(Complete) When Tim Burke meets Julie at a party, she isn't impressed. When they see each other again, Julie decides to give him a chance. As Julie faces burdens and sorrow in her own life, Tim and his family provide the support and love she needs...
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It was a nice day and although the sun was shining, it wasn't too hot. Michael had just been home the previous weekend. Shaking his head, he wondered why. His mother was overbearing as were his sisters. They wanted him to do a lot of things - move home, find a wife. One answer was never, but the second he would be open to especially since his twenties were behind him. Unfortunately, he didn't think his perfect mate existed or Toby already married her. Any woman with brains worked in tech like him which was fine, but they were either boring or acted wild like Sex in The City - Aria's favorite show.
When he looked back at his time with Aria, it was hard to separate their relationship from the craziness of the business. His business had been swallowed by a giant. He and Toby owned investment accounts and shares of stock to show for all their hard work, but it was a letdown. It felt like Michael had woken up from a bad dream, and he had missed his entire twenties and didn't even have a job.
Since the sale, he had worked for another Stanford grad trying to develop a lucrative idea like Michael and Toby had. He took the position for no salary with the promise of profit sharing should there be any. He could afford the gamble, better yet it wasn't his headache. He worked as much or as little as he wanted.
Michael had taken the afternoon off and was walking in the park with Teddy. Lindsay had suckered him into dog sitting for the week. Lindsay's fluffy little Havanese was actually very good company. He loved people and affection.
He chuckled, because the dog was walking him even though he was a tiny thing. Teddy had to stop to meet every dog and person. Michael ran behind him yelling. "Teddy! No!" The dog had made a bee-line for a girl sunbathing on a towel. Before he could grab the tiny pooch, the fur ball stopped right at the girl's face.
"Hello." She cooed as she turned on her side, so she could pet the pup. "You're so cute! What's his name?" She looked up at Michael and all he saw was her bright smile.
"Teddy." He tried not to stare into her blue eyes. "Sorry he disturbed you."
She smiled. "It's okay. It wasn't working anyway."
"What wasn't working?" She intrigued him.
"Pretending I was at the lake. Grass doesn't sway like the dock and isn't as soft as sand."
She sat up and Teddy climbed into her lap. Michael didn't know what to do, but he suspected the dog wouldn't be keen to move on even if he pulled his leash. Feeling uncomfortable towering over her, he sat on the grass. "Do you mind? Teddy has made a new best friend."
She shook her head and smiled. "How old is he?"
"I think a year or so. I'm just dog sitting."
"Nice gig." There was her smile again. "I had a dog when I was really young, but we never got another one. I don't think my mum wanted one. The first one came with my dad and brother."
