Ruff and Tumble

by Lucy Gilmore

  It wasn’t a compliment. She did know him—as a public figure and a private one, a football player and a man. The problem was, he knew her, too. She’d never been difficult to figure out, her every emotion on display for all the world to see, and he’d used that. He’d found her weakest, most vulnerable part and hit it as hard as he could.

  “It was my dad’s idea to come today. He thought you could use the moral support.” He gave a short laugh at her start of surprise. “Don’t look at me like that… It’s your own fault. He likes you a lot more than he likes me right now. In fact, you’ve probably replaced me forever.”

  “He’ll come around,” Hailey said. “He’s upset now, but he seems to really like the new quarterback. Invite Tucker over for dinner one night, and you’ll see. You’ll be the golden son once again.”

  “I don’t care about being the golden son.”

  This was such a patent lie that Hailey couldn’t help smiling. She toyed with the cuff of Cole’s jacket, plucking at nonexistent strings and wishing she was better at this. “For what it’s worth, I’m proud of you,” she said. “It must have been hard to tell them the truth.”

  “Not nearly as hard as this is turning out to be.” He reached for her and, remembering his promise, dropped his hands again. She almost took pity on him and reached back, but something prevented her.

  Pride, probably. And hurt. And the knowledge that there were people inside that restaurant who genuinely cared for her. She’d forgotten how good it felt to have that—how strong it made her.

  “I’m here, Cole, and I’m listening, but only because your parents asked me to. What do you want?”

  “You.”

  The assured brevity of that reply almost sent her toppling backward.

  “I had a whole speech planned, but I can’t seem to remember any of the words,” he added in a rush of breath. “I used to be good at this, saying what I’m supposed to and smiling at just the right moment, but it’s never mattered like this before. It matters, Hailey. You matter. So much more than I thought possible.”

  “Cole—”

  He held up a hand, stopping her short. “Please, just let me get this out. Then you can go back inside or get in that strange man’s car or bury yourself under a pile of puppies, I promise. I know I don’t deserve anything from you, but I don’t think I can stand to go another day like this.” He waited in that thoughtful way of his for her implied consent before continuing, his expression so earnest and terrified that she had no choice but to give in.

  His relief when she did was a palpable thing.

  “I wish more than anything else in the world that I could take back those things I said to you,” he began, his voice unsteady. “I knew before I started talking that it was the wrong thing, the worst thing I could say, and I’ve regretted it every second of every day since. Not only did I hurt you—an unforgivable thing—but I was wrong.”

  He laughed, a short, bitter sound that matched the sudden shake of his head. “In fact, I’ve never been more wrong about anything. You aren’t alone in the world, and you do understand my family—better than I ever have, that’s for sure. They fell for you as quickly as I did, and I know exactly why.”

  She waited, her chest so tight that it felt full and empty at the same time.

  “You’re the bravest and best person I know,” he said. “You were dealt a crappy hand in life, but you didn’t let it break you. Instead, you turned it into a way to make the world a better place. Every dog you’ve housed, every puppy you’ve loved and nurtured, is the luckiest animal in existence—and I’m not using that word lightly. I’m lucky to know you, Hailey. My family is lucky to know you.”

  Hailey had come to loathe that word, but as it tripped off Cole’s tongue, it lost some of its power. Not because he didn’t mean what he was saying but because he did.

  Cole Bennett had been born under a lucky star, it was true. He had money and love and looks and talent. He’d never know what it meant to sit alone in a cage or be tied to a tree or abandoned at a fire station before he knew his own name.

  But she was lucky, too. It had taken twelve years before she’d been given a family, but it had been the best family in the world. And now she was being given another one all over again.

  “They’re yours if you want them,” Cole said, confirming it. “With or without me, on any terms you’ll have them. I’ve racked my brains trying to come up with something I can give you—something meaningful, something that matters—but it turns out that the only real thing of value I have is them.”

  Cole’s shirt had grown fully damp by this time, the white fabric growing increasingly see-through the longer they stood there. He had to be freezing, standing half-dressed and soaked, but he didn’t seem to notice. Hailey had the feeling that he’d continue standing there, developing pneumonia, until she finally spoke.

  “You weren’t entirely wrong,” she said, her voice quiet but determined. “That day at your condo, I mean. You accused me of being too scared to keep my dogs for longer than a few weeks, said I was afraid to open my heart on a permanent basis.”

  “I was an idiot. An asshole. I took all my fear out on you because I knew, in that moment, that nothing scared me more than the thought of losing you.” He drew a deep, shaking breath, and Hailey was surprised to find that his hands were shaking, too. “My whole life, I’ve been scared of what would happen if I no longer had football to fall back on. It’s all I’ve been and all I’ve known. But then you came into my life, and I caught a glimpse of what existed on the other side. I saw a future that didn’t just look appealing… It looked like everything I’ve ever wanted.”

  His beautifully striking blue eyes met hers. He must have seen something there that gave him courage, because the shaking finally stopped. “That future is you, Hailey Lincoln, and the life we could have—the two of us, together. The thought of missing out on that scared me a hell of a lot more than all the rest.”

