“She threatened you?” I ask as we walk up the stairs to David’s apartment, Casper wagging his tail in front of us.

“It’s just like Hannah to threaten someone when she doesn’t get her way,” David chuckles. He throws his hand around me and brings me into a tight hug. “Nothing is going to come between the three of us, not even Hannah.” He lays a soft kiss on my forehead as we come up to his door.

“That might be a problem.” I reach out and grab the yellow notice off his front door. I skim it and let out a sigh. “Someone reported you for having a dog in your dorm room. There is a council meeting for later today. I wonder who could have reported you?” I roll my eyes, hand the notice to David, and hug Casper.

“I never thought that Hannah would stoop this low.” He balls the paper in his fist and curses. “We might have a chance since Melissa is the head of the council.” David gets down and wraps his arms around both of us. Casper gives him a wet kiss on the cheek and I laugh.

“Me neither.”

I didn’t have a problem with Hannah before. But now that she’s going after my dog, it just got personal. I’m going to find a way to make it even. But first, we have to win at the council meeting.

* * *

Melissa bangs her tiny gavel on the desk ,which gets David to stop shouting at them. He’s been making his case for the last ten minutes to let him keep Casper. He’s been pleading with them, really putting his emotions out in the open.

“That’s enough, Mr. Cooper. All in favor of letting Casper stay?” Melissa looks up and down the row, but no one says anything. She smacks the gavel down. “Then it’s settled. You will have to find Casper a home off the school campus, Mr. Cooper.” She shuffles the papers and closes the folder. “That concludes tonight’s meeting.”

David trots over to me with his head down. I get up and throw my hands around him for a tight hug. He did his best but there’s nothing that he could have done.

“You did your best,” I whisper and give him a short kiss on the cheek. “Casper would be so happy if he knew how hard you fought for him.”

“It doesn’t feel that way. They’re still going to take Casper away.” David holds me a little closer and I can hear the beating of his heart. Both of us have grown so attached to Casper over the last weeks. And Casper was the one who brought both of us together again. It doesn’t feel right, letting him go, when we owe our relationship to him.

“I might be able to help with that.”

David and I turn around. “Coach? What are you doing here?”

“Melissa asked me to come just in case the outcome wasn’t in your favor.” Melissa steps out from behind the Coach.

“I’m sorry about all of this, David, but I had no choice. Once the matter was reported to us, there wasn’t much that we could do.”

“It was Hannah, wasn’t it?”

“I can’t confirm or deny that.”

Coach Vaughn walks over to David and puts a hand on his shoulder. “I live right off campus on one of the estates on Patriot Boulevard. Casper can come live with me and either of you can visit him whenever you want. I’ll even bring him to practice if you want me to.”

“Are you sure about this, Coach?”

“Positive. Plus, he might give me a reason to lose all of this weight.” Coach Vaughn slaps his stomach and breaks into laughter that makes his belly shake. Melissa hides her smile behind her hand and playfully pushes Coach Vaughn to the side.

“You’re in good shape, Leonard,” she says and eyes him. Coach Vaughn flexes a little and Mrs. Dunn pretends not to stare too long.

“We’ll go get Casper and come straight to your house,” David says and tugs at my coat. Coach Vaughn nods and never breaks his gaze on Mrs. Dunn. There’s something there between them, but it’s not our place to ask.

It doesn’t take us long to find Coach Vaughn’s house. House is an understatement. It’s practically a villa and the biggest one on his block.

The second that we enter through his gated front yard, Casper’s leash breaks free from my hands and he starts to go bonkers. He runs from plant to plant, sniffing at everything.

“Casper, don’t do that. You might upset the Coach.” I chase after him, trying to dissuade him from marking territory that isn’t his yet. I want him to be on his best behavior. David and I need Coach Vaughn to not regret his decision. I grab hold of Casper and run my hand down his back trying to calm him down. This would be the perfect situation for all three of us. Casper would have all the room, he needs and he wouldn’t be that far away for us to visit.

“You don’t have to stop him,” Coach Vaughn says as he steps through his front door. “I know what I got myself into when I agreed to this.” I let go of Casper’s collar and he runs up to Coach Vaughn and gives him a slobbering lick on the face, before he brings his sniffer low to the ground and marches around the yard.

“I can’t tell you how much this means to us.” David shakes Coach Vaughn’s head. “You’re doing us a big favor.”

Coach’s eyes follow Casper around the yard. His eyes seem livelier than earlier today, like Casper is putting him in a better mood. “It’s no big deal at all. This is something that I want to do.

We spend the rest of the night talking and letting Casper get familiar with his new home. The longer that I talk to Coach Vaughn, the more I understand why David looks up to him. The man has accomplished a lot in his lifetime and he’s always giving back. He reminds me a little bit of David.

I wait until we’re out the door and away from the Coach Vaughn’s house before I tug at David’s arm. He looks down at me and smiles before I throw my hand around his neck and pull him in for a kiss. I’ve been wanting to do that all night.

“What’s that for?” he asks as I push my head into the crook of his neck.

“That’s just for being you.” I kiss his neck before he pulls me into a tight hug.

There’s nowhere I’d rather be than between his arms. His love for me is intoxicating.