Page 16 of Sawyer

And that—more than anything—was what made me nervous.

Because it meant I might finally be okay with letting my guard down. And that was something I hadn’t done in a very long time.

I found myself massaging Benny's ears and head a little too long, enjoying the way he nuzzled into my palm.

His soft fur was comforting beneath my fingers, grounding me in a way I couldn’t quite explain.

Benny had always been a good judge of character, and right now, that was enough of an explanation for me. If Benny trusted Sawyer, maybe I could too.

I looked up when I heard a soft wince from Sawyer as he tried to take a seat.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"It's just my leg," he replied, hopping a little as he finally settled into the chair.

I glanced down, watching as he massaged the area around his knee. I couldn’t believe I hadn’t noticed it before.

Had it been this bad the night we first met when he chased after Benny? How had I missed something like that?

"Are you alright?" I asked, frowning. I couldn’t shake the worry about how he had managed to run with it.

"It just flares up from time to time. Don’t worry about it," Sawyer said, waving it off like it was nothing.

I hesitated for a second, my gaze still on his leg. I wanted to ask more, maybe offer him a more comfortable chair, but there was something in his tone—an edge that made it clear he didn’t want to dwell on it.

"So, was that why you were running earlier? For your leg?" I asked, genuinely curious.

"Yeah," Sawyer nodded, a slight smile tugging at the corner of his lips. "It helps keep it from stiffening up too much."

A thought crossed my mind, and before I could stop myself, I blurted out, "Maybe I could join you sometime? You know, for exercise?"

Wait. Did I just ask someone out? More importantly, ashifter?

Sawyer looked at me, a little surprised, then smiled. "Yeah, I’d like that," he said.

Feeling slightly more at ease, I returned to cleaning Benny, making sure every last bit of mud and dirt was gone. Finally, I dried him off, fluffing his fur with a towel until it was soft and shiny again.

"There we go," I said, slipping a little bowtie around Benny’s neck—the one we always gave pets after grooming.

“Oh, Mr. Hills! Good morning!” Chris’s voice boomed from the front, startling me. It was loud enough to be heard from the back and a little too enthusiastic to sound natural.

I groaned. I’d told Chris earlier to let me know when our new landlord arrived, but this wasn’t exactly what I’d had in mind.

I dried my hands quickly and turned back to Sawyer. He was staring toward the front of the shop, his brows furrowed.

I wanted to ask if everything was okay, but I needed to greet the new landlord first.

“Sorry, could you excuse me for a moment?" I handed Benny’s leash back to him but couldn’t help noticing the look on Sawyer's face. There was something there that I couldn’t quite figure out.

I hurried out to the front, plastering on my biggest smile. "Hi, Mr. Hills. It’s so good to finally meet you!"

I patted my hands on my jeans, not sure if I was trying to dry them or calm my nerves before reaching out to shake his hand.

"Call me Garth," he said with a smile.

But his smile… well, let’s just say it was nothing like Mrs. Hills' warm, friendly one.

"Are these for me?" Garth asked, pointing at the sandwiches I had prepared.