“Bring that little guy with you. He’s going to need a bath.” He grabbed a hand towel from a stack next to the work sink and tossed it her way. “I think I’m going to owe you another dry clean on that coat.”
“You do seem to always be making a mess of me.” She wrapped the towel around the puppy as she walked toward the house.
They watched quietly as Misty and Luke said their goodbyes. Mike felt the vein in his neck pulse. Thank goodness that kid hadn’t tried to kiss her good night. He wasn’t sure he could’ve taken that tonight. There was way too much going on in his head right now.
She went in the front door and Mike and Vanessa snuck in the back. Mike started the water in the mudroom for Vanessa. “You can give a puppy a bath, right?”
“Might as well. I’m as muddy as he is,” she said with a laugh.
Vanessa managed to get Scooter clean, but she got soaking wet in the process. By way of reward, she got about a thousand kisses so she wasn’t about to complain. She towel-dried him, which he thought was a big game.
She wasn’t sure if Mike would appreciate her giving Scooter free run of his house, so she carried him from the mudroom back to the living room. As she stood in the hallway, she overheard him and Misty speaking.
“You didn’t have to worry one bit about Luke. You know he’s just a big clown. There’ll never be anything like that between us. We’ve been in every grade together. He’s more like a brother, only nicer.”
“I’m your father. I’m supposed to worry about things like that.”
“For the record, it wouldn’t hurt my feelings if you decided you might be a little attracted to Vanessa. Why don’t you come up with a reason for her to wear this little black dress with you one night? You’re so busy helping me live my life you’re forgetting to live yours, Daddy. I’m a big girl. I’m going to be okay.”
“Don’t you worry about me.”
“But I do, Dad. And I like Vanessa. She’s nice. And smart. And I saw the way you look at her.”
“She’s going back to Chicago soon. I’m glad she came into our lives, but, Misty, everyone does not come into our life forever. Sometimes they just come through when we need an extra hand. I’m glad she was here for you tonight.”
“Me too, Daddy.” She put her hand on the handrail. “Good night.”
Scooter took Vanessa’s pause as a cue to spring for freedom, which he did right into the middle of the hall, leaving a wet skid across the wide-plank hardwood floor.
“Scooter,” she called, pretending to have been chasing him from down the hall. “I’m sorry. He’s slippery.”
“It’s okay. Let him run. I’m not putting him back out in thebarn damp. He’ll find somewhere to snuggle down in here for the night.”
“I guess I’d better get going too. It’s late.”
“You okay?”
“Yeah. Long day. The drive to Greensboro. Canceled flight. Crash. Dog rescue.”
“Daughter rescue.”
“That part was my pleasure.”
“Thanks for coming.”
She started down the walkway.
“I’ll see you tomorrow?”
“Of course. Small town. Right?”
“Yeah. It is.”
She drove home with nothing on her mind except what it would be like to live in this town. To be a part of its fabric. She’d miss these people. She parked Buck’s truck and sat there for a moment in her thoughts.
From here, she could see Buck and Anna sitting across from each other in the chairs in front of the fireplace. Anna was laughing, and the tree twinkled through the front windows, giving off its own kind of joy.
“Joyful. That’s what I feel. Joy.”
