promised my best girl that we’d talk soon.
It was certainly a lot more peaceful after she’d gone. Vince seemed slightly stunned by the tirade that had lashed down on him from the moment he and Rick had walked through the front door and been met by Hurricane Cady.
“Fook me,” he said quietly, as the dogs crept warily into the living room now that the shouting had stopped. “I think I’ve upset her.” He looked up at me sadly. “I always fook things up, don’t I?”
I lifted my eyes to the ceiling. “You do have a talent for getting into the craziest situations,” I agreed, “but no, you don’t always mess up.”
He dropped his head into his hands. “Just most of the time.”
He looked so sad, and it probably would have been a huge mistake if I’d tried to comfort him, but Tap got there first, nuzzling against him and laying her head on his knee.
“You still love me, don’t you?” he said with a soft smile, stroking her gently.
I watched him, sitting there quietly with his dogs around him, so different from the walking, talking, shagging disaster that was the Vincent Azzo I’d first met more than a year ago. I knew that version was still there, but now I also knew that there was a kind heart behind all the mouth and muscle.
“Vince,” I said, waiting until he looked up. “Sometimes you do real good.”
He blinked, as if he was waiting for a qualifying statement, but when he realized that it was a real compliment, he gave me the most beautiful smile.
“Thank you, Gracie. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“Well, so long as I don’t get eaten by a lion, I can keep Cady from beating you to death with her phone and you won’t have to find out.”
He gave a light laugh. “Promise?”
“Promise.”
He cleared his throat. “I don’t want to come over as a knob or say anything naff, but do you want to stay here tonight? I don’t mean with me—I’ll take the sofa—but it’s really late and … and me and the kids want to take you out to our favorite place for coffee and cake in the morning. No funny business, Scout’s Honor.”
I thought about another long cab ride across the city to an empty apartment and I had to admit that his offer did sound pretty good. I’d taken several vacation days from work for wedding week, so I had nowhere particular to be until the rehearsal dinner tomorrow evening.
“I don’t have a toothbrush.”
“You can use mine.”
I wrinkled my nose. “Um, no!”
He laughed. “I’ve got a new one you can have.”
“Thank you. Much better. And, uh, do you have a t-shirt or shirt I could sleep in?”
Something hot flashed in his eyes, but then he just nodded.
“Follow me,” he said, heading for his bedroom.
He handed me a t-shirt with a Canine Crusader logo, and a pair of his briefs with purple paw prints on the fabric.
“For the morning,” he grinned. “They’re fairly clean. Only wore them for a week.”
“Don’t be gross,” I said, slapping his arm as he laughed.
His smile faded. “Don’t take this the wrong way, Gracie, but could you leave the bedroom door open tonight?”
“Excuse me!” I yelped, wondering if I’d made a huge mistake and glad I had my Uber app primed and ready to go.
“No, no, not like I’m a creepy pervert, but you’ve got the dog beds in there and they’ll know I’m next door so it would probably be easier if they could come and check on me—just to reassure them.”
I relaxed.
“You can come and check on me, too, if you like,” he said suggestively, raising one eyebrow.
“Don’t push it, buddy! Three cold, wet noses is enough—yours just doesn’t make the cut.”
“Harsh,” he said sadly, shaking his head. “Okay, well I’ll just take them out for a slash then I’ll tuck them in.”
“Do you read them bedtime stories, too?” I couldn’t help asking.
“Yep, their favorite is 101 Dalmatians; Tap likes Old Yeller, but it always makes me cry.”
“Get outta here,” I laughed, tossing a pillow at his head that he caught easily.
Fascinating factoid: Lassie is still the most famous fictional dog in history.
I changed into Vince’s t-shirt in the bathroom and brushed my teeth with the new brush he’d left out for me. I didn’t have to worry about cleanser, toner, moisturizer, body lotion or anything else like that because Vince had more products than I did—probably a habit he’d acquired in his modeling days—and all