by Parker, Ali
I dropped Raina off back at her office, and I would have been lying if I’d said that I didn’t hang out a little longer than I necessarily had to before I got back to business.
“So, Friday?” she asked.
I nodded. “Friday it is,” I replied, and I cupped her cheek in my hand for a moment.
She pressed her face against my fingers and smiled. “I’m going to miss you,” she remarked.
I kissed her on the forehead. “I’ll miss you too,” I replied, and we both lingered there, not wanting the moment to have passed by us quite yet.
But then with a sigh, she said she had to get back to work, and I headed back to the car where George was waiting for me.
“All right, let’s get down to this shelter, huh?” he remarked. “I want to see where our money is going.”
“As long as you can stop flirting for a single second,” I teased him. “What were you playing at with the girl Raina works with?”
“Hey, I don’t get out so much,” he protested. “It’s the least I can do to actually enjoy the time that I get out of the house, isn’t it?”
“Well, if that’s your way of enjoying it, maybe it’s better for the women of the city that we keep you under lock and key,” I joked back.
He grinned and locked his fingers behind his head. “I still got it,” he replied.
I laughed. I forgot sometimes just how much of a cocky asshole he could be when he wanted to. You didn’t get to where he had in the world of work if you didn’t have a whole lot of self-belief to go along with your attitude.
We drove down to the shelter, and Marjorie was already there waiting outside by the time we got there. I helped George out of the car, and he greeted Marjorie with a grin.
“Wonderful to finally meet the woman who brought Tink into our lives,” he told her. “He’s made such a difference to all of us.”
“Yes, he really is the sweetest little thing,” Marjorie said, and I could already see George rounding up for another game of flirtation. I decided that it was best to deflect him before he took it any further. We were meant to be here on business, after all.
“So, I was hoping that you might be able to show George a little of the shelter,” I told her quickly before he could start on his nonsense again.
She nodded and gestured toward the counter. “So this is where we take in the stray dogs that get brought to us.”
“And where do you get them from?” George asked with interest. “People just drop them off?”
With that, the two of them were deep in conversation about the shelter and the dogs and everything else that came with it. I listened in and interjected where it seemed appropriate, glad for the chance to talk about the shelter once more.
I knew that the money from the gala would take a while to come through, but I was certain that we had managed to come up with a decent amount. I couldn’t wait to see everything that they would do with the place as soon as they had the chance to. And I was proud to know that I had been at the center of a lot of it.
“I used to give to the SPCA, but I think I like the idea of supporting somewhere a little more local,” George said as he got down on his knees to say hello to one of the dogs. He could be so spritely sometimes, it was hard to remember that he was an old man.
“We can do so much more work one-on-one than those big organizations can,” Marjorie explained enthusiastically. “I know that it’s hard to get your head around, but sometimes, focusing on more specific areas can make a bigger impact than the organizations that function nationally.”
“Well, I can see that you’re doing a lot of amazing work here,” he said as he straightened back up. “Could we talk a little about the kind of work you think we could do around here? I’m not sure what you were thinking exactly, but I know that Harry here had a few ideas.”
“Yes, I thought it could be really interesting to do a service where we rent running partners for people,” I explained. “It would get the dogs out and about and make sure that they were socialized around other people and animals, and we could frame it as a chance for people to get in shape. Convince them that they’re getting something out of the deal, and they’ll be more likely to get involved with it.”
“Yeah, I really like that idea,” Marjorie said. “And what about adoption fairs? I know we’d have a lot more luck getting something like this off the ground if we had your help advertising and stuff.”
“I know we could work with the marketing department to get it off the ground,” I said with a nod. “Could take a while to stir up interest, but once we get going with it, who knows.”
“It won’t take long to get people engaged with it,” George promised me. “When it comes to animals, people are always excited to get involved. Good neutral thing to get wrapped up in. People like that. Businesses like that, especially. Nothing political about helping out animals. Plus, everyone looks a little more human when they’re standing next to a cute dog.”
“Good point,” I said. “How does that sound to you, Marjorie? You think you could get to work with that?”
“Yeah, I do!” she said, and she seemed a little dazzled by everything we were throwing at her.
“If it’s too much for you,” I began, noticing that she seemed a little put out.
She shook her head. “Not at all,” she promised me. “It’s just crazy for me to think about all the help that I’ll be getting around here. I’ve been doing this by myself for such a long time, and I kind of always thought that I was going to be.”
“If you don’t mind us butting in, I think we can turn this into something really amazing,” I told her. “It could be a lot of work, but we’re equipped to help you out every step of the way.”
“I’ve been doing this for years now all by myself,” she replied. “More or less. And I don’t think anything is going to seem like too much work in the face of all of that.”
“And it’s only fair, given how much you’ve changed things for Winnie and me,” I pointed out. “We want to thank you any way that we can.”
