Page 154 of Make Me Trust Again
Finally, after what feels like forever, Teddy presses his nose to the ball for a split second.
“Did you see that? He touched it. Good boy, Teddy,” Kyle praises excitedly, giving the dog some treats. He manages to touch the ball a couple more times before I call it quits. “C’mon, dinner will be ready soon, so it’s time to go home.”
“But Chase! He did it. Can we stay a bit longer? Please?”
“No.” I shake my head. “He touched the ball, and he got his reward. If you can, you always want to end the lesson on a good note.”
Kyle lets out an exaggerated sigh. “I guess.” He extends his hands, and Teddy comes to him, nuzzling into his neck. “You’re a really smart boy, Teddy.”
“You’re not so bad yourself.” I ruffle his hair a little. He tilts his head, leaning into my touch slightly, those big blue eyes fixing on me.
“You think I can get as good as you?”
The corner of my mouth tips upward slightly. “I’m sure you can get even better.”
A smile spreads over his mouth. Smoothing my palm over his hair, I pull back. “C’mon, let’s get you home.”
Kyle puts Teddy on the ground and gets to his feet. Together we make our way out of the barn, when I feel a hand tug at my arm. “Hey, Chase?”
His voice is low, almost tentative.
“Hmm?” I look down to find a distant expression on his face that has me slowing down.
For the most part, Kyle has returned to the cheerful kid I’ve gotten to know, but every now and then, I see glimpses of that darkness that’s too big for a boy of his age. It’s buried deep inside, but so far, he hasn’t brought it up. Not with Rose, and certainly not with me.
His gaze is lowered, and I can see him worrying on his lower lip as he thinks. He’s always doing that when he needs some time to process things. It’s as if he isolates himself so he can think in peace, so I let him.
My gaze darts to the cottage, but Rose hasn’t come out in search of Kyle just yet, so I wrap my arm around his and guide us to the steps of the back porch and sit down, so we’re at the same level. The dogs chase one another, while I wait for Kyle to lift his gaze before asking.
“Is everything okay?”
Kyle nods. “It’s just…” He lifts his shoulders in a shrug. “We’re doing a career day in school this year.”
“Okay,” I say slowly, unsure where he’s going with this.
His gaze darts over my shoulder as he shifts, twiddling his fingers in front of him, clearly nervous. “It’s my turn to bring somebody next week.”
He glances at me again, so I nod. “That’s usually how career day works. Did you tell your mom? I’m sure she’d love to come.”
I’m sure that Rose will jump on this if he tells her. But even before I finish, Kyle’s already shaking his head. “I don’t want her to come.”
His words have me pausing for a moment. Kyle’s a good kid. Not just that, he loves his mom. I find it hard to believe that he doesn’t want her to come. Does he wantJohnto go with him? It’s entirely possible. Kyle wants his dad’s attention and approval, but dammit. How the hell do I get him to go, when he can barely show up for Kyle when it’s his weekend at his father’s place? He was supposed to pick him up this past weekend, but once again, he ditched him without a word.
My mind is reeling with all the possible ways I can make this happen for him, that I almost miss Kyle speaking to me.
“—you come?”
I blink, unsure if I heard him correctly. “What?”
Kyle’s shoulders slump a little. “I mean, you don’t have to come if you don’t want to.” He shrugs again, his words coming in a rush. “But it would be so cool. You could bring Shadow and show everybody the tricks she can do. It would be fun.”
The ringing in my ears grows louder as my heart speeds up, and I just stare at him, completely dumbfounded. I never expected him to ask me—me, of all people—to come talk to his class. It makes no sense. Not just that, what business do I have going into his class and talking to his friends? I don’t even like people; I’m no role model. Just the thought of going out there scares the living shit out of me.
Kyle’s gaze falls, the disappointment clear in his voice. “It’s fine. Forget about it…”
They’re just kids, for fuck’s sake, Williams.
He’sjust a kid, and he’s asking this one thing of you.
