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Gen wagged again.
Still, Abby hesitated. Living in the unsurety of whether Scott did or didn’t still want a relationship with her held its own weight, but hearing a definitive answer might be more than she could take.
Cara would say if this broke them, better to know, and at least she’d learned she had the capacity to love someone again.
Abby couldn’t be quite so sanguine about the possibility of having her barely-healed heart shattered. She’d rather hold the decision at arm’s length, treading softly and not risking outright rejection.
For how long, though? When would the risk of the worst answer outweigh the burden of uncertainty.
Abby bit her lip as she studied the phone in her hand. The screen lit up with a picture of Scott, Dylan, Gen, and herself, all grinning, the park playground where Dylan had fallen from the monkey bars in the background.
If not for his injury, they’d never have met.
Good things could come from devastating circumstances.
If Scott rejected her, she’d still have Gen. She’d still have Cara, and her work, and the dream of a therapy dog organization. She’d survive.
It may not be pretty, but she’d lived through a broken heart once before. She could do it again.
Swiping to Scott’s number, she held the phone to her ear.
“Abby, hey.” His breath heaved and a shriek of joy in the background reverberated through the phone, making Gen jump to her feet. “Dylan, buddy, hang on. It’s Abby.”
“Abby?” She couldn’t help but smile at Dylan’s voice. “Is she coming over tonight? Is she bringing Gen? We haven’t seen her all week.”
“Hang on, kid. Let me talk to her, okay? Why don’t you run upstairs and put away the laundry that’s been sitting on your bed since this morning?” Scott chuckled, then asked, “So, are you? Coming over?”
Abby rubbed Gen’s ear between her fingers. “I wasn’t sure if you wanted me to.”
Scott exhaled. “Listen, we need to talk, but I don’t blame you for what happened, and I’m not angry. At least, not at you.”
“Okay, if you’re sure...?” She wanted to fight for them, but would they want her?
“Absolutely sure. C’mon over and we’ll talk. I should have invited you sooner, but, well, I wanted this time with Dylan, you know?”
“Yeah, I get it. Okay, we’re on our way over.”
“Good.” And he said it in such an adamant tone she couldn’t help but believe him.
“Abby!” Dylan’s infectious joy surprised her. Greeting her first instead of Gen, he ran up and flung his arms around her waist, pressing his head to her stomach. “I missed you.”
Gen, whining, circled them both, then, as he let go of Abby, she jumped up, resting her front paws on his chest.
“Gen, off,” he commanded, then kneeled down to wrap his arms around her.
“Good job, Dylan. That was exactly right.”
His brilliant expression showed his pride, and Abby couldn’t help smiling in response.
As Dylan bounded off up the stairs, Gen close behind him, Abby turned to Scott. “I’m so sorry...”
“Abby, no,” he interrupted her, crossing the floor until he could wrap her up in a tight embrace. “I should have called sooner. This wasnotyour fault. I expected Lindsay to make trouble eventually, but I didn’t think it would be this soon. Or that she’d choose quite so dramatic a reentry into our lives.” He rolled his eyes. “I should have known better the first time she mentioned you.”
“Mentioned me?”
Scott raked a hand through his hair. “I guess Dylan talked a lot about you when he went to visit her this summer. She called me at training camp to complain. That was the day I was such a jerk on the phone.”
“Oh my gosh, Scott. I’m so sorry. I wish I’d known...”