Hope(less)

by Melissa Haag

  Chapter 7

  I turned to look at Rachel, eyes wide with shock.

  “What?” I glanced down at him.

  He continued to watch me, his eyes not wavering from mine. He’d left me alone the whole summer. I had thought he’d truly let me go, despite Sam’s ominous warning, and had forgotten about him.

  “Aw, you aren’t allergic are you?” Rachel said with a small pout. “The lease says a single pet is allowed as long as it’s licensed.”

  I doubted the lease had taken into consideration that Rachel would fall in love with a freakishly large monster bearing similarities to a dog.

  “No, I’m not allergic,” I said distractedly. He had all summer to make his move. Why now? And why when I wore a bikini for the first time ever? A bikini did not say “stay away.” I considered grabbing the towel and wrapping myself in it, but discarded the idea after I thought about how it would look to Rachel. Instead, I continued to stare at the frustrating dog until he huffed out a breath, turned away from me, and laid his head on his paws.

  Clay had finally shown up and, apparently, he still didn’t want to talk.

  “Good. He’s so cute!” Rachel reached over to scratch his ears, and he closed his eyes.

  “I’m going back in,” I said as I turned toward the door. Clay sprang to his feet before I reached it and crowded behind me. I looked down at him then back at Rachel, who watched us with an enormous grin.

  “Looks like another guy who can’t take his eyes off you. Living with you is going to be a riot.” She laughed and picked up the towels. “Let’s all go in. The neighbor’s tree is going to shade the deck soon anyway.”

  Having little choice, I opened the door for Clay. His fur brushed my bare thighs as he moved past me into the house. His head came to about my sternum. He really was huge...a huge problem.

  Sam had warned me Clay had taken my speech as an invitation to live together. At least, Clay had shown up in his fur. However, any relief I might have felt went unnoticed as I contemplated how he’d found me in a completely different state. If Sam told him, I’d have to kill Sam. Since I didn’t have the stomach for outright murder, I’d break his coffee maker.

  I took a deep breath to clear my hectic thoughts and followed Clay and Rachel inside. She patted him again, and I knew I wouldn’t be able to tell him to leave. Especially with Rachel around as a witness. It’d make me look like a complete psycho if I started to speak to the dog, not only as if I knew him, but also as if I was giving a breakup speech. I didn’t really have much of a choice...for now.

  “We can keep him. But he’s going to shed everywhere,” I predicted then walked away.

  Wisely, Clay stayed in the kitchen with Rachel. She continued to talk to him. She told him how cute he was and asked him if he wanted anything to drink. I heard dishes clank as I closed my door.

  Even knowing Clay could probably hear me, I grabbed my cell phone and called Sam. Sam answered before it rang on my end; he knew I wouldn’t call so soon for just any reason.

  “Gabby, what’s wrong?”

  “Clay is here. In fur,” I said as quietly as possible.

  After a brief pause, Sam chuckled. “What did you expect, Hun? He scented you as his Mate. He’s probably been following you since. Only, when you were with me, he trusted me to protect you and kept his distance. Moving away...well, you might have forced his hand a bit. Then again, I think he had planned on joining you from the start.”

  “Right...” I heard a creak of leather and knew Sam had sat in his office chair to get comfortable for a long conversation.

  “Listen, this isn’t so bad. With him there, you won’t need to worry as much about other men, right?”

  “Yeah, but what about him?” I went to my dresser to look for clothes.

  “I told you...he has control. You won’t have to worry about him becoming aggressive with you.”

  Before I could say anything, Rachel’s muted voice called from the kitchen.

  “Hey, Gabby?”

  “I gotta go. Just wanted to tell you he was here. I’ll call if anything stranger pops up.” I didn’t wait for his goodbye. I closed the phone, tucked it into one of my messenger bags on my dresser, and hurried to change. After putting on lounge pants and a tank top, I headed toward the kitchen.

  “What’s up?”

  “Do you think I can feed him leftover steak?” she said sounding a bit muffled.