She touched her hand to her heart, expressing how touched she was that we were going out of our way to make life easier for her. Honestly, there was nothing I wouldn’t have done to support a place like this. If it had changed our lives, I could only imagine how much it might have done for other people in the same position, people who craved something to love, an animal that they could draw into their lives and make their own.
“Speaking of stuff like that,” George cut in. “I think it would be great to connect with some local care homes. You know, bring the animals down there as emotional support? I know that older people can get real lonely up there all by themselves, especially if they don’t have any family who are too willing to come out and give them a hand.”
“I love that idea,” Marjorie said. “You guys have so many. I need to start taking some notes and make sure that I got everything.”
She headed off for a moment, and George stood there and grinned at me.
“This is the perfect place to work with,” he told me confidently. “You chose the right spot, buddy.”
“I think so,” I said, and I looked around the shelter fondly. I would never have known about this place had it not been for Raina. I had so much to thank her for. And I intended to do that as many times over as she would let me.
By the time that we were ready to leave the shelter, I was pretty sure George was about to write the place into his will. He was so taken with it and was making no mistake in letting everyone know that. He announced that he wanted to come back soon to visit when he got the chance, and Marjorie told him that he would be welcome whenever he wanted to return. Any more excuse for him to get out of the house and into the city to flirt with any unsuspecting woman who came his way, I supposed.
As soon as we got back out to the car, he sighed and leaned back against the seat.
“You all right?” I asked him.
He nodded. “Just a little tired,” he explained. “I’m not used to spending that
much time away from the house, you know?”
“Well, let’s get you back there,” I replied, and we headed out of town and back to his place.
He seemed thoughtful the whole way back and put the radio on to fill the silence between us. I couldn’t help but wonder what was up with him. But when we got back, I turned the car off, and suddenly, he seemed ready to actually talk about whatever it was that was on his mind.
“Son,” he began gruffly, and I knew this was going to be emotional. He was never the most forthright with the way that he felt, but it meant that when he did come out with it, it really mattered.
“I know that you haven’t had the easiest run of it,” he began hesitantly. “God knows that none of us have. Not since... well, not since your sister passed away.”
He paused and gathered himself. He didn’t talk much about her, but I knew that it stung for him to bring her to mind again. The reality was that she was gone, and sometimes, admitting it and accepting it was more than any of us wanted to handle.
“And I miss her like hell,” he continued. “But I wanted you to know, I’m so proud of the man you are. I always have been, but the person you’ve become lately... I know that I’m not going to be around forever. Eventually, it’s going to be just you and Winnie and Tink, but I know that you’re more than equipped to handle it when the time comes, eh?”
“There’s no need for you to talk like that,” I told him firmly. “You’re not going anywhere anytime soon. Not as long as there are still girls for you in the city to flirt with, right?”
He smiled at me a little sadly, and my stomach dropped. I knew he was right, but the last thing I wanted to have to think about was losing someone else again. I felt like I’d had enough of that to last a lifetime, even though I knew that it came as an inevitability.
“No need to get all maudlin on me,” I told him, and I leaned over to give him a hug. “Come on. Let’s get you back to Anita. She’s probably worried about you by now.”
“Probably,” he said, and he replaced the sad smile with a genuine one. That was all I needed to see for now.
I got out of the car to help him and promised myself in that moment that I wasn’t going to let him go anywhere anytime soon.
Chapter 39
Raina
I had spent the morning running around the apartment and cleaning it from top to bottom, even though I knew there was no good reason for me to do that. We were going out, not staying in, but I had all this excess nervous energy, and I was freaking out and needed to pour it into something before I lost my mind.
I was going out with Reed, Harry, and Winnie today, and I was so nervous I felt like I was going to pop. I couldn’t believe this was happening. He was actually meeting my family.
I should have been excited, and yet, I was freaking all the way out at the thought of Reed sitting across from the man I knew I was falling in love with. What if he said or did something stupid? I had no idea what he had in mind, and I was frankly hoping that I wouldn’t have to keep him in line.
Rita had started me on half-days on Fridays, just to make sure that I actually took a little time off, and I had begrudgingly agreed at first. It had been so long since I’d had this kind of time to myself that I had almost forgotten how nice it was to just laze around doing nothing for an afternoon. Well, not nothing, since I had been fluttering around the apartment, moving ornaments, and dusting underneath them while I listened to the chattering of the TV that was purely on to keep me company, but still.
I headed outside a few minutes before they arrived, sitting on the step and scanning the street for any sign of Harry and Winnie. He had offered to pick me up, and I had agreed, figuring the best course of action was to arrive there all together.
I wanted to present a united front to Reed because I knew that he was going to have some serious questions about everything that was going on, and I didn’t want his lawyer-y ass to find any cracks in the façade.
I knew he was just being protective, making sure that I didn’t get hurt, but sometimes, he could have done with taking a day off and sitting back for a change.
I got up when I saw them coming, and I felt a genuine jolt of joy when the car pulled to a halt in front of my apartment building. God, I loved seeing the two of them so much. I missed them when I was away from them, and I found myself thinking about them nearly all the time. I knew that there was a lot of pressure on today, at least from my perspective, but that all seemed to fall away as soon as I laid eyes on them again.
