Must Love Pets: A Romance Box Set

by Theresa Weir

  “Mom, I want to text him.”

  “Honey, he’s—”

  “Please, Mom. He’ll answer me. I know he will.”

  She didn’t reply right away, gripping the phone, looking into his eyes, knowing that whatever she did would lead to heartache.

  But if she said no, he would always believe he might have had a chance. His heart would still be bruised, but added to the hurt would be resentment aimed at her.

  She handed him the phone. “Will you need help?” He knew how to read already—he was very smart for his age—but she wasn’t sure about his spelling abilities.

  He shrugged and with one finger typed letters in slowly then held it up to her. “Is this right?”

  She bent forward to read it. i mis u come hom

  Tears pricked her eyes. “It’s wonderful,” she said, her voice husky. She pointed. “You press this.”

  “I know that,” he said, as if he knew everything at four and one-half years old, and he sent the message.

  They waited, though she suspected it wouldn’t go through. She’d never had her voice mail so full it wouldn’t take messages, but she was pretty sure if her voice mail wouldn’t go through, neither would—

  A message popped up: look out the door. im here.

  Raising her head, she felt lightheaded. She started to shake as Zach sounded out the words one by one, doing well until he got to “im,” calling it “in.”

  She put her hand on his shoulder. “Honey, he’s outside.”

  His eyes opened wide, then he dropped the phone on her lap and ran to the side door, shouting, “Logan! Logan! Logan!”

  She set the phone on the table and walked slowly behind him. He whipped open the door and held up his arms. From where she stood, she could see a hand grip Zach on each side of his ribs. Laughing, Logan raised him up high.

  Her heart, which had felt shrunken and cold since he’d left, expanded and warmed.

  “I knew you’d come,” Zach said. “I made a special wish to Santa.”

  “That I’d come for Christmas?”

  Zach shook his head. Even just looking at the back of his head, Maddie knew he was beaming at Logan, love pouring out of his eyes. “That you’d be my daddy.”

  * * *

  “You’d better take your suitcase in.” Maddie took Zach from Logan and let her shiny-eyed son onto the hall floor.

  How was she supposed to tell her son that he shouldn’t say what he’d just said?

  She couldn’t. Instead, she kissed his forehead and whispered that she loved him.

  “I love you, too, Mom.” He wheeled around. “And I love Logan, too.”

  Logan put his hand on Zach’s shoulder. “Right back at you, big boy.”

  Zach beamed at him. “I am big. Bigger than all the boys in my class.”

  “That is big. And the girls, too, right?”

  “Two girls are bigger.” Zach held up two fingers in a vee.

  “Logan…” She stared at him. In the light of the kitchen, she saw his face was drawn and his complexion sallow.

  His smile was wary. “Hello, Maddie.”

  “I was worried about you,” Maddie said, almost in a whisper. “You look tired, and—” She frowned. Something was wrong with his hair on his left side. It sat funny. She raised her hand to push his hair back, and she saw a shaved area and what looked like a red ridge about an inch long and one-half inch wide.

  Fear buzzed inside her heard. “What happened?”

  “A mirror broke.”

  “On your head?”

  He nodded.

  “Was Olivia involved? Your dark queen?”

  “You’re full of suspicions.”

  “You’re not answering my question.” She was aware of Zach looking from her to Logan.

  “The dark queen is no longer my queen.”

  Tears rose in her eyes. She turned her face away from him, down at Zach, who stared at her with his eyes big and scared.

  “Mommy! You’re crying!”

  “I’m fine, I’m fine, I’m fine.” She wiped tears away, but more were flowing out.

  “Do you mind if I talk to your mom alone?” Logan said, his voice low. “I have something to tell her that I hope will make her happy.”

  “I can make her happy. She’s my mom.”

  “Maybe I can talk to her about your wish to Santa.”

  “You mean…”

  “Be your daddy, right?”

  Tears were running out of her eyes like a waterfall now. She needed a Kleenex but grabbed a napkin off the table instead. How could he say something like that to Zach? How dare he raise his hopes like that?

  “I’m going to play with my new fire truck,” Zach said loudly and happily. “In my bedroom.”

  “A great idea.”

  Giggling, Zach ran off, his footsteps pounding on the floor.

  She blew her nose and watched Zach between furious blinks, her back to Logan.

  “Will you turn around?” Logan asked, his voice low. “I have something for you.”

  Reminding herself that this emotional person wasn’t her, that she was the one who plowed through problems until they were fixed, no matter how complicated, she turned around, prepared to be practical again.

  He was holding something out to her in his palm. She glanced down and gasped. A diamond ring. Beautiful and sparkling…and big. Very big.

  “Will you marry me?” he asked.

  “Oh my.” She stared, her tears dried. Then she shook her head and forced her gaze from the ring to his face. “This is so…crazy. You don’t know me.”

  “I know you. I know you by your stories. I know you by your heart.” His blue eyes glowed brighter that the diamonds on the ring. “I know you by your actions. By the way you are with Zach. And you know me.”

  She glanced away from his eyes, downward, and saw he was clenching the ring in his hand now. An insane thought entered her mind, and wonder shivered through her.