  He looked so shaken and cold, so much like a puppy who’d been abandoned on a doorstep, that Hailey took pity on him. Since she knew that he wouldn’t break his promise, wouldn’t touch her unless she said it was okay, she flung herself into his arms.

  “I’m scared, too,” she admitted, her words muffled by the hard press of his chest. She could feel the beat of his heart, erratic but strong, and knew that there was nowhere else she would rather be. Especially when he wrapped both his arms around her. “Terrified, actually. I’ve been alone for most of my life, and I thought I could stay that way forever, but I can’t anymore. I want to have dogs and friends and family. I want to watch football games and sit with Penny while she takes baths and throw parties for my coworkers. I want you, Cole Bennett. With your useless shoulder and your too-tight shirts and your big, generous, beautiful heart.”

  “You do? Even after what I said? Even after what I did?”

  She had to smile at how uncertain he sounded, how incredulous. That lonely, despairing pang might be new to him, but she knew it well.

  She also knew exactly how to fix it.

  “Even after what you said,” she agreed. “And even after what you did. You might not know this about me yet, Cole Bennett, but I’m a bit like a hailstorm. You never see me coming, but once I’m here, I’m not so easy to get rid of.”

  Cole didn’t wait for her permission to kiss her this time. It might have been the fact that his body temperature was rapidly decreasing and he needed her to stay warm. Perhaps he heard the raucous cries from the restaurant signaling what must be a win for the Lumberjacks.

  Or maybe, just maybe, he loved her as much as she loved him. Maybe, just maybe, she’d finally found where she belonged.

  “Well, I’ll be damned,” Cole said as they stood breathless and panting in the rain, neither one willing to be the first to pull away. “My dad was right.”

  “About what?”

  “About how I can put
my months of convalescence to good use. Grab those puppies of ours and let’s go. It’s time you and I went home.”

  She blushed at the implication and the promise—and the fact that Cole had apparently discussed their sex life with his father—but held her head high. “Which puppies of ours?” she asked suspiciously.

  “As many as we can hold,” came his prompt reply. He grinned and gave her a meaningful squeeze. “I don’t know if you know this, but I’m an unemployed millionaire with a bleeding heart for a girlfriend and a recent Puppy Cup win under my belt. There will be no stopping me now.”

  Epilogue

  “I’m having a hard time deciding if this is a block party or a family reunion.”

  Cole flipped the cap off a bottle of beer and handed it to his sister. “Does it matter?”

  Regina cast a look around the backyard of Cole and Hailey’s new house, which abutted her own and was already scattered with more dog and children’s toys than was seemly in a neighborhood like this. “People are going to start thinking there’s something wrong with us. You aren’t supposed to spend this much time with your relatives. It’s weird.”

  “Tell that to Mia. She’s having the time of her life.”

  It was true. Cole had spent the better part of the morning finishing the small wooden door that led through the hedge from Regina’s yard to his own, and Mia was painstakingly teaching the dogs to use it. Nala and Rufus had picked up on the process right away, but Philip was showing a marked tendency to cower.

  Regina paused a moment to watch her daughter before smiling. “You’ll never get rid of her after this, you know. Kids can’t resist secret doorways.”

  “It was either this or a tunnel from your basement to ours,” Hailey said, coming up to join them. She was dressed simply but adorably in a yellow dress that made the most of the rare burst of sunlight. Fall in Seattle could be very touch-and-go in terms of weather, but the gods had smiled on them for their barbecue.

  The gods had been smiling on them for quite a while now, actually. Hailey liked to say that all their good fortune came from his side of the family, but he knew better. The day he’d walked into her office had been the luckiest day of his life.

  “I was only just able to talk Cole out of it,” Hailey added. “He had an excavator picked out and everything.”

  “Don’t even think about it. The day you touch my foundation with an excavator is the day I pack up and move away forever.” Regina spoke with all the vehemence of an older sister who was putting her foot down, but Cole and Hailey only laughed. She’d been more excited than the rest of them when the house next door to hers had gone up for sale. She’d had her real estate agent on the phone before Cole could blink. “But I’m serious. If she gets to be too much, let me know and I’ll—”

  Hailey touched her arm. “She’s not too much. We love having her around.”

  Regina nodded once, and that was the end of it. Cole could have pointed out to both women that if he had been the one to make that statement, there’d have been arguments and insults and a determination to have the last word no matter what the cost, but there was no point. Since the day Hailey had finally agreed to move in with him, his family had taken her side in everything.

  Even after all these months, they liked her better than him, but that was okay. He liked her better, too.

  They stood and watched as Mia coaxed Philip in an attempt to get him through the door. The pit bull had grown considerably since his formal adoption after the Puppy Cup, but he would always be a little on the small side. Rufus was well on his way to outstripping him, and even Nala, who his parents overfed to a ridiculous decree, was growing by leaps and bounds.

  “The only way he’s going through that door is if you lead by example,” Hailey said after a few minutes. She landed a playful slap on his ass. “Down, boy, and show him how it’s done.”

