THEA
Iwoke up to an empty bed. Empty of other humans. Kona was still curled up at the foot of the bed. “Hey, girl,” I said. “Where’s our handsome host?”
She lifted her head, looked at me, and flopped it down again. She was obviously making herself at home. I was glad she felt comfortable enough to do so. After our wild night, I should have known there was no chance she would leave me alone.
“I have to get up,” I said. “I need to call Rich and then go rescue my dad. Are you going to stay here and keep an eye on things? We don’t want Reese to kick us out. He’s been very kind to us. I need you to keep your brothers in line. Can you do that for me while I’m gone?”
I got out of bed and opened my suitcase. I pulled on a pair of sweats and a T-shirt before making my way downstairs. It wasn’t too late, but the dogs were in a new house. I hoped like hell they had not decided to use one of the many rooms to relieve themselves.
Reese was just coming in the back door when I walked into the kitchen. Bryce and Peppy were happily strolling along with their tongues lolling. “Hi, guys,” I said. I accepted their happy licks and tail wags. “Were you good boys?”
“I wasn’t sure how long they could hold it,” Reese said. “I took them out back. What they did back there should never be witnessed by humans.”
I laughed and rubbed their heads. “Bryce, did you go poop?”
The pit bull barked to confirm. “He loves a good poop first thing in the morning.” I giggled. “I’ll clean it up. I have doggy poop bags in my dog bag.”
“You have a dog bag?” Reese asked.
“It’s got treats, meds, and poop bags,” I said.
“They’re like children,” he said. “Actual children.”
“They are my babies.”
“I didn’t feed them because I didn’t know how much,” he said.
“That’s fine,” I said. “I’m going to let Kona out and then I’ll feed them. Then I have to call Rich. If he hears about the shelter before I tell him, he’s going to kill me.”
“Too late,” he said.
“Oh no.”
“It’s fine,” he assured me. “I filled him in and told him you were okay. He knows you stayed the night here. He was actually okay with it. Although I might have misled him a bit. I told him the guys had your address and it wasn’t a good idea for you to stay at your place.”
“It’s not really untrue,” I said. “We don’t know if one of them has a photographic memory or not. They might know where I live.”
“I made coffee,” he said. “I’ll get you a cup. Then there’s something I want to talk to you about.”
“Three minutes,” I said and walked Kona out the back door.
When I returned, I quickly fed the dogs while sipping coffee. I texted Rich and let him know he had to pick me up at Reese’s house and then we were going to Dad’s house. I promised to explain everything. He didn’t question it. Just said he would be on his way shortly.
“What did you want to talk to me about?”
“Sit down,” he said.
Rich showed up about an hour later. Reese was going to be making the drive with us. After kissing each of the dogs and begging them to be good, we left the house. I hoped like hell they didn’t revert to their old habits and chew a couch or take a dump in the middle of one of his fancy, expensive rugs.
“Thanks for coming,” I said to Rich and jumped into the back of his crew cab. Reese got in front. “There’s so much to tell.”
“Please tell me what’s going on,” he said.
I took a deep breath and purged the events of last night. I told him all about Stacey and Dad and our father being homeless. He slapped his hand against the steering wheel. “What the fuck? That little bitch! She doesn’t need to worry about you kicking her ass. I’m going to! He can move in with me. I’ll clean out the spare room.”
“Actually,” I said and put my hand on Reese’s shoulder, “Reese has an idea. A good one.”
Rich shot his friend a dirty look. “This should be good.”