“Seriously, I hate worrying about you when we go out. The way some guys look at you.” His jaw went hard. “My life as a big brother would be so much easier if you weren’t so darnbeautiful.”
She shook her head as she picked up another puppy who had finished. “It’s mybusiness.”
Quinton opened the bag of chips that came with the sandwich. He preferred the deep-fried, greasy kind, but Daisy had selected baked since they were better for him. “I know, you can’t help being beautiful anymore. This is your everydaylook.”
She swallowed a smirk at hearing her brother use the phraseeverydaylook.
“But just because you don’t pay attention to all that doesn’t mean guys don’t.” He paused, gulped, and then said with an unusually forced casualness, “And it doesn’t mean Beckett hasn’tnoticed.”
“Now I know you’re feeding me lines. Just today, he said he was shocked my channel had anysuccess.”
Quinton wiped his fingertips as he considered her comment. “Are you sure he didn’t say he was amazed by the success of yourchannel?”
“I’m pretty sure he didn’t mean it as acompliment.”
“I’m pretty sure he’s not sure what to think of you.” Quinton suddenly became extremely interested in what was in his sandwich. “If you want, I’ll ask him to moveout.”
“What? No. Why would you make himleave?”
“Call it an older brother instinct. You always had stars in your eyes when it came to Beckett. He’s not a teenager anymore, and you don’t look like a little sisteranymore.”
Three puppies finished at the same time. Two began to wrestle while the third watched them like they were idiots. Daisy scooped up the observer. Quinton’s advice or opinions or whatever you wanted to call them slathered over her like cheap lotion. “So what? There’s more to me than my channel, and if that’s all he sees, then I don’t wanthim.”
“I don’t think it’s your channel that makes him drop things when you walk into theroom.”
“Beckett Kingsley isnotinto me,” Daisy insisted. “And even if he were, he’s not interested in a realrelationship.”
“And youare?”
“Aren’t you?” shecountered.
Quinton opened his mouth and closed it again as if he’d thought better about what he was about to say. Daisy continued to clean the puppies and place them back in their kennel. She snuggled each one close and scratched behind its ears. Each one had a different personality, which made them all the moreloveable.
Quin finally spoke, though his tone was reflective. “I wasn’t looking for something serious. I had school and then wanted to get this place off the ground. But I’ve had my eye on someone.” The tips of his ears turnedscarlet.
“Really?” Daisy found a puppy toy and dangled it in front of the last pup’s nose. He jumped at it with bothpaws.
“Yeah. She doesn’t know Iexist.”
“Aww, Quin. You should ask herout.”
He scrunched up the takeout bag. “It’scomplicated.”
Daisy shrugged. “Isn’t it always? I mean, does love come easy toanyone?”
“Mom and Dad make it lookeffortless.”
“Mom and Dad have had thirty-two years ofpractice.”
“True,” heconceded.
Tayla, a vet tech with a long, blonde ponytail and covered in freckles, poked her head into the recovery room. “Your next appointment is in roomfive.”
“I’ll be right there.” Quinton threw his garbage away, and Tayla waved before ducking back out of the room. “Thanks forlunch.”
“Anytime. I’m going to stick around for a while, maybe I’ll take one of these guys for a walk.” Daisy found the cleaning supplies and mopped up the mess the puppies made on thefloor.
Quinton paused at the door. “I haven’t seen you this upset in a longtime.”
