AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I loved every second of it.
“Is that a dog park?” He looked out in the distance, pointing to an open field.
“Not officially. The city owns it and lots of neighbors do use it as a dog park, but I’ve also seen kids playing baseball and soccer out there when the weather’s nice.”
Jesse looked at me with his big eyes. “Can I bring Luna there tomorrow?”
“Of course.” There was a twinge in my belly, that I didn’t like the idea of him being out in the world by himself, but I didn’t dare verbalize that fear. He was a grown-ass man who had taken care of himself long before I came along. He could handle himself at a dog park. “She would love that.”
I could tell by the way he hopped beside me, giddy in delight, that he would love that too.
16
JESSE
Harris made a list of basic chores for me to complete and stuck it to the fridge with a magnet. They weren’t hard things to accomplish, but knowing he wanted me to get them done, and then actually doing them, filled me with a sense of pride I’d never felt before.
No one had ever really trusted me to be responsible.
Bruce told me to clean the trailer and cook him meals, but he was a disgusting slob, so the second he walked in the door, our cluttered space was a mess again. He never acknowledged my efforts or appreciated the results. He just liked exerting power over me. Making me do stuff he thought I wouldn’t enjoy was merely an extension of his abuse.
Harris wasn’t like that.
The first day I had my list, I spent the entire day meticulously dry-mopping the floor of all the dog hair, making our bed with the tightest corners I could muster, and cooking a three-course meal that was palatable but not particularly good.
And he gushed over every inch of the house, telling me how proud he was and what a good job I did. Truthfully, he went a little overboard, but I knew it was coming from a good place. He wanted me to feel appreciated. And I did.
I also felt loved.
Neither of us had said the word, and I wasn’t sure he ever would. But that was the warm feeling that radiated from me every time he was around. The safety and care I received from Harris couldn’t be described in any other way.
After Harris and I had lunch on Friday, I did a final sweep of the house to make sure it was nice and tidy before I put Luna on the leash, and we headed out.
Her butt didn’t stop wiggling as we walked down the street. She was so excited that she wanted to pull forward and run, but I used the commands Harris taught me to make her heel and not pull on her lead.
Once we got inside the gate at the field, I saw a few other dogs running around. She couldn’t contain her excitement, so I let her off the leash.
Like a bat out of hell, Luna took off at full speed. For the first few minutes, she just ran around aimlessly, sniffing the ground and exploring every blade of grass and pile of poop.
At least until she found an old tennis ball. Once she had that, she picked it up and brought it to me to throw for her. It didn’t take long for me to regret not bringing gloves with me. By the second time she brought me her ball, it was a slimy, muddy mess. But she was so happy to play that I couldn’t deny her. “I’m gonna need two showers after this, girl. I hope you appreciate it.”
“She does.” A guy my age had walked up beside me, holding a long piece of plastic with a cup at the end. “But you might want to look into one of these chucking sticks. It’ll save your hand.”
“Oh, hi.” I took a look at his stick. “What is that?”
Just then, an older golden retriever trotted over with a ball in his mouth. When the guy lowered the stick, the dog dropped the ball right into the cup at the end and watched attentively as the man flicked the stick and sent the ball flying across the park. “A chucking stick. So you can throw farther without having to actually touch the ball.”
“I definitely need one of those.” Luna was back with her slime ball, so I picked it up between two fingers and lobbed it as far as I could get it. “Can I take a picture of that to show my…” I hesitated, not exactly sure how to describe Harris. Boyfriend was on the tip of my tongue, but then Daddy also came to mind. “Um, Luna‘s owner.”
“Yeah, sure.” He held out the stick while I pulled the phone Harris gave me out and snapped a picture. “My name is Jason. Are you a dog-walker too?”
Dog-walker? That was when I realized there were two other dogs circling nearby that seemed to be with Jason. “Oh, no. I’m just helping out a…friend.” I didn’t like the way that word tasted, but I didn’t think too much about it. “I’m Jesse.”
“Good to meet you, Jesse. I haven’t seen you out here before. Are you new to the area?”
“Yeah, I just moved here a couple weeks ago. We’re a few blocks over.”
“Oh, cool. Well, welcome.” Since my hand was gross, he held up his fist for me to bump with my clean hand. “If you’re interested in a dog-walking gig, I can probably hook you up. My uncle has a company that matches owners and walkers, and he’s always looking for more walkers.”