  Cole was only too happy to comply. To some men, crawling around on all fours might not seem like a step up from a glorious football career, but he knew better. He’d achieved quite a lot in his lifetime, but he’d never been as happy as he was these past few months. He played with the dogs and with Hailey, took Mia to all the library story times her heart could handle, and made the occasional commercial appearance courtesy of Regina’s continued hard work on his behalf.

  He and Hailey had also started filling out the paperwork to become foster parents, but they weren’t publicizing it yet. It was a long and difficult process, and they were taking their time so they could do it right.

  As if sharing his thoughts, Hailey glanced over and smiled, her expression somewhat misty. The journey had been understandably emotional for her, but she was facing it with the same bravery she showed in the face of every challenge. She produced television shows and personally adopted out hundreds of dogs to anyone willing to take one. She sat for hours watching old football footage with his dad and offered critiques to any of his old teammates who wanted them.

  She was everything to him, and now she was giving him his tons of kids, too.

  “Olá!” a friendly voice called. Regina didn’t manage to subdue her groan in time, but Hailey expressed nothing but delight at the sight of the Wegmores escaping his parents and heading straight for them. “Como você está? Would you believe it? We’ve already booked our next trip. You’ll never guess where we’re going this time.”

  Cole made good his escape before he could hear the answer, scampering off after Mia with his pockets full of dog treats. Leaving Hailey to the mercy of his relatives might have been the cowardly thing to do, but he knew it was what she wanted most of all.

  Because he loved her. Because she loved him.

  Because she was family.

  Enjoy a sneak peek at this unforgettably funny enemies-to-lovers rom-com about a grumpy dog show judge, a determined former beauty queen, and the golden retriever more interested in stealing bacon than winning Best in Show.

  I Hate You More

  by Lucy Gilmore

  Coming November 2, 2021

  “That is, without question, the most beautiful creature I’ve ever seen.”

  Ruby gave a start of surprise at the unexpected voice so close behind her and jerked the leash in her hand. Predictably, the dog on the other end—a poodle shaved and trimmed into a series of white puffs like a Q-tip—didn’t move. Ruby had been holding on to her for over five minutes, and she had yet to see the dog do anything but blink. Her owner had commanded her to stay, so stay was what she intended to do.

  “I shouldn’t say that,” the voice continued in a low, flirtatious rumble. Its owner, a tall, well-built stranger with shoulders like a linebacker, smiled as he stepped close. “I’m not supposed to play favorites, but you’ve obviously put a lot of time and effort into this dog. What’s his name?”

  “Her,” she said. “It’s a girl dog.”

  “Well, she’s got something special, that’s for sure.” The man extended a hand, his eyes smiling down into hers. They were gorgeous eyes, so dark they were almost black and ringed with the kind of long, curling eyelashes that Ruby had regularly pasted on when she was kid. “I’m Spencer Wilson, by the way. In case you can’t tell, I’m one of the judges.”

  In studded jeans and a faded T-shirt that stretched a little too tight for Ruby’s tastes, he didn’t look like much of a dog-show judge, but she knew better than to be deceived by appearances.

  “Ruby,” she said, shaking his hand. “Ruby Taylor. Only there’s been a mistake. I’m not—”

  At the sound of her voice, the only other dog in the room sent up a howl of dismay. They were in a hallway of sorts, waiting to submit their entry to the West Coast Canine Classic, and the golden retriever wasn’t happy with the delay. He wasn’t happy about anything, especially the fact that Ruby was giving all her attention to the perfectly poised poodle that had been left in her care. The poodle’s owner had forgotten some papers in the c
ar and dashed out to grab them, begging Ruby to keep an eye on her precious darling in the meantime.

  Unfortunately, Wheezy wasn’t a dog who shared. Wheezy wasn’t a dog who did much of anything except make Ruby’s life difficult.

  “Yikes,” the man—Spencer—said as he took in Ruby’s actual charge. It didn’t help that Wheezy had met with an accident on the way in, which mostly involved the discovery of a mud puddle and a determined effort to reach the bottom of it. “What happened to him?”

  “It rained this morning,” Ruby said, feeling defensive. Okay, so Wheezy didn’t look his best right now, but the competition hadn’t technically started. They were just here to drop off their paperwork and pay the entrance fee. There were still a good two months until the actual dog show. “There are puddles all over the parking lot.”

  “And yet you managed to get your dog inside without falling into any.” Spencer grinned at her. It was a good grin, the kind that started in his eyes and crinkled into laugh lines around his mouth, but something about it felt off. Probably because the man was mocking poor Wheezy before they’d even managed to get a foot in the door. That didn’t seem like very professional dog-show-judge behavior to her. “I’m sure I don’t have to tell you how many of these we get every year.”

  “How many whats you get?” Ruby asked, suspicious.

  He heaved a mock sigh. “Everyone with a beloved family pet seems to think they can just roll up here and enter the show. No training, no grooming, no pedigree… I mean, come on. Would you bring an animal like that to the most prestigious dog show on this side of the country? To compete against a gorgeous girl like this one?”

  Spencer placed a reverential hand on the poodle’s head, but his gaze wasn’t focused on the dog. Instead, his wide, obvious smile took Ruby in from top to bottom.

  She pretended not to understand him.