Paws Up for Love

by Stephanie Rowe

Josie hurled the pizza box onto the coffee table, disappointed when Monica managed to stop its horizontal catapult before it landed on the floor and splattered cheese everywhere. "Hi." Wow, she'd managed to turn the simple greeting into something that sounded like the order to behead someone...which wasn't that far off.

  "What's wrong with you?" Monica moved the pizza box to a safe place away from Josie.

  "Men. They should all be taken to the top of Mt. Everest and hurled off one by one." Josie belly-flopped on the carpet. Ugh. That didn't feel exactly wonderful.

  "Hi, Josie," Eddie said.

  "Except for you, of course," she amended. "You're special."

  "Uh huh." Eddie picked up a slice of pizza.

  "So, what's up?"

  Argh! Josie rolled onto her back and stared at the ceiling, wondering if it would hurt if a big chunk of plaster fell on her head and knocked her out long enough to give her amnesia so she wouldn't remember ever having met the Dorsett brothers. "He moved in."

  "To Evan's place?" Monica asked.

  "Uh huh. He and Evan are in cahoots to get us back together. Can you believe it?"

  "That's great!"

  Josie glared at Monica. "Did you forget to take your oxygen this morning? How is that great?"

  "They reconciled. We have success!"

  "Yeah... I guess..." Why did Monica have to be so positive about things? She felt like indulging in a good sulk, not looking on the bright side. "What if Buddy sneaks into my bed at night? Nightmare."

  "Keep Zeus in bed with you. She hates Buddy."

  "Oh, yeah...right..." Buddy probably still had scars from his last encounter with Zeus. "Though she's much more chill now that she's adopted Max. I'm not sure her violent tendencies will be so quick to arise."

  "I hate to break up the negative vibe session, but Eddie has to leave in an hour," Monica said.

  Groaning, Josie rolled to a vertical position. "Right-o. Let's get going then, shall we?" She turned to Eddie, who had just taken a mouthful of pizza. "List all the reasons that you'd have to dump a girl who, at one time, you really liked."

  Eddie's eyes widened. "You're kidding."

  "Nope." Josie looked around. "You got the flip chart around here?"

  "In the closet, but we don't need..."

  "Yes, we do. Brainstorming necessity." Josie had the flip chart set up in only a minute or two, which was to be expected because she was quite the expert on flip charts. All the self-help books encouraged flip charts, and who was she to argue with brilliance? "Go."

  "I could get into way too much trouble for this," Eddie said. "No way am I doing this."

  "Oh, come on. What? She's mean? Stupid? Bad dresser? Bad in bed? Ugly toenails? Bad breath? Dandruff? Knobby knees? Bad haircut?"

  "Nope." Eddie stood up. "No way am I getting sucked into this. I know it would come back to haunt me." He dropped a quick kiss on Monica. "Call me later, Mo. I'm gone."

  And he was.

  Josie scowled and dropped down next to Monica on the couch. "Raging success."

  "He does have a point. It's not exactly a safe topic for a guy to share with his girlfriend. It might make me a little paranoid, you know, wondering if my knees were too knobby or my toenails too ugly."

  "But I need help!"

  "No good books?"

  "None. I think I need to start a consulting business called How to Get Dumped. Obviously, it's a need someone needs to fill."

  Monica picked up a slice of pizza. "Let's think about this. We've both been dumped a few times in our lives."

  "A few? Try about a zillion."

  "We're not that pathetic." Monica grinned. "Okay, so...why were you dumped? What did the guys say?"

  "Never anything substantial. It's always some generic, 'I think we'd be better off as friends,' but that's never the real reason."

  Monica shook her head. "That's why we need Eddie. I can't believe he left."

  "Are you going to dump him for abandoning you in your time of need?" Josie rubbed her chin. "Maybe we could put Buddy in mortal danger, and when I leave him there to die, he'll decide I'm too cold and heartless to love, and he'll dump me."

  Monica peered at her. "Sometimes I worry about you."

  "Nonsense. I'm completely well-adjusted and stable."

  "Delusion or fact?"

