Page 39 of Make Me Trust Again (Bluebonnet Creek #3)

She waves him over, and Kyle follows after her, Shadow by his side.

“Mae?” She turns around, quirking her brow. “Watch after him? And… Kyle’s deaf, so make sure he can see your lips when you speak.”

If she finds that surprising, she doesn’t show it. “Don’t you worry.”

The two of them walk down the hallway and slip into the kennels. Only when they’re out of sight do I let out a long breath and go in the opposite direction.

The room across the clinic is small. Maisie usually puts dogs who are sick in there, so they can recover, but right now, there is only one kennel that’s occupied.

The moment the door opens, the dog jumps to his feet and growls at me, those sharp brown eyes glaring at me in distrust. Every move I make is slow and measured as I close the door behind me and make my way to his kennel.

With each step I take, the growling becomes louder, and the dog moves back, until he’s pressed against the very back of the kennel, his stance defensive.

Mae was right. The Belgian Malinois is in worse shape than he was when I saw him a few weeks ago.

He’s covered in dried blood and dirt, his ribs peeking through his fur from how skinny he is.

I eye him carefully, trying to figure out which injuries are old and which are new.

It seems like he’s limping on one of his paws, and I’m pretty sure that the injury has come from the bite from another animal.

Did his old owner find him? My jaw clenches even just thinking about it.

Fucking hell, Mae.

Inhaling deeply, I force my body to relax before I take a step closer.

“You’re safe now,” I say softly as I watch him, that growl persistent as he glares at me, fire and intelligence burning brightly in his eyes. Damaged, but not broken.

My gaze falls on the bowl in the kennel. Empty. Not surprising, considering they were starving him. I could never understand how people could be like that toward animals.

Slowly, I slip my hand into my pocket and pull out a few treats I keep stashed inside, extending my hand toward the bars, which only makes the growling become louder. But I don’t let it discourage me.

I lower my hand on the ground and gently roll the treat toward him.

Easy, unthreatening. The growling lowers, if only slightly, as he sniffs the treat, but still he pulls back.

I sit on the ground, a jolt of pain going down my spine as I extend my legs in front of me, and lean my head against the wall behind me, so I don’t tower over him.

I’m not sure how long he continues growling at me, but every so often, his gaze would dart to the treat.

I keep my gaze on those glowing eyes as I roll another one toward him. In the blink of an eye, he lunges at the treats and eats them quickly before pulling back into his corner.

I quirk my brow and lift another treat, but this time, I hold it in my extended hand, trying to see if he’ll come closer, but he stays glued to his spot.

I wait patiently, trying to give him all the time he might need, but he just shifts from one corner of the kennel to the other, so I roll it to him, but this time I make sure the treat stays in the middle of the kennel.

C’mon boy. You can do this.

He takes a step forward and immediately pulls back, his attention going from the treat to me and back. Still, I say nothing. He repeats the dance a few times before he finally, finally , moves toward me and grabs the treat, so I roll a handful more toward him, all of which he takes.

“Good job.”

He goes back to his corner, but the growling is gone, at least until I push to my feet.

I ignore it as I make my way to the bag with food that’s sitting in the closet and scoop a full bowl before going back to the kennel.

The dog eyes it carefully, but he doesn’t make an attempt to move closer.

I slowly unhook the latch of his door and pull it open.

I fill his bowl with food and take the water out so I can refill it as well.

After I put it back into his kennel and lock the door, I straighten to my full height. The dog is eyeing the food but doesn’t make an attempt to move closer.

Figuring this is as good as it’ll get, I make my way out of the room and walk down the hallway, pushing open the big double door that leads to the backyard, where I know I’ll find Kyle and Mae.

The sun blinds me as I step outside, the sound of Kyle’s giggles filling the air. I squint, my vision coming into focus as I find him playing with Duke and Shadow.

“How did it go?”

I shift my gaze to my left, to find Maisie leaning against the railing and watching the trio. “Good. I managed to get him to meet me halfway, which is surprising on its own. He’s very distrustful.”

Maisie presses her lips into a thin line. “Considering what he’s been through, I can’t say I’m surprised.”

“I’ll be coming around, trying to see if I can get him to open up more.”

“Thank you, Chase.”

Nodding, I watch as Kyle grabs the rope from Duke’s mouth and tosses it, both dogs running after it.

“So…” She shifts next to me, and I can feel her gaze boring into my face. “Who’s the kid?”

Shit.

My shoulders stiffen at her question, but I don’t turn to look at her. I should have known it was only a matter of time before she’d asked that. Maisie’s too nosy for her own good; she won’t just let this go.

“My neighbor’s kid.”

From the corner of my eye, I can see her brows quirk up. “You? Have neighbors? Since when?”

I grind my teeth together. “A while.”

“And you agreed to watch the kid? She must be pretty.”

“I didn’t say it’s a she.”

Maisie’s mouth spreads into a winning smile. “You didn’t deny it either.”

Pressing my lips into a tight line, I glare at the woman next to me, which amuses her even more. I whistle, drawing the dog’s attention, and by extension Kyle’s, too.

He smiles when he spots me and waves at the dogs as they run to meet us.

“Chase, you’re back! Guess what happened? Mae showed me how to train Duke. It was the coolest. Look.” He turns to Duke: “Sit.”

The dog plops his butt down immediately, and Kyle slips his hand into his pocket to pull out a treat.

“See? He listened. Can we take him home with us?”

Fucking hell.

I run my hand over the back of my neck. “Not today, buddy.”

“Fine, I’ll ask Mom when we get back home.” He purses his lips, those big, puppy-like eyes boring into me. “Duke’s so good, he should have a home, don’t you think so? And Shadow should have a friend, so she doesn’t feel alone.”

I was screwed. Completely and utterly screwed.

“Shadow is never alone.”

“But I’m sure she’d love a puppy friend.”

I shake my head at him. “C’mon, you rascal, time to go home.”

Saying goodbye to Mae, I tap the side of my leg for Shadow to follow, my hand going to the small of Kyle’s back. He keeps talking my ear off on the drive back home, back to the boy he used to be before everything played out today.

My father doesn’t like it either.

I glance into the rearview mirror, taking him in.

He might be back to that cheerful boy I’m familiar with, but I didn’t forget what he said earlier.

Who the hell makes his child self-conscious about something they can’t control?

John-freaking-O’Neil, that’s who. It’s not like Kyle decided to be born deaf.

Then, there was also the fact that he didn’t show up today after he insisted that he wanted to have equal custody.

My fingers tighten around the steering wheel.

Did Rose know that? Was that the reason why she decided to leave?

I park my truck in the barn and follow Kyle to the cottage, where Rose’s truck is parked, and the woman in question is sitting on the porch, a book in her hand.

“Mom!”

She looks up at the sound of Kyle’s voice, and he runs to her excitedly. “Guess what?”

He switches to sign language, his hands moving quickly, his whole body buzzing with excitement as he most likely tells her about the shelter.

I pat the side of my leg. “Let’s go home, Shadow.”

I barely get to turn around when I hear my name called, and when I look over my shoulder, I find Rose walking toward me.

Those blue eyes lock on mine, and I couldn’t look away even if I wanted to. She stops in front of me, her arms wrapping around my neck. But it’s not that that surprises me, it’s the gentle kiss she presses against the scarred side of my face.

“Thank you for everything, Chase.”

And then, just as quickly as she came, she walks away.