by Amelia Wilde
“What do you want, powder puff?”
He sits down at my feet, little tail wagging and his small pink tongue hanging out of one side of his mouth.
“What?” I have next to no experience with dogs since my grandparents didn’t have any growing up. I have no idea what this mutt wants.
Arf.
“Shhh, you’re going to wake everyone up.”
Arf.
“Shh,” I say again and bend over to pet him in case that’s what he’s looking for. Sparky closes his eyes like he’s in bliss. As soon as I pull away his eyes snap back open and I swear if pets have expressions his is saying, What the hell are you stopping for?
I ignore his silent plea and lie back on the bed, drawing in a deep breath before weighing my options.
After I left the restaurant Tahl called me to ask if I was really okay working with Cole and I assured her I was.
I could fess up and tell her what happened with Cole and explain why, on top of what happened years ago, I’m uncomfortable having to spend a lot of time with him. Tahlia will understand, but it will cause her more stress in what I’m sure will be an already stressful time in her life. Especially since the wedding is now so close.
Or I can be an adult about it and put my feelings for Cole aside—both the irritation and the attraction that I seem to feel when it comes to San Francisco’s foremost bachelor. I close my eyes and try to picture myself being around Cole. Having to text Cole. Run things by Cole. It will be difficult, but not impossible. Surely, I can toe the line and not allow the two of us to either fall in bed with each other (because I don’t really think Tahlia would be happy about that), or become mortal enemies (because I know Tahlia wouldn’t be happy about that).
I hear some high-pitched whimpering from the floor so I roll onto my side and see Sparky still there. At his feet is the blouse I had on earlier that had all the food spilled on it. Anger heats my face. It’s shredded into a bunch of different pieces. There’s no saving it. Death by dog.
Sparky must have pulled it out of my tote purse on the floor and chowed down.
“Bad dog,” I scold.
He hangs his head in what I guess must be shame and I feel a little guilty. But really, he’s just ruined one of my nicer pieces. One I can’t afford to replace.
I roll onto my back again and let out a big puff of air. So far things haven’t been exactly what I expected when I moved home to San Francisco. I figured I’d find a job right away, spend my nights out with the girls, live life like I was back in college. Instead Tahlia’s getting married, Lennon’s off getting laid and trying to build a sex toy empire, and I have a small rodent destroying my clothing.
Something catches my eye and I turn to see Sparky jumping up and down beside the bed.
Huh. I didn’t even know dogs could jump straight up like that.
He eyeballs me every time he comes eye level with the bed, but he’s not able to jump high enough to make it onto the mattress.
“Do you want on the bed?”
Arf.
I’m going to assume that’s a yes and so the next time he’s airborne I reach out with both hands and catch the little squirmer mid-flight then set him gently on the bed.
“Is this what you wanted?”
In answer, he leans in and licks my face.
“Gross.” I wipe the dog saliva off my cheek with the sleeve of Cole’s shirt. I probably should have changed out of it as soon as I arrived home. Should have. But didn’t.
Sparky licks me again as soon as I’ve removed all traces of him from my cheek.
“Stop that,” I say with a laugh. The mangy mutt must think I like it because he tries to lick me again. This time I’m quicker and I pick him up and place him back on the floor.
Arf.
“Shh.”
Arf.
I sigh. “Fine, you can come back up, but you can’t lick me, you understand? If you do you’re going back on the floor, got it?”
Sparky sits and wags his tail furiously.
I reach down and lift him back up on the mattress. This time instead of heading for my face he curls in beside me and lies down. I let him stay there because he looks comfortable and it doesn’t seem worth it to bother him. That’s what I tell myself anyway, because it absolutely cannot be that I find this little mongrel somewhat cute.
I know what I have to do.
I have to suck it up and find some way to work with Cole. Before that can happen, we need to come to an understanding. An agreement of sorts.
We’re both adults, so it shouldn’t be that hard, right?
10
Make-up. Check.
Cute hair. Check.
Skinny jeans. Check.
Fitted shirt that shows my curves. Check.
My final once-over in the mirror doesn’t exactly reveal me to be femme fatale status, but if I do say so myself, I look attractive and at least I’m not stinking drunk or covered in a plateful of food. Progress.
A soft knock at the door has me turning in that direction. My grandma pokes her head through with a knowing smile. “Honey, there’s a nice boy at the door to see you.” I crook my head and scrunch my forehead. “Pretty sure he said his name is Cole.”
What the hell is he doing here?
After coming to terms with the fact that I would have to make nice with Cole, I got his number from Tahlia under the guise that I would need it to help with the wedding. I texted and asked if he wanted to meet. We’re supposed to be meeting at Golden Gate Park in half an hour. I figured a neutral meeting spot sans alcohol would be best.
“He’s here? At the front door?”
She simply nods and turns, leaving my room.
I scramble to grab my purse, slip on my shoes, and in seconds I’m bounding down the stairs.
Cole is at the front door speaking with my grandpa and he turns his head and smiles at me when he hears me. And what a smile it is.
I swear I hear angels singing and the clouds part, casting sunlight all over him through the glass of the front door. This man is too much. Too much everything—confidence, beauty, swagger, and anything else that describes a person who makes your breath hitch every time you see him.
