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While Luna rolled around on the ground, I approached and was able to clip the leash onto her harness. She immediately popped up onto her feet and began dragging me across the park toward the apartment.
“I ought to attach a sled to you,” I said with a chuckle.
I got her back inside without much fuss, and this time we had the elevator all to ourselves. When the door opened to Brody’s penthouse, Luna ran to her water bowl and eagerly gulped water. Before I could reach her and remove her harness, she sprinted down a hallway and out of sight.
I glanced at the water bowl. It was still mostly full, but I decided to fill it up to get a look around. The hallway Luna had ran down appeared to have several offshooting rooms. The kitchen was attached to the living room, so I went in there and filled the bowl up from the sink. The room was of modern design, with sleek countertops and stainless-steel appliances. Like the living room, it was filled with windows showing a wide view of the city, but instead of the lake, this side faced the mountains to the north-east.
I didn’t want to snoop too much, but the kitchen cabinets had glass doors which allowed me to peer inside. I took a few seconds to glance at the cabinets that held Brody’s drinking glasses. There were several rows of pint glasses, but I didn’t see the commemorative glass we had won at trivia night.
He must have gotten rid of it when he and Isabella were fighting, I thought. It made me sad that he didn’t have it anymore.
I took the water bowl back to the living room, then went looking for Luna down the hallway. “Luna, sweetie?” I called. “I need to take your harness off…”
I passed a guest bedroom that looked nicer than any five-star hotel. After that was a room with a treadmill and exercise bike that faced a TV mounted to the wall.
Then I came to the master bedroom. It was massive—as large as the living room, if not bigger. The floor-to-ceiling windows gave a view of the sun falling over the lake, with an orange sunset beginning to spread across the cold Utah sky. A king-sized bed took up one wall, and opposite it was a wall covered with trophies and framed football jerseys.
Luna was on the bed, panting heavily while staring at me.
I put my hands on my hips and said, “Are you allowed on the bed?”
Luna spun around in a circle, sending the leash flying around her like a whip. I pretended to dart toward her, which only encouraged her to play even harder. She spun in a circle one way, stopped, then spun in the opposite direction. Finally, she rolled over and showed me her belly.
I climbed onto the bed and unclipped her harness. As soon as it was off, she hopped up onto my chest, pinning me down and licking my face.
“You’re a really sweet girl,” I said while stroking her fur. “I bet you don’t like being left at home so much.”
She responded by rubbing her head against my chest and cuddling up against me.
I sighed back into the sheets and surrendered to the dog’s affection. Playing with Luna made me realize how much I missed my family dog, a big Bernese Mountain Dog named Moose. Now that I was putting down roots in Utah, maybe it was time for me to get another dog.
Or become closer with Brody and play with Luna.
I thought about what the old lady had said. Men like Brody didn’t stay single for long. When I thought about it like that, it felt like a clock was ticking. If I didn’t make a move on Brody, then someone else would.
He might not even like me, I thought. Rather than asking me out, he asked me to watch his dog.
I relaxed back on the bed and continued petting Luna. The bed was insanely comfortable, like I was sleeping on clouds. I closed my eyes and as I inhaled, I caught a whiff of Brody’s scent. It was subtle, but it was definitely present.
The smell was intoxicating in a primal way. It triggered a flurry of memories of the last time I had been this close to him, when we played trivia together at the bar. When he stood very close to me at the end of the night, when I was almost certain he would kiss me. And when I grabbed his hand—his strong, warm hand—and wrote my number on his palm.
I miss him, I realized, even though the two of us had never actually been together in any meaningful way.
I patted Luna and climbed out of bed. I had lingered long enough. It was time to go.
Halfway to the door, I noticed it.
I stopped in my tracks and turned toward the wall. It was on a little shelf all by itself, next to the other awards and accolades. A pint glass with a metal ring on one side, where my medal could attach magnetically.
The commemorative pint glass we had won.
Underneath it was a custom plaque:
Tommy’s Bar
Brody and Taylor
Trivia Night - First Place
“He kept it,” I breathed.
I took a step back and gazed at the rest of the wall. It was full of noteworthy accomplishments. A trophy that said, USA Today High School Football Player of the Year. A framed University of Texas jersey autographed by the rest of the team. A plaque commemorating two straight Pro Bowl selections. A gold NFL Rookie of the Year trophy. Countless other items of immense value. Major accomplishments in his career.
And he put our pint glass next to them.
