She eyed her tank top and shorts wondering once again if she shouldn’t have worn something different, maybe with a collar, or at least something that didn’t show her bra straps. After all, dog walking wasn’t to be taken lightly in San Francisco. It was a cutthroat job market. Not to mention the turf wars that occurred over dog-walking territory between the walkers. It was dog-eat-dog—no pun intended.
Aiden still looked relaxed and effortless in his suit next to her, playing with the dogs each time they returned with the ball. Nothing had changed between her and Aiden, but Piper grew tense. But he offered her the job in the first place, she reasoned, so surely she had nothing to worry about. Then again, if it were that easy why would he need to interview her? Straightening up on the bench, she crossed her legs. That was professional, right?
She cleared her throat. “So, what else can I tell you about myself to prove my sanity?” she asked.
“Maybe you can tell me about yourself. Your hobbies, your goals.” He said it straight-faced like he was reading off a list of interview questions. “Your friend at the center said you’re training to be a veterinarian. Tell me more about that.”
“I’m in my fourth year, well, eighth if you count my undergrad. I have two more weeks of practicum left before I graduate.”
The tennis ball fell at her feet and she paused to toss it again. When she leaned back, Aiden’s dark green eyes were focused on her. Maybe it was a tactic, like one of the seven habits of highly effective communicators. Eye contact would be one, surely. But then why did his lingering gaze cause her cheeks to ignite?
“So you don’t treat the dogs at the rescue center?”
“Oh no. Nothing like that,” she said. “Not yet, anyway. I’d like to open my own veterinary clinic one day.”
“That’s ambitious.”
She shrugged it off, feeling self-conscious. She knew it would be tough. It would mean remaining in her run-down apartment, working a lot of overtime, scrimping, saving, having more sleepless nights. But it would be fine. She knew she could do it. She would do it. And at the end of it all, she’d look back and say she did it all on her own.
Sophie won the battle this time, and she brought the ball to Aiden. He bent down to wrestle with her for a minute, but her grip was too strong. Eventually, he gave up fighting her, and she dropped the ball of her own free will. She sat on her haunches and waited for him to pick it up, staring at him like, Come on. What are you waiting for?
He chuckled before lobbing the ball across the expansive park. “Where do you want to work once you graduate?”
“Anywhere, really,” Piper said. “But I want to be able to volunteer more time at the center. Right now we don’t have the facilities or money to treat the serious cases that come in. Using an outside vet seriously drains our funds, which prevents us from taking more dogs off the euthanasia lists around the city.”
“Really? That’s terrible.”
“Yeah. It is. Once I’m licensed, hopefully I can prevent some of that. We try to save as many dogs as we can and help find them good homes.”
He nodded like he’d ticked off another question on his mental list. “So I’d like to go over some of the details of the job and what would be expected.”
“All right.” Piper didn’t think she could sit up any straighter.
“The wage will be seventy dollars. You can come over—”
“Seventy dollars a day?” Piper interrupted.
“No. Seventy an hour.”
“An hour?” she blurted. “Is that supposed to be a joke?”
He hesitated, blinking in surprise. “Is it not enough?”
“Enough?” Piper stared at him like he was the crazy one now. “It’s too much.” She wondered what would possess him to offer such a ridiculous wage. Who did he think she was, Cesar Millan?
Suddenly, she remembered stumbling into Aiden’s office the day before wearing hardly anything and how he’d followed her down to the taxi afterward. Of course. He’d jumped to the same conclusions so many telegram customers had before.
Piper received this kind of treatment all the time, requests for “private parties” or “photo shoots.” How did she not see it before? Probably because she’d never had a request for a dog walker. Plus there was something about Aiden Caldwell. She’d expected more class from the man.
He doesn’t mix business with pleasure my ass, she thought.
She jumped to her feet and swiped Colin’s leash off the bench. He scampered over with the ball, ready to play some more, but the moment he saw the expression on her face he dropped it. She clipped on his leash and turned back to Aiden.
“Look, Mr. Caldwell, I don’t know what kind of girl you think I am, but clearly you have the wrong idea about me.”
Aiden stared at her openmouthed as she spun on her heel and began to march right out of the park.
7
Never Mix Business with Wieners
Piper stomped back the way they’d come through the dog park—which was difficult to do on wood chips—burning with mortification. She should have seen it coming. A sexy CEO offering her a job the moment she needed it most? How desperate did he think she was? Piper, you idiot, she told herself. Of course it was too good to be true.
“Wait a minute!” Aiden called out to her.
She didn’t turn back. She kept her eyes fixed straight ahead, weaving through the packed dog park. The crowd had grown since she last noticed. She’d been too busy ogling the man who wanted to proposition her for … well, who knew what.
When Aiden caught up to her, Sophie was in one arm, his coat in the other. “Hold on a second. Wait. You’re mad because I’m offering you too much money?”
She spun to face him. “Seventy dollars an hour? What exactly are you expecting for that kind of wage? Another lap dance like yesterday?”
“I expect you to walk my dog.” His voice rose with what she guessed was insult. “It might be more than your average pay, but that’s what it’s worth to me.”
“You can hire anyone else in this city for less than half that.”
