Hailey gave his bicep a playful bat. “You’re Fall River royalty.”
“What?” He shook his head. “No such thing.”
Dixie leaned in, and Hailey nearly vaulted from her seat like a jack-in-the-box whose lid had sprung loose. The woman needed a bell or some jangly jewelry as an early warning system!
“Don’t let him fool you, honey,” she purred as she lifted their bowls. “These boys are the princes of this town.” She turned toward Hailey and gave her a wink. “And they are in desperate need of princesses.”
Chapter 11
Second Chances
Princes needing princesses? Whatthe hell kind of Kool-Aid was Dixie drinking, and could Noah have some? Dixie was always good for a chuckle or two, like pointing out that she and Hailey weren’t men—a fact he was painfully aware of, especially when it came to Hailey, her big blue eyes, and her sweet, sweet scent.
Though he hated to admit it, his main reason for going to Doc Embry’s this morning wasn’t so much about the dog. What had spurred him was Dixie telling him Hailey would be there. And when he’d first set eyes on her, an inconvenient electrical current had sparked in his bloodstream … one that wasstillsparking.
She was dressed in a purplish-blue fleece top that hugged her curves—curves that had been plastered against him not that long ago—along with indigo jeans tucked into shearling-lined boots. Her honey-colored hair was gathered in a thick ponytail he wanted to sift through his fingers.
Do not go there.
She yanked him off his lusty cloud. “I’d love to see your dog before things get too crazy in here.”
Your dog.He needed to get used to that. “Sure. I’ll take you up there now.”
He led her to the back, where he unlocked the door to his apartment. When she shot him a questioning look, he answered with, “Habit. I lock my office too, though there’s not much to steal in either place. But anyone can let themselves in this back door without being seen, so it keeps the honest people honest.”
“Have you thought about installing a camera?”
“Yeah, but I’ve thought about a lot of things that haven’t made it to the top of the priority list because they cost too much.”
As he plodded up the narrow staircase, his mind ping-ponged from whether they were too steep for Hailey to whether he’d left the place messy. He opened the door cautiously, in case Rover decided to make a break for it, ushering her in when he had eyes on the dog curled up on the kitchen mat—instead of the expensive, fluffy new bed Noah had arranged beside the couch.
“Unbelievable,” he muttered.
As soon as Rover spotted Hailey, he leaped up and charged her. Dropping to one knee, she braced for the dog’s greeting. “Oh my! Who’s happy to see me, huh?”
The animal’s tail whirled like a propeller. Noah couldn’t blame him; if he had a tail, he’d be wagging too. Instead, he took a moment to survey the apartment, making sure he hadn’t left behind a crumpled pair of boxers on his way to the shower or an old issue ofPlayboyopened to the centerfold. He trod to the kitchen sink, relieved it was empty of dirty dishes.
Hailey laughed and cooed while deftly redirecting the dog’s enthusiastic tongue. Her eyes lifted above the dog’s head, fixing on Noah. “Lex Luthor is a completely different dog. Is it okay for him to be so active right now?”
“Neve said it was all right.” Noah leaned a hip against an undersized butcher-block island. “And it’s Rover. For now.” When her brows knitted together in bewilderment, he added, “I can’t bring myself to call him Lex Luthor.”
“Do you have any other names in mind?”
“Nope. Got any ideas?”
She turned her attention back to the mutt, and Noah took full advantage, letting his eyes coast up and down her lithe frame. He’d never brought a woman into this private space besides his mom and Dixie, and it struck him how natural having Hailey here felt … as though shefit.
The next instant had him virtually whacking himself upside the head. He had neither the time nor the emotional bandwidth to pursue this girl. Besides, he’d just left another woman’s bed two days ago. What did that make him? Never mind that he’d been caught in a moment of weakness after a long dry spell. Six years ago, he would have proudly worn a badge emblazoned with “Stud,” but now? That same medallion would weigh on him like a hunk of lead and be so tarnished the moniker would be obliterated.
The girl who so seamlessly blended into his loft brought herself upright, and the dog stuffed his big nose into her palm. “As a matter of fact, I do.” A little grin tugged her pretty mouth. “What if you have a naming contest for him tonight? The winner gets … oh, I don’t know. Free beer for a year?”
He shook his head vigorously. “Not with the way this town drinks.”
“A free meal, then?” She held up her pointer, and her vibrant blue eyes gleamed. “Or how about this? A hundred-dollar credit at the Miners Tavern and have a box they can stuff with suggestions all week long. Say you’ll announce the winner this weekend to keep them coming in for the rest of the week. The extra boost in sales will pay for the credit. And if you’re lucky, the winner will be an out-of-towner who doesn’t cash in. Double win.”
Her excitement bubbled over, and Noah smoothed his beard to hide a smile. “I like that idea. Thank you, Hailey Bailey.”
Her eyes scanned his apartment, and apprehension sprouted inside him. What if she didn’t like what she saw? “If you have a box or a can and some markers, I’ll whip something together.”
