by D. C. Stone
Making sure Chris got in here to work with him, too, would be a big step in the plan, as well. They needed a set routine, something Delta Alpha could get used to.
Speaking of the man who had invaded her dreams last night and had her waking up in a sweat, all hot and bothered with the tingling remembrance of his kisses, she thought over his voicemail from yesterday. She still hadn’t called him back, but she left his number right next to the phone. And if she stored his number in her cell phone, well, that was just to make sure it was handy.
That was her story and she was sticking to it.
Samantha pushed open the door to the room and hovered at the entrance. “Here, boy,” she tried.
Delta Alpha didn’t move, but his alert gaze snapped up to hers. His ears perked, and she heard the very reassuring single thump of his tail against the crate.
She chewed on the inside of her check and mused over the commands Chris had taught her. “Heel, Delta Alpha,” she ordered, strong and firm.
He immediately popped to his feet and came out of the crate. He limped to her and dropped his head low as he reached her side. Hmmmm. The show of submission wasn’t such a good thing when she thought about a military working dog. But him being up and moving around was.
She brushed her free hand over his head, then clucked her tongue and called, “Come,” as she walked toward the back of the shop. The click of his doggy nails on her tile told her he followed.
At the backdoor, she grabbed her light jacket, slid her arms inside, then pushed open the door, and held it for him to pass.
“Ease,” she said, and DA picked up his pace and started sniffing around before relieving himself in a few spots. The soft groan he let out had her smiling. His little doggy brows moved around animatedly. His intelligence that both Sergeant Fusko and Chris spoke of clear as a warm summer day. This dog was smarter than anyone gave him credit for, or at least more than she originally gave him. It wasn’t something she’d ever overlook again.
With the treat in her hand, she walked to the center of the yard, took a deep breath, and called for him to come to her.
Once he sat before her, she raised her palm and gave a firm, “Stay.”
She swallowed hard, not comfortable with the toughness of the treatment they’d have to get past, but she needed to test each part of his abilities and tolerances before they could move to the next phase. She walked behind him, keeping an eye as she did so. Moving slowly, calmly, cautiously. His ears flicked, but keeping good to his training, he stayed in place.
The bell inside her shop rang, and she cursed beneath her breath for the interruption but used the opportunity to see how much noise DA could handle. “Delta Alpha, you’re a good boy,” she cooed, then followed with a firm, “Stay,” when he went to move. Standing next to his shoulder, she stroked the top of his head once, ordered him to stay again, and then raised her voice to answer the bell inside. “We’re just outside. I’ll be back in a minute.”
Delta Alpha flinched and his frame shook, but he stayed in place, refusing to cower. Pride swelled through her so much that she had to bite back her excited exclamation. Instead, she dropped slowly on her haunches and held out the treat. “Good job, buddy. You’re such a good boy.”
He sniffed the treat and gently took it from her hand before flopping on his tummy and biting into the cookie with a simple, yet massively strong, clamp of his jaws.
“You’re going to make my dog fat if you keep feeding him treats,” a deep, sexy voice called from the doorway.
Samantha jolted and couldn’t contain the shiver. If the trademark side smirk said anything, he’d seen her reaction.
She gave DA one last stroke on the top of his head, rewarded with several tail thumps before she stood and faced Chris.
“I wanted to reward him for not cowering.”
Chris’s brows shot high, and he pushed off the frame, uncrossing his arms. “I take it he did well?” he asked with no small amount of hope.
She grinned. “He did.”
“That’s great.” He dropped to his haunches. “Come here, bub.”
Delta Alpha sidled over, his whole body wagging with happiness before he pushed his head under Chris’s hands and curled his body into the shelter of his handler.
Chris was gentle, yet enthusiastic in his rubdown, murmuring words of praise under his breath, as well as checking the dog’s body thoroughly. The sight melted her into a puddle and had her softening up to the man more. A big step, especially with her history when it came to men. She knew not all were the same, but it was hard to let men—any man—into her circle of trust.
