That reminds me, wasn’t I supposed to be solving some of those mysteries?
“Oliver tells me you guys met on the set ofThe Pack?” I ask, keeping my tone nice and gentle.Don’t scare the sexy little man, Nick.
He doesn’t even startle at my voice that slices through the awkward silence that had settled in the car. The guy must have a solid nervous system. Or a really bad one if it doesn’t nudge him away from the predator he’s trapped in a small space with.
He turns to me. “Yeah, I was consulting for the show,” he nods.
“Why would a vet consult on a show about werewolves?” I laugh to play up the absurdity.
No change in heartbeat or breathing. Huh. I was sure I’d get something with this line of questioning.
He smiles, though. And I almost rear-end the SUV in frontof us. I snap my head back on the road.
“It was pretty stupid. One of the show’s producers is my client. She has this cute tabby cat who likes to hiss at people whenever they use their phones,” he smiles again. His eyes have an evil glint, almost looking golden. “Anyway, the show had a vet character for half a season, then he was killed off. They wanted me to make sure everything sounded authentic.”
“In a show about werewolves?” I scoff.
No reactionagain. “As if TV shows are ever responsible with money,” he waves off.
“Fair enough,” I say.
For those keeping count, that’s Elliot: 2. Nick: 0.
Luckily, I find a good parking spot, so I won’t have to hand over my baby to a valet. We walk into the quiet, dimly lit restaurant with an intimate, romantic vibe. Okay, Serena might have been right to ask about my intentions with this date.
Thisisa serious date spot.
Elliot maintains his typical air of deep disdain even as we’re escorted to our table by a kind hostess. Looking at her cowering under Elliot’s resting face, I believe she’d have given us a table even without a reservation.
“Thank you so much,” I smile widely at her, blocking her view of Elliot.
We are seated at a secluded corner table.
We look at the menu quietly. Everything looks too good, and I spend a long time cruising through the dishes. When the waitress comes, I belatedly remember I’m not here to eat and enjoy. We have a mission,damnit.
After we place our orders, I think of a new way to approach this. I gaze up at Elliot, his face glowing under the low light, lips in a pout. His long eyelashes make his eyes appear golden yellow.
I clear my throat, and his eyes snap up to mine. “What made you decide to be a vet?” I ask.
He keeps the menu down and rests his hands on the table. He has very long fingers. Never knew I was into hands before,but his do it for me. “Just always liked animals, and this way I could be around them without taking any responsibility. No cool heartfelt story there,” he says. His face looks soft, or maybe it’s just the lights. “How’s Mickey settling, by the way? Did you find a way to deal with the knife situation, or has he already stabbed himself?”
I laugh. I did go a little overboard with expressing my concerns that day, didn’t I? No wonder all my friends were so freaked out. The drama was wholly unnecessary, but the concern was clearly needed because I’ve never lost my shit like that in front of anyone. Ever.
It’s so weird it came out in front of Elliot, of all people. And he was so nice to me, at least his version of nice. “Yeah, turns out, you were right. He didn’t go out looking for a knife as soon as we walked in. Or ever really.”
“I’m glad. So you found him at a shelter?” he asks, sounding genuinely curious.
I nod. “They’d just taken him in. It was meant to be,” I exaggerate.
“Must be. It didn’t look like you were planning to get a dog, though. You were pretty freaked out. Why did you get Mickey then?" His tone is a little suspicious.
Ah, when he said he loves animals, he must mean it. He sure is protective of them. “I went there for a case, actually. Saw him and couldn’t resist getting him home with me. But I swear I’m taking good care of him,” I assure him.
“Oh, I don’t doubt that,” he waves me off. That casual approval fills me with warmth.
I ignore the flutter in my stomach. I must be hungrier than I realized. I haven’t eatenanythingsince lunch. And we need to get back to work. “You have a lot of friends in the city?”
He tilts his head, his brows furrow. “Not a lot. I like to stay in as much as I can,” he answers gamely.
