“They’re an adorable pair.” And there was no way she could walk away from this. From them.
From Ford.
When exactly he’d become more than a neighbor, she didn’t know. If he realized the direction of her thoughts, he’d probably drop out as her wingman. He’d get stingy with his smiles again, and she’d be back to square one.
The problem was, now that she knew him better, no one else would do.
“You said you had a solution.” Still disgruntled, Ford scowled at her. “Let’s hear it, and then I’ll decide if it’s brilliant.”
“We should adopt the dogs.”
Alarm shot his brows skyward and had him tilting away from her. “We, as in together?”
The way he choked on the wordtogethertickled her. “We’re not together, so, no, I didn’t mean that. You can relax.”
Instead, he seemed more irascible. “Whatdoyou mean?”
“I’m not proposing, Ford. I’m not even suggesting we be a real couple.” Not that she’d mind giving that a try, but it would have to come second to other, more important things. Like two beautiful dogs who definitely needed homes. “I promise, I haven’t forgotten our agreement.”
He started to say something, changed his mind, and shrugged. “It’s your agreement. You can forget it whenever you want.”
That left her a little speechless. How did he mean that? That he’d be happy to bail whenever she released him? Or that he might want more than their arranged ruse?
“I’m looking forward to the dinner,” he said. “And the party.”
She had serious doubts about that but smiled. “Good, because I’m not letting you off the hook.”
He smiled, too, and mimicked her with, “Good.”
The sunlight made his green eyes even brighter, and when she caught herself leaning toward him, she cleared her throat and refocused on the dogs. “Our yards run together. I’m not planning to move, and I don’t think you’re planning to move?”
“I’m not.”
“So why don’t we adopt the dogs.” To convince him, she hurried on with her talking points. “I can take this little thug and you can take Maybelline, and when necessary, we can puppy sit for each other. Plus, they could spend time together during the day. My house, or your house, and sometimes in the yard.”
Surprise slowly replaced his smile. Pleasant surprise, she hoped. She wasn’t quite sure about that yet. He studied her eyes, maybe gauging her seriousness, then looked at Maybelline before asking, “You’d really do that?”
The naked yearning in his tone, in the way he touched the dog, told an entire story, one he wasn’t ready to share. Anyone could see that Ford loved the big lug, but he hesitated to take her because he didn’t want her to be shortchanged.
There were layers to Ford Caruso that fascinated her. “We’d probably need to get our yards fenced as soon as possible, but once we do, we could add a gate between them so that when the dogs want to visit, they can.”
“What happens if you get pissed at me?”
Hearing more than what he’d actually said, she asked, “Why would that happen?”
Expression droll, he shot her the side eye. “We’re neighbors. You’re a woman.” Before she could get riled, he lifted a hand. “I’m a man. People disagree on things.”
“Hmm. You could be right. I can imagine a hundred ways you might infuriate me.” Given the annoyance in his gaze, teasinghim was way too easy. “So let me see if I understand. Your concern is that, when you irk me—and we both assume you will—I’ll . . . what? Withhold the dog from you?”
“Or from Maybelline.” With gentle commiseration, he traced his fingertips along an old scar on the dog’s neck. “She’s been hurt enough. Withholding her buddy wouldn’t be fair to her.”
“No, it wouldn’t.” The dog gazed adoringly at Ford. “I’d have to be a terrible person to do that, but I’m not. I think I’m nice. Flawed in many ways, but not mean or spiteful.”
He nodded his acceptance. “So you know, I’m the same.” With a crooked grin, he clarified, “Plenty flawed, but not vindictive.”
Her heartbeat was picking up speed with all the possibilities ahead. “She loves you.”
He snorted. “She’s a dog.”
