Puppy Love for Christmas

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Nineteen

Christopher stood in the middle of the crowd in his tux with champagne in one hand and never felt so alone. His staff had out done themselves for that year’s Christmas Gala. The tree was larger than ever, decorated to the brim with tech-themed trinkets like mini computers, cell phones, and microchips. The garlands were filled with glass balls and inside was confetti of some kind. The music was from a live band. The food was from a caterer that specialized in organic, farm to table. Everything felt so San Francisco. Definitely nothing like the Snow Ball, which looked and felt more like Christmas.

“Well, if it isn’t our hardworking CEO,” a man in his fifties said, his second wife half his age in tow. “Merry Christmas, Wakefield.”

“Merry Christmas.” Christopher shook hands with the man.

“Still no plans for a vacation, ay?” he asked, definite chiding in his tone.

“You must simply come with us to Colorado for some skiing,” the wife said.

“Actually,” Christopher said. “I had a chance to go back home for the holidays.” Almost immediately a pang of homesickness hit him. Ever since getting back into the city, everything felt foreign to him. Like he no longer belonged.

“That’s great,” the man declared. “The board and I have actually been starting to worry about you.”

“Speaking of worrying, are you still singled?” the wife asked.

Christopher hid his wince by taking a drink of his champagne. He hated the stuff, but he needed something to do with his hands. Holding a glass seemed like the safest bet.

“Good evening,” Andrew said, appearing as if out of nowhere. “I’m sorry to interrupt but I need to pull the boss away for a few minutes.”

“It was nice seeing you,” Christopher said to the man and his wife as Andrew stirred him away. His relief was instant. When they were out of earshot he said, “What do you need me for?”

“You honestly think I’m giving you work to do at the Gala?” Andrew’s lips quirked. “It just looked like you were dying over there and in need of rescuing.”

“My hero,” Christopher said with a hint of sarcasm. Then he squeezed Andrew’s shoulder. “But seriously, thanks for that. Have I don’t my duties? Can I leave?”

“I say give it another half an hour. I’d ask you to mingle but after seeing what happened, I don’t think that’s your best option.” He paused.

“What? Spit it out, Andrew.”

His assistant sighed as if defeated. “I hate to bring this up but Charlie mentioned that you were bringing Sabrina with you.”

“How do you know about . . .” He caught himself. “Nope, I probably spoke about her to you too.”

“On more than one occasion. So, what happened?”

It was Christopher’s turn to sigh. He took another sip of his champagne. The bubbles were getting to his head. Maybe he should switch to water.

“She said she didn’t want to come.” The words came out plain and simple, but each and every one felt like a dagger to his chest.

“Why?”

“Her life is in Trevor. And my life . . .”

“I see.” Andrew shook his head. “I’m truly sorry.”

“Not as sorry as I am.”

“Let me get you a sparkling water.” His assistant took Christopher’s half empty glass and disappeared into the crowd.

Without anything to hold on to, Christopher stuffed his hands into his pockets. Never have he ever felt so empty. Like there was something missing in his life. Had he done the right thing by leaving Sabrina? Should he have insisted that she come with him? On the other hand, he understood her position. She had animals counting on her. She was certainly devoted to her job the way he was devoted to his.

He had done the right thing, he told himself. Yet why didn’t it feel right? Why didn’t he feel comfortable being back to work? This was supposed to be his safe zone. The one place he was most at home. But, really, where was home? His cold apartment? The office?

Suddenly, the holidays weren’t feeling so cheerful anymore.

***

The next day, Christopher started out his office window at the Golden Gate bridge. He was only half-listening to Andrew rattle off everything in his schedule. There was so much to do before the New Year rolled around, especially since the breakthrough with the animals at the Sanctuary and their anti-anxiety tech. He had already instructed Charlie to prepare a presentation for the board during their first meeting in January.

“Sir? Sir? Are you even listening to me?” Andrew said, exasperated.

“I have meetings all day,” replied Christopher, eyes never leaving the bay.

“Is something the matter? You haven’t been yourself since you got back.” Panic slowly rose in Andrew’s voice. “Maybe I shouldn’t have conspired with your parents to get you to come home. Maybe a vacation isn’t really what you needed.”

“Calm down, Andrew. Going home was exactly what I needed.”

A ping went off on his assistant’s laptop. He turned around in time to see Andrew tap the screen. Almost immediately a smile grew on his face. Then, as if he remembered where he was, his expression sobered.

“What was that?” Christopher asked, chagrined.

“It’s highly inappropriate, sir.”

“Now I’m doubly curious.”

“And highly unprofessional,” he continued as if his boss hadn’t spoken.

“You have to tell me now. You can’t leave me hanging like his.”

In an instant, Andrews face grew blotchy and his neck was red. He cleared his throat as he said, “My boyfriend just sent me a 143 text.”

Christopher’s eyes widened. “A what?”

“I told you it was highly inappropriate.”

“No, it’s not that.” His throat grew tight. Had he heard Andrew right. “What do you mean by a 143 text.”

“One. Four. Three.” Andrew repeated, face redder now. “I. Love. You.”

The night of the ball immediately flashed through Christopher’s mind as if he was currently at that balcony with Sabrina. He could even smell the sea and feel the chill in the air. Her words came back to him. About numbers. About a specific set of numbers.

“1-4-3 means I love you?” he asked, almost chocking the words out.

“Yes.” Andrew bit his lip. “Can we stop talking about this now?”

Christopher’s mind was going a million miles a minute. So many thoughts were firing through his mind one after another. There was so much he needed to do with so little time to get things done. First, he had to start with the most obvious.

“Andrew, I need you to clear my schedule,” he said, almost a command.

