about to deprive my little girl of the chance to socialize. And wear one of her new sweaters. Take that, Peter. You’re not the only one who can rock a jean jacket.
“So, will you?” Mrs. Aldridge prodded.
Attend your dog’s surprise birthday party and take photos of him and all his equally confused dog friends? I sighed. “Sure.” Why not? It made as much sense as anything else I’d done since I got into town, up to and including jumping into bed with my ex-fiancé.
“Marvelous! And if you see Peter, not a word.” She put a finger against her lips, and my dad snort-laughed again. I took great pleasure in kicking his shin again, too. He grunted and sent me a glare over his newspaper.
“Not even if I wanted to,” I assured her. “Mum’s the word.”
She didn’t turn around and go back to her meal. Instead, she moved into our booth next to my father, who sighed loudly enough to rattle his newspaper. She proceeded to fill us in on all the details regarding Peter’s party, reveling in her new role of hostage-taker. When Glenna swung by our table and dropped off my to-go order for Cam in a brightly colored bag, I breathed a sigh of relief.
I slid out of the booth and picked up the bag. My father made a show of folding his newspaper carefully, and I waved him back down. “You should stay and chat,” I said. “I’ll be right back.”
He sent me a horrified look. “But—”
“I won’t be long.”
Mrs. Aldridge smiled as she pulled out her phone. “Now, what do you think of these balloons? Silver or gold?”
*
The clinic was doing brisk business as usual. Three people and their loyal companions waited in the front—a woman with a hairless cat, a guy with two napping schnauzers in scarves, and a kid with a big terrarium perched on his knobby knees. The terrarium appeared to be empty, and the nameplate at the bottom read Dwayne. My gaze traveled up the kid’s shirt to the giant lizard-looking thing draped across his shoulders.
I stared at Dwayne for a few minutes, hoping he was as placid as he looked. He stared back, unblinking. After a few moments, he licked his eye. Christ. Guess being a vet wasn’t all cute puppies and kittens. Sometimes you had to check in on the Dwaynes of the world and see what’s shaking in the Lizard Kingdom.
Dwayne licked his eye again, and I suppressed a shudder. I was starting to think he was doing it for shock value.
“Hey, hun.” I turned to the front desk to find Bailey giving me a tired smile. “I don’t have you on the schedule. How’s Sascha doing?”
“Her name is Honey now, and she’s doing fine.”
“I’m glad to hear it. You here to see Cameron?”
“Yes, but don’t worry, I won’t take up too much of his time.” I paused, giving her a critical once-over. Bailey’s personality was usually as big as her smile, but she seemed a little subdued today. “Everything okay?”
She sighed a little. “It’s just been one of those days. You can go on back, hun.”
When I got back to Cameron’s small, tidy office, he was leaning over his desk and writing busily. He managed to look hot even in wrinkled blue scrubs flecked with dog hair, which really wasn’t fair. He was clean-shaven today, his hair neat and tamed. I flashed back to the night before when his jaw was covered in stubble and his hair was a mess from my fingers. I wasn’t sure which look I preferred—wholesome, trustworthy guy, or guy I just fucked until the bedframe gave out.
It was a cheap frame, okay? And that’s exactly what I told Cameron as he looked up at me in disbelief from our position on the floor. I didn’t know how much he’d paid for it, but it had to be the frame, not exuberant fucking. I was no nympho.
He turned in his chair when I tapped on his door. “Hey,” he said, a tired smile crossing his face.
Just the sound of his voice sent a little shiver down my back, which was ridiculous. But I could practically hear his words from last night, as he’d hoarsely said my name. He’d followed that up with, “Fuck, I can’t hold back. You’re so fucking tight.” I shifted, trying to think clean thoughts. Pure thoughts. Like him putting his forehead against mine as he fucked me relentlessly, saying, “Nothing feels better than this. Nothing.” And, “If you keep that