The One That Got Away by Jamie Sobrato Read Free Book Online Page A

“Hello.”
    His voice came out sounding stilted, too formal. Marcus wanted to kick himself. He’d rehearsed this meeting in his head at least ten different ways. He could hug her, or shake her hand, or hold back and see what she was inclined to do, or make a joke to ease the tension, or any number of other things, but not one of them struck him as the right thing to do at the moment.
    Izzy solved the problem for him by eschewing contact entirely and kneeling beside the doggy travel bag. She unzipped it and withdrew the tiny brown mutt, which looked to be part Chihuahua and part something else. The dog shivered in her arms as it gazed up at her adoringly and licked at her chin.
    “This is Lulu,” she said.
    Marcus reached out and stroked the dog behind its small, floppy ears, grateful for something to do with his hands. He watched the girl’s expression relax as she focused on the dog. Then she glanced nervously at Ginger, the one person in the room she didn’t know.
    “This is my friend Ginger,” Marcus said. “We’ll be staying at her house.”
    Ginger smiled warmly. “It’s nice to meet you, Izzy. I think Lulu is going to love playing at the lake. Does she like water?”
    Izzy grimaced. “She’s afraid of water.”
    “Oh, well, that’s okay,” Ginger said.
    Nina jumped in to rescue the situation. “Maybe I could help you load bags in the car, Ginger.”
    The two women each picked up a suitcase and went out the front door, leaving Marcus alone with Izzy.
    “I know this is hard for you,” he said. “Do you feel okay coming with me now, or—”
    “It’s fine,” she said tightly. “Nina has to leave on her work trip to New York, and she said I can’t stay here alone. She wanted me to go with her, but I don’t want to.”
    “I’m glad you found me, Izzy,” he said, trying to make eye contact. “We’re going to have a good summer getting to know each other.”
    She avoided his gaze by keeping her focus on the dog, but after a few moments of awkward silence she glanced up at him, and he could see the sheer terror in her eyes. Also a bit of defiance, and a healthy dose of sorrow.
    How did he go about making the acquaintance of a hostile teenage girl who’d just lost her mother?
    He hadn’t a clue.
    Perhaps he should have read a book, or consulted an expert, but now it was too late….
    “Do you like animals?” she asked.
    “Um, yeah, sure.”
    “Are you just saying that? Do you have any pets of your own?”
    “I don’t have a pet, no.”
    “Why not?”
    “I guess, you know, it’s a big commitment. I travel a lot. It would be hard.”
    “Kind of like having a kid would be hard?”
    “Sure, but—look, I’ll have to change my life around a bit, but of course I’m glad to. I want you to feel welcome.”
    “Nina doesn’t like having a dog in the house. She’s too nice to say so, but she doesn’t.”
    “Izzy, I’m happy to have your dog live with us, okay?”
    “You have to say that.”
    “I mean it.”
    He felt off-kilter due to the strong undercurrent in their conversation, not quite sure if they were really talking about whether the girl or the dog or both were welcome in his life.
    She glared at him with poorly concealed mistrust, then returned her attention to stroking the dog. Lulu had stopped shivering and was resting comfortably in her arms. Marcus was overcome with a wave of inexplicable gratitude for the mutt’s presence.
    Ginger and Nina reentered the foyer, and Izzy seemed eager to get going.
    “Um, well, we should leave, right?” she asked.
    “I thought you’d stay and have coffee,” Nina said, glancing nervously around the group.
    “Can we just get this over with?” Izzy said. “Your plane leaves in a few hours and I’m going to puke if we have to stand around like this much longer.”
    Marcus silently agreed with her, but at the same time he didn’t want to rush her out the door. It seemed such an abrupt transition from a familiar place and person, to a