families. But Dillon and the small dog had bonded from the start.
“No, not at all. Tucker’s been great for Dillon. It’s actually Arti I want to talk to you about. I’d like to do a story on the two of you.”
“You want to interview me?”
Ryan smiled. “Well, as much as I’d like to interview Arti, I think the readers would get more out of one with you.” Turning serious, he said, “Amanda filled me in on how the two of you found Bobby Doyle. It would make a great feature for the Chronicle.”
“Really?”
“Our readership took a real interest in the stories we’ve done covering the shelter, how it was damaged by the storm and how the community came together to donate money at last month’s fund-raiser. I think they’d really be interested in learning how you took a shelter dog and turned her into, well, a super dog.” Ryan gave her a kind smile, as if recognizing how uncomfortable she was with the thought of being in the spotlight. “You helped saved the day, Mollie.”
Mollie opened her mouth, ready with a quick denial. After all, her brother was the hero in the family, while she’d been nothing more than little Mollie McFadden, Patrick’s tagalong sister.
Almost as if reading her mind, Tucker gave a sudden bark. Mollie looked down at the small dog sitting so patiently at her feet and thought of how much he’d helped Dillon. She thought of Arti, and Charlie and three-legged Hank. All dogs who had been abandoned or rejected or ignored and yet had gone on to make huge differences in the lives of the humans around them.
There were all kinds of heroes, and maybe, just maybe, she needed to start believing that little Mollie McFadden could be one of them.
Meeting Ryan’s gaze, she said, “I’ll do the interview. I’d also like to let people know about a joint venture between the shelter and the veterans’ support group. We’re calling it Pets for Vets, matching veterans with homeless animals—either as fosters or potential adopters.”
Mollie had run the idea by the Whitaker sisters and both women were fully on board. In some cases, Mollie would work with the vets to train the dogs for service. In other cases, the dogs would simply offer the companionship of a loving, loyal, four-legged friend.
Ryan’s eyes lit as she discussed the new program. “That sounds like a great idea, and one that certainly deserves media attention.”
After setting up a time for the interview, Ryan and Tucker went on their way.
Mollie wished they had stayed longer. It was easier to ignore the pain inside her when someone else was around. Maybe she’d look into fostering another dog soon. She’d already called the Whitaker sisters to tell them she was a foster failure when it came to Chief. The once-shy shepherd, who’d taken to cuddling up with her at night, was more than ready for adoption, but Mollie wasn’t anywhere close to letting him go.
A high-pitched bark distracted her from her thoughts. Spotting a black Lab puppy running her way, tongue and tail flying, feet way too big for its tiny body, she managed her first real smile since Zeke had surprised her with his holiday mash-up at his house. The pup skidded to a stop inches from her legs only to instantly pounce on her shoelaces.
Chuckling a bit, Mollie bent down to rub a hand over the silky head. “Hey, sweetie, what’s your name?”
“Her name’s Midnight.”
Mollie froze at the familiar voice, her fingers sinking into the dog’s soft fur. She pushed to her feet slowly, keeping her gaze focused on the destroyer of shoelaces. She swallowed hard. She’d known she would run into Zeke sometime, but she didn’t imagine that the first words out of her mouth would be, “You adopted a puppy?”
“Yeah,” he said, his voice slightly gruff, “I did.”
“That’s a big responsibility.”
“That’s what I thought, too, but I’ve recently figured out I was wrong. It’s not about responsibility. It’s about love.”
At that, Mollie couldn’t stop herself from looking up at him. He was more gorgeous than ever to her starved senses. Her heart ached a little to see one of her royal blue Best Friends T-shirts hugging his wide shoulders in a way she could only dream of doing. The midmorning breeze ruffled his chestnut hair, and her hands clenched into fists of longing at her sides.
“You said I needed a new best friend,” he reminded her. “Although those are some really big shoes for such a tiny puppy to fill.”
Grateful for the shades hiding her eyes, Mollie blinked back tears. “Patrick was—”
“My friend,” Zeke filled in as he stepped close enough for her to breathe in the familiar scent of his aftershave. “But I wasn’t talking about Patrick. You, Mollie. You’re my best friend. You have been for years. I was just too blind to see it.”
Though Mollie was grateful that Zeke seemed to have forgiven her for the secret she’d kept, friendship was no longer enough for her. Not after finally admitting she was in love with him. Not after finally making love with him.
