Chapter 31

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It was a surprisingly nice morning in Georgetown so Martin decided that he would take Milo for a run along the C&O Canal Towpath. Unfortunately, it was not going as planned.

"Come on, Milo," he urged as he tugged at the leash ineffectually. He and Milo were still learning how to run together but it was slow going since the dog being a dog, wanted to stop every ten feet to either sniff or pee; sometimes both. "Alright, Milo, either do your business or let's move on."

"That's right. Tell that dog whose boss," a female voice said.

Martin turned around and saw Ruby jogging up behind him. She smiled as she slowed down to stop right next to him. Milo, excited by someone new, stopped sniffing at the fence and went up to greet her.

"Hello," he said as Ruby crouched down to pet Milo. He was surprised to see her but then he remembered that this was a popular running trail.

"Hi, Martin," she greeted as she let Milo sniff her hand before she began petting him. "So, who's your friend?"

"This is Milo."

"Hi, Milo," Ruby said as she began scratching Milo behind the ears. Martin smiled down and knew that she had just made herself a friend for life. She looked up at him and asked, "Do you always bring him with you when you come to visit?"

"Actually, I've only had him for three days. He was a Christmas gift," he replied, meeting Ruby's eyes as she stood up.

"He's a great gift. I miss having a dog," she replied quietly. "I used to have a Border Collie named Dancer but I had to have her put down a few months ago. She had leukemia."

"Oh, I'm sorry," he replied sadly.

"Well, I had her for ten years so we had lots of time together," Ruby said as Milo returned to his sniffing. "Having a dog is great though. You're never alone and it really keeps your ego in check." Martin tilted his head and eyed her questioningly when she explained, "It's impossible to take yourself too seriously when you have to stop and pick up dog shit."

"Good point." Martin laughed.

She looked at him and asked, "So, have you guys been out running for long?"

"No, so far we've covered less than a mile. Milo finds everything so interesting."

"Well, it's all new turf. It'll get easier when you have a regular routine," Ruby commented before asking, "Do you want to run together? It can get boring running alone."

"Yeah, that'd be great." Martin glanced over at Milo who was now pulling away. "Apparently Milo is ready to get going too. Shall we?" Martin gestured to the park's trail.

Ruby smiled and took off at an easy pace as Martin joined her.