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She stood, brushing the dirt off her jeans. She looked to the waterfalls, knowing she’d most likely be back tomorrow.
“It’s safe to hike here alone, right?” she asked.
Mitch paused. “Ordinarily, I would say yes. Absolutely. But right now...” He looked down at her, searching her eyes. “Please don’t. If you want to come back, give me a call. Just until we find the killer.”
She nodded. She didn’t want to take any unnecessary risks.
At a safe distance from the falls, Mitch let Gus off his leash and he went galloping off into the woods.
Zoe laughed. How she wished she could be that carefree and full of energy.
“What does he do while you’re at work?” she asked, and then realized it sounded silly. “I mean, do you leave him outside? Does he go to the station?”
Mitch smiled. “Most of the time he hangs out at home... he sits in his outdoor kennel, I think—that was the best thing I’ve ever spent money on. He loves it. If I’m working late, I’ll go home quickly to feed him and put him inside. He has a dog door so he can go in and out, but at night he sleeps inside.”
“Well, if you’re working late and feel bad he’s home alone, you can drop him off at my place—if you think he’d be okay there?” she added. “Then he wouldn’t be alone.”And neither would I.
Mitch looked at her a long moment, then nodded. “He’d love that. Thank you.”
She shrugged. “Will he eat my couch?” she joked.
Mitch laughed. “I can’t say he’s done that before—he was never very destructive, even as a puppy. But I can’t give you a guarantee... you take him at your own risk.”
Zoe laughed, and she was glad they were back to their carefree banter.
“Deal,” she said.
She felt revitalized after the walk. Her headache was gone and she felt ready to tackle some of her parents’ boxes in the basement.
As they passed her mailbox, she realized she’d forgotten to collect the mail. She barely remembered to do it anymore because the only thing that arrived were bills.
She pulled out a few envelopes and tucked them under her arm as they walked up to her porch. Mitch stopped at the steps so she bent down to scratch Gus’s head.
“Good boy,” she whispered. “You come stay any time you’d like.”
As if on cue, he licked her cheek before she could pull away.
“Ugh,” she said, chuckling. “You have hot breath, Gus.”
Mitch laughed. “You shouldn’t get that close to him.”
Zoe thought it was ironic that she’d been kissed by Mitch’s dog, but not Mitch himself. She said nothing though as she stood, smiling, and thanked him again for today.
He looked like he was going to stay something, but she saw in his eyes the moment he decided not to.
She didn’t ask, because she was not going to force anything. Lord knew she’d tried to force Lana so many times, for various things, and it had only backfired.
Zoe’s new life motto was to let things happen, not force them to happen.
“Enjoy the rest of your day,” she said, her smile matching his.
She walked up the front porch steps and into her house without looking back. She heard his car door close and then the sound of the engine before he drove away.
She shrugged.It will be what it will be.
She dumped the mail onto her dining table and took a step toward the kitchen when she stilled.
Her eyes snapped back to one envelope. She’d recognize that handwriting anywhere.