The bell rang inside again, breaking her out of her trance, and she shook off her musings and moved to go inside. Unfortunately, the object of her musing blocked her way and Chris watched as she approached.
Today, he wore a burnt-orange pullover, antique-stained jeans, and tan boots. The sweater bunched to show his forearms covered with just the right amount of hair and tinted with a touch of sun. Dark sunglasses sat on top of his head, and despite the ease in his position, she saw the strain around his eyes, the shakiness of his frame, the way he leaned heavily on the door.
Such a big guy, one supposed to look strong and healthy. She frowned, remembering he’d been injured, too.
“Sergeant Gonzalez,” she chided, “are you taking care of yourself?”
His lips thinned, and he straightened, wincing. “I thought we talked about this.”
At her blank look, he went on. “You met me as Chris, you can continue to call me as such.”
She’d deliberately used his title and last name, a little to do with the fact this his dog was her patient, and a lot to do with the familiarity they seemed to gain. It seemed important to keep him at a distance.
Ignoring him, she moved to sidestep him and DA in the doorway, but stopped as his arm shot out and cut off her path. She took a deep breath and braced to meet his gaze.
“Red,” he said, “I’ve had my tongue in your mouth and my hands on your ass. I’ve thought about doing a lot more, and will just as soon as I get the chance. Call me by my first name.”
Her mouth parted and her breath came out shaky. “Cocky much?”
He grinned wide. “No, sweetheart. Just stating how it will be.”
She lifted her chin and squared off. While she hadn’t wanted to bring this up again, there was no avoiding it now. But she needed to set the record straight. “Look, Chris—”
“See how easy that is?”
She shook her head and continued. “That kiss was a mistake and highly inappropriate. We were both caught off guard and high on adrenaline. But I’d appreciate it if you’d follow my lead and keep things professional.”
His grin grew, much to her bafflement. “I can follow your lead, darling.”
She pulled her brows in a frown. “That easy?”
He chuckled and nodded. “Yeah, that easy. You want to wear the pants here, that’s fine.” He crowded against her until the frame bit into her back. Again, she didn’t feel any fear. His face hovered so close. He hadn’t shaved in a few days and her hands itched to rub her palm across his stubbled cheeks. How in the hell had she lost control so quickly? “Because, sweetheart, I can tell you I don’t mind if you wear the pants for now. If I’m doing anything right—and trust me, I will—you won’t have them on for long.”
His mouth immediately swallowed her gasp of outrage in a punishing yet very quick kiss. He nipped at her bottom lip, soothed the sting with a quick rasp of his tongue, then pulled away and called for Delta Alpha.
“Doc, you have a customer at the desk,” he said as the bell rang again.
She ripped her attention off his very nice ass and met his laughing gaze. Busted.
****
Several interviews and hours later, Samantha pushed the second pencil in the messy knot at the back of her head to hold it off her neck. The days changed weather more than she changed the sheets on her bed, even despite the seasons moving into the colder fall.
Sweltering humidity had made her hair frizz out and beneath her blue tee, the under-layer tank was soaked. Ugh. After getting an assistant in order, getting medical insurance, and working on the millions of other things she needed to do while watching that black number creep closer to red, she needed to speak to the landlord and attempt to see about going half-sies on another air conditioning unit.
Despite it only being in the upper eighties outside, the humidity made things seem so much hotter. She’d lived in the southeast for years and understood humidity like no one’s business, but the northeast air seemed stuffier, somehow denser. Almost like one could take a hand and grab the air itself.
But the day was looking up. She had interviewed three potential employees and settled on one. Just weeks shy of her eighteenth birthday, the young woman with long, beautiful red hair and dark-brown eyes that looked older than her age, had been full of energy and a craving for knowledge. She’d interviewed for a fulltime position but told Samantha that once school started in the fall, she’d need a little flexibility.
