Page 88 of Finding Gideon

Me: Bad coffee and a banana muffin. So basically, thriving.

Me: Can’t wait to come home.

Gideon: Tell the muffin I said thank you for its service.

Gideon: Also, Dennis took over your pillow and growled at me when I tried to move him. Just saying.

Me: That dog’s lucky he’s cute.

Me: He can keep it warm for me.

I slid the phone back into my pocket and sat back.

I should’ve been paying attention. The panel wasn’t bad. Useful, even. But being away from Foggy Basin—away fromGideon—just made me more certain of what I wanted. Of what mattered.

And right now, none of it was up on that projector screen.

I wrote one line in my notebook before the session wrapped. Just one:

The work is hard, but I’m not alone anymore.

And that was enough.

Chapter 28

Gideon

A bark echoed before the front door even closed. Dennis launched himself off the couch like a missile, nails scrabbling against the hardwood as he made a beeline for the entryway.

My pulse jumped. I stood, then immediately sat back down, then stood again. Ridiculous. I’d seen Malcolm four days ago. Talked to him. Texted. Watched a grainy video of him attempting to dance at a workshop social. But none of it felt likethis.

He was back.

Shoots thudded against the steps as he climbed. Dennis’s tail wagged like it had its own motor. And then?—

Malcolm stepped into view, a duffel slung over one shoulder and a crooked smile pulling at his mouth.

I didn’t wait.

“Hey,” I said, but it came out breathier than planned.

He dropped the bag. Pulled me in tight, foreheads brushing for a second before I tucked into the curve of his neck. The faint trace of cologne clung to him, softened now by travel, but still him. Still home.

“Hi,” he murmured, lips brushing my hair.

“I missed you, Mal.”

His grip tightened. “Missed you too, baby.”

Dennis whined at our feet, pawing at Malcolm’s leg like he couldn’t believe his favorite human was back and had the audacity to greet someone else first.

Malcolm crouched down, both hands cradling the dog’s face. “Did you keep him in line while I was gone?”

The tail wagging intensified. A lick to Malcolm’s chin, then another. I laughed and tugged lightly on Dennis’s collar before things got too sloppy.

“Come on,” I said. “I’ll show you how things went.”

We headed to the clinic. Malcolm paused in the doorway, gaze sweeping the space like he was checking for cracks in the foundation. Dennis trotted ahead like he owned the place, nails tapping softly on the tile.