  "Does it matter?" Josie flopped back down on the carpet. "I've been mean to Buddy. I've told him I don't like him and won't be with him. I have no idea what else to do."

  "Hmm."

  Silence stretched.

  And loomed.

  And hovered.

  Finally, Monica cleared her throat. "There's only one solution."

  "One? You have one? What is it?"

  "You have to make him fall in love with someone else."

  "Oh, right. That'll be easy."

  "Can you think of anything else?"

  "Not at this very moment, no...but who could we set up with Buddy?"

  Monica pursed her lips. "Huh."

  Inspiration struck. "Alice."

  "Alice? She's a tyrant! And she fired you!"

  "Exactly. Perfect couple, don't you think?" What poetic justice that would be. Alice and Buddy together.

  "How in the world would you get them together? Alice isn't going to forget that he stole stuff from the clinic."

  "Yes, but Alice is desperately single. She works at that clinic eighty hours a week and has no social life. I think it's great. And Buddy's going to be working there paying off the money he stole...right?"

  Monica pursed her lips. "Yeah..."

  "So, there we go. It's your job to put a bug in both of their ears."

  "Me? Why me?"

  "Because Buddy loves me! I can't do it!"

  Monica narrowed her eyes. "This has to be a team effort. And the clinic isn't the place to do it. Too easy for Alice to remember what Buddy did. It has to happen at Evan's house. I'll get Alice to go out, we'll swing by and you have to make sure Buddy's there. Champagne and strawberries. Set up the seduction scene."

  "What if Buddy thinks I'm seducing him?"

  Monica grinned. "It'll just add to the challenge."

  "Ugh." A risk barely worth taking. Except that she loved Evan. And she simply couldn't walk away without giving it a chance. "Fine. Let's do it."

  Monica picked up the phone and dialed the clinic. A quick conversation, then she hung up. "Tomorrow night at six. We'll be there."

  "Tomorrow?" Nerves rattled in her chest. "Great."

  She had a very, very bad feeling about this.

  After her pizza-plotting-session with Monica, Josie managed to get to her bedroom without running into either of the Dorsett brothers. Though it was just past ten, the house was quiet and dark. In bed or out on the town? It didn't matter, as long as she didn't have to deal with them.

  She peeled off her clothes and threw on a tank top and a pair of silk boxers, and yanked open the window. She loved the fresh air and the smell of grass and pine trees. In the city, she'd kept her windows shut from the noise, but here...heaven. She'd really miss it when she had to move back in with the rats and peeling paint.

  A light rap sounded at her door, and before she could cover herself, Evan popped his head inside. "Got a sec?"

  "I'm not exactly decent."

  He stepped inside and shut the door. "It's not like I haven't seen you."

  Chills bumped her arms at the memory. "But we aren't doing that anymore."

  Evan ignored her and held out an envelope. "For you."

  "What is it?"

  He just held his hand higher, keeping his gaze focused respectfully on her face and not wandering over her scantily clad body. Jerk. He was supposed to find her irresistible. Had she been wrong about his feelings for her? If those turned out to be delusions, she was really going to be mad.

  Evan saw the shadow come down over Josie's face, and his heart tightened. "What's wrong?"

  She immediately smoothed her features and lifted her chin. "Absolutely nothing. What's in the envelope?
"

  Fine. He'd let it go. He had no right to be prying into her personal life anyway. "Here."

  He handed it to her...noticing her very skimpy attire that didn't hide the swell of her breasts or the sprinkle of freckles across her collarbone, freckles he'd showered with kisses such a short time ago. He cleared his throat and focused on her face.

  Josie was watching him intently, and he knew she'd seen him checking her out. But she didn't look mad...just uncertain, with a hint of passion lurking deep inside.

  Something thudded in his gut. It was still there. Her. In his soul. She hadn't left, despite all his efforts to block her out. She was deeper in there, in fact, entrenched. What was up with that?

  Women didn't get into his soul. Especially not real women. Like Josie. With fire and passion and heat.

  A woman his brother loved.

  He took a step back and held out the envelope. "Take this."

