Page 31 of The Forever Promise

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Bryce was quiet during the ride back. He appeared to be lost in his thoughts. He frowned as he parked the jeep in front of the house. “I can’t believe you beat me.”

I arched an eyebrow. “I didn’t beat you—Itiedyou for most skips.”

“A tie is a loss, in my book.” He was taking it hard.

“Just wait until next time, when youreallylose.” I shrugged. “Then a tie won’t seem so bad.”

He pushed his sunglasses up on his head and looked at me. “Remind me not to get on your bad side.”

“Too late.” I hopped down from the jeep, feeling strangely calm. It was good to let myself be grumpy. Not walking a tightrope around Bryce, trying to guess his mood, was freeing.AndI was pretty good at skipping rocks. I was absofuckinglutely going to beat him next time.

“Oh my God,” Bryce said suddenly. “That thing’s a beast!”

“Huh?” I whipped my head to see what Bryce was looking at. Dale was being dragged across the lawn by an enormous black ball of fur. It tugged on its leash as it bounded for us, big black paws flailing.

“Is that thepuppy?”

Bryce scrubbed a hand across his face. “It’s supposed to be. But it’s at least fifty pounds. Maybe they gave us the wrong dog?”

Dale reached us quickly. He was breathing hard. He bent over and caught his breath while the huge dog flopped onto the grass and rolled onto its back, scratching itself while its tongue lolled out.

“He’s so cute. Can I pet him?”

Dale groaned. “You can pet him, you can walk him, you canhavehim. He dragged me down Main Street in Bar Harbor. He tried to jump off the boat to catch a duck. You try wrestling that thing!”

“I thought we bought a puppy.” Bryce eyed the dog as it rolled onto its stomach and panted. “Isn’t this one fully grown?

“Oh, it’s a puppy.” Dale straightened himself. “Three months old, already forty pounds. They said he’s the biggest one they’ve ever seen. They made me sign an affidavit about how many acres we have here—he needs space to run.”

“It looks like it needs a stable to live in. Not a house.” Bryce glanced back at his pristine mansion. “He’s like a fur hurricane. Maybe we can commission a dog house.”

“Dale!” Noah shot out from the front door. “Is that the surprise? Adog? I’ve always wanted a dog!”

My brother threw himself down in front of the black beast. It promptly rolled onto its back for a belly rub. “That’s a good boy.” Noah was very gentle as he scratched him. The dog was loving it, paws up in the air, tongue out, looking as though it was in heaven.

The corner of Bryce’s lip turned up. “He likes you.”

“You think so?” Noah asked.

“Oh, I know so.” Bryce squatted down next to my brother and scratched the dog’s ears. “Dogs are very sensitive. And smart. They know good people.”

Noah glanced up at him. “Really?”

“Really. They’re excellent judges of character.”

Noah kept petting; I could tell that within the one minute he’d met the ball of fur, he’d already fallen in love. “Is the dog going to stay?” He sounded like it was too good to be true.

“If you want him to.” Bryce shrugged. “But he needs a name.”

Noah stopped petting him for a second, and the dog gently swatted him with its paw, urging him to continue. “Ha, he’s bossy,” Noah laughed. “Hey, what if we named him Boss?”

Bryce reached over and ruffled Noah’s hair, and although I would never admit it to myself, I died inside a little. “That’s a good name, kid. Welcome to the family, Boss.”

After a few minutes of explaining puppy antics to Noah, hanging out with Boss, and letting Dale recover his breath, Bryce and I left the three of them in the yard. I glanced back at my brother, who was still worshipfully petting the dog. Emotion overtook me. “That was really nice of you.”

“It’s nothing. I think every boy should have a dog. Plus, it’s a contractual term you negotiated. Remember?”

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