His eyes darkened to midnight sapphires. “When I spend the night with you, Kate, it won’t be because I’m tired.”
The fact that he’d said “when” and not if, combined with the heat in his eyes, sounded like a promise. One that she was going to hold him to.
What she actually murmured was, “Yes, please.”
He grinned. “Get some rest. I’ll call you tomorrow.”
“Okay.”
She walked him to the door, anticipating the kiss she hoped she’d get when they got there. She wasn’t disappointed. Once again, she found herself flush against his hard body, wrapped in arms that made her feel safe and desired, while his tongue did magical things to hers.
“Kate,” he groaned into her mouth, both a plea and a warning.
“I know; I know,” she said on a sigh, reluctantly stepping back. “Go. Call me tomorrow.”
She shut the door behind him with a sense of loss. It seemed weird that she could feel so strongly about someone after such a short amount of time, but she did.
She checked in on the dogs, pleased to see they were settling in well. Seven little bundles of white-brown-and-golden fur were curled up tightly against a happy-looking Mama Dog while Duke protectively stretched out nearby. It was hard to determine which they favored more at this stage. At least some seemed to have inherited the wide-set eyes and rounded head of Duke’s pittie features.
After ensuring all was well, she decided to move forward with her plans for a quick, hot shower and some serious crash time. She barely made it halfway up the steps before there was a knock at her front door.
Her heart started racing, as she thought that maybe Chris had changed his mind about staying, but when she opened the door, it wasn’t Chris standing there.
“Where are they?” her sister said excitedly, pushing her way in. “The puppies,” she clarified unnecessarily.
“In the dining room.”
She squealed and made a beeline across the room, making Kate wish she’d waited until morning to share the news. Luther came in behind Kylie, his expression stormy as he glanced around the room, reminding her of the last time he’d been in her house. She was still annoyed about that and too tired to be cordial.
“What?” she asked sharply.
“A large black truck was parked outside your house all day. It belongs to one of the Sanctuary guys.”
“Yeah, so? People park in front of my house all the time. And how do you know who it belongs to?”
His lips pressed into a thin line. “I had Lenny run the plates.”
Kate gaped at him. Lenny Petraski was not only the fire chief’s son and a good friend of Luther’s, but he was also a local police officer.
“Why would you do that?”
“Because I was concerned,” he said in a condescending tone, as if that should have been obvious. “Your father said you took the day off because that mutt of yours had puppies.”
“That’s true.”
“So, what was that Sanctuary guy doing here? He’s not a vet, is he?”
“Not that it’s any of your business, but I was on the phone with him when Duke started freaking out last night. He got worried when I didn’t get back to him and drove down to check that everything was all right. When he found out what was going on, he stuck around to help and keep me company.”
She tried to imagine Luther trudging through snow or spending the night in a mine and failed.
He moved forward, coming dangerously close to invading her personal space, and spoke in a low, menacing tone, “What else did he do, Kate?”
She stiffened and crossed her arms over her chest, holding her ground. “That is none of your business. I don’t answer to you, Luther.”
“He’s using you! You know that, right?”
“Using me? For what?”
“Inside information.”
“Like what? How to choose the right size wrench? Or maybe the secret ingredient in my pot pie?”
His expression grew even more thunderous. “Don’t you get it? This is what they do. They select a local business with strong ties to the community leaders opposing them and then target a woman they see as easy prey.”
Kate gawked at him, certain that he was joking. But he wasn’t. He was serious.
“You think I’m easy prey?”
“You’re nearly thirty, single, and your best friends are senior citizens and strays.” He shrugged as if he hadn’t just said something incredibly offensive and insulting.
“And you’re paranoid and delusional. I’m done talking with you about this.”
She turned on her heel and went into the dining room where her sister was snapping pictures and taking selfies of herself with the pups, probably for one or more of her many social media accounts.
“They are so adorable,” Kylie said, unaware of the ridiculousness of the conversation Kate and Luther had just had. “People are already claiming dibs and asking when they’ll be up for adoption.”
“Not for six to eight weeks at least. Hey, are you interested in puppy-sitting occasionally?”
“Maybe. Depends on when and what I’d have to do. Plus, I’d need a ride.”
“Why would you need a ride?”
“Dad found out I dropped out of college and took the car away.”
“Oh, Kylie. Why would you do that?”
“Because I hated it. Besides, I was failing everything anyway.” She shrugged. “It’s just not for me, you know?”
“What are you going to do now?”
“Still working on that. That reminds me. Can you do me a solid and Venmo me some cash?”
Time for a teachable moment. “Sure. Puppy-sit for me tomorrow night, and I’ll pay you for it.”
Kylie got to her feet and scowled at her. “Harsh, Kate. What about a ride?”
“It’s less than a mile. Put on those expensive designer boots you got for Christmas and walk it.”
Kate shepherded her toward the front door, where Luther was still scowling.
“Hey, I’m not going to have to clean up poop or anything, am I?” She wrinkled her nose.
Kate opened the door and shooed them out. “Good night, Kylie. Remember, tomorrow, six o’clock. Don’t be late.”
Chapter Thirteen
Mad Dog
Leaving Kate was becoming increasingly difficult.
The more time Mad Dog spent with her, the more time he wanted to spend with her. The woman lit a fire in his blood with little more than a flash of her pretty eyes, bringing his inner caveman perilously close to the surface.
Once again, he resorted to lowering the window in the hopes that the frigid air would cool some of that fire. Had he met her in summertime, he wasn’t sure he would have survived it.
His libido wasn’t the only thing jonesing for more. With equally intense desire, he wanted to see her smile, make her laugh, and spend hours finding out everything there was to know about her.
At the same time, he felt calmer overall when he was around Kate. More tolerant. More at peace. She was like a beautiful filter, allowing the good vibes in and keeping the bad ones at bay.
Therein lay his biggest dilemma: while he was certain Kate was good for him, he wasn’t sure that he was good for her. In many ways, he was her polar opposite. The negative to her positive.