“What are you doing here?” I ask him and his smile falters. Just a bit at the corner, but I don’t miss it.
My grandma reaches out and lightly smacks my arm. “Whitney, that’s no way to talk to a guest in our home.”
“I didn’t invite him to be a guest in our home.”
“That’s okay, Mrs. Knight.” Cole laughs it off. “I actually wasn’t invited. We had plans to meet at the park and since Whitney doesn’t have a car right now I figured I’d swing by and get her.”
“That’s very thoughtful of you,” my grandpa adds.
“How did you know I don’t have a car?” I’m racking my brain trying to remember telling him that and I’ve got nothing.
He gives me a meaningful look. “You mentioned it the night we met.”
“Oh.” I look down and fidget with my fingers as if I’m going to be caught by my grandparents for having done something I wasn’t supposed to.
Sparky, who was somewhere in the back of the house, comes trotting into the living room, his little nails clicking on the hardwood.
“This little guy is Sparky,” my grandma tells Cole by way of introduction.
“Well, hello there, Sparky.” Cole smiles down at the dog.
Without missing a beat the little powder puff walks right up to Cole, sniffs his ankle, then raises up and starts humping his leg. Sparky’s little hips push back and forth so fast and with so much determination it’s hard not to be impressed.
“Oh, goodness,” my grandma says and puts her hands over her face.
Cole is now holding his leg out to his side like he has no idea what to do and I laugh because this is probably the only time he didn’t know how to handle someone who wants to bang him.
Still laughing, I lean over and snatch Sparky up off his leg. It takes the little guy
a second to realize what I’ve done because his hips are still moving in midair until I set him back down on the floor.
“Sorry about that,” I say to Cole, who seems a little uncomfortable for the first time since I met him. “Bad dog,” I say to Sparky, but really who am I to scold him? I get it, Sparky. Believe me, I get it. I want to screw him, too.
“Would you mind taking him with you to the park?” my grandma asks. “He could use some fresh air. We were going to go earlier, but your grandpa wasn’t feeling up to it.”
“Are you okay?” I ask the man who raised me.
“Your grandma worries too much. I’m fine, sweet pea.” A warm feeling permeates my chest at his use of the term of endearment he’s called me my whole life.
“We’d love to take him,” Cole says before I can decline.
I roll my eyes. Why is Cole pretending he’s a nice guy for my grandparents’ benefit? What does he care?
“Let me grab his leash,” my grandma says and walks over to the front hall closet. She pulls a red leash off a hook on the inside of the door.
“I’ll grab you some plastic bags for when he does his business.” My grandpa shuffles to the back of the house toward the kitchen.
Ugh. I forgot about the part of dog ownership where you have to pick up their fecal matter.
I take the leash from my grandma and bend over to put it on Sparky. His tongue is hanging out of the one side of his mouth and the excitement vibrates off of him.
Once I’m done I stand back up and look down at him with my hands on my hips. This dog is nothing but trouble. He better behave. I have enough on my mind without adding a canine companion into the mix.
“Here you go.” My grandpa comes up behind me and I take the plastic bags from him and shove them into my purse.
“Thanks.”
“You two have a nice time,” my grandma says. “It was a pleasure meeting you, Cole.”
“Same to both of you. I hope to see you again sometime.” He smiles that smile that makes my insides tingle again and turns to open the door.
What the hell is he talking about? Why would he be seeing them again?
I pick up Sparky’s leash and follow Cole out the door. “Bye.” I turn to look at my grandparents and my grandma has a grin on her face so wide it’s possible her dentures might fall out.
Ha! Forget it, Grandma. Not going to happen. This little walk today is all about etching the lines in the sand and making sure they aren’t crossed.
The ride over to the park is silent. Well, except for Sparky’s yipping whenever he sees another dog being walked by their owner. I tried to put him in the back seat, but he just kept climbing up to the front and using my lap as a perch to see out the window.
“He really likes you,” Cole says, turning onto the street that I know will take us to our destination.
“He likes anyone with two feet and a heartbeat,” I say.
“I’m not so sure about that. He seems pretty enamored with you specifically.”
I glance over at Cole and shrug. “If you say so.”
“I understand where he’s coming from.” His voice is soft and quiet so I’m not certain if I was supposed to hear him or not, so I pretend I don’t. Because I have no idea what to do with a statement like that. And the way I’m already second-guessing what he could mean by it only tells me that I need to stay as far away from Cole as possible. Which is going to make the next eight months impossible.
Cole pulls his Jeep into the parking lot and finds a spot to park in. A Jeep. I know. I mean, it’s a nice Jeep with all the fanciest features, but knowing the type of money his family has, I was really surprised that this is what he chooses to drive. I’ve seen his brother’s sports car, which doesn’t seem that practical to me in San Francisco, but it screams money. I guess I expected the same from Cole. I’ll begrudgingly admit to being pleasantly surprised.
“All right, you little fur ball. You ready to do this?”
Arf.
I pick Sparky up and place him on the ground outside the vehicle. He immediately begins sniffing around and leading us toward the grass in the park.
