Saturday morning, Grayson and I got up early. He let the dog out in the backyard and then headed out for a run. I rummaged through his kitchen cabinets and found the fixings for pancakes. By the time he returned, I had breakfast on the table.

We let the dog in to eat his breakfast, too. He rewarded us with a happy wag and smiling eyes. He already looked stronger and healthier, just from eating two good meals.

After eating, Grayson and I hit the shower together. In some ways, this was a tactical error because it slowed us down. It started with Grayson soaping up my back and ended with him slamming me into the shower wall as he fucked me senseless.

As I dried myself off with a towel, Grayson went over to the fogged up mirror and wrote “I love you, Lucy” in the steam. I added a heart to his graffiti, and we kissed again.

The satisfied smile on my face afterward let me know that sharing the shower with Grayson could never be considered a mistake, even if it threw us off schedule.

We headed out to the vet’s office as soon as we got dressed.

“You got his leash?” Grayson fussed over the dog, brushing his hair, making it shine. “I don’t like this collar. He deserves something fancier.”

I rolled my eyes. “You act like he’s your child. His collar is fine. Let’s go already.”

“I want him to look good for the vet. I don’t want them to think we aren’t taking good care of him.” He urged the dog toward the door.

“We’ve had him less than twelve hours. It’s okay.” I followed the boys outside, locking the door behind me.

Grayson insisted on visiting the dog wash before we went to see the veterinarian. I rolled my eyes again, knowing he wanted the dog to look his best. Secretly, I was pleased at his tender treatment of the animal.

We helped the dog into the giant sink, and Grayson turned on the water.

“Do you think it’s warm enough?” He turned to me for my opinion.

I tested the temperature with one hand. “Yes, it’s warm enough.”

I was getting a glimpse of what Grayson would be like as a father, and I could tell he would be a wonderful dad. I knew this was something he worried about. The fact that his dad had left him so early on made him question his own potential as a father. Grayson had never admitted it to me, but I had gotten to know him well enough to figure it out for myself.

“You are a great dog parent, you know that?” I passed him the doggy shampoo and looked at him sideways.

He actually blushed, but I could see he was pleased. He beamed at me. “Thanks. I think we make a good team.”

This time it was my turn to blush. Grayson’s implication was clear. We would make good parents.

I was starting to think that he might be right.

The dog was patient while Grayson gently lathered him up, and then rinsed him with the warm water. Then he did the procedure all over again until the rinse water ran clear. Afterwards, I used the large, mounted hair dryer to finish the job.

The dog was gorgeous. He looked like a chocolate lab mix once we got all the dirt and tangles out of his coat.

Grayson smiled with pride. “He needs a name. We can’t keep calling him ‘the dog.’ And the vet is going to want a name for their records.”

I mulled it over. “What do you think? It needs to be something special because he’s a special boy.”

The dog chuffed in agreement.

“Maybe we will have to think about this awhile. It’s a big decision, after all.” Grayson’s face was dead serious as he spoke.

I laughed at him. “Let’s go over to the vet, Daddy Grayson.”

When we walked in the clinic next door, we answered a few basic questions for the receptionist. We told her we weren’t ready to give a name to the dog yet, so she filled his name in as ‘Baby Jackson.”

Grayson’s chest puffed out with pride.

We were allowed to go straight back to see the vet. The doctor was a handsome man close to my age named Dr. Cooper.

He smiled a flirtatious smile at me, totally ignoring Grayson.

Grayson frowned.

“So what brings you in today?” He consulted the chart. “Mrs. Jackson?”

I blushed. “Um, no. I’m Lucy. Lucy Bennett. We aren’t married.”

Cooper’s smile got bigger, and Grayson’s frown grew more pronounced. He crossed his arms over his chest and huffed.

“Yet. We aren’t married yet.” Grayson all but growled his response.

Surprised, I turned to Grayson and gave him a pointed look. “We aren’t engaged, either.”

I wasn’t interested in the handsome Dr. Cooper, but Grayson was being presumptuous. And now he wouldn’t hold my eyes, and he looked grumpier than ever.