  Bent at the waist, Rachel riffled through the fridge. Clay sat off to the side with a perfect view of her string bikinied backside, only he wasn’t looking. He faced the arched door, watching for me. Should I be happy that he’d ignored the perfect view or annoyed? Instead of thinking about it, I answered Rachel.

  “I’m pretty sure people-food is bad for dogs.” Yes, I knew it wasn’t nice, but if he wanted to play the dog, I’d play along. “We can pick up some dog food for him in the morning. He’ll be fine overnight.”

  I sat at the kitchen table, pulled my legs up, held my knees, and watched Rachel straighten from the fridge and let the door close. She turned to look at Clay with concern, but Clay ignored her and continued to watch me.

  My stomach growled.

  “But dinner does sound good,” I said to Rachel, ignoring Clay. “I should have thought of groceries while we were shopping.”

  “No problem. I forgot to tell you during the grand tour that there’s a cupboard over there that you can stock and call your own. The top shelf in the fridge is mine. But don’t worry about it for tonight. I was lazy yesterday and ordered take-out pizza. There’s still plenty if you don’t mind leftovers.”

  “Leftovers are fine with me.” My stomach rumbled in agreement.

  “We’ve got cheap plastic plates in the cupboard to the left of the sink—inherited from a prior roommate. Grab two, will you?” she said as she re-opened the fridge.

  I unfolded myself from the chair and grabbed the plates while Rachel pulled the pizza from the fridge. Clay lay down where he sat and put his massive head on his paws. I could see his eyes move to follow my progress.

  Rachel chatted about our neighbors and the university while we warmed the pizza in the microwave. She was easy to be around and fun to listen to.

  “What kind of movies do you like?” she asked changing topics abruptly once both plates held several steaming slices.

  I had to think about it for a moment. “Action-comedy, I guess. I don’t watch movies often.”

  She handed me a plate. “Let’s eat this in the living room and watch a movie.”

  Clay stood and walked toward the living room before either of us moved. When he passed through the arch, he only had two inches of clearance on each side. I wondered if his fur made up his bulk. Not that it mattered. Our tiny house didn’t suit a dog his size.

  Rachel laughed as she watched him. “I think he’s going to fit right in.”

  She had no idea how much he didn’t fit in. I turned off the light in the kitchen and followed them into the living room. Clay settled on the floor and stretched out in front of the couch, which forced us to step over him. Rachel sat on one side of the couch, and I took the other.

  The movie Rachel selected not only held my interest, but it seemed to hold Clay’s as well. I ate two of the three pieces of pizza Rachel had put on my plate and set the remaining piece aside. During a quiet moment, Clay stood, stretched, and turned to study my pizza. Rachel noticed.

  “Just one bite?” Rachel begged.

  “If he’s never eaten it before, he might throw up. Are you willing to clean it up? I’m not.” I wasn’t about to make living with us easy for him.

  She pouted prettily, not really upset. Her easygoing personality allowed me to speak without having to censure my words too much. A few minutes later, I saw her break off small pieces and set them on the edge of her plate. Clay innocently turned around and snatched the pieces.

  “Fine,” I said when the movie ended.
“Give him the steak.”

  Rachel cheered, hopped off the couch, and called to Clay as she went to the kitchen. He looked at me dolefully and followed her.

  “Your choice, bud. Not mine,” I whispered knowing he’d hear me over Rachel’s puttering as she heated the steak for him.

  I grabbed my plate and cup and made my way to the kitchen to quickly wash and dry them.

  “Thanks for the shopping and movie, Rachel. And the leftovers. You’ve made this feel like home in less than a day.” I quirked a half-smile at her. “But I’m beat and going to bed. See you in the morning.”

  Before I left the kitchen, I looked back to make sure Clay didn’t follow. He sat near Rachel, watching me. Hastily looking away, I escaped to my room. The last thing I needed was for him to think that backward glance had been an invitation to join me.

  Odd as it sounded, having Clay in the house made it easier for me to fall asleep. Although still a stranger to me, I knew his world and his rules. He’d keep me safe. Yet, regardless of Sam’s assurance that I needn’t worry about him, he remained a concern.