Page 149 of What We Break
"Smart. What are you leaning toward?"
Reid looks at me. Panic behind his eyes.
"Golden retriever," I say. "Maybe a lab."
"Can't go wrong with either." She whistles for Shadow. "Good luck!"
We watch her walk away. Reid exhales dramatically.
"That was close."
"'Researching'?"
"I panicked!" He's grinning though, proud of himself. "Come on. Let's do a lap."
We start walking the perimeter. A German shepherd trots alongside us for a few yards, and my hand itches to pet it, but it veers off to investigate a tennis ball before I can. Two beagles are digging a hole near the water fountain while their owner stares at her phone, pretending not to notice.
I like it here. The chaos of it. Everyone just letting their dogs be dogs.
"This is the dream," Reid says, reading my mind. "Saturday morning. Dog park. Coffee after."
"We don't have coffee."
"Coffee after. Keep up, Sunshine."
A golden retriever puppy tumbles into our path, all ears and paws and absolutely no coordination. It trips over its own feet and lands in a heap.
Oh no. Oh no, it's so cute.
Reid crouches down, making sounds I've never heard come out of a grown man.
"Oh my God. Oh my God, look at you."
"Reid."
"Laine, look at this face."
I'm looking. I shouldn't look. If I look too long I'm going to want one.
The puppy licks his chin. He looks up at me like this is the greatest moment of his life. Maybe it is.
"We should get one," he says.
"A golden retriever puppy."
"Any puppy. All puppies."
The puppy's owner—a guy with a coffee cup and dark circles under his eyes—catches up. Reid stands reluctantly, giving the puppy one final pat.
"Beautiful dog, man."
"She's a terror." But the guy's smiling. That tired, affectionate smile of someone who wouldn't trade it for anything. "Yours around here somewhere?"
"Researching," I say.
Reid shoots me a look. I shrug. If it works, it works.
We keep walking. The path curves around a cluster of trees, past a woman throwing a frisbee for a border collie that catches it mid-air every single time. The dog doesn't even look like it's trying. Just leaps, snaps, lands, trots back. Repeat.
