Buzz Off - By Hannah Reed Page 0,73

than I’d been in a long time.

“Your store,” Hunter said with a snort of amusement. “That place is a hotbed of intrigue and misinformation. I wouldn’t want to give your customers even more to talk about.”

“Not to mention that your girlfriend works there.”

“Come on. Let’s go.”

“Where?”

“My place. I’d like to introduce you to Ben properly this time.”

My heart was pounding. I shouldn’t go to Hunter’s house alone. The man was hot and sexy and so not mine.

“You want me to meet your dog again?”

“Humor me.”

Hunter had ridden over on his Harley. He swung a leg across the machine, settled into the seat, scooted forward to make more room for me to climb on, waited for me to situate myself properly, and we were off.

I loved the ride. All the sensations of the machine under me—the firm grip I had on Hunter’s waist, the smells of the countryside that you just don’t experience inside a car, the wind whipping my hair, the absolute and exhilarating sense of freedom.

When we arrived at his house, I didn’t want to get off. Ben was in a kennel on the side, alert as usual. Hunter dismounted, opened the gate, and let him out. Reluctantly, I got off the bike.

“Story, meet Ben.”

“I’ve already met Ben.” Where was this going?

“I know, but I was remiss, considering your past history and Ben’s intimidating presence. But Ben isn’t anything like the dog that attacked you. He would never hurt you.”

Hunter had to bring that up! When I was ten years old, a German shepherd had attacked me on the street, pulling me off my bike and mauling me. I still had scars on my right thigh to prove it. Hunter knew all about it.

“Tell Ben to sit,” he said.

“I don’t want to.”

“Come on, Try it.”

“Fine. Sit, Ben.”

Ben glanced at Hunter, then back at me. The beast sat. He watched me in case I had another command ready. I looked at Hunter, still wondering what was up.

“Ben knows all the basic obedience commands,” Hunter said. “Sit, down, come, stay, heel. He responds to my orders one way, and to commands from others a little bit differently. He’s been trained to attack and to back off when I tell him to, but only if I give the command. That part of his job is between him and me. We’re partners.”

“You trust him?”

“Completely. He keys in on aggressive behavior and can read body language better than any human I know.”

“He’s creepy,” I said. “Like he knows what I’m thinking.”

Ben the dog didn’t move a single muscle, still waiting.

“Try giving him another command. Tell him to come.”

“Ben, come.”

He came to my side and stood at attention.

“Nice dog,” I said, impressed in spite of myself.

“Ben has been trained to remain focused even during distractions,” Hunter said. “Crowds don’t faze him, neither do other dogs. He’s a working dog and takes his job seriously. He would never attack unless he was called to assist me in a dangerous situation. So what do you think? Can you try to work out a truce with Ben? Give him a chance to prove himself?”

“I don’t see why it matters to you,” I said. “I’m not the one who is hanging around here with you. Carrie Ann is.”

“Story, Carrie Ann isn’t my girlfriend.”

That wasn’t what I expected to hear. A big fat grin spread across my face. I fought it down. “She’s not?”

“No.”

“But I thought—”

“Yeah, you thought wrong. And I’d like the misconception cleared up so we can move forward.”

“But you and Carrie Ann were riding your bike together, and she said she couldn’t come to the town meeting because she was with you. I automatically assumed you were a couple.”

Hunter didn’t say anything for a while, then he said, “Let’s go sit down.”

Hunter released Ben from further obedience and led me over to a wooden glider. We sat side by side not speaking, watching the dog search for the perfect spot in the sun until he found it and flopped down. My heart was doing some kind of palpitation thing and my palms were sweaty, not because I was afraid of Ben but because I realized something serious was coming. I wasn’t used to that from Hunter. He’d always been light and silly with me.

“Story,” he finally said, “I’ve been avoiding you ever since you came back to Moraine two years ago. You came back to town married, and I, well, I had to stay away. I couldn’t stand to see you with that creep, and to hear