“Hey,” I said to Harry before leaning over and pecking a kiss on his cheek. I glanced over at Winnie, and the two of us bumped fists as a way of saying hello.
“You girls ready?” Harry asked.
I nodded, and we headed to the restaurant I had chosen for the meeting. I hoped and prayed it really was as child-friendly as it had been advertised on the website. The last thing I wanted was to drag Winnie along to something that clearly wasn’t built for her.
I fretted in my head on the way over, chewing on my nails, and then I tried to remind myself that this was my brother. He wasn’t going to be expecting anything crazy, and he was good at adapting to whatever was thrown at him.
This was going to be just fine. Just fine.
We got there, and I spotted Reed already holding the table for the four of us. He got to his feet and waved us down when he saw us, and I couldn’t help but smile at him. He was so enthusiastic. It was hard not to get a little caught up in his joy at finally meeting the man who I had been dating.
“Great to see you, sis,” he said, giving me a big hug. Then he turned his attention to our two dinner guests for the evening. “And it’s awesome to meet you guys, too! You must be Winnie, right?”
He smiled down at the little girl, and she nodded happily, clearly glad to be noticed and treated like an adult. Harry smiled and put his hands on Winnie’s shoulder, in protective-dad mode as usual. I didn’t blame him. My brother was a lawyer, after all, and it wasn’t like they had the most sterling of reputations out here in the real world.
“And this is Harry,” I said. “My boyfriend.”
I knew that I didn’t need to say it out loud, but damn, it felt good to let those words slip out of my mouth. He was my boyfriend. My damn boyfriend! I couldn’t believe that I got to stand next to him and hold his hand and call him my actual, real, living, breathing boyfriend.
“Great to meet you too,” Reed replied smoothly, shaking Harry’s hand and not letting the smile slip from his face for a moment.
“Though I know that Winnie is the real attraction here,” Harry joked.
Reed laughed. The tension that had been there when we’d arrived seemed to have lifted, and we all took our seats and ordered something to drink.
It wasn’t Reed’s usual haunt. It was a little more family-friendly than he was likely used to, but he didn’t let it throw him, and I was grateful for that. The last thing I wanted was for them to see my brother as some kind of snob. He was laidback and charming, and he chatted to Harry happily as we sipped on our drinks and asked him about his work and his family without delving too deeply too soon, much to my relief.
“You’re a lawyer, right?” Winnie asked him.
Reed nodded as we handed off our menus to a waiter. “Yes, I am,” he replied. “Though please don’t hold it against me.”
“Does that mean you went to law school?” she asked.
He nodded again. “I did.”
“Was it hard? How did you get in?” She peppered him with questions now that she finally seemed to have loosened up a little. She could be shy, but once you got past that, she was a forward-thinking little girl.
Reed glanced at me, clearly surprised by how interested she was to find out how his world worked, and I smiled at him, nodding to tell him to get on with it and tell her already.
“Well, it was hard getting in, but it was passing the Bar that was really difficult,” he explained. “That’s what you have to pass to make sure that you’re all
owed to practice in the state.”
Harry took my hand under the table, and we shared a smile together. I knew that he was proud of his little girl and glad that she was so forward and passionate. It was certainly something to be proud of, and he had obviously raised her to believe that there was nothing in the world that she couldn’t do. And with that attitude, I think it would be hard to disbelieve that.
Reed was on his best behavior for the rest of the night and didn’t even make a point of humiliating me in front of Harry. He had always threatened that he would be the first to whip out the awkward baby pictures the first chance he got, given that I had done the same when he had first been dating Lizzie, but he just decided to stick to a few funny stories and keep it at that.
Harry laughed along as Reed told him about the time I had gotten my toe stuck in the drain of the bath and had cried, thinking that I was going to have to have it cut off to escape. I could more than handle that, if that was the worst that he had up his sleeve.
The food was good, and the conversation flowed between us, and I actually let myself relax and just enjoy it. I had assumed that I was going to need to be on red alert, making sure that Reed didn’t come out with something stupid that was going to scare Harry away, but he didn’t seem that bothered about making a fool of me or trying to delve too far into Harry’s personal life—and his personal fortune particularly.
I didn’t want my own brother to be one of the dozens of people who ran around after Harry, trying to find out more about his money and exactly how much of it he had and precisely what amount he might be willing to donate to this cause or that one.
By the time the meal came to a close, I was actually feeling pretty blessed. It had all gone as well as I could have possibly hoped. Yes, it had been nerve wracking, but I wanted Harry to know the people in my life, and I wanted them to know him.
He mattered to me. And he wasn’t going anywhere. That meant that he deserved this spot at this table, meeting the people close to me.
“Well, it was great to meet you,” Reed told Harry as he shook his hand at the end of the night and bid him farewell. “I’d love to grab a drink with you if you’re passing by my office sometime, yeah?”