Children laughing.
Daria laughing.
Puppies barking.
I walk over quietly and peek inside.
Three soaking wet Golden Retriever puppies are running around, and it is absolute chaos inside the grooming van.
Three equally soaked ten-year-olds are chasing them.
“Valen!”
“They're slippery!”
“I know they're slippery!”
“I'm trying!”
Rafaella Maccon has one puppy tucked under her arm while Owen attempts to catch another with a towel.
The third races in circles around Daria's legs.
Everything is a mess, including her.But she looks gorgeous to me.
She has bubbles in her hair.Her shirt and her apron are both soaked.
But she isn’t angry.
On the contrary, Daria just bursts out laughing.She is knee deep in suds and puppy madness, and the woman can’t stop smiling.
Fuck me.
She’s adorable.
This woman is unlike any other I’ve ever met.She is one hundred percent real.Honest, kind, and so pretty it hurts.
Absolute perfection.
It hits me square in the chest—I’m not just fated to be hers.I am in love with her.
Ass over teakettle in love—whatever the fuck that means.
“No fair!You're faster than I am!”Valen shouts.
The puppy barks triumphantly.
Then the wee beastie notices me.
Woof!
Every head turns.
Daria's whiskey-colored eyes go wide.
“Rand?”
She smiles.