Despite needing a fulltime employee, Samantha found that looking into the hopeful eyes of one Hailey Mason and saying “no” wasn’t something she could do. Instead, she saw the benefit of having a young woman on staff who wanted to start her career in veterinary medicine, who wanted to learn, and who seemed to be up to the task of taking on a demanding position, and saw herself some fifteen years ago. Had someone taken that chance on her, she wouldn’t have been left to the wolves, so to speak.
And even though she was hiring Hailey in a fulltime position for the month before school started, she planned to do everything she could to keep her working the hours she needed in order to receive everything she originally posted for with the job: benefits and a good salary.
The back door opened and the sound of doggie nails clicked on the hard, tiled floor. Chris and Delta Alpha had been training outside most of the day. She’d stopped to make sure both weren’t overtiring themselves, but found the two so engrossed in their work that all she had the heart to do was leave water for both, a bottle for Chris and a bowl for DA. She worried both were pushing too hard, but when she’d scrutinized them earlier, she found they had been so in-tuned to each other they hadn’t noticed her standing there.
So, she’d left them to their training.
The door to the front opened. She rotated to the newcomer.
A gorgeous, dark-skinned, and extremely tall man walked in wearing antique-stained jeans, a dark-green shirt that brought out the color of his eyes, and a badge on his belt. His piercing gaze hit her briefly, as did his smile that made him even more beautiful before he turned his attention over her shoulder. Then that smile turned mega-watt, upping his hotness to a whole new level. Dayum.
She froze like a mouse caught in a trap as Chris rounded the corner of the counter and clasped hands with Mr. Hottie. The two leaned in and did that man-hug thing where they slapped each other so hard she was surprised neither lost their breath. Leaning into her hand, as she had an elbow on the counter, she rested her head in her palm and took in all the goodness of these two handsome men.
Handsome men were exactly what had drawn her to Manuel in the first place, and it appeared to be a weakness of hers.
If these two could bottle whatever kind of sexiness they exhibited, she could become a very rich woman. Heck, she even considered asking the two of them to come by her shop once a day to do as they were now, just conversing, and simply charge an entrance fee and rack in the dough. Because ba-a-by, many a woman would pay a fortune just to lay their eyes on these fine specimens.
“Uh, Red,” Chris said, laughter in his voice. She blinked as he waved a hand in front of her face, cutting her off from her musings. She snapped her spine straight and focused on him.
“You okay?” he asked, his head tilted to the side curiously. Delta Alpha had done that to her a few times, too. She wished she had a camera to capture it because she’d combine the two pictures—one of Chris and one of DA—for her eyes only.
“I’m okay,” she said with a nod. “Sorry, did you ask me something?”
DA came over and rested his head on her lap, head pushed against her lower stomach. He’d been doing that a lot, and she found it too irresistible to resist, despite protests from Chris. If a dog could cuddle, this pose would be it.
The side of Chris’s mouth quirked, which drew her attention to his lush lips. Lips that had done way too much damage to the walls she had built around herself. Walls designed to keep people at a distance. Chris seemed oblivious to all of it. “Are you sure you’re okay? Do you need some water or something?”
She shook her head. “Seriously, I’m good. What’s up?”
He eyed her like he thought she needed a CAT scan, which, combined with the looks of these two, the day, and heck, the month she’d had, and lack of food, she probably did. “I wanted to introduce you to my brother.” Chris hooked a thumb toward Mr. Hottie.
Geesh, the genes in this family were unreal. “Hi!” she said, waving a hand, and internally wincing at how stupid she must look. “I’m Samantha Eagen.”
He smiled, his more lazy than sensual like his brother. “I know.”
She lifted her brows and lowered them, casting a quick look at Chris. “I take it you’re the detective?” she asked.
He nodded, that sensual grin still in place. Like she amused him. Well… Besides the good looks, that was where the two brothers’ similarities ended. Their mannerisms seemed similar, but one wouldn’t be able to tell they were brothers. “You two don’t look like brothers. Anyone ever tell you that?”