  He was afraid she’d say no.

  “Maybe that’s what’s scaring you off,” he said. “You know I’m not a prize.”

  “Are you kidding me?” She snapped her gaze up. “Most women would think you’re the grand prize.”

  “Maybe, but you’re not most women.” His arm slid around her shoulder, and he smiled down at her. “You know my faults. I can be arrogant.”

  She nodded. True. “Irritatingly arrogant.”

  “I can be bullheaded.”

  She nodded harder. “Worse than a bull.”

  “I can be secretive.”

  She bit her lip. That part hurt.

  “I can’t promise to change all that. But the secretive part… That’s gone.”

  “Just like that?” She stared at his face, trying to read his thoughts and feelings in his eyes, his mouth, the firm set of his jaw.

  He snapped his fingers. “Like that. Once I make up my mind, I do it. That’s one of my good points—and sometimes one of my bad ones. I’m also loyal. I’m a one-woman guy, and now I’ve found the right woman.”

  “Because I’m decent and good? The opposite of the dark queen?”

  “This has nothing to do with her.” His mouth lifted into a smile that was so tender her heart hurt. “It’s because you’re funny, you’re strong, you tell a great story, you’re an adequate cook—”

  “What? I’m a great cook.”

  “A little delusional,” he continued, as if she hadn’t interrupted, “and you’re amazing in bed.”

  “True. The last, I mean.”

  His eyes turned a dark blue. “And you love me.”

  “You say that, but you didn’t call me,” she whispered. “I thought I might never see you again.”

  “I was in the hospital overnight. Then I had to recuperate. I didn’t want to worry you. While I was at it, I took care of business.”

  She raised her hand and cupped it over the wound. “She did this, didn’t she? Olivia.”

  “Not on purpose.”

  Hot anger knifed throu
gh her. “I want to hurt her. You said it’s nothing to do with her, but you left because you loved her. How could you come back now and say you love me?”

  “I didn’t love her when I left you. I went because she told me she was dying.” His eyes didn’t leave her face, compelling her to listen to him, to believe him. “We had a history together, and I went to be there for her, nothing else. I already knew that I didn’t love her. I already knew in my heart that the woman I loved was you.”

  She closed her eyes. She wanted to believe him. Wanted it badly.

  “I’m not pushing you to make a decision,” he said. “I can wait.”

  Her eyes opened. “How long will you wait?”

  “As long as it takes. I’m here for you for the duration, not just for right now. Till death do us part.”

  She laughed, but it came out like a sob. Clamping her mouth shut, she looked from him into the living room with the lighted, decorated tree and the corner filled with Zach’s Christmas presents. And she thought of the way Logan had stuck to Olivia, even though she didn’t deserve his loyalty.

  This was a man who would stay by her.

  She and he were so different—but that way they were both alike.

  Still staring at the living room, she started to make a list in her head of the reasons she should marry him and the reasons she shouldn’t. But she only got to the first three of the “should marry him” list: She loved him, Zach loved him, he loved her and Zach.

  “Yes,” she said, turning back to him.

  “Yes what?”

  “Yes, I’ll marry you.”

  He grinned, he laughed, he put both arms around her. With a laugh low in her throat, she went up on her tiptoes and pressed her body against his. “Kiss me, you crazy fool.”

  “A fool in love,” he said, and then his mouth was against hers, and she melted against him. Happiness sang through her, all her senses were alive and feeling…everything.

  He pulled away first. “I love you.”

  “It’s a good thing, because I love you, too.”

  They grinned at each other, and she went up higher on her tiptoes, and he bent his head lower. A soft “aaaaaah” sound came from her mouth. Their lovemaking had been spectacular before. Tonight there would be fireworks.

  “Mom?”

  She whipped her arms down and jumped back while Logan casually turned to Zach, who was heading toward them, his forehead crinkled.

  “Zach, do you still want me to be your dad?”

  Zach nodded, the crinkles going away.

  “I’ll have to marry your mom to do that.”

  Zach nodded again, and Maddie thought he was holding his breath, waiting to hear what Logan would say next.

  “I’ll have to kiss her, too. That’s what married people do. Is that okay?”

  Zach beamed at him, and Maddie thought he smiled not just with his mouth and his eyes but with every pore in his body. “Yes,” he said. “Then you’ll be my dad.”

  “I already have a ring for her.” Logan brought it out of his pocket. “I’m going to put it on now. Do you want to watch?”

  Zach nodded again. “That means you’ll be married soon.”

  “You want it done soon?” Holding her left hand, Logan looked into Maddie’s eyes.

  Her throat too tight to talk, she nodded.

  With a smile, he slid it on. “I didn’t buy you a Christmas present. I didn’t have time.”

  “I didn’t get you anything for Christmas, either.” Hearing a noise, she frowned and looked toward the door. “Wait a minute. Something is scratching on the door.”

  * * *

  Dog’s body shook with a mixture of cold and excitement. He was here! Dog’s human was here!

  He’d been looking for his human for so long. Ever since he was a puppy, he’d known he had one human, and he’d known he would have to find him. And now he was so near.

