The Dog Whisperer

●Chapter Seven

I'm in quite a different mood from yesterday as I'm walking to the Burkes' mansion. Because I fucked up. Really badly.

I shouldn't have said anything. I should've just retreated back behind the bushes in hopes that no one would see me, or at the bare minimum, Caden wouldn't have pointed me out when he did. But I panicked, and something about the thought of Caden drawing attention to me eavesdropping with his dad around made me do something drastic.

That, and I sort of felt bad, much to my displeasure.

I paced around for an hour last night trying to come up with a plan, but I don't have a single one that doesn't involve something desperate like quitting. I wanted to call and tell Mrs. Burke I was sick today, but that's a very temporary solution to a very permanent problem.

So basically, I'm screwed.

I'm sending up a plea to God hoping Caden is not at home when I walk up. This whole situation just confuses the hell out me. He can't miss practice all the time, can he? There has to be some rule that just skipping practice everyday leads to being removed from the team; most coaches don't just let players get away with that.

I'm comforted by the sign of no cars in the driveway. This doesn't mean Caden isn't here, but it most likely means nobody else is, which I suppose in itself is reassuring. Or maybe it's not. Maybe if somebody else was here, Caden wouldn't even get the opportunity to talk to me.

And just like that, my stomach plummets as I realize if Caden is in that house, I will have to speak to him about yesterday's incident, because no one else will be around to save me.

I go through emergency scenarios in my head to get me out of the conversation, ranging from faking a phone call from Sam to just simply running away.

The door swings open once I unlock it and enter. So far, so good. The house seems quiet, and there's nobody in sight as I flip on the lights and enter into the family room.

Sophie is waiting for me, making a high-pitched whimper as she does. I smile as I unlatch the gate and wonder if Caden ever pays any attention to her. Kendall seemed a lot more interested in her than Caden the first time I came. He doesn't seem like much of a dog person, or an animal person in general.

I instruct Sophie to sit, and while it takes a few tries to get her still, I eventually clip her leash on. Once she's settled and composed with the other dogs, I turn and exit the room back out to the foyer.

Just when I think I've made it out safely, somebody coughs throat from behind me.

"It's not like you to just drop by without so much as a smartass comment."

I whip around, my eyes flicking in his direction. The first thing I see is the denim on his legs, and I'm not sure why it puzzles me so much, but this is the first time I've seen Caden out of athletic attire. Gone is any of trace of the soccer star, and that makes it easier to pretend he's just a normal customer.

"Yeah, well, I'm only a bitch when I need to be," I explain honestly. Judging by his expression, he's a little curious about my remark, which means it worked. I'm intent on letting him know that I'm not always like this; it's only because he's an asshole.

"Now," I start, refocusing my mind on the tasks at hand, "If you'll excuse me, some of us have jobs to do."

I take all of the leashes in one hand momentarily, taking the sunglasses perched on top of my head and bringing them down to my eyes, and spin around to inform him this is all I want out of this conversation.

Unfortunately, I hear a rich chuckle from behind me. He's not quite done yet.

"There it is," he announces.