Both grinned again and her heart did a little dance in her chest.
Dwayne shook his head. “I’m a lot younger than this guy.” He cocked his head toward Chris. “And better looking.” He grinned and Chris barked out a laugh.
She smiled. “Okay, then. Nice to meet you.”
Dwayne looked at Chris. “She always like this?”
Chris chuckled and shook his head. “No. This is a first. But I think we need to feed her. I haven’t seen her eat all day.”
They both looked at her and her cheeks heated under their attention. She nodded in agreement with Chris. She hadn’t eaten outside of a handful of crackers here and there. She really needed to get a grip on her schedule and take better care, for herself and the baby growing inside.
Two gorgeous, lush mouths grew into a smile. Dayum. She’d definitely think about that entrance-fee thing, except now she’d add that smile at the end. A pseudo-kind of happy ending. Because Oh-Em-Gee. Gorgeous.
“Darlin’,” Chris drawled, “I think you’re drooling.”
She wiped the back of her hand under her mouth then glared at him. “Am not!”
He laughed.
“Wait,” she said and eyed the two yummy men. “I mean it. You two don’t look anything alike.” And it was true. Their skin colors weren’t the same. Chris had more of an olive complexion, whereas Dwayne’s coloring was more of a light mocha, all dark and goodness. Their faces weren’t the same, either, though their expressions definitely showed similarities. As did the way they held themselves: confident, tall, and proud.
“We’re both adopted,” Chris said.
She lifted her brows again at this news. “Both?”
Both of the hotties nodded, then Dwayne said, “Our parents adopted six of us. Separately, of course. None of us are related by blood.”
“Good Lord, please tell me something is wrong with the other four. I don’t think women could hold out against six of you.”
Dwayne barked out a laugh and Chris chuckled. She sighed, realizing she said that out loud.
“Adopted or not, you’re brothers all the same, right?” she asked, wanting that. A big family, tons of siblings, a house full of love. Instead, she’d been an only child and held at arm’s length from her parents who only seemed to have love for one another. Not their lonely child.
“Through the good times and the bad,” Chris said, his intent eyes
probing her face. He shifted, glancing at his brother. “I’m going to go grab some food. I’ll pick you up something. Anything you don’t like?”
She shook her head. Her mind tried to play catch up, completely thrown off at the news of their adoptions and wondering what was behind that story. “Whatever you grab is fine. Thanks.”
“Sweetheart,” Chris said and leaned over the counter to hold her gaze. “I need you to focus here, yeah?”
Focus? Pfft. How the hell did he expect her to focus after all that had happened in the past few minutes? But when he asked her in that soft, kind voice, and called her sweetheart, she’d probably do about anything. “I am focusing, Chris. What is it?”
“Christ,” he said, his voice only loud enough for her ears, but she had a feeling Dwayne didn’t miss much. “If you knew what the sound of my name coming from your lips does to me.” He shook his head quickly. “Is there anything you prefer to eat? I’m not picky, baby, and I want to take Dumb Ass for a walk, so I don’t care where we need to go.”
For a good portion of his talking, she could actually picture herself melting into a puddle at his feet. The low, intimate timbre of his voice made parts of her body respond in a warm, warm way. But at the mention of him taking DA, she snapped her spine straight. “You’re not taking DA on a walk with you.”
He straightened. “Babe, what did I just say?”
“He’s not ready.”
A muscle in his jaw jumped. “He’ll be fine. I’m putting on his vest, which identifies what he is, and his muzzle. He’s not going to hurt anyone.”
She shook her head, rising out of her chair. Ready to intervene, to hold DA inside … something. “He’s not ready.”
Chris’s face grew soft, and he stared at her. Something she couldn’t read worked behind his eyes. The two of them faced off. She didn’t know how she’d win this, whatever it was, but she worried he pushed Delta Alpha too soon into going outside in public. DA barely stood calm in her presence and she was the one feeding him right now. Everyone knew the fastest way to a dog’s heart: food.
