“Of course she can’t be trained. But we can go there under the pretense of asking him about training cats, and then talk with him about the election.”
“I guess that’s logical. Do you think he’s open today? I told my sister we were going to Home Depot because you’re building me a bookcase. Tomorrow, I need to really spend time at the store with Vera.”
“It’s Sunday, so probably not. But we could give him a call, I suppose. Do dog daycares ever really close?” Jack reached for his phone and dialed.
“Good morning. Dave Smith? Hey. My girlfriend and I wanted to chat with you about training our pet, Catsy.” Jack winked at me. My face felt hot.
Girlfriend?
“Yes, Catsy. Mmm-hmm. Yes. OK. Are we available today? Hon, are we available today at noon?” Jack moved the phone away from his mouth.
“Yes, dear,” I called out, a touch too loud, while stifling a giggle.
“Perfect. We’ll be there at noon.” He tapped on his phone and set it on the coffee table, then leaned back into the sofa.
I turned to him, the thrill of it all surging through me. “Impressive. It’s like a romance trope.”
“What is?”
With my finger, I motioned to him and then to me. “A common theme in romance novels. Popular with readers. We have a fake relationship.”
“Or is it fake? Dun-dun.” He mimicked theLaw & Ordertheme song and raised his brows. “Now, about that bookcase. I’m not much of a woodworker, but I can give it a shot.”
I stared at him with a flirty smile. “Why are you doing this, anyway?”
“Doing what?” He widened his eyes, all innocent-looking.
“Helping me.”
He shrugged. “Lots of reasons.”
“Give me one.”
“Procrastinating writing my book.” He bit his lip, those smoldering eyes locked onto mine with a magnetic intensity that sent a pleasurable shiver down my spine.
My cheeks flushed, feeling like they were about to burst into flames. Clearing my throat, I mustered all the self-control I had left.
“All right, time to get moving,” I managed to say, attempting to sound nonchalant. Deep down, I knew that if I lingered any longer in this small cabin with Jack, I’d pounce on him like a Florida panther on a tree limb, consequences be damned.
Chapter Fourteen
Dave’s Doggie Daycare and Training Center was located in Dave’s house. From the address, I knew it was in one of the stately old craftsman bungalows that lined the residential streets near downtown. As we drove there, I took Jack down a back road and pointed at a pasture with several large black animals grazing in the sunshine.
“I’m giving you the two-cent tour. There’s the beefalo farm.”
“Beefalo?”
“A cross between a buffalo and a cow. Beefalo. They’re quite tasty. If you want to try some, the specialty market downtown sells the meat. I heard the beefalo owner is expanding to ostrich and emu meat soon.”
“You are a wealth of local information, Ms. Andrews.”
I pointed out a few more landmarks along the way—a home decorated with hundreds of bowling balls in the yard, a rough and tumble roadside bar where a famous serial killer had her last drink, and the spot of a Skunk Ape sighting.
“There’s a lot going on in Wahoo. We might have to check out that bar for research purposes,” he murmured. “And when was the Sasquatch sighting?”
“Skunk Ape. Not Sasquatch. It was when I was in fifth grade. I mean, there might have been more in recent years. I’m not sure. I stopped paying attention a while ago.”
We eventually made it downtown, and I asked him to turn on one of the residential streets. Being with Jack made me excited about showing him every detail about Wahoo.