Page 5

At her name, the dog creeped from her hiding place, wagging her tail as her gaze darted between Jackie and Abby.
Abby shook her head as she backed through the door, clicking her tongue at Gen. “I think you might be pushing the boundaries of dog-friendly with that offer.”
Jackie laughed. “As long as she stays out of the kitchen, it’s all legal.”
With a smile, Abby let the door swing closed behind her.
As they reached the park entrance, she broke into an easy jog, Gen loping along beside her.
Two laps in, they passed a man waving a jacket. Though he looked familiar, Abby couldn’t place him, but a few strides later, he called her name.
“Abby, wait up!”
Slowing, she stepped off the trail while she watched his approach, still trying to identify him. Had she seen him at the hospital? Maybe visited his kid with Gen?
He moved easily, athletic, but without the lean build of a serious runner, and she couldn’t imagine forgetting such piercing blue eyes, never mind the strong jaw with one cheek dimpled in a half-grin, or the tousled brown hair, flashing with caramel highlights in the weak morning sun.
Cara’s voice in her head cooed,Ooh, isn’t he a looker?
She’d be right, Abby supposed, if you were interested.
“Here, I wanted to return this to you.” The man held out the jacket.
She took it, recognizing it as her own, her eyebrows knitting as she struggled to remember when she’d lost it.
“Scott. Dylan’s dad.” He shifted from one foot to the other. “My son, he’s the one who fell off the monkey bars on the playground last week...”
The pieces finally slotted into place and Abby nodded. “Oh, right, sorry. How is he?”
“He’ll be fine. He’d gone into shock by the time we reached the hospital, like you said. He fractured his arm in two places and sprained his wrist, so he’ll be in a cast for the next eight weeks.”
Abby cringed. She had always hated working with broken bones. Even the memory of an open break turned her stomach.
“The doctor says he’ll recover, though, and with a little physical therapy, he’ll be as good as new.”
“I’m glad to hear that.”
Scott gestured at her jacket. “I wanted to make sure I got this back to you.”
“Thanks. You didn’t have to go to so much effort...” She trailed off as Gen, sitting beside her, leapt up to put her paws on Scott’s thigh, leaving a pair of dirty prints on his jeans. Abby dropped her jacket as she grabbed Gen’s collar to pull her off. “Gen, no ma’am.”
Scott reached down to cradle the dog’s head, scratching behind her ears until Gen’s back leg twitched. “It’s okay. I suppose I have her to thank as well.”
He grinned and Abby noticed he still had only one dimple. The asymmetry should have reduced his attractiveness, but it didn’t.
“Dylan won’t stop talking about her. Such an amazing dog. How she knew...”
“She’s a therapy dog. She’s trained to assist.” Abby retrieved her jacket, shaking the dirt from it and looping it around her waist.
Scott ruffled Gen’s ears one last time. “Well, that explains it. She’s remarkable.”
“Thanks.” Abby laid her hand on Gen’s head to settle her, worried she’d jump up again.
The silence stretched out for a few moments and Abby herded a small pebble across the trail with her toe before Scott cleared his throat.
“Listen, let me take you out...to say thank you. It means a lot to me that you helped take care of Dylan.”
“I’m not, uh...” Her voice trailed off, gesturing at her running clothes.