“I’m not asking anyone else,” he said. “I’m asking you.”
Piper gave him a hard stare, trying to figure out what game he was playing. She recalled her original fear, that he pitied her. And to her, that was worse than propositioning her. She narrowed her eyes. “I’m not a charity case, either.”
He held his hands up in defense. “I never said you were.”
“Fine,” she relented. “But I earn my way. I work hard for my money.” She said it like a warning.
“Then earn it. What will it take? Negotiate with me. I’m all ears.” Aiden brought a hand up to where his tie should be, but he seemed surprised to find it missing, like he didn’t often take a day off. His demeanor turned all business again, but this time he was giving her the power.
She felt her breathing even out as he waited for her counteroffer. “Well,” she began. “I’ll accept seventy dollars a day, but I’ll be walking Sophie for two hours.”
“An hour and a half,” he countered.
“An hour and forty-five.”
“Done.”
“And I’ll take her for regular grooming when I take Colin.”
“All right, but I’ll pay.”
“The owner is a volunteer from the rescue center. I get a discount because she’s my friend.”
“And Sophie is my dog. I’ll pay.”
Piper frowned but wasn’t sure how to argue that one. Sophie’s head swung back and forth as they debated, pleased to be the center of all the attention.
“Anything else?” he asked.
“If you go out of town and you need a dog sitter, you call me first and I’ll work for a substantially lower rate.” She thought Colin might like that.
“I thought you couldn’t keep pets in your apartment.”
“I’ll hide her. What’s one more?”
They had a brief staring contest while he considered all her demands. Finally, his dimple made
an appearance. “You know, I’ve been running my business for a while, and this isn’t how your average negotiations are supposed to go.”
Her chin rose an inch. “Well, I’m not your average girl.”
“So I’ve noticed.” The tension broke and he stopped fighting the smile.
If Piper had a dimple, it would have been dimpling too. Okay, so he wasn’t a creep who was propositioning her. And he didn’t pity her. At least, she didn’t think so. She felt ridiculous now. But what was she supposed to think? Who offered that kind of money for dog walking?
A small crowd had formed on one side of the open space, milling about and chatting. She spotted one of them carrying a large white sheet and assumed it was for a group picnic. When they went to spread it on the grass, two people each grabbed a corner and shook it out. Big red letters were painted across it: SFAAC.
Others in the group started picking up boards, holding them aloft for the whole park to see. Stop the killing and Put an end to puppy mills. A retriever mix trotted through the park with a sign strung around his neck: I can’t speak for myself. Please be my voice.
“What is this?” Aiden asked.
A jolt of anxiety shot through Piper. “San Franciscans Against Animal Cruelty.”
She wanted to duck and roll into the bushes before anyone from the group could recognize her. Most of them were pretty cool. She’d even protested with them in the past. It was one SFAAC member in particular whom she worried about running into. She’d never expected to see them there, or she would have suggested Aiden meet her somewhere else.
“A dog park seems like a strange place to protest,” Aiden said. “They’re preaching to the choir.”
“I think that’s the point.” She watched flyers being handed out. “It looks like they’re here to gain awareness and support from fellow animal lovers.” She headed for the path, counting out her steps to make it look like she wasn’t rushing. “Come on. It’s about to get too noisy for an interview.”
While Piper appreciated their cause, she hated to end the afternoon on such a sour note with Aiden. However, she felt relief as he clipped Sophie’s leash back on and followed Piper to the edge of the clearing.
“So,” she hedged. “Any hints of crazy yet? You know, besides accusing you of sexual harassment?”
“No red flags that I can see,” he teased. “Yet.”
“Tell that to my parole officer.” He glanced at her in surprise, and she threw her hands up in the air. “Just kidding.”
“You know,” Aiden said. “I think it’s generous of you to spend your spare time working with homeless dogs.”
“Not really.” Her cheeks warmed again and she turned away to hide it. “I love these guys, so it doesn’t feel like work.”
“I wish I had more time to do the same. There’s the whole time is money factor, I guess.”
Yet another thing he had in common with her brother, Piper thought.
She remembered her mother having to sell off farm equipment to pay the hospital bills and how quickly it all fell apart, especially after her father died. Even as her mother cried herself to sleep, she had to make plans for the funeral, for selling the farm, uprooting their whole lives. And where was Ethan? Sitting in on some large corporate merger in Washington. He caught a late flight the night before the funeral and left almost immediately after. Because time is money.
Piper fell silent, lost in thought, but when Aiden spoke again she realized so had he. “But there are some things money can’t buy.” The lightness had gone from his voice. “You know what I mean?”
He looked at her, like really looked at her, as though he wanted to know how she felt. And not just for part of the interview. It caught her off guard. For a moment, she wondered what a rich man like Aiden couldn’t buy with all his money.
She considered the question with the same seriousness with which he asked. It was easy to say money didn’t matter when you never had to worry about it.
“It’s true,” she said. “Money can’t make you happy. But it can sure make you miserable when you don’t have any.”
“Are you miserable?”
She thought about her friends and the things that made her happy, and she realized none of those things cost her a penny. “No, finances are just stressful sometimes.”