“We found this stray last night, and we wanted to get him checked over. We also wanted you to check for a microchip in case someone is looking for him.” My heart dropped a little with those last words. Even though the dog had been in my life for such a short time, I didn’t want to lose him.

Dr. Cooper lifted the dog to the exam table. “He’s very underweight. I’ll check for a microchip, but it looks like he’s been on his own for some time.”

He busied himself with a general exam, looking at the dog’s teeth, and feeling all down his body. He occasionally made a few notes on his chart as he went.

I reached over, took Grayson’s hand, and squeezed it. That simple gesture stopped Grayson from pouting, and he rejoined the conversation.

“He ate a good meal last night, and again this morning. He already looks better than he did when we found him.” That touch of fatherly pride was back in his voice, and it warmed my heart and my ovaries.

Dr. Cooper smiled and listened to the dog’s heart through his stethoscope. “He looks like he is in pretty good shape. But I guess I need to clarify something at this point. He’s not a he at all. He’s a she.”

At our confused looks, Dr. Cooper laughed. “Your dog is a female.”

I laughed, too. “We didn’t even bother to check. We just assumed.”

Grayson smiled at me. “So we need to be thinking of girl names, I guess.”

Dr. Cooper nodded his head. “I assume she has parasites. That’s common enough that I won’t even bother to test for it. But we need to do a heartworm test for sure.”

Dr. Cooper scanned the dog quickly. “No microchip.”

I sighed in relief, and Grayson squeezed my hand. I knew from the look on his face that he was attached to the dog, too. He didn’t want to find her owner any more than I did.

Dr. Cooper rummaged in a drawer, and then took some blood while Grayson held the dog in place. “I’d say she’s less than a year old. Still pretty much a puppy.” He turned her over on her back and examined her abdomen through her thick fur. “I don’t see any surgical scars, so I doubt she’s been spayed. That’s the first thing we need to do once she puts a little weight on. She will go into heat very soon, if she hasn’t already.”

Grayson nodded his agreement. Now that Dr. Cooper’s attention was on the dog, and not on me, Grayson seemed to like him just fine.

“Let me go get the results of the heartworm test, and I’ll be right back.” He left the room and closed the door behind him, shutting out the sounds of barking dogs in the distance.

“Congratulations, Daddy Jackson. You have a daughter.” My eyes twinkled at him.

Grayson smiled back. “And I thought of the perfect name for her during the exam.”

“What name?” I was more than a little curious to see what Grayson thought was a perfect name.

“Pearl, in honor of the great sex her parents had after we found her.” Grayson’s face was the picture of sincerity.

I busted out laughing. “Grayson!” I was shocked and amused at the same time, but I had no real objection. “Pearl it is, then.”

Grayson ruffled her fur. “What do you think, girl? Do you like Pearl?”

Pearl barked in agreement and nuzzled his hand, wagging her tail the whole time.

Dr. Cooper reentered the room. “Great news! No sign of heartworms. So I will give her a few vaccines, and give you some heartworm pills. These will prevent the heartworms, and take care of other parasites, as well. She will need to take one every month.”

He quickly administered the needed shots, and Pearl didn’t even flinch. “Bring her back in about a month for surgery. In the meanwhile, make sure she is locked up at all times. This would not be a good time for her to discover boy dogs.” He grinned at me flirtatiously, and Grayson rolled his eyes behind the doctor’s back.

“Thanks, Dr. Cooper.” I took Pearl’s leash in hand and helped her off the table.

“Wait.” Grayson held up a hand. “Can we get her microchipped just in case? We will take good care of her, but if we were to get separated or something...”

Dr. Cooper nodded. “No problem. It won’t take but a minute for me to do it.” He retrieved a large syringe, and then he proceeded to implant the microchip. Again, Pearl did not seem bothered by the procedure.

I took her to a patch of grass outside to do her business while Grayson paid the bill and updated her records with her brand new name.

Afterwards, Grayson joined us. “What do you girls want to do next?”

I was a little nervous. “Um, I was thinking it was time you met my grandmother. What do you think? You totally don’t have to. It’s just I need to visit her because it’s been a few days. I like to check on her a couple of times a week, and I thought you might want to go, too. But it’s no big deal. I can go later.”

