Page 83 of No Rings Attached
Her lips curved into that soft smile that always wrecked me. “Exactly.”
The lightness dimmed a moment later. She leaned back against the headrest, her voice quieter. “I was stupid not to see that he was cheating sooner.”
“You should be able to trust the person you give your heart to. They should be the one who keeps it safe,” I muttered, gripping the wheel hard enough my knuckles whitened. I wanted to track the guy down and make him regret every second he took Ellie for granted.
She turned her head toward me. “Thank you, Drew.”
“For what? Being my awesome self?” I figured a levity might help dispel the cloud surrounding her.
Her laugh rang throughout the car, bright and real. “That, too. But mostly for showing me I don’t have to settle for scraps of affection. We’ve only been fake dating for a few days and you’ve already been better to me than Kyle was in two years.”
The words hit like a sucker punch. My heart thudded once, hard.
Better than Kyle. But still temporary.
I hated the reminder that we had an expiration date. One that I was less and less inclined to hold on to, but at the same time I recognized Ellie deserved a man’s all and I wasn’t sure I could give her that.
Chapter Nineteen
ELLIE
The sun shone above me and the air had that perfect chill that wasn’t too hot or too cold. It was the perfect fall day, worthy of all the praise New England autumns were known for. It seemed like even the dogs at the shelter were energized and by the crisp, clean air as they frolicked in the grass.
Joy lit me up from the inside out as I fought to catch my breath. The happy yips and barks fueled my enthusiasm, and after setting up the volunteer schedule with Theo, we’d offered to take a few of the dogs to the outside area to let them work off some energy.
When was the last time I’d had so much fun?
When one of the dogs slammed into the back of my knees, followed by another, and then a third—a full-blown furry avalanche, my arms pinwheeled like I was trying out for the world’s worst airplane impression before I toppled into the grass. As they licked my face and nuzzled my head, I gasped for air, tears streaming down my cheeks from laughing so hard.
“Ellie! Are you okay?” Drew’s voice rang out, half-concerned, half-amused.
I attempted to stand up and tried to answer, but my mouth was full of floppy ears and slobbery tongues. “Ahhh, save yourself!” I cried dramatically, as a Chihuahua gnawed on my shoelace and a terrier planted its butt square on my stomach. “There’s no hope for me. Tell my story?—”
“Your story is that you’re terrible at defense,” Drew teased crouching down to sit next to me. A sleek brown dog bounded into his lap. “I’ll take my chances, but if we have to die I’d rather be with you. Besides, they trust me. I’m safe.”
“Safe?” I sputtered. “They’re using me as a human jungle gym!”
He shrugged, far too smug for someone with a puppy chewing on his sleeve. “I’ll put ‘rescued girlfriend from stampede’ on my resume.”
I laughed so hard it hurt. When a mid-sized cocker spaniel with the heft of a bowling ball plopped on my chest, I wheezed. “Domino, buddy—either move or commit to paying my medical bills.”
The dog gave me a look, the evil eye, so similar to my mother’s, which only made me laugh harder. Then he sneezed in my face.
Yuck.
A cackling like she’d never seen anything so hilarious came from a few feet away. “How fortuitous that I arrived during the puppy apocalypse!”
I didn’t even need to turn around. Only one person in Ruby River could project that much drama while jingling like a wind chime.
“Glamma,” Drew groaned, climbing to his feet and brushing grass off his pants.
She closed the distance in a blinding blur of a hot pink tracksuit and bracelets clacking. Her oversized sunglasses, perched on her head, completed her tribute to 80s fashion. The dogs immediately swarmed her, yapping and circling like she was a celebrity on the red carpet.
“My favorite grandson!” she sang.
“You say that to all of us,” Drew shot back.
“Yes, but I mean it most of the time when you’re standing right in front of me.” She patted his cheek, then stage whispered, “Although, your brother Wyatt still sends me flowers for no special occasion. Something to think about.”
