Free Look Always Forward (Bellingwood Book 11) by Diane Greenwood Muir Page B

hate pointing that out. I don't know anything more now than I did before I called. Well, except that we're going to have another party."
    Henry pulled into the driveway and pressed an overhead button to raise the garage door. "Another drunken night of revelry?"
    "Oh please no." Polly shuddered. "That was a once-in-a-decade kind of thing. None of us ever want to go through that again." She opened the truck door and turned back to look at him. "But it was fun. As much as we don't want to repeat it, all of us had a blast. Even Lydia, and she was the one going through hell at the time." Polly leaned back on the seat. "Can you believe that was just six months ago? So much has happened. Everything keeps changing."
    "It does," he agreed.
    "Henry, we have a daughter who is going to be a seventh grader. She's only going to be with us for six more years and then she'll be making decisions about her future. How am I supposed to prepare for that?"
    He put his hand on the console, palm up and she placed hers on top of it. Henry squeezed it lightly. "You know you're getting ahead of yourself, right?"
    "I try not to think about it too often," Polly said. "It scares me to death.  I don't want to miss anything, but I want to be ready for all of the big things that are ahead for her."
    "You'll always be ready. Just slow down and enjoy the moments. Right?"
    She nodded. "It's a nice evening. Do you have time for a long walk with the dogs?"
    "I have all the time in the world for you." He jumped out of the truck and ran around the front so that he was beside her by the time she got to the door. He kissed her cheek and she took his hand and leaned in to kiss his lips.
    "Sometimes I'm overwhelmed by my life," Polly said. "You're my only constant. When everything else is in chaos, you're steady and solid."
    He broke from the embrace and opened the door. "Well, that sounds boring."
    "Not boring. Never boring."
    "Good. Because if you think I'm boring, I'm going to start making waves." He opened the door at the bottom of their steps and flipped a light on. The dogs were on the landing, waiting to be called. "Come on down, boys. Your mama has been much too philosophical tonight. She needs to get outside where grass is green, skies are blue and life is real."
    Polly snagged two leashes and bent to kiss the top of Obiwan's head. Han bumped the older dog out of the way and she rubbed his neck, and waited for him to send his tongue across her cheek.
    "He's a sloppy kisser," she said. "You need to teach him to be neater about that."
    "I don't think so," Henry said. "That little boy has learned so much from Eliseo. I don't feel like I have much of a say in what he does after that. He's a goofy, goofy dog."
    "We have the strangest little family, don't we?" she asked.
    Henry snapped the leash onto Han's collar and they walked back outside. "Our family might look different than others, but we're happy. Now which way shall we go?"
    "We aren't in a hurry. Let's go north and wander through town," she responded.
    He nodded and clicked his teeth much like Eliseo did and Han stopped pulling and dropped in beside him.
    "It always amazes me," Polly said.
    Henry chuckled. "To be honest, it amazes me, too. It's like it's an on-off button. Eliseo should teach classes. We'd have a town filled with obedient dogs and even better, smart pet owners. You were lucky with Obiwan, but I'm pretty sure this one left his brains in New Mexico."
    "Come on," she said as they crossed the highway. "He's a great dog."
    "Yes," he agreed. "He's a great dog. But intuitive he isn't." They got to the other side and Henry bent down and slipped a treat out of his pocket. "I love you though. You're a good boy."
    Han wagged his tail, his tongue hanging out of his mouth. Henry handed another one to Obiwan. "You're just a good dog all around."
    "Wow," Polly said. "They even have you trained."
    It was still early enough that there was plenty of activity in and around the restaurants and bars. People