“For the rest of the day?” His assistant looked down at his tablet, seeming relieved to be given something to do.

“For the rest of the week.”

Andrew’s eyebrows arched up to his hairline. “Can I ask the reason why?”

“First, I need to head over to research and development. I need to talk to Charlie about our latest prosthesis developments. Do you think we can modify our prosthetics to fit dogs and cats?”

“What?”

“We make prosthesis for humans, surely it can’t be that hard to make them for animals too.” He thought of the dog they had rescued.

“I’ll DM Charlie, letting her know you’re heading down.” Andrew’s fingers flew over the screen. Seconds later he said, “Charlie says she’s free and that she is intrigued by this idea of yours.”

“Also, give me a list of the best non-kill shelters in the country.”

His assistant’s eyes widened. “Are you saying you’ve found the charity you want to support?”

The more Christopher spoke the better he felt. It was as if the ground grew solid beneath his feet once again. Coming home really showed him how much he was missing. Trevor was as much a part of him as he was a part of it. He should have never stayed away as long as he had.

“There are a few more things I need you to do for me,” he said. “It’s going to be a very busy week for the both of us.”

The smile on Andrew’s face was so telling. “You got it, boss.”

***

Sabrina walked into the Animal Sanctuary with a purpose. She had to set aside her broken heart for the good of all. This was no time to wallow in self-pity. She had made the right decision asking Christopher to leave without her. Since Christmas, they were already getting called from other shelters asking if they could take in dogs and cats that were on their last leg. Sharleen was on the phone all the time.

“Are the vans ready for transport?” Sabrina asked as she looked over that day’s schedule.

Sharleen nodded. “We have pick ups set from all the closest shelters. Even a couple in Devon.”

“Good. Have the volunteers stay in touch with us so that we are ready to receive the animals as soon as they arrive.”

“Already a head of you.”

“What would I do without you?”

“Drown in the misery of your loneliness?” Sharleen rounded the front desk and engulfed Sabrina in a tight hug.

“Is it that obvious?” Sabrina sank into the hug.

“You’re focusing on work. You have bags under your eyes. You haven’t smiled since Christopher left.”

“And here I thought I was hiding it well.”

“Oh, you are. I’m just that observant.”

“Well, now work is all I have. Hit me with it!”

Sharleen released Sabrina and returned to her spot behind the front desk. Her fingers flew across the keyboard of her computer. Then she said, “We have a couple more adoptions set for this afternoon. There was a walk in early this morning.”

“Oh? Who?”

“The family that took in Rosco. They said he needed a friend so they took home the other rottie you cleared for adoption yesterday.”

“Chandler already has a home?” Sabrina’s heart leaped. The emails Chris sent about the Adopt-a-Thon were still working their magic even days later. People were still coming in and giving forever homes to their animals. All of a sudden, her chest hurt, missing him terribly.

“And they wanted me to tell you that the Rosco hasn’t destroyed a thing in their house even when he is left alone. The bracelets and pendants Christopher gave us are working wonders. Do you think we can ask him for a few more?”

“I can certainly make a call.”

“No, you know what?” Sharleen waved a hand at her. “I will make the call. You go and feed the cats.”

“Right.” Sabrina pushed her way to the back of the shelter, glad for something to do other than start feeling all the emotions connected to Christopher that she had buried deep. She could cry about her decisions when she got home. First, she had work to do.

***

Snow finally came down in earnest in the last couple of days—much to the delight of Mayor Stanley. He was holding court at town square as Sabrina passed by. She stopped into Bake My Day for a cup of her peppermint hot cocoa. The entire town was blanketed with pristine white powder, giving the tourists what they came into town for. The Christmas Festival by the Sea the postcard perfect winter wonderland Town and Country hailed as a must-see destination during the holidays.

Taking a sip from her cup, Sabrina unlocked her mother’s car. Once the afternoon volunteers arrived and Sharleen was busy with the two adoption appointments that had arrived at the same time, she stepped out. It was time to make the offer she had been excited for since Christmas.

Shady Acers was a sprawling property right outside of town that had been for sale for a few months now. Ever since it came on the market, Sabrina had her eye on it for the expansion. It had a farm house that she planned to convert to a clinic on the ground floor and a living area on the second floor. The barn would house the cats and the stables would be expanded into kennels for the dogs. And the large tract of land allowed for the animals to roam.

Sabrina could already see it in her mind’s eye. The new and improved Animal Sanctuary. They could take in more animals. More volunteers. She was so excited that she couldn’t sit still in the driver’s seat as she drove up the road leading to the farm.

But the second she drove up to the gate it was closed. Her real estate broker was standing by his car, waiting for her with an unhappy look on his face. The worst part was the SOLD sign hanging from the center of the gate. Sabrina’s heart sank as she parked the car and stepped out.

“Harold, what happened?” she asked the broker. “I thought we had an agreement.”

“We did,” he said, dejected. “But at the last minute, a buyer swooped in and paid full price. They even bought the Tillman property at the same time. Our firm is a buzz about it.”

The Tillman property was the biggest in Trevor. Acers and acers of land. Sabrina couldn’t even consider it for the Sanctuary because it was so big.

“Who has that kind of money around here?” she asked, unable to keep the disappointment from her voice.

“Some big city big shot with deep pockets.” He shook his head. “I’m so sorry, Sabrina. I know you had your heart set on this place, but I have other options you can consider. There are not as big—”

“Not big enough for the dogs to have a place to run,” she interrupted. Little by little she felt her dream slipping away. It was bad enough the she lost Christopher. Now she had to deal with the fact that the Sanctuary expansion may never happen. All those animals she could have helped.

If there was a time to be truly heart broken, it was then.