“Most people stress about money, no matter how much or how little they have.”
Before she could answer, he clicked his tongue and stopped. “Money can, however, buy new shoes.” He scraped his wingtips off on the cement path.
Piper pressed her lips together, trying not to laugh at the mess. “I should have warned you when I suggested we meet at the park. People are supposed to pick up after their dogs, but some don’t. I like to call them dog-park poopetrators.”
“I should have dressed more casually, but I didn’t think the dog park had a dress code.”
“Oh yes. The uniform is strictly enforced.” She nodded gravely. “Khakis and short-sleeved plaid shirts. Wrinkled, not pressed. And I wouldn’t recommend flip-flops.”
“I’ll remember that for next time.”
A middle-aged man approached to hand Aiden a flyer. She ducked her head and fell behind. She didn’t think she recognized him, but she couldn’t be sure. When she fell into step next to Aiden again, she saw that the glimmer was back in his eyes.
“So is that your dog-park uniform?” He eyed her tank top and jean shorts—a little appreciatively, she thought. “I was expecting something more Western-style.”
“Very funny. I don’t just do cowgirl, you know. I also have a cop uniform, a cheerleading outfit, and a construction worker.”
“Wow, a couple more costumes and you could be a one-woman Village People.”
“I don’t do covers. Original material only, under the Piper Summers trademark. And those are just the popular outfits. I’ve got plenty more.”
“You know, I wouldn’t mind seeing them sometime,” he said.
“I bet you wouldn’t.” She couldn’t keep the suggestive waggle from her eyebrow. “I charge by the song.”
A few minutes earlier, she’d become livid with him because she thought he had the wrong idea. Now that she knew that wasn’t the case, the wrong idea felt a little right. She was glad they’d made it back to total Flirtville, population: two.
Her insides quivered like she’d swallowed butterflies. She hadn’t experienced them since graduate school, so she knew they weren’t merely any butterflies. They were rare ones, like morpho butterflies.
She wasn’t imagining the chemistry between them. It was as obvious to her as a Western chorus frog singing for his mate or a male peacock shaking his tail feathers for a hen. She just wasn’t sure that’s what she wanted. Well, okay, she wanted it all right, but let’s face it, she also wanted chocolate for breakfast, but that didn’t mean it was good for you. Mmmmm, chocolate.
“Slut!” someone screamed.
Piper jumped and spun toward the voice, as did Aiden, as did the whole park. The protesters’ chant broke off. A girl from within their ranks stepped forward. And her accusing finger was pointed straight at Piper.
“Whore!”
8
Dogfight
“Tramp!” the protester yelled.
Piper froze to the spot. All the eyes in the park followed the angry protester’s pointing finger. The twentysomething girl was dressed in a green bohemian maxi-dress, her wild, curly hair snaking from her head like a furious Mother Nature incarnate. And Piper was her target.
But it wasn’t Mother Nature. Just an old pain in the ass of Piper’s. The one person she dreaded running into. “Oh, good,” she muttered under her breath. “Laura.”
“Liar!” Laura screamed again.
Not exactly the glowing recommendation one hopes for during an interview. Piper tugged Aiden’s sleeve. “Let’s go.”
Colin stood his ground, ready to defend his lady’s honor. Hoping to avoid a confrontation, Piper tugged on his leash and headed for the way out. But who was
she kidding? There was always a confrontation.
For the last few years, Laura’s hobby had been to harass Piper whenever possible—“stalk” was more like it. And every time Laura confronted her in public, Piper tried to extract herself from the situation with her head high and her mouth clamped shut. But no matter how many times she tried to take the high road, she always found herself getting sucked in.
Aiden hurried to keep up with Piper. “Do you know that girl?”
She opened her mouth to answer, but Laura had caught up to them. “Hey.” She gripped Piper’s arm, her fingernails digging into her flesh. “I’m talking to you.”
“Laura,” Piper said. “So good to see you. It’s been too long.”
“How dare you show your face here,” she growled at Piper.
Piper took a deep breath and tried to remain calm, knowing it would piss Laura off more. But Piper also knew that it wouldn’t last long. Be cool, she told herself. Be cool.
“At a dog park? With my dog? Yeah, I’m pure evil.”
“What, are you stalking me?” Laura eyed her up like she was Satan’s spawn and Colin her hellhound—which, admittedly, he was at times.
Piper laughed incredulously. “I’m stalking you?”
“How many times do I have to tell you?” she spat. “You’ve already won. Why won’t you just leave me alone?”
She loomed close enough that Piper could read her I heart my dog earrings, but she spoke loud enough for the entire park to hear. Everyone had stopped playing with their pets or reading their books to listen.
Getting the attention she wanted, Laura spun dramatically toward her captive audience. “You already lied and got me kicked out of the veterinary program. Are you trying to kick me out of my favorite park too?”
Piper’s cool turned to lukewarm. Her fists clenched at her sides. “That is not what happened and you know it.” Besides, that was her favorite park, and Laura knew it too.
“Are you denying that you got me expelled?”
“Your own actions got you expelled!” Okay, hot, boiling hot.
Must Love Wieners Page 6