  Her fingers brushed against his when she took it, and sparks shot down his arm. "What is it?"

  "A check."

  "For what?" She opened the envelope and peeked inside, her face immediately paling. "Oh, my gosh."

  "It's for the whole ninety thousand Buddy stole from you."

  She shook her head and tried to give it back to him. "I can't take this."

  He turned away and walked over to the bed, sinking down on the mattress. "I owe you an apology. I refused to believe you." This was harder than he thought it would be. "I was wrong."

  Josie pressed the envelope to her chest. "Really?"

  "Buddy admitted the truth to me tonight." Evan sighed. "In my gut, I think I always knew you were telling the truth."

  Josie sat softly beside him. "Thank you."

  "For the money?"

  "For the apology."

  "You deserve it." Her leg was next to his, the skin bare and looking so soft. "If I were you, I wouldn't want Buddy back either."

  She ran her fingertip along the top edge of the envelope. "I was a little overly zealous in my criticism of you sometimes too."

  "I deserved it." He trailed his finger over her thigh, so lightly he was barely skimming the blond hairs on her skin. "And I liked it. You keep life interesting."

  She sucked her breath in, but didn't push his hand away. "So...um...now that you and Buddy have reconciled, do you feel better about your role in his life? Do you realize now that you're a gift to him and that you didn't fail him?"

  Evan flattened his hand across her thigh. "He did make some reference to the fact that he didn't blame me for his problems. He even said thanks for letting him stay here. Did you know he's thinking of going back to school?"

  "And he's going to stay here?"

  "Yeah. That way he won't accumulate debt." He laid his finger over her lips as she opened them to protest. "I'm not doing it out of guilt. It's because he's my family and I can help him out. It's what family is for." He wondered if her lips would still taste like freshness and purity.

  "How can a woman resist a man with a soft spot for family?" Her words were quiet, almost like a flirty whisper on a breeze. "And big dogs that destroy houses and furniture."

  He trailed his finger along her cheek. "I can't kiss you." He moved closer, until his lips were hovering over hers.

  "I can see that," she said.

  Oh, hell. Just one kiss. A farewell kiss. Without letting himself think further than that, he closed the distance and kissed her.

  She flung her arms around his neck, and his hands snapped around her waist. Instantly, they were horizontal on the bed, his hands tearing at her tank top, desperate to feel her skin against his body.

  "What's going on here?" Buddy's irate voice drilled through him, like an instrument of death.

  Evan jerked upright, trying to catch his breath, while Josie fiddled behind him, no doubt trying to get her clothes back into a decent position. "Buddy..." What could he say? He wouldn't insult him with one of those cheap "I can explain" lines.

  Josie stood up. "It's not Evan's fault."

  "Josie, sit down. I'll deal with him." He reached for her, but she stepped away, still facing Buddy.

  "I came here looking for you, and I fell in love with Evan," she said.

  Oh, hell. This was not supposed to be happening...but at the same time, he felt a surge of excitement going through him. She still loved him.

  Buddy narrowed his eyes. "But I love you."

  "No, you don't."

  "Yes, I do." Buddy folded his arms over his chest and looked prepared to settle in for the night.

  Well, this was certainly productive.

  Josie shook her head. "No, Buddy, you just think you're in love with me because you don't believe in yourself. You think you have to attribute the 'new you' to me, but it's you. Take credit for it. It's your life and I had nothing to do with it." She paused, looking startled but pleased with herself. "Yes, I think that's definitely it. You're trying to put the responsibility on me, when it should be on you."

  Buddy looked confused, and Evan had to hide a grin. How many times had he sported that exact look after one of Josie's dissertations?

  "I think you're wrong..." Buddy drawled, but his puzzlement was apparent.

  "I'm right." Josie nodded emphatically. "Admit you're worth more than you think, and don't foist the responsibility for that onto me. If anything, give credit to Evan and fall in love with him."

  The look on Buddy's face was comical, at the thought of falling in love with his own brother. "But I love you," he repeated, and some of Evan's elation began to fade.

