Page 61 of You and Me, For Real
I nod. “Yup. That’s me. Ashton. These are my dogs…well, Teddy is, and the other two are my fosters.”
“Awww,” she gushes and kneels to get a better look inside the dog crate. “Can I see them?”
I look at Luke, in panic. Griffin gave me permission to bring them, but I’m not sure he’d like them overrunning his house. I know firsthand their kind of destruction.
Luke shrugs.
Okay. No help there.
“What if I take one out for you? They’re best admired individually.” I chuckle nervously, also praying they don’t accidentally pee on her in their excitement to escape their crate.
She claps and squeals, sitting cross-legged on the floor. “Here, let me help you.” She opens the latch on the crate and pulls out one of the dogs. “Aww, she’s so cute! What’s her name?”
“This is Cocoa, and her brother is Chip.” I shrug, suddenly self-conscious in front of this stunning actress. “I named them after my favorite ice cream. I guess I had a weak moment. What can I say?” I laugh.
Scarlet smiles. “That’s adorable! I love it. My dad and I are huge dog lovers. In fact, I came over to invite Griffin to?—”
Before she finishes, Griffin breezes into the room, aiming right for me. His eyes land on my elevated ankle. “What happened?”
It takes two seconds before Griffin realizes he has another guest. And that two-second delay is all it takes for Scarlet’s excited posture to slump slightly and her eyes to dim.
“Scarlet? What are you doing here?”
His tone isn’t harsh, but it doesn’t matter. The words are enough to make anyone feel unwelcome.
He clears his throat as if realizing his blunder. “I mean, sorry, I didn’t know you were coming over.” He looks at his phone screen. “Did you text me? I was on the phone for a while. I must have missed it.”
Scarlet straightens and inhales a good whiff of Cocoa.
I appreciate that she, too, relishes yummy puppy-scented goodness. It does have wondrous therapeutic benefits.
“I texted telling you I was stopping by with an announcement. Actually, I was just about to tell your friend here all about it. Ashton, right?”
I nod, trying not to read into the emphasis she puts on friend. That is my role here, after all—trainer, if we’re to be more precise.
“My dad is having a party.” She lifts the puppy to her cheek. “A dog birthday party, actually. You know, us and animals. Anyway, it’s Ranger’s first birthday, so we’d be remiss if we didn’t celebrate.” She puts Cocoa’s nose to hers. “Isn’t that right, Cocoa?” She kisses her head and places her on her lap. “He’s invited a bunch of people in the film industry. I thought it’d be great for you—us—to be there…together.”
She stumbles over her words, making even me feel uncomfortable. Her vulnerability is written all over her face. She really wants him to come, but she isn’t sure he will.
Why?
They’re together, right?
Up until this point, Luke had stood behind the couch, a casual observer. “Would anyone like something to drink? Water? Alcohol? A snack, maybe?”
“I’m good, man,” Griffin replies, still looking at Scarlet.
“No thanks, Luke.” Scarlet opens the crate and returns Cocoa inside.
Luke looks at me.
“No. Thank you.” I ease toward the edge of the couch. “I think I should be going anyway.”
“No.” Both Luke and Griffin hold out their hands to stop me.
I slump back into the cushions. “Okay then.”
“Give me a second to talk to Scarlet, and then I’ll take a look at your ankle and see if we need to take you to the doctor.”