Grayson stopped me with a hand over my mouth. “You are adorable when you are nervous. I would love to meet your grandmother. Let’s go.”

We decided to take her lunch. I called her first to make sure she was home and hadn’t already eaten, and then we stopped at the Lazy Taco. Grayson ordered enough food for six people, including some plain grilled chicken for Pearl, and we drove out to the farm.

Pearl went with us, of course.

Grandma met us at the door, all smiles. First thing I noticed was the purple streaks in her hair.

“Hey, Grandma! I love your hair!” I truly did. This wasn’t the first time she had dyed her hair. Last Valentine’s Day she dyed it hot pink.

Grayson held out his hand. “Hi. I’m Grayson, the new boyfriend.”

Grandma ignored his outstretched hand and pulled him in for a hug. “You can call me Grandma.” She beamed from ear to ear and then leaned down to pet Pearl.

“This is Pearl. We found her last night, and we just got back from the vet’s office.” I petted Pearl who wagged her tail with enthusiasm.

“She’s so pretty.” Grandma gave her a quick pat. “Come on, Pearl. Let’s see if I don’t have some bacon left over from breakfast.”

We all headed into the house and went straight to the big kitchen table. Grayson started pulling food from the takeout bags, and I poured us glasses of sweet tea. Grandma gave Lucy a paper plate with some bacon on it, and Grayson added the chicken to the pile.

We sat down at the table.

“Grayson, tell me about yourself. Lucy says you are a police officer?” Grandma opened up the bag of tortilla chips and put them in the middle of the table so we could all reach.

“Yes, I’ve been on the force for about five years now. I got hired as soon as I finished college.” Grayson put a generous scoop of cheese dip on my plate for me.

I smiled my thanks at him. “I’ve been doing ride alongs with him for school. That’s how we met.”

“I had seen your granddaughter around town more than once. It was just a matter of time before I found a way to introduce myself.” He winked at me.

I looked at him with surprise. “You never told me that.”

“Can’t give away all my secrets, sweetheart.” He bit into his chicken enchilada with pleasure.

Grandma smiled. Her warmth toward Grayson let me know she liked him already.

“I guess Lucy told you her father, my son, was a police officer.” She got up to get us extra napkins.

“Yes, ma’am. I was very sorry to hear what happened to him.” He accepted a napkin from her.

“Thank you. Frank loved his job. He wanted to be of service.” She folded her napkin in her lap.

We ate in comfortable silence for a few moments.

Grandma spoke up. “My husband was a police officer, too. Thirty-five years on the job.”

“That’s amazing. I intend to have a long career like that, as well.” Grayson seemed at ease hanging out with my grandmother, and that was important to me.

My heart swelled with happiness. These were my two favorite people, and I wanted them to mesh well.

We chatted about various topics while we ate our lunch, and then Grayson took Pearl outside to take care of doggy business. I took advantage of his absence to quiz my grandmother.

“What do you think about him?” I collected trash off the table and threw it away.

“He seems like a lovely young man. He obviously adores you, and that’s all I can really ask for, isn’t it?” Grandma stooped to pick up Pearl’s paper plate from the floor.

Pearl had eaten every bite of the bacon and the grilled chicken. I figured she would gain her much-needed weight soon.

“I love him, Grandma.” I held my breath, waiting for her reaction. It was important to me that she approve.

“I know you do. I can see it. And he loves you, too, doesn’t he?” Grandma put our empty glasses in the sink with a smile on her face.

“Yes, I think he really does.” I hugged my waist. Grandma knew without me saying a word I was still worried about his job as a police officer.

“It will all work out. Keep prayed up! Your man is smart and strong.” She squeezed my shoulder as she crossed the room. “He can take care of himself.”

She put several fresh baked brownies on a paper plate and covered them with plastic wrap. “Here. Ya’ll take these home and eat them for dessert.”

We met Grayson on the front porch, and we said our goodbyes. I waved at Grandma as we drove away, and reflected on how blessed I was to have such wonderful people in my life.

I didn’t know everything was about to change.