He nods. “Dogs are allowed with a small pet deposit.”
”But how are dogs supposed to play outside when there’s no yard?”
Mark sucks air in through his teeth. “Yeah, that’s a problem.”
I look at Keanna, waiting for her opinions.
“Nope,” she says. She looks at Mark. “What’s next?”
”Unfortunately you’ve seen every pet friendly rental in Lawson. Do you want to venture outside of this town?”
We both shake our heads. “We don’t want a long drive to work.”
”There are a few apartment complexes in town,” he suggests.
Keanna’s objecting look probably mirrors my own expression. “We don’t want an apartment. We need a good yard for our dog.”
“Understood,” he says. “I’ll keep my eyes open for anything and let you know the second something new pops up.”
”Please do,” Keanna says.
We head back home, the mood soured from our pathetic experience of looking at rental houses today. That’s the bad part of living in a small town. There isn’t much to choose from.
After dinner, Marcus calls me saying a couple motocross podcasts want me to hop on a Zoom call and record a short interview for them ahead of the race this weekend. I ask my parents to watch Harper so she doesn’t yell out anything awkward or embarrassing while I’m recording, then I sit in my bed, webcam turned on, while I do the interviews. Keanna sits at the foot of the bed, offscreen but watching me. There’s an intensity in her gaze, and I’m not sure why. She’s seen me do a hundred of these things.
When it’s over, I close my laptop and lay back on my bed, exhaling loudly. “I didn’t say anything stupid, did I?”
”No,” she says, crawling up the bed and positioning herself next to me, head on my chest.
“I tend to zone out during interviews. Like my body is talking, but my brain isn’t quite there. It’s nerve-wracking.”
”You’re good at it,” she says, snuggling closer. “I’m sad that you’re leaving tomorrow.”
”It’s only for three days.”
”Last time was…”
I wrap my arm around her. “That won’t happen again. My parents are here with you, and your parents are next door. Plus, you’ve got Arko and he’s a protector.”
”I know…I’m just scared of the idea that I’ll need you and you’ll be a several hour plane ride away from me.”
”I’m sorry, babe. I can cancel if you think that’s best?”
”No way. We need the money. You just better win the money.”
I chuckle. “I’ll do my best.”
Chapter 11
Keanna
Money, Money, Money, Money.
That’s what I repeat to myself as Jett drives to the airport on Friday. He’s doing this for money. Winning thousands of dollars will help out our family, so it’s worth it to be stuck without him for three days while he’s off having a blast.
He pulls into the departures lane at the airport and my stomach twists into knots. We stand in the busy lane, early in the morning while gets his suitcase and hands me the truck keys so I can drive home.
“I’m going to miss you,” I mutter. I would love to be that super supportive wife who always smiles and has a pep in her step, but that’s just not me. It’s easier being home alone at my own house. I love my in-laws, but being there without him just isn’t much fun. I can’t walk around in my underwear.
