First, I meet the sexiest date alive, and he’s not at all interested in men. Then my bratty dog embarrasses me in front of him and half the town’s dog lovers. AndnowTramp had knocked me right into his arms so I couldfeeleverything I could never have.
“Shit! Fuck!” I scrambled to push out of his arms. “I’m so sorry!”
Hank’s shoulders shook with laughter. “It’s okay.”
“I wasn’t trying to?—”
Molest you? Cop a feel? Sabotage your whole meeting because you wouldn’t date me?
There were no words for this situation. I really wasn’t a potty mouth, but anotherfucking hellslipped out.
Hank spun me like a dance partner, and the leash unfurled from around my legs. I blinked, astonished I was still on my feet and not sprawled like an idiot.
“Smooth moves,” I said shakily.
He grinned. “I’ll have to thank my mother for making me take those dance lessons before high school prom.”
Prom, which he no doubt attended with a beautiful girl.
I turned my attention to Tramp, because it was easier to look at him than the mountain of gorgeous lumberjack man I’d just fallen all over.
“What do you have to say about your actions, Tramp?”
He panted, tongue lolling out. Not a remorseful bone in his body.
With a sigh, I peeked up at Hank again. “I really am sorry for the mess we made. Tell me how we can make it up to you.”
“Oh, it’s okay. This is a dog park, not an office. I can pick up a few papers that blew away. It’s not a big deal.”
That’s when I noticed the box at his feet, tipped on its side.
“Shit, we did it again!” I exclaimed.
Hank glanced down, looking surprised at the sight. “Oh, I must have dropped it when you...”
He didn’t finish his statement, but we both knew what he wasn’t saying. He’d dropped it when I crashed into him. Because the first embarrassment hadn’t been enough, apparently.
Hank crouched down to straighten the box, scooping papers back inside. A couple of them were trying to escape. I ran after them, grabbing them up before they could get too far.
I returned to Hank and handed them over. “I’m so sorry again.”
He smiled at me, a funny expression on his face. “You canmake it up to me by keeping that one.” He nodded to the paper in my hand.
I glanced down, surprised to see it was a vendor application for something called Dogtober Days. I scanned the text. “What is this for?”
“Dog festival in October,” he said. “We’re lining up vendors, and your dog biscuits would be a hit.”
“Oh. But don’t you have to be an established business? I’m not really official yet.”
“Nope,” he said cheerfully. “Anyone can participate. You just fill out the paperwork and pay a fee for your booth space.”
“That would actually be…perfect,” I said, a smile tugging at my lips. “I’m hoping to build clientele so I can launch a real business. It’s hard because I’ve got to work full time at catering, and—” I stopped abruptly. “You don’t care about all that. Never mind. This is awesome. I’ll fill out the application.”
“Great,” he said. “Well, I should go hunt down the rest of these papers that got away…”
“Oh, let me help you!”
“You don’t have to?—”
