Total pages in book: 124
Estimated words: 117574 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 588(@200wpm)___ 470(@250wpm)___ 392(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 117574 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 588(@200wpm)___ 470(@250wpm)___ 392(@300wpm)
The little girl bursts into tears and nuzzles her tiny nose against the top of Lucky’s furry head. “I love you, Lucky,” she chokes out. “I love you so, so much.”
“Oh, honey,” Tessa says. “This isn’t goodbye forever. I’m sure Auggie will let you visit him sometimes. Right, Auggie?” Tessa looks at me hopefully, her eyebrows raised. And suddenly, I know what I need to do, assuming Tessa would be open to it. Like Mom always says, “If you love someone, set them free.” Well, I love Lucky. And clearly, he’s decided he’s home. A week ago, I set free someone I love with all my heart. The woman of my dreams. The woman I’d pledge myself to, forever, in a heartbeat, if I could rewind the clock and redo that conversation in front of the hotel. Well, if I managed to do that, if I managed to muster the strength to set Charlotte free to follow her dreams, then, surely, I can do the same for Lucky.
I clear my throat. “Can we talk in another room, Tessa?”
Tessa looks dubious. “Sure thing.”
We head into the nearby sprawling kitchen, where Tessa leans her backside against the island and waits with raised eyebrows to hear whatever I’m going to say.
“You don’t have to decide right now,” I begin. “Take whatever time you need to think about it. But I think Lucky would be much happier living here with Rudy and your family, than with me at my place. If you want to make him a permanent part of your family, I’m willing to let him go . . .” I choke up and stop. But after taking a deep breath, I’m able to continue: “In order to give him the best possible life.”
Tears are welled in Tessa’s dark eyes. “Oh my gosh, Auggie. We would love to have him. He’s already become a full-fledged member of our family. But are you sure you can part with him? It’s clear he’s your baby.”
“He is, but, yes, I’m sure. Although . . . Come to think of it, I should probably call my mother first to get her blessing. Lucky was her mother’s dog, my grandma’s dog, and I feel like I should ask her permission before we finalize anything.”
“Of course. We’d only want to do this if everyone is sure.”
“If she says yes, I can take him back with me, until you talk it over with Ryan when he gets home.”
Tessa shakes her head. “I don’t need to talk to Ryan. We’ve been talking about getting a second dog for a while now, and more than a few times this week, Ryan said, ‘I’ve never liked small dogs, but Lucky’s changed my mind about that. Maybe we should pull the trigger and get ourselves a second dog. A little one just like Lucky, so they can sleep with Claire every night, the same way Lucky does.’”
A surge of emotion rises up inside me. I already felt in my bones this was a great idea. But hearing that Ryan thinks so, too, only confirms it.
I head into the adjacent dining room and call my mother. Not surprisingly, it takes all of twenty seconds before she’s enthusiastically and unequivocally expressing elation at the idea of Lucky Martin Vaughn becoming Lucky Martin Vaughn Morgan. In fact, before I’ve even finished explaining the full situation, Mom’s already burst into tears of joy for our beloved Lucky.
“Your grandmother would have been so happy for him,” Mom says. “It’s Lucky’s luckiest break yet. Aw, sweetie. Are you crying? Honey, I know it’s hard to say goodbye. But you can always visit him.” She clucks her tongue in sympathy. “My love, you know what I always say: ‘If you love someone, set them free.’”
I pull myself together well enough to respond. “Yeah, I know. I’ve been thinking about that a lot lately.”
“Speaking of which, have you spoken to Charlotte yet?” I broke down during my visit one night and drunkenly poured my heart out to my family over a shared bottle of wine. Mom knows I’m in love with Charlotte. My whole family does. Also, that I’m regretting what I didn’t tell Charlotte that night on the sidewalk in front of our hotel.
“No. We’ve texted a bit, but not much.”
“Like I said when you were here, I think you should call her and tell her how you feel. Charlotte can do with that information what she chooses. But that way, you’ll have no regrets if you need to move on with your life. And heck, it might turn out you should start applying to vet schools in New York.”
My heart throbs. “So, which is it, Mom? Should I set Charlotte free out of love, or follow her across the fucking country like a stalker? Because I can’t do both, consistently.”
“Auggie.”
I exhale. “Sorry. I’m not well.”