exactly where I’m supposed to be, too,” she murmurs as Zeus paws at the door again, this time followed by a whimper. “But right now, I think you need to let your dog out.”
“I think you’re right,” I groan, burying my head in her hair, hating the idea of leaving her, even for a minute. “But what I wouldn’t give to stay in this bed with you.” I circle my hips against her.
“Down boy.” She pinches my side. “How about this. You go let Zeus outside before he ruins your carpet. Then we can spend the rest of today in this bed… Clothing optional.” She winks.
“I like the sound of clothing optional.” Running my hand along the contours of her frame, I cup her ass and squeeze. “I like the feel of clothing optional.”
“I knew you would. Now go.” She playfully swats me away.
“Yes, ma’am.” I leave her with a deep kiss, then slide out of bed.
As I pull on my pajama bottoms, she rolls onto her side, propping her head in her hand, shamelessly watching me. I can’t help but smile at how comfortable she seems in my bed, the duvet draped casually along her waistline. She doesn’t even try to cover her exposed chest. Which only makes it even more difficult to leave her. But I’d rather not waste a single second of today by cleaning up after Zeus.
Returning to her, I lean down and place one last kiss on her nose before walking out of the room, Zeus excitedly following and barking as I make my way downstairs. He all but knocks me to the floor when I open the sliding glass door, darting through my legs and into the freshly mowed back yard, causing the few birds perched on the top of the portico to disperse.
“Dopey dog,” I muse. It’s what I get for bringing home a stray dog that had been frequenting one of my firm’s construction sites after I first moved back to Atlanta.
I never fancied myself a dog person, my life normally too busy and hectic to take care of one. But he kept following me around, something drawing him to me. After I brought him to the vet and learned he had a nasty case of heartworm that would kill him if left untreated, I knew I couldn’t let the poor guy suffer. So I paid for his treatment, left him at the vet for a few days, then brought him home. It’s almost like he knew we needed each other. He needed someone to take care of him. And I needed someone to help me get over losing Brooklyn.
While Zeus does his business, I pad into the kitchen and start a cup of coffee. A buzz sounds, and I unplug my phone from the charger on the counter, unlocking the screen. The first thing I usually do in the morning is answer the myriad of emails waiting for me. But not today. I deserve a day off. A real day off when I don’t even think about work. I haven’t taken one of those in years.
Instead, I open up my latest text exchange with Julia and type out a new message to her.
Wes: Mission accomplished, Jules.
Her reply comes almost instantly.
Julia: Mission accomplished? As in the thing you’ve been working on for the past few months? And not Gampy and Meemaw’s house?
Wes: Yes. Londyn is here. In my bed, to be exact.
Julia: Then why the hell are you texting me? Go spend time with her.
Wes: I plan on it. I had to let the dog out and am making her coffee, but I wanted to update you.
Julia: I’m happy for you. Just don’t fuck it up. Better yet, don’t let Lydia fuck it up.
Wes: I’ll do my best. I’ll call you later.
Julia: Sounds good. Love you.
Wes: Love you, too. Give Imogene lots of hugs and kisses from me. And from Zeus.
Julia: You got it.
I set my phone back down and start making the second cup of coffee. Spotting Zeus standing by the back door, I let him in, then pour some kibble into his bowl.
As I’m preparing Londyn’s coffee the way I noticed she orders it when we’re together, there’s a knock on my front door. I straighten, wondering who’d be here at ten o’clock on a Sunday morning.
“Weston, darling,” my mother’s shrill voice sounds. “It’s me.”
I expel a breath, pinching the bridge of my nose. She’s the absolute last person I want to see, even more so than usual, considering Londyn’s