She reached for more tissue.
“You don’t have to do that, Ashanti. I’ll clean this up,” Thad said.
She shot him a grin. “I’m used to it.”
“How does anyone get used to this?” Thad said, bringing his T-shirt up to cover his nose and mouth.
“Oh, don’t worry, you’ll get used to it soon too. Give me a sec.”
She washed her hands, then went back to her room. After a couple of minutes she returned with a purple-and-white box, along with a bag of treats. She handed both to him.
“These cookies have a soft center. Take one pill and hide it in the soft part. Then give Duchess an unmedicated treat, because she’ll be jealous if she’s left out.”
She returned to the bathroom while he sat on the edge of the bed and did as Ashanti had instructed. Once both dogs had eaten their treats, he scooted down onto the floor, pulled Puddin’ to him, and started rubbing his belly. Duchessimmediately walked over to his other hand and nudged it with her head.
“Really?” Thad asked.
Another nudge.
“Come here,” he said, fighting back a grin as the Frenchie snuggled in next to him.
He closed his eyes, leaned his head back against the mattress, and wondered if he could make it as a doggy massage therapist if The PX didn’t work out.
“You do not play fair.”
Thad’s head popped up. “Huh?”
Ashanti stood in front of him, hands on her hips. “I tell you that I can’t get into any kind of involvement with you and then I catch you doing the absolutemostto win me over? Not fair, Thad.”
He grinned as he continued to rub the dogs. “I was a Ranger for eight years. It’s not in my DNA to give up after the first try.”
Duchess abandoned the head rub and waddled over to Ashanti. Puddin’ was quick to join them.
“Well, I guess these hands aren’t as magical as I thought,” Thad said.
“I doubt that,” Ashanti said. She looked at him, her eyes going wide.
“Yes, you said that out loud, but according to our agreement I’m supposed to ignore it.”
She blew out a sigh. “I still have—” She looked at her watch. “Twenty more minutes before my alarm goes off. I’m going back to bed.” She snapped her fingers. “Come Duchess. You too, Puddin’.”
The three of them went into her room and she closedthe connecting door. It was hard for him not to feel left out, but it wasn’t as if he had expected an invite when she’d just reminded him that she was against the two of them getting involved.
Remaining on the floor with his head against the bed, Thad closed his eyes and utilized those power-napping skills he’d honed during deployments.
Three hours later, as he downed his second cup of coffee in the greenroom atUp Early with Leah and Luke!, he was forced to acknowledge that his power-napping skills didn’t have the same effect as they used to. He would have to count on caffeine and adrenaline to take up the slack.
Thad had convinced himself that Puddin’s early-morning shit show portended how the rest of the day would progress, but he was cautiously optimistic that all was not headed for the outhouse. In a way, he was grateful for Puddin’ and his weak stomach. The incident had smoothed the edges of tension he feared would show up between him and Ashanti after the way they’d left things last night. When he’d met her in the hallway a couple of hours after she’d returned to her room with the dogs, it was as if that kiss between them, and any uneasiness it may have ushered in, had never happened.
He wasn’t sure how he felt about that part. He was still working out the steps forward in his head.
Ashanti stood at the buffet, adding flavored creamer to a cup of coffee. The dogs were in another holding room because, as it had been explained to them, the guest for the segmentjust before theirs was allergic to pet dander. A bonus and a raise for whoever had come up with this morning’s schedule.
Thad walked up to Ashanti and snagged a mini croissant from the table.
“You nervous?” he asked.
“Tell me I’m hiding it well, even if you have to lie to me.”