  He couldn't hurt Buddy again. He'd done it once, and it had left him without a family for years. If Buddy couldn't let go of Josie...he had no choice but to be the one to let her go.

  He saw Josie glance at him, and knew the moment she realized what he was thinking. Her face closed off and she hunched her shoulders, folding her arms over her chest.

  I'm so sorry, Josie. Forgive me.

  Forced to choose between his only family and the woman who stirred his soul? What if he chose Josie and Buddy left again? Who knew when he'd come back? Josie's family was great, but they weren't his family. And if he sided with Buddy, would Josie leave? Now that she had her money, she was free to go. There was no reason for her to stay.

  He couldn't live without her.

  And he couldn't drive his brother away.

  "Evan."

  He looked at Buddy. "What?"

  "Are you going to steal her from me?"

  He clenched his jaw and let his gut speak. "No."

  Buddy nodded.

  Evan considered grabbing Josie's hand and leaping out the window to escape off into oblivion with her.

  And Josie glared at them both, marched into the bathroom and shut the door.

  End of discussion.

  Buddy shifted and looked at the closed door. "So...should we wait until she comes out?"

  "She'll sleep in there if we stay out here." Evan stood up. "Discussion is tabled for another day."

  Buddy cocked his head. "You know her pretty well, huh?"

  "I guess." Evan walked out into the hall, then waited for Buddy. "Let's go, Buddy. Give her space."

  Buddy walked out of the room and Evan shut the door behind him. He then followed his brother down the hall.

  "Beer?" Buddy said.

  "Sure."

  They walked down the stairs in silence.

  Not another word was spoken until they were settled in front of the television with their beers. "Evan?"

  "What?" Nice tone, Evan. Try and sound a little more bitter.

  "You think Josie's right?"

  "About what?"

  "That...well...that thing she said."

  "What thing?" Evan tried to replay the conversation, but all he could remember was the look on Josie's face when she'd realized he wasn't going to fight for her.

  "You know…about me...and her...and projecting..."

  Oh, that. "You mean, that you don't actually love her?" Was Buddy actually considering it? Keep
calm, Evan. Keep calm.

  "Yeah."

  "I don't know, Buddy. Only you know."

  Buddy was silent for a long moment, and Evan waited.

  And waited.

  Finally, Buddy spoke. "Nah, she's wrong. I love her. I just need to get her to trust me again. That little stealing episode is probably still bugging her."

  Damn. He sank into the chair, wishing suddenly that they were in the room Josie had set up, on her faded orange couch that was a part of her history.

  "So, what do you say, Evan?"

  "About what?"

  "You going to help me get her back?"

  Oh, come on. He wasn't a saint. "I don't think so."

  "Why not?"

  "Because it's your life."

  "Come on, dude. She likes you. And trusts you. You're my secret weapon."

  Evan closed his eyes. This was too much. He couldn't do this.

  "Please?"

  Please. His ornery little brother had just said please. Asked him for help. Extended the olive branch. How could he turn that down? Just for a woman?

  But it wasn't just a woman. It was Josie, the light that had brightened his life. But Buddy was his brother, and he loved Josie too. He gritted his teeth. "Fine. I'll help."

  "Great."

  They lapsed into silence again, Buddy no doubt thinking about his wedding to Josie, while Evan contemplated various types of violent acts.

  Chapter 34

  Josie paced nervously in her room. This was it. Tonight was the night. In less than five minutes, Monica would be here, with Alice in tow. It was their only chance.

  Her only chance.

  Breakfast had been a miserable affair. Buddy had been solicitous, telling her how he was going back to school and how he was going to make something of himself, while Evan had glowered behind his newspaper, contributing only when Buddy prompted him for accolades.

  It was obvious Evan was stepping back for Buddy.

  Granted, family love was super important and all that, so Evan was actually even more attractive through his self-sacrifice...but still. It didn't make her stomach stop churning with dismay.

  No, not dismay. That was too weak. Outrage. Disgust. Ire.

  The doorbell rang, and Josie steeled herself. Okay, she was ready. Prepared.

  Buddy was downstairs watching television, while Evan was locked in his study working. Buddy was closest to the door.