  When he’d smelled his human again, he’d been at the edge of the city, limping slowly and so cold he thought about dropping down in the snow and never getting up.

  Then the smell came. Better than anything, even bacon.

  The smell had moved, and so had Dog. His hunting instincts had told him that his human would be going to the woman. He’d started to run, his back leg hurting. At times, he’d slid, but each time, he’d caught this balance then continued to run toward the smell of the woman. And now he was here, breathing fast, his heart pounding as he waited to claim his human.

  Footsteps were coming to the door now, and the smell of the woman was sharper. Then she reached the door, fumbling with something on the other side, taking too long. Dog whimpered with anxiety.

  Finally, the door opened, the woman looking above him. No doubt expecting another human.

  Then she looked down. “What…? A dog?” She started to open the door, and the scent of his human became stronger. “Are you—”

  Dog leaped up and rushed through the small opening, his body pushing it wider. The woman stumbled back against the wall as Dog limped as fast as he could down the hall toward the smell.

  A man who’d been sitting down jumped up. His human!

  “Einy? Oh my God, Einy!” The human knelt, and Dog barreled into him.

  Einy. Now he remembered the dream he had. And he remembered even more.

  The man fell to the floor, and his arms wrapped around Dog as he licked the man’s face, his whole body wiggling. Everything was clear to him now.

  He’d been with his human a long time ago. He didn’t remember what had happened, why they’d separated, but they were together again. He and his human.

  “Logan?” the woman asked, her voice soft.

  “Mom,” a boy’s voice said, “it’s a dog. Can we keep it?”

  “I don’t know,” the woman said. “Logan, you tell us. You and the dog seem to know each other. Is the dog yours?”

  Logan. The name came back to Einy, and he laid his head against Logan’s chest while Logan found the special spot beneath his ear.

  “He looks just like Einstein. Exactly like him. Einy was my dog for three years when I was a little older than Zach. Then one day my mother told me we were moving to England, and we couldn’t take Einy with us.”

  “I bet you were devastated.”

  “It was the first time my heart was broken.” He breathed into Einy’s face, and Einy lifted his head and licked his chin.

  Logan laughed and cuddled him closer. Einy smelled a cat nearby. He looked sideways. An orange and white cat was staring at him. Not an angry look, just curious.

  “I’ll have to call the humane society to see if anyone’s reported losing a dog with this description.” Einy’s human stopped talking to rub his other ear. “I know it can’t really be Einy. This dog only looks a few years old, and Einy was run over when I was nine, but I could swear it’s him. If no one is looking for him, what do you think about starting our family off with an extra member?”

  Instead of answering, she sat on the floor next to the man and held out the back of her hand to Einy for him to sniff. When he was done, she petted him.

  The boy knelt on Einy’s other side, and he petted Einy, too, his smaller hand sliding along Einy’s spine. Einy felt full. Not in his belly, but in his chest. He put his head back against Logan and let the love fill him.

  “I think,” the woman said, “that Einy will complete our family.” She smiled at Einy’s human. “And we’ll still have enough love for more.”

  While Logan laughed at her, the boy hugged Einy. Remembering another small boy hugging him, Einy leaned against the boy, making them laugh as lights on the tree winked at them.

  It had taken him a long time, but Einy was finally home.

  -THE END-

  Author’s Note

  If you enjoyed Christmas at Angel Lake, you might also enjoy Crazy Sexy Love, the third Rescued Hearts book.

  Here’s more about Crazy Sexy Love:

  Sam Krushing broke Callie Ryan’s heart when she was six years old. Years later, he
’s a drummer in a Grammy-winning country band, touring most of the year. She’s a librarian with good friends and a job she enjoys…and a mom who’s not well. Yet she’s never loved a man the way she loved the boy…

  And he’s never loved a woman the way he loved the girl… Only now his love is different. A crazy, sexy love.

  And then there’s his stalker…

  Life is crazy. Love is sexy. Forever love is scary.

  About Edie Ramer

  A multiple-award-winning author, Edie is funnier on the page than in real life. She lives in southeastern Wisconsin with her husband, their dog and one very important cat. She’s happy to be able to do what she loves nearly every day.

  Edie’s Books

  Contemporary Romance

  Rescued Hearts series

  Hearts in Motion, book 1– Free

  Christmas at Angel Lake, book 2

  Crazy Sexy Love, Book 3

  Miracle Interrupted series

  Must Worship Cats. The beginning, #1

  Stardust Miracle, book 2 – Free

  Miracle Lane, book 3

  Miracle Pie, book 4

  Mo’s Heart, book 5

  Miracle Interrupted Set (first 3 Miracle Interrupted stories)

  Paranormal

  Cattitude

  The Fat Cat, a Cattitude short story – Free

  Dead People

  Dead People In Love, a Dead People short story – Free

  Dragon Blues

  Science Fiction Romance

  Galaxy Girls

  Mixing It Up, a Galaxy Girls novella

  The Kiss, a Galaxy Girls short story

  Stand-alone

  You’ve Got Murder, co-written with Karin Tabke

  The Seventh Dimension, a short story