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“Good, class. Now, for those of you still with me, we’re going to come down into child’s pose and hold there, counting your inhales for thirty seconds.”
I moved through the motions, smiling huge when the puppy dancing around me tried to climb up my back.
This was Aurora’s first attempt at a new trend that had been going viral lately, puppy yoga, and judging from the laughs and baby talk currently taking place, it was pretty successful. The class had filled up in minutes as soon as she announced it. It wasn’t just about the yoga, though that was an incredible way to relax your mind and body. But the puppies added a level of happiness to that relaxation.
We moved through a few different poses—well, half of us, the half who weren’t currently cuddled up to a puppy—and ended in corpse pose. “Okay, class. That’s it for today,” Aurora said. “And don’t forget, all of these little guys are up for adoption, so if you’ve fallen in love with one pup in particular, you can stop on the way out and talk to the representative from the McCall County Animal Shelter to start the adoption process.”
So many people scooped up pups on their way out, there were none left by the time the class cleared out.
“So? What did you guys think?” Aurora came over and asked as I rolled up my mat and tucked it under my arm.
“I think it was awesome. Those little puppies were the freaking cutest.”
“It wasgreat,” Deva exclaimed. She had her yoga mat beneath one arm and the dog she’d spent most of the class loving on clutched in the other.
I let out a laugh. “I see you caught the fever.” I tipped my chin to the scrabbling pooch. “Laeth’s going to have a conniption when you walk through the door with that little guy.”
She hefted the dog up and placed a kiss on its head, making him turn to try his best to lick her face. “Don’t care. He’s precious, and I want him. Besides, between Cash and me, we can sway him around to our way of thinking.” Cash was Laeth’s three-year-old son. That was actually how he and Deva met. He’d been looking for a nanny, Myra had put Deva’s name in for the position, and the rest was history. She may have started as a nanny, but now she was the adorable kiddo’s mother in every way that mattered.
She smiled, her cheeks flushing with warmth. “And there are a fewotherthings I can do to get my way without complaint. Or minor complaint, at least.”
Aurora sucked in a breath, pretending to be scandalized, and placed a hand on her chest. “Did our sweet, innocent little Deva just throw out sexual innuendo?”
Deva flushed deeper, giggling nervously.
I let out a snort. “Looks like Laeth is banging that innocence right out of our friend, here.”
Aurora busted out laughing while Deva shot me a glare that held no heat at all. “Whatever. You guys suck.”
“Aw, we love you too, babe.”
I stepped up to her side and hooked an arm around her shoulders, giving her a little squeeze. “We really do. I’m heading to the diner for a late breakfast. You guys want to join me?”
“Wish I could. You know how much I love breakfast food,” Aurora said with a slight pout. The woman was addicted to all manner of breakfast food, just as long as it was full of sugar and carbs. She teased that teaching yoga was the only reason she was able to indulge her craving so often. “But I have another class coming in ten, and I need to get out the Swiffer to clean up all the dog hair.”
Deva gave the dog in her arms a little bounce. “And I have to get the paperwork going so I can take this little guy home with me. But drinks later this week?”
“You got it.”
I hugged my friends goodbye and headed out into the bright, beautiful morning. The leaves on the trees had turned with the season, creating halos of brick reds and golds, adding even more beauty to my picturesque small town. The temps were still pleasant enough that I chose to walk down Main toward the diner instead of driving. I smiled and returned the greetings that were given by nearly every person I passed on the sidewalk.
It sometimes blew my mind just how completely Redemption had embraced me as one of theirs. It was nice, especially after so many years of loneliness and isolation. Even before the crash, I hadn’t exactly been swimming in friends. My family had a reputation, my father specifically, and not a good one. Everyone knew what an abusive drunk he was, so saying the playdate invitations were few and far between was laughable. I was never invited to a single sleepover. None of the girls wanted to be my friend; in fact, they were downright cruel. My home life was a nightmare, and mean-spirited bullies made school just as bad.
I gave up on the dream of having friends sometime around high school. It just wasn’t worth it. Besides, I had Cal.
Until I didn’t.
I’d floundered a bit after he got hurt. Well, more than a bit, if I were being honest. With no one to talk to, no one to take care of, I’d lost myself for a while. I’d gone through themotionsof living a life instead of actuallylivingit. When he finally passed, it had been a massive blow. I’d finally stopped to notice my shell of a life and made the decision right then and there that I needed a change.
I traveled for months, visiting all the places on Cal’s list. That whole journey had been bittersweet. I’d cried more over those months than I had my entire life. I’d taken some of his ashes—having to steal them from my own mother after she’d had me banned from my brother’s funeral, the brother I’d spent more than fifteen years raising because she hadn’t been equipped—and scattered them along my journey so a part of him could be in each place he’d so desperately wanted to visit.
The closer my trip came to ending, the more I started thinking about what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. I had no home to return to. The town I’d grown up in no longer held anything for me if Cal wasn’t there. Truthfully, the thought of going back made me sick to my stomach, so I decided I’d try to plant roots somewhere else.
Now this small town nestled in the foothills of the Smoky Mountains was my home. I had friends for the first time in my life. I was loved by more than just Cal, and I knew that my baby brother was looking down on me, smiling at the world I’d built for myself.
My phone rang just as the sign for the diner came into view. I dug it out of my bag and checked the screen. It read “unknown caller,” so I sent it to voicemail and stuffed it back into my bag just as I reached the diner.
“Hey, Deb,” I greeted as I stepped into the restaurant, the delicious scent of bacon and coffee hitting my senses and making my stomach rumble.
