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CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

Hop called Frizz to make sure she was okay. He was glad Frizz and Justin were visiting soon. He needed to make sure his sister was really okay. It worried him that she was still in Texas and Logan was a problem.

When Thario showed up, Frog was excited to see them and pranced around the house, finally sitting beside Thario after he’d licked his and Vera’s face.

“Your dog is funny,” Hop said as he pulled the steaks from the refrigerator so he could grill them.

Thario put his hand on Frog’s head, smiling at the dog as he looked up to Thario. “Frog is a good boy. I never thought I would be able to have a dog. I love him.”

Hop nodded. “Yeah, I get that. I don’t think I’ll ever have one.”

Vera shook her head. “You’re such a good dog dad. Why would you never have a dog?”

“Time,” Thario said.

“We travel too much,” Hop said.

“Oh, I never thought about that.”

“Yeah, it’s too hard to have a pet that you have to leave behind.”

“Oh, yeah. That would be bad.”

“I don’t have to worry about that now. Frog is the best. So I guess the trade-off is worth it.”

Vera’s mouth hung open. “Really?”

Thario shrugged. “I didn’t appreciate what I had. I was a little shit and didn’t appreciate anything. I may not have legs, but I’m happier now. It doesn’t make sense, but it does.”

“I’m glad you’re happier.”

Hop grabbed the plate with the meat and opened the door to the backyard. “I’m going to put the meat on the grill.”

“Want any help?” Thario asked.

“I got it. You and Vera chat.”

“Sure thing, brother.”

He should have asked Thario to hang out with them earlier. There were things he needed to do better. First, he really needed to make sure Vera knew who to contact if things went bad. He could see Vera and Thario laughing inside, and his heart squeezed.

Being a SEAL opened a world to him he never would have known about. He was a better person because of his training. He could keep Vera safe. He knew that now. He would just have to work harder and get her the resources she needed.