Page 92 of Hunting the Truth

“We’ll figure it out if it happens,” Josh said. “I already called my dad. He’s licensed here in Colorado. He said he’d come out and represent your grandfather if need be. I’m anxious about taking over, but I’ve decided I’m up for the challenge.”

“That’s fantastic,” Maya said. “And I’d love to meet your dad. Actually, I’d love to meet your whole family.”

“You say that now. Keep that in mind when they all descend here. My mother called me about five times yesterday.”

“I’m sure she was just worried,” Maya said. “They can’t be that bad.”

“I love them very much, but there’s more than one reason I moved out of state.”

Maya laughed and said, “Now I’m intrigued.” She pulled into Josh’s driveway and parked. “I’ll get Juniper out after I get you settled in the house.”

She helped Josh inside and took him to the living room, where she had a surprise. She’d managed to buy some furniture for his living room online and have it shipped up to his house. She hoped he’d like it.

“What do you think?” Maya asked. “Now you can watch the Bears in comfort.”

A grin spread across Josh’s face. “It’s fantastic. Thank you. You didn’t need to do this.”

“I wanted to and you’re not charging me rent and Juniper is redoing your landscaping, so I figured it was the least I could do.”

“Well, thank you.”

“Let’s get you settled,” Maya said, helping Josh over to the love seat.

He sat down and she went out to get Juniper. Juniper came flying out of the vehicle and ran up the steps to the front door, where she jumped up and down. Maya followed her and made her settle. She had Juniper’s bed in the living room too and had worked with her on staying in place. So far it had gone pretty well. She got Juniper settled and then sat down next to Josh, snuggling into him.

“Is this okay?” Maya asked. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

“It’s great. You’re not hurting me.”

“I have a question for you, though,” Maya said.

“Shoot. What is it?”

“Your bed is more comfortable. Mind if I sleep there? I do come with a Malinois that sometimes wakes up early, although she’s not really a morning dog. She does snore, though.”

At the mention of her name, Juniper picked her head up, tilted it and stared at them. She sighed and then put her head back down and went back to sleep.

“I don’t mind at all,” Josh said, with a smile.

“I mean, once you get healed.”

“I think having you with me will help me heal up better,” Josh said.

“Okay, then,” Maya said. She leaned over and kissed him.

“I could definitely get used to this,” Josh said.

“I still don’t know what ‘this’ is,” Maya said. “I mean, are we having a fling? Something more serious? I come with a lot of baggage and...”

“Maya, stop,” Josh cut her off. “We both have baggage. We both have a past. We’ve both had traumas, but we should know that when we find something special that we shouldn’t hold back. We don’t know what tomorrow is going to bring, but I do want tomorrow to be with you.”

“I feel the same way,” Maya said.

“You up for giving this a go? I know it means you’ll have to talk to your boss and I know it means that we may not be able to work on investigations together, but I’d like to come home at night and be with you and Juniper.”

“I’m definitely up for giving this a go,” Maya said. She took a deep breath and uttered the words she’d had a hard time saying. “I love you, Josh Colten.”