Staring out across the dog park, Mollie locked in on a small family. A dark-haired man was laughing as a little boy chased a Jack Russell puppy—or maybe it was the other way around as the two of them ran in circles. A blonde woman, standing in the shade of one of the leafy oaks lining the park, called out encouragement as the boy and his dog stumbled over their own feet and each other before the little guy finally plopped down on his backside. The childish giggles and high-pitched barks drifting on the summer breeze went straight to the ache in her chest.
“I can’t—I can’t do this, Zeke.” She’d told him that nothing would change their friendship, but she’d lied about that, too. She couldn’t go back to the way things had been. Not just because their relationship had changed, but because she’d changed.
No more tagging along.
She would choose her own path and had already taken steps in the right direction with her idea for Pets for Vets as well as reaching out to local law enforcement to talk with them about training more dogs for search and rescue work. This time, she was moving on.
“Please, Mollie,” Zeke asked, his voice ragged with emotion. “Give me another chance.”
As if sensing his distress, the puppy whimpered and jumped up against his jean-clad legs. Bending down, he scooped the dog into his arms where she panted happily against his chest, her pink tongue hanging out to one side. “You said you loved me.”
Oh, God. Mollie’s eyes burned. Was he going to use that against her, too? As if the sight of him cradling the adorable puppy wasn’t enough to tear her to pieces. “Zeke—”
“I love you.”
The ragged edges of her heart ripped open wider. He loved her. Of course he did. As the little sister he never wanted. As his best friend. “I can’t...”
“I love you, Mollie,” he insisted. “I love every stubborn, hardheaded, frustrating part of you. I love how you put your dogs in front of everything. I love how hard you fought to protect Patrick’s memory, and I love how you protected me. But mostly I love the idea of spending the rest of my life with my best friend.”
She was dreaming. She had to be dreaming. After so many years of imagining Zeke declaring his love for her—and where better than at a dog park?—she couldn’t believe that dream was coming true. But if she was still alone in bed with only Chief snuggled up beside her, well, then she didn’t ever want to wake up.
“You’re wrong,” she said finally and watched his face fall, but only for a second before she stepped close enough to wrap her arms around his waist with the puppy cradled between them. “My dogs don’t come first. It’s, well, it’s more like a tie.”
“I’ll take that,” Zeke vowe
d with a rough laugh as he bent his head toward her. “Patrick said you always had the biggest heart. As long as there’s room for me, I don’t mind sharing that space with a couple of dogs.”
Thinking of her decision to adopt Chief, Mollie asked, “What do you think about three?”
“I think three sounds perfect.” His hazel eyes filled with emotion, he murmured, “I’m sorry, Mollie. Sorry I didn’t see what was right in front of me this whole time. It was you. I should have known it was you.”
“It doesn’t matter what happened before. We’re here now. Right where we’re supposed to be. And I love you.”
“I should probably wait until I have a ring, but I feel like I’ve wasted so much time already.” Taking a deep breath as he brushed the hair back from her face, he asked, “Mollie McFadden, will you and Arti and Chief marry me and Midnight?”
“Oh, Zeke!” Laughter and tears bubbled up inside her at the perfect proposal. As she threw her arms around his neck, the puppy squirmed between them with an excited yelp. “You brought me a dog! Who needs a diamond?”
“So, is that a yes?”
“Yes! Of course, it’s yes!”
Standing in his arms with a dozen or so dogs barking and racing around them on the lush green grass, Zeke lowered his head to kiss her. A kiss that took them beyond best friends toward a future filled with love and laughter...and dogs.
Epilogue
Memorial Day dawned beautiful and bright. The sun shone in the blue skies overhead. Wisps of fluffy clouds offered a bit of shade and a warm breeze drifted through the flags waved by the crowds on either side of Main Street. From what Mollie could see, most of Spring Forest had turned out for the parade.
Families lined the sidewalks in front of the brick buildings that made up the heart of downtown. The high school band marched by, playing a medley of patriotic songs. The volunteer fire department rode by on engine number 49 followed by a few police officers on horseback. But the highlight of the event was the march of the veterans, resplendent in their full uniforms, gold buttons, medals and ribbons gleaming in the sun. Younger soldiers from recent conflicts marched side by side with aging veterans from previous wars, including a few who’d served all the way back in World War II.
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