Page 28 of Small Town Sizzle

“Why the sudden change in reaction?” I ask carefully.

“I may have overreacted the other day,” he says, looking down at George. “He really caught me off guard, and I hit my head. I reacted too strongly.”

“I didn’t realize you had hit your head.”

“It’s not a big deal.” He shrugs casually. “I saw the picture of him in Mom’s lap and…he can’t be a bad dog when she seemed to love him so much.”

“She did.” I smile. I pull back a little and look at him in shock. “He did that with me when I adopted him, but the first time he met your mom, he jumped on her, too. Maybe that’s how he says you’re his person.”

His person? Maya, what on earth would make you call this man George’s person? And why did you just say it out loud without thinking?

I expect him to look at me funny, but he squats down and starts petting George’s head again.

“Is he the center dog or something?”

“No,” I chuckle. “He’s very much our family dog, but he goes everywhere with me. He’s a trained service dog, so he’s very helpful at relaxing the kids.”

“Oh, that’s really cool. I guess that’s helpful with your social work.”

“It is.”

There’s a pause, and it feels like the rest of the room fades away. Garrett’s expression softens just slightly, and I find myself caught in the warmth of his gaze. It’s disarming, and I hate that it is.

Before I can overthink it, one of the kids pipes up. “Hey, Miss Maya, are we still doing karaoke next week?”

The moment shatters, and I turn toward the group, grateful for the distraction. “Of course,” I say, mustering a smile. “Just don’t expect me to sing. That’s all on you guys.”

The kids groan in mock protest, and Alex rolls his eyes. “You definitely don’t want her to sing.”

“You have questionable taste in music,” I shoot back, earning a round of laughter.

Garrett steps back, slipping out of the spotlight as the kids take over the conversation. I glance at him out of the corner of my eye, noting the faint smirk tugging at his lips as he watches the scene unfold.

It’s not as tense between us as it was before. And while I’m not ready to admit that I don’t entirely mind his presence, I can’t ignore the strange pull I feel whenever he’s around.

Still, there’s no time to dwell on it now. With George finally settled and the kids chattering away, I dive into the chaos of the youth center, letting the noise and energy drown out the lingering questions in my mind.

“What is that man’s story?” Leti asks a few minutes later, her eyes darting toward where Garrett is about to walk out the front door.

“I don’t know.”

“The way the two of you are looking at each other, you have to know something.”

I shake my head and roll my eyes. “I know that he’s Greta’s son and that he’s working for McAllister Construction with his brother and grew up here. That’s all I know.”

“Is he single?”

“I don’t know, and I don’t care.”

“He’s hot, Maya. You can’t expect me to believe that you didn’t notice that.”

“I noticed. I’m not interested.”

“You cannot work your life away. You deserve to be happy.”

“I’m not sure why people seem to think that I can’t be happy alone,” I groan. “Seriously, there’s nothing wrong with me not being in a relationship. I don’t want to deal with bullshit, but I also don’t want the kids to get their hearts broken any more than they already have.”

After Carson died, I went on a very rough streak in my dating life, almost like I was trying to save my husband in the men I was dating. It led me to my last boyfriend, who was incredibly abusive. Once he finally left, I started working hard to heal the parts of me that thought that was love and that I didn’t deserve better. For whatever reason, I used to have a codependent personality, and I refer to myself as a recovering people pleaser. I haven’t dated since he left, because I don’t trust myself not to go back to those bad habits yet.