Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 85950 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 430(@200wpm)___ 344(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 85950 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 430(@200wpm)___ 344(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
Chapter 36
Adalynn
Making a plan and following through with a plan are two very different things, I realize, when I sneeze the second I step into the small animal rescue that Corbin McBride has with his veterinary clinic.
My plan was simple. If I was going to be the woman who stays single for her entire life, then it’s only right to do it as a cat lady.
Apparently, the allergies I had to pet dander didn’t get the memo.
“Are you okay?” Claire asks when I press my nose into the crook of my arm.
I pull it away enough to explain my allergies.
Her frown only grows. “You said you were here to adopt all the cats.”
“I really want to. Could you suggest an antihistamine?”
“That works well enough for someone who sneezes before she even touches an animal?”
I nod, frowning, as another sneeze builds inside of my nose.
“Not one that would still make it safe for you to drive. Have you considered allergy shots?”
I raise my eyebrows, hope swelling. “Would that work?”
She gives me a small smile. “Probably not enough that you could live comfortably with cats. What about dogs? How are you with them? We have four—”
“Just as allergic,” I tell her, looking up at the light, but it doesn’t stop me from being hit with three sneezes in a row.
“Why don’t we go back into the office, or better yet, let’s go stand outside. You look like you could use some fresh air.”
The fresh air brings only mild relief despite the deep breaths I pull into my lungs.
“Why would you think you were no longer allergic if you haven’t had shots?”
I shake my head. “I wasn’t thinking, but you can’t exactly be a cat lady without cats.”
She cackles, having a hard time dropping the smile from her face even though I can tell she tries.
“Oh, Adalynn.”
“You’re too young to sound exactly like my mother,” I chide.
She huffs another breath of laughter.
“Believe me, I know the struggle with dating, or people expecting you to date. In my case, everyone looks at me like I’m sinning for the entire world to see if I so much as speak to a single man.”
“You’re a widow. Who gets to judge when it’s time to move on?”
I swallow down a bard of pain. Maybe she has come to the same conclusion about Hux that I have come to about Cash.
I think I always knew deep down that it was either him or no one. The guy last week who sat down with me made me realize it even more. I told him I wasn’t interested, and he was quick to tell me he was waiting for someone else.
We chatted, and he was nice enough, even for someone who isn’t from Lindell.
Cash came in and saw me talking to him. Instead of getting jealous, he took a woman’s number and left. It crushed me. Stomach acid rose in my throat to the point I thought I was going to be sick.
Before I could leave the guy I was talking to, his friend arrived. Much to my surprise, it was Carter, the same guy who was at the twins’ house the other day.
I had a million questions, but the woman feeling comfortable enough to slip her hand into the front pocket of his uniform took over, and it has eaten away at me for days and days.
There wasn’t an extra car in his driveway, and I did find it weird that both his truck and patrol car were there when I drove by. But my days of worrying about him have to come to an end. I have to accept that he was never mine to worry about in the first place.
I take a deep breath, this time finding I’m able to do it without the wheeze taking over this time.
“Apparently everyone in town has an opinion, but my in-laws’ voices are the loudest. I honestly think they’d be perfectly fine if I dropped Larkin off at their house and disappeared.”
I open my mouth to tell her she has to be wrong, but she knows them better than I do. The Kennedys have always kept to themselves, but that doesn’t stop the people in town from gossiping about the entire situation. I feel a wave of guilt for knowing more about her situation than she’s ever told me herself.
“That sounds messy,” I say, scrunching my nose in commiseration.
“Very,” she quickly agrees.
“Listen, apparently the adoption thing isn’t going to work out, but I’d like to cover all the fees for those cats that need them. Are there families who can’t afford the fees?”
“You can ask Corbin, but I’ve heard him say too many times that if they can’t afford the low fees, then there will come a time when they can’t afford the vet bills and maybe even the food. He doesn’t want to send an animal into a situation that might be bad for them, but we take donations all the time. Do you want to come inside and get a donation envelope?”