Page 15 of Speechless

“I’m going to get you on a board soon enough, you’ll see.” Doubtful. “Ah, that one’s perfect!” Graham starts running down the beach and I see him grab a stick and jog back with it. “Can we play fetch?”

“Sure. Row, come here. Do you wanna play F-E-T-C-H?” Rowan stands up straight with a powerful wag going. Then he starts to hop up on his hind legs in excitement. Graham chucks the stick and I’m in mild shock at how far it goes. His arms are . . . whoa. He lookedverygood in the wetsuit, but now that it’s folded down around his waist, I can’t seem to drag my eyes away.

“Thanks Luce, I’ve wanted to get a dog since we moved here. I grew up with two labs back in Brisbane. Henry and I talked about getting . . .” Apparently, I’m still staring at him because he starts to snap his fingers at me. Oops.

“Sorry, I umm . . . you’re like, really strong. Are you a bodybuilder or something?”

He chuckles. “God no, I mainly surf. Though Henry and I can be pretty competitive at the gym. Lucy, stop staring at me, I’m a person you know—not just some magnificent, beautiful object for you to drool over.”

He’s clearly being sarcastic, andflexing, but I’m notnotstaring. I’m also most definitelynotimagining what Henry would look like in a wetsuit—or without one. Can’t Graham just realize I’ve only seen one naked man since college? I’m living out the dreams of my slutty twenties that I never got to have.

Let me live.

Rowan prances back to us proudly with the stick in his mouth and Graham swoops him off of the sand before moving to face me.

“All right, Luce. Who’s more beautiful? You have to choose—which one of us would you rather pet?” He has a mischievous, sultry look on his face, and no matter how much I know he’s joking around, I can’t help it when my cheeks bloom crimson.

I punch him in the shoulder—which is as hard as a rock—and take Row out of his arms. “Rowan. It’ll always be Rowan.”

Grahamand I are sprawled out on Squishy—yes, I’ve named their sectional—and I guess dreams do come true because he is also aPeaky Blindersaddict. He’s a season ahead of me but agrees to do a full re-watch so we start from the beginning.

“Are you sure this show isn’t too violent for you, Little Lu?”

“Please. I love violence. On TV, obviously.”

“Well, you look scared shitless. What’s going on?” He nods toward my arms wrapped around my center. It’s then I notice my knee has been bouncing up and down at a fast clip.

“Sorry, nothing to do with the show. I just umm, well I haven’t been apart from Rowan in a really long time. I guess I'm a little stressed about it.” Jayce begged me to let him take Row to the pet store to buy him some toys and treats. He said it was just down the road so I figured the time apart would be short enough not to bother me. I figured wrong.

Graham pauses the show and scoots closer to me. “What do you need?”

“I’m okay, really. I’ll be fine.”

Graham must think I’m a complete wimp. First the surfing, and now I’m scared to be without my dog? What a fabulous first impression. This isn’t who I am, at least I don’t want it to be. I know that I don’t need Rowan around all the time, but he’s turned into a security blanket. I think I’m just terrified of being left behind. An orphan at twenty-five, divorced at twenty-nine, is it that irrational for me to have some abandonment issues?

I’m a fucking mess.

“Thanks, Luce!” Jayce wanders back in just as I’m about to tell Graham to re-start the show. Rowan jumps up in my lap and all my nerves start to dissolve.

“Well, did you finally do it?” Graham says, eyeing Jayce haughtily.

“Obviously.” Jayce shows us his receipt that includes a handwritten phone number right under the name Crystal.

“I’m so confused. Can someone fill me in, please?

Jace quickly explains about the cute pet store cashier he’s noticed in his travels, but for whatever reason, needed an excuse to approach. Insert Rowan.

“Seriously? You don’t really come across as shy, Jayce. You couldn’t just go up and ask her out?”

“I’m definitely not shy. I just prefer to play a winning hand. My chocolate skin and bone structure plus Rowan’s fluffy face—she was never gonna say no to that.” He smiles smugly at me and I’m not sure if I should feel bad for the pet store girl because he’s right.

“She never had a chance.” I say it under my breath, but he catches every word. He winks at me, proud, and plops down on the couch beside me. He leans over to get face-to-face with Rowan and starts thanking him for being the best wingman he’s ever had.

“Excuse me? I know I’ve gotten you laid at least twice,” Graham mutters. “All the pup got you was a number.”

“But he’s just so much cuter than you.”

Graham scoffs at Jayce’s insult but we’re all laughing. I sink deeper into the couch, feeling relaxed and weirdly at home. How do I already feel so close to these guys? I just met them, but it feels like we’re real friends somehow.

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