“Looks like it might rain.”
I follow Cole’s gaze to the sky above and see that he’s right. Some clouds are moving in quickly, as they tend to do here. Hopefully, the rain will hold off because I’m not sure I’ll be able to work up the nerve again to do this with him.
Cole and I head to the path and walk in silence for a minute. When we stop to let Sparky do his business—just a number one, thankfully—Cole puts his hands in the front pockets of his jeans. He tilts his head like he’s trying to figure me out or something and then finally speaks. “So… why did you want to meet up?”
“You don’t remember who I am, do you?”
“Sure I do. You’re that cute brunette who was lamenting her life in my bar, had one too many, and then took me home to have her way with me.” His eyes sparkle and he’s clearly joking with me.
“Har, har,” I say and roll my eyes. “Before that.”
He shakes his head slowly and I can practically see the wheels turning in his head. Did he sleep with me before? Did we work together? Go to school together?
“Don’t give yourself an aneurysm trying to figure it out.” Sparky’s now tugging on the leash and so we start a slow walk down the path again.
In my peripheral vision, Cole shoves a hand through his hair. Damn. I would’ve really enjoyed having that visual in my memory bank for later.
“Should I remember you?” he asks from behind me.
I blow out an exasperated sigh and turn toward him. “Six years ago. When Tahlia and Chase started dating they tried to set us up… arranged for us to meet at a restaurant in Chinatown…”
I angle my head to look at him and I see genuine confusion there. Until I don’t. And then all color drains from his face. “That was you?” I purse my lips and nod. His eyes widen. “Oh, shit. I swear I didn’t know.”
God, the idiot still doesn’t get it.
“I’m not mentioning it because I think you should have known when you saw me.” We never even met in person, so how would he? I stop and inhale a deep breath in an effort to prevent my temper from running away from me. “Do you even remember what you said to me before you hung up? While I sat alone at the table in the restaurant?” I add.
Cole hangs his head and looks genuinely concerned about what I might say. “I’m afraid to even ask.”
“I was so stunned that I was being stood up that I said something stupid like, ‘What about our Chinese dinner?’ You responded with, ‘I’m about to feast on an even better Asian buffet. I’m good.’ That was followed by a girl’s giggle and then you hung up.” My face reddens as I recall how humiliating the entire ordeal was.
Cole shakes his head and runs his hand through his hair again. This time I catch it. And boy, was it worth catching, making me hate myself just a little because I am not supposed to be ogling this guy while I try to give him a piece of my mind.
“I really said that?”
“You did.” I stop and face him, crossing my arms over my chest. To my surprise, Sparky accepts this and doesn’t protest by tugging on the leash.
“Wow. I don’t know what to say.”
“Seriously, Cole?” I reach out and swat him on the chest. “Sorry would be a good start.”
“I’m sorry,” he says while laughing.
Really believable.
Pissed that he’s not taking this at all seriously, I stomp forward on the path. He catches me by my elbow to get me to stop and turn to face him. I don’t say anything, but I give him a look that I hope implies that if he says the wrong fucking thing I’m going to rip off his balls and feed them to him with a nice Chianti. Hannibal Lecter would be proud.
“I wasn’t laughing at you.” When I still don’t speak, he continues. “I just can’t believe I actually said that. I mean… who the hell did I think I was?”
Though I hate the fact that I’m being charmed by
him, I give in anyway. “Hugh Hefner?”
He laughs. “Apparently.”
“I sat around in that restaurant waiting and waiting. It was so embarrassing. The waiter felt so sorry for me that he told the manager and they comped the two drinks I had while I was sitting there.”
Cole cringes and runs a hand down his face. “Shit.”
“Yeah, shit.”
I have to say… this Cole seems like a totally different guy than the one that was at the engagement party. This Cole reminds me of the guy I met that night at the Thirsty Monk. Not a totally unlikeable guy.
“I don’t know what to say except apologize and tell you that I’m not that guy anymore.”
I raise a brow. “Sure didn’t seem that way at the engagement party.”
He shifts his weight and looks down at his feet for a second before returning his gaze to my own. “You thought you had me all figured out. I didn’t want to disappoint you.” There’s an edge to his voice and it’s clear to me that I struck a nerve that night. Interesting.
“In my defence, I thought I did. When I realized who you were… and then the fact that I’d gone home with you a few weeks before…” I trail off and I’m not able to meet his eyes when I say that last part.
“You thought nothing had changed.”
I shrug.
“The night you came back to my place… that was different.”
“How?”
He pauses and then shakes his head. “Doesn’t matter. Just was.”
Another interesting little tidbit I file away and plan to examine later. “All of that doesn’t matter anyway. I wanted to meet with you today to clear the air. You know, since we’re going to have to see each other a lot in the coming months.”
A small smile tugs at the corner of his mouth. “I’m glad you did.”
“I also wanted to ask you not to mention anything to Tahlia about us going home together.”
He raises a brow now and studies me.
“It would only stress her out more and she’d be worrying if the two of us can coexist. I don’t want to add to an already stressful time for her.” I keep the part about her knowing exactly how much Cole’s little stunt affected my life to myself.