not married already? A man who smells as good as him should be tied down. And second, how have I not realized that I’ve fallen in love with him until now?
Damien’s hypnotizing gaze doesn’t leave mine, and I wish I knew what he was thinking. “You sure about that?”
“It’s fine.”
“So he was givin’ you shit.” He says it with absolutely no condescension in his tone. “My cell is in the contact info. That motherfucker touches you again or makes you cry, I expect a call.” He reaches down for my hand and wraps the leash in it, then gives it a squeeze after he forces my fingers into a fist.
Judy sits diligently and waits while I eye up Damien’s fine backside as he walks out.
“Oh. My. God.” Jesse claps her hands animatedly. “That was the hottest thing I’ve ever seen. You’re so lucky.”
I turn my head, mouth agape. “What was that?”
“Hot.” She fans herself with a pad of sticky notes. “That’s what that was.” Yes, it was.
“What does he mean he forgot to tell you about Judy last night? I heard you ask him here if he wanted to set something up, and he said no.”
“I ran into him at a restaurant is all.”
The phone rings, interrupting anything else she was going to say, and it shakes me out of my daze enough to remember I’m at work. Jesse answers the call, and I lead Judy back to the boarding facility. After getting her settled with one of the girls there, I head back out front and try to go about my day like normal.
But there’s nothing normal about today. Not from the way Dickman yelled at me for something that was totally out of my control to the way Damien went all alpha male on me. I’m so tempted to copy his number, but there’s no way I’d ever call him. I’m normally outspoken and not shy at all, but around him… He does things to me that make me a different person.
The rest of the day drags and so does the next, and before I know it, it’s been a week. A boring one at that, normal and uneventful, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Dickman was only at the clinic two days this week, and when he was there, I’m thankful he didn’t talk to me at all.
“Hey, Izzy.” I turn to Jesse, confused. The only person who calls me Izzy is Damien. I don’t know why he does it, but I don’t care. I love it. “Someone’s on the phone for you.” She thrusts the phone at me.
My hands tingle as I reach for the receiver, and I sit down before lifting it to my ear. “Hello?”
“Izzy.”
“Hi, Damien.”
He clears his throat before he speaks again. “I have a bit of a problem.”
I panic immediately. Is he hurt? “What’s wrong?”
“Traffic. I’m not gonna be able to get Judy until after closing. Is it okay if she’s there another night?” Relief flows through me at his reasoning.
He could have asked anybody this, but I love that he asked for me. “It’s fine, but…” I know he loves his dog so much, and he hates for her to be away from him if he’s home. At times, he’d be here before we opened, waiting anxiously to reunite with her after she’d been here a while. “I know you hate leaving her here. Do you, uh… I can bring her home with me. Then you can get her from my house later.”
The line is silent, and I check the small screen to see if the seconds are still counting. They are.
“Damien?”
“You don’t know me, Izzy.”
“I trust you.”
He sucks in a breath. “I hope you don’t trust every man who walks into that place.”
“I don’t.”
“It’s a sweet offer, baby, but I can’t ask you to do that.”
I drop my head to the counter and try to calm the rapid beat of my heart. Hearing him call me baby does all the things to me, and most of them are not appropriate for work because it’s like sex rolling off his tongue. “You didn’t ask. I’m offering.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah, it’s no problem.” It’s totally against the rules, but again, I don’t care. “I’ll text you my address. Just let me know when you’re close so I can unlock my door.” I guess I’ll have to get his number, after all.
“No. I’ll let you know when I get there, then you can unlock your door. Not a second before.”
My God, he’s so much like