“Nope. He’s my neighbor and is happily married to Benny. They’re Emily’s pseudo-adopted uncles. My ex travels a lot, and he and I are only cordial because of my daughter. Not to give you the rundown of my life, but there’s not much to it.”
“So, ah, no boyfriend?”
She looked at him. “Nope. No blind dates or boyfriends for me. And no girlfriends for you, huh? Not after that blind date.”
“No way.” He forced a laugh, feeling stupid for being so blatant about her status. “Wish me luck with my family. And call me if you need anything.”
“Anything?” She grinned. “What if I need my toes scratched? I mean, with the cast on, I might not be able to reach a lot.”
“Sorry, Maggie. You’re on your own when it comes to feet.”
“And here I thought all firefighters had to protect and serve.”
“Well, there’s serve, and then there’sserve.”
They both laughed, and their close connection settled over Reggie like a warm, comfy blanket.
He waved. “I’ll talk to you soon.”
“Yeah.” She kept smiling.
“I guess I should go.”
“Okay.”
“Bye.”
“Bye.”
They stared at each other some more until Reggie took his dopey ass into the hallway, her door closing behind him. There, he leaned against the wall and sagged, feeling excited, nervous, and stupid for no reason.
But he didn’t have time to lollygag. He had to hit the vet then the pet store to grab some food, bedding, and treats for Frank. Just in case Maggie decided to keep him. If not, Frank would have some things to take to his forever home.
And speaking of Frank…did that give him a great idea for tomorrow.
***
Sunday morning, at ten on the dot, Reggie showed up at his father’s place, just a few blocks from his, carrying a wounded puppy and a bag full of puppy necessities.
Lisa opened the door looking summery in a tank, shorts, and her hair in a neat twist. Cool and comfortable, Lisa could give lessons on how to survive the heat. His sister never seemed to sweat. A real feat considering she engaged in high-level business dealings worth megabucks. Her job could make or break million-dollar companies.
Nadia, the eldest, could be heard chatting with their dad, probably in the kitchen. No matter what they gathered for, the family always ended up in the kitchen around Dad’s large island, where the big guy liked to bake.
With any luck, he’d serve that peach cobbler he’d been bragging about.
Lisa looked from him to the puppy, and her mouth dropped open. “What is that you have there, Reginald?”
He bit back a sigh, hating when she used his full name but used to her teasing. “A rescue puppy I’m watching for a friend.”
A friend. To his astonishment, he found himself wanting to be a lot more than friendly with Maggie Swanson, a woman all wrong for him.
“Oh, what a sweetie.” Lisa cooed over the injured pup, who promptly cuddled into her warm arms and licked her cheek. “You sure we can’t keep him?”
“Actually, I’m not so sure. The woman and little girl who want to adopt him don’t know if they can keep animals in their apartment. I’m helping out because—”
Nadia suddenly appeared next to Lisa, her expression suspicious. “Woman and a kid, huh? It’s not Amy and Rachel, is it?”
“Nadia, hush.” Lisa blocked their older sister and stepped back for Reggie to enter. “It’s not Amy.” She leaned closer and whispered, “It’s not, is it?”
