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Voicing it was hardly enough. I needed to show her. She had to have gotten the point by the time I released her. Simultaneously, we released stifled breaths, wiping our mouths with smiles on our faces.
“I like that bag in ya hand.”
“My man bought it for me.” She giggled. “Isn’t she pretty?”
“Yeah, Kiwi. She pretty.”
She looped her arm through mine and we both made our way to the truck.
* * *
Pulling up to my crib with Glacier clinging to me from the passenger seat was one of those scenarios that kept replaying in my head. As we waited for the gate to part and grant us access, I took the time to address the fact that it was no longer a scenario in my head. It was happening and it felt even been in fruition.
“Thi-this is beautiful, Makai.”
I glanced in her direction to find her eyes bright and her chin high as she whipped her head in every direction to get a full view of the property. The night experience and day experience were two completely different things.
At night, yard lights made it glow slightly, assisting her vision. In the day, when the sun was up, you could see every detail, from the pond out back that Pops loved to fish in to the pool that the deck encased.
“Appreciate it, Mommas.”
“And you live here all alone?”
“Shit, not for long, hopefully. Within the next year, I’m trying to have a permanent guest.”
Her smile reached her glistening eyes.
“Then you wouldn’t be able to sneak off for a week at a time. You sure that’s what you want?”
“I’m not sneaking off no more. That shit ’bout killed me.”
She remained silent, the sound of dogs startling her. Her neck twisted in my direction. Frantically, she waited for an explanation or instructions, at the very least. I parked the whip and matched her gaze.
“You’re afraid of dogs, huh?”
“I don’t know. I’ve never been in close proximity with one.”
“Never.”
“Never.”
“Not even in passing on the sidewalk?”
“I can’t remember the last time I walked anywhere to do anything, honestly. And the small time I do spend from my car to wherever I’m headed, no. I’ve never encountered a dog of any kind.”
“Not even as a kid?”
“My neighbors had dogs. Several of them did, but they were always inside or in the backyard.”
“I have two dogs, Glacier, and they aren’t the cute little shits you see in the windows of cars you ride past. They’re large and they don’t trust easily. They roam the house freely, ready to serve and protect me. It’s what they’re trained to do.”
“Makai, my God. They don’t know me. They’ll have me for dinner.”
“That’s not entirely true,” I informed her. “I’ve been introducing them to your scent for the last week.”
“I don’t understand.”
I hoped what I was about to share with her would ease the worry on her face. She was visibly shaken and we hadn’t gotten out of the truck yet.
