Color Me Pretty: A Father's Best Friend Romance

“Sounds like you know what you’re talking about from personal experience,” I managed to say.

Her laugh was light. “And by the flush in your cheeks, it looks like you have a pretty decent idea of where to start. Take my advice, Adele, and truly consider what’s being offered. I know it won’t be easy, but I assure you it will be worth it without a doubt in my mind.”

I knew she was right, but it didn’t stop every internal response in me to argue against it. I’d been judged on far less things but putting myself out there like she was insisting would be the same as opening me up to free fire on a battlefield.

The only difference was that I’d welcome it, choose it, which meant I could anticipate everybody else’s next moves. Maybe that was better, because it meant I’d be the one to move the pawns and take back the control I felt was stolen from me for so long.

“I’ll think about it,” I offered quietly.

When we bid goodbye, all I could think about were her words. But they weren’t the only thing lingering in my head. And when I showed up at my apartment, I couldn’t help but stare at the man, and dog, sitting on the couch waiting for me like fate was offering me a hand.

I’d made my decision.

Chapter Ten

Theo

Her unblinking eyes traveled from me to the television where Animal Planet was showing something about dog breeds. Hell if I knew why she loved watching it, but there were seventeen episodes recorded, so I figured it had to be interesting enough.

“I prefer the serial killer documentaries you make me watch,” I noted, grabbing the remote and turning it off.

My words snapped her out of whatever train of thought she was having. She set her belongings down on the counter and crossed her arms over her chest. “It’s for Ramsay.”

“The murder shows?”

“Animal Planet.”

I blinked, noting the pink settling into her cheeks as she reached down and pet the dog in question. “It calms him down if the TV is left on for him, especially that channel.”

“You leave your television on for your dog? Do you know how much that racks up the bill, Della?”

I knew immediately it was a stupid thing to say because her face drained of the surprise that I’d bestowed on her by being here, and anger took its place. “What is with people being assholes to me lately? I’m aware of what it costs, Theo. I pay the bills. All of them. Remember?”

Sighing, I tried backtracking because I knew the topic was sensitive to her. “I didn’t mean to—”

“Of course, you didn’t! You never mean to do anything that would upset me, right? Not that you’d ever admit. But, rest assured, I know what money I’m forking over every month because I work my ass off to make sure I can keep a roof over my head, the lights on, and my stomach fed without any help. But thanks for the reminder.”

I waited until she was done because I knew trying to reason with her would be pointless otherwise. Though, the pinched expression on her face and the way the crease formed between her brows told me I was in the doghouse regardless. Metaphorically speaking.

“What are you doing here?” she asked, tone softer now that she took a moment to breathe.

“I’m proud of you.”

Her lips parted.

Standing, I walked around the couch with my hands stuffed in my front pockets. “I know the past few years haven’t been easy for you, but you’ve always held your head up high. You’ve made it through. Look at this place.” I did just that, studying the bright colors, wide open space, and smiled at the modern style that screamed Della. A few walls were aged white brick, the windows were large and feeding the room with natural light, and everything she furnished inside matched her personality to a ‘T’. “It’s yours. Not your father’s, not your mother’s, or anyone else’s. You made yourself a home and proved to everybody that you didn’t need your family’s money.”

If she were raised any other way, she would have been screwed. When the scandal broke and her father went away, they seized all assets, including properties. She was allowed two bags worth of belongings out of everything she’d once called her own, the rest was taken away. That didn’t stop her from pushing forward. Even though there was room at my house, she refused to accept any help. It took her an additional three months to save up the money she needed to secure this place through commissioned art, and a few odds and ends jobs around campus.

“So, I know that you know how much it costs. I didn’t mean anything bad by it. In fact, it shouldn’t surprise me that you’d leave the television on just so your dog doesn’t get lonely.”

“A lot of dogs have separation anxiety and need to feel secure when their owners are gone,” was her defense.

My head cocked. “And how do you know he has separation anxiety?”

Her bottom lip drew into her mouth as she looked at Ramsay. “He destroyed your armchair and favorite pair of shoes. Plus, he peed on everything even though he hadn’t done that in a while since we trained him to go out. I read up on it and vets say that it’s probably anxiety. Since I started leaving Animal Planet on, he hasn’t done anything bad.”

I did love the shoes that I found chewed up without an ounce of hope they could be fixed. I threw them out as soon as I saw them and simply told Della rather than showing her the mess he’d made. It was bad enough she wanted to buy me a new chair, but the shoes would have made her feel worse had she seen the state they were in. They were one of Tom Ford’s most expensive designs.