Page 35 of Their Pup to Tame

“What’s that?”

“That you’ll keep me, even if your friends don’t approve.”

A shy blush crept over his cheeks then, highlighting the stitches that still slashed across the bridge of his nose.

Since words didn’t feel like enough in this moment, I scooted closer on the bench, moved his jacket and gloves to the other side of me, and tugged him close to my side, hugging him as best as I could with the table in the way.

“Any friend of mine who can’t appreciate how awesome you are doesn’t deserve to be called a friend,” I declared, pressing a kiss to the top of his head. “I’d be honored to have you for my pup and to be able to call you family. So please keep your promise and try, okay?”

He snuggled close, uttering the two words I desperately needed to hear in that moment.

“I will.”

10

ASPEN

As soon as I heard the jangling of the bell, I groaned. People had been coming in and out all day, which was great for business, but shit when it came to taking a long enough break to enjoy a hot cup of tea. Every single one I’d brewed today I’d wound up drinking cold, which was starting to put me in a bit of a snit.

I will not snarl at the customers. I will not snarl at the…

I turned with a forced smile on my face, which morphed into a real one when I saw that they weren’t customers at all.

Parker held up a bulging plastic sack, and Phoenix held up a second one, both men beaming from ear to ear with such enthusiasm that my bitterness over cold tea faded, replaced with the urge to hug them.”

“We brought lunch,” Phoenix declared,

“If you two weren’t already my favorite people in the world, you would be now,” I said and raced past them to flip the sign to closed and turn the hands on the clock to show we’d be open again in an hour.

As soon as the door was secured, I hurried into Phoenix’s arms and found myself lifted off the ground for my troubles, one armed, as he spun me around. Instead of feeling the need to caution him against knocking over one of the displays, I clung, giggling, as he set me back on my feet before he kissed me. I felt the bag of food bump against the back of my leg, then a sharp edge dug in, spoiling the mood even as he deepened the kiss.

Squirming didn’t free me, but Parker saved me from a bruise when he took the bag from Phoenix, allowing me to melt instead of trying to get away.

“Missed you,” Phoenix murmured as he stepped back, green eyes holding a hint of the shy vulnerability he allowed us to see more of with every passing day.

I could tell it wasn’t an easy thing for him to admit, and even more difficult for him to let himself form that kind of attachment to anyone outside of his family circle, but he pinned my hand to his cheek with one of his when I caressed it, nuzzling, gaze never leaving mine. For a moment, he sighed and let his pup side shine through, even letting out a soft whine.

“Has it been a long day?” he finally asked.

“The longest. Dorian is still tweaking those commission pieces for Iron Paws and Leather Pups, so neither Murry nor Raleigh were free to come down and lend a hand today. I’ve been going non-stop since we opened. Not only has there been a steady stream of folks in and out all day, but there is always a flood of emails to answer at the start of the workweek.”

“I’m sorry you haven’t been able to catch a break today,” Parker said as we headed to the backroom.

“And it’s not even half over yet,” I groaned. “I’m still going to be answering emails right up until the game starts at this rate. Oh, goddess, that smells delicious. Did you go to Peking Palace?”

His answer was to start removing cartons from bags, while I grabbed drinks from the mini fridge, and Phoenix passed out paper plates and utensils.

“You did!” I squealed as soon as I caught sight of the first carton.

“We did,” Parker said as Phoenix plopped a roll of paper towels on the table.

“Someone wrote a scene where his characters were dining at a Chinese restaurant while sorting through the information they’d gathered, and from that point on, he would not stop talking about Chinese food,” Phoenix declared, scowling across the table at Parker. “First it was, ‘Mmm, I can practically smell the lobster sauce.’Then it was him smacking his lips before muttering about barbecue pork ribs in a bright red sauce. Then, after I’dfinallygotten into the graphic novel I was reading, he groaned and started talking about General Tso’s chicken!”

“See, he conveniently left out the part about throwing a pillow at my head,” Parker pointed out.

“Did it connect?” I asked, already snickering, because I could tell it had just from the indignant look on his face.

“Caught me square on the nose and scared the hell out of me,” Parker grumbled. “My pen went flying, I dropped my notebook,andI nearly fell out of the chair.”