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Dylan nodded, brows furrowed in concentration.
“If she isn’t in position, remind her with the command.”
Scott watched as Dylan lifted his chin, pride in every line of his body. “Okay, Gen. Heel.” His lips moved as he counted his steps, Gen pacing beside him, then glanced down to check the dog’s position. “Yes!”
Gen’s ears came forward and she lifted her front paws off the ground before planting them again, mouth dropping open in joy. Her tail waved through the air behind her as Dylan fumbled with the pouch of food Abby had attached to his belt.
“Feed at the side,” Abby reminded him as he withdrew his hand from the treat bag. “That’s right. Don’t let her curl in front of you.”
Once Gen had taken the food, Dylan checked in with Abby, eyes shining. “Can we do it again?”
Abby laughed. “Go ahead. You can walk her around the playground, but mark and feed every five to ten steps if she’s in position. If she isn’t...”
“Remind her to heel. Yep! I’ve got it, Abby. I promise, I won’t let you down.”
“I know you won’t, Dylan. I believe in you.”
Dylan beamed, and Scott’s breath caught as his heart stuttered an extra beat. The adoration with which Dylan gazed at Abby tugged at something deep within him. His son deserved someone who would love him with the kind of care and attention Abby lavished on him, and it stitched up a broken part of Scott’s heart when the two of them were together. But it terrified him, as well. This thing he had with Abby was new, and fragile, and tentative. What if it didn’t work out? What if she ran again? What would it do to Dylan?
Scott would move mountains for his son. He would protect him with the last breath in his body and the last shred of his being. Seeing the way he idolized Abby, if she left now, the fallout would be devastating. Dylan had already been rejected by his mother. Could he handle another woman rejecting him?
“Great job, Dylan!” Abby tracked the pair’s progress around the playground, turning slowly to keep them in sight. “You’ve got this. Remember, big voice. Right now, she’s working, not playing.”
Dylan frowned and his mouth formed the wordheel. Gen slowed her steps and came back from where she’d creeped out in front, and a few moments later, Dylan stopped and dug in the food pouch for another treat.
“You know, he asked me last night if we could get a dog.”
Abby turned to him with wide eyes. “Oh no. I’m sorry. I should have realized...”
Scott slung an arm across her shoulder and couldn’t help his pleased grin when she let him. “Don’t worry about it. I told him about your idea for a therapy dog school, and then he wanted to sign up for that, too. I should have seen it coming.”
“He’s working hard with Gen. Training can be difficult, especially staying firm when you’d really rather not.” She smiled, an expression on her face Scott recognized easily. Pride. Pride in Dylan.
His stomach turned over again. “Dinner!” The word came out before he thought it through. “Come to dinner with me? This weekend.”
Abby stiffened under his arm, pulling away. “Like... a date?”
He turned toward her, meeting her gaze. He’d been so patient, so careful, but suddenly he needed to know. Was she as committed to finding out if they had a future as him?
“Yes. Exactly like a date.” He waited, breath held. Would she agree? Or would it be too much? Would she run again?
She fiddled with her fingers and glanced toward Gen and Dylan, then her eyes darted back to his. “Nothing fancy?”
Scott mentally scratched Circa 1886 off his list. “Absolutely, something low key.”
“And I don’t...”
“Drink, I know. No pubs.”
“Okay.”
“Okay? As in, okay, yes?”
Abby turned to welcome Dylan and Gen back, ruffling his hair as she praised his effort. Then, glancing up at Scott, she smiled. “Okay, yes.”
Fourteen
THE FIRST, TRULY hot day of summer, Dylan announced, “I’m going swimming,” then, turning to Abby, continued, “Can Gen come, too?”