Melissa: A Hathaway House Heartwarming Romance by Dale Mayer (good book club books txt) 📕

not too bad for weight, but it feels like a lot of food.” She frowned at it. “I didn’t need much. Just a sandwich would be good.”

“Nope, not around here,” he said. “We do picnics all the time. Go and enjoy.”

She nodded, said thank you, and, as she began to walk away, he called out, “Are you okay otherwise?”

She looked back at him, smiled, and said, “Yeah. Just lots to think about, you know? Like you said, go inside and find some answers. But it’s hard to find time and space to go inside.”

He nodded with understanding. “That’s the truth. Don’t be surprised if somebody finds you out there and comes to join you.”

“That’s fine,” she said. “I’m not trying to be alone. I’m just trying to get out of the space I’m in.”

And, with that, she turned and slowly, carefully walked to the elevator. She was still not as confident in her footsteps as she would like to be at this point in time of her recovery. The fact that she was doing as well as she had was a testament to Dani’s team. And then Melissa had to trust and follow through, and that was the testament to herself. She had to remember to give herself kudos for following and believing and putting her faith in these people, who had it all worked out for her, which was just a huge boon. Now she had to figure out what to do after this. And Shane was a big part of that.

Taking the stairs outside the clinic, she slowly moved toward the pathway, wondering if she would have been smarter to have brought the wheelchair; this would be one of the longest walks she’d ever done—not that she was against it, but she didn’t want to tire herself out.

Stan was outside with several dogs, walking them around.

“I didn’t think about it,” she said, as she called out to Stan, “but I guess they all need to get out and to get exercise and to have bathroom breaks too, don’t they?”

“They do, and I need fresh air and exercise too.” He motioned at the picnic basket. “Where are you going?”

“Down the pathway to where the horses are. The walls were starting to close in on me.”

He nodded in understanding. “Helga would love to go with you, if you want company,” he said. “But no pressure if you just want to be alone.”

She looked at him, as a great big Newfoundlander was already halfway toward her. “Will she stay with me?”

“We’re fully fenced out here, so she can’t go far,” he said. “And you can bet that she would love to go anywhere with you. She loves being outside, and she adores the horses.”

“Well, if I am not in any danger of having to chase after her or losing her,” she said, “then I’d love to have the company.”

“Good.” He called Helga over, and she came running. He gave her a good scratch behind the ears and said, “Would you prefer to have a leash on her?”

“No. I’m not that stable on my feet,” she said instantly. “As long as she’s okay to be free and running all by herself. But maybe I shouldn’t …”

“She’s perfect,” he said. “Just keep walking and call her to you. She’d love to come.”

And, with that, Melissa headed out, smiling to see Helga immediately coming after her. “She really does like to be out with us, doesn’t she?”

“With anybody and everybody, and she doesn’t even know she hasn’t got but three legs,” he said.

“Which makes it perfect for her,” she said with a bright smile. “That’s what we all need to do. Just realize life happens, deal with it, and move on.”

Stan nodded and asked, “Are you okay then?”

She flashed him a bright smile. “I am, indeed,” she said. “Just one of those days, you know, where you wake up out of sorts, and you’re not sure why.”

“Oh, yeah,” he said. “Especially in a place like this. Lots happening on all different levels.” He lifted his hands, then called the other dogs back with him.

She kept walking, loving the fresh air and sunshine with a bit of a breeze. It was just enough to lift the tendrils of hair from the back of her neck, cooling her off a bit. She should probably go down to the swimming pool eventually and really cool down, something she hadn’t done yet. She’d been in the hot tub but hadn’t really done any water lessons with Shane. There’d been a lot to work on, and she’d never asked.

Just one of the things that Shane had recently mentioned, about speaking up for herself. If she wanted something, she needed to say so, and, if she didn’t want to do something, she needed to say so. She’d gone along with that tribe mentality for a long time. The navy was like that. They went in groups, large groups. They followed orders; your day was a block of time, and it was all laid out for you. Now here she was, with more time on her hands than she’d ever had in her life, and she was a little bit at loose ends, not sure what to do. Not that it had to stay that way, but it made her wonder just what she should be doing.

Finally she came to a spot that had a little bit of a rise in a bit of a flat spot, so she got off the path very carefully, took several steps down onto the grass, and sat down, careful of her picnic basket. She still didn’t know what was in it, and curiosity was killing her because Dennis was such a great guy at producing food, even though she knew a full kitchen team was in the background. But, if anybody could pull off something to put a smile on her face, she was pretty sure it was him.

She opened the basket to find a little tablecloth. With a chuckle she spread it out, even