Total pages in book: 29
Estimated words: 26941 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 135(@200wpm)___ 108(@250wpm)___ 90(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 26941 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 135(@200wpm)___ 108(@250wpm)___ 90(@300wpm)
He smiles, and it isn’t the smart-aleck grin or the sexy lift of his lips. It’s a genuine expression of feeling. “That might be the nicest thing you’ve said to me since we saw each other again.”
He leans in and captures my lips with his, immediately deepening the kiss. I lose myself in the sweep of his tongue and the meshing of our mouths, forgetting everything except Axel and the way he makes me feel.
He slides his hands around my waist, his palms cupping my ass as he pulls me against him. The hardness of his erection presses into my belly, and I groan just as a car honks in the distance.
Reminded we aren’t in a private place, I break the kiss and touch my forehead to his chest. “You make me forget where I am,” I say. He even causes me to overlook who I am and what I want.
“It’s not a bad thing to get lost in each other.” He steps back, places his hand under my chin, and forces me to meet his gaze. “I’m not going to hurt you.” Those dazzling green orbs capture me, his deep tone begging me to trust him.
“Let’s go get you a dog,” I murmur, grasping his hand and leading him inside. The bells over the door ring as we enter.
I spent enough time in the rescue building that the citrus scent of enzymatic cleaner is familiar to me. I approach the empty desk, knowing Norah must be in the back and she’ll come out soon.
I glance at Axel, hoping he knows what he’s getting himself into with a pet.
“My favorite doctor is here!” Norah rushes out of the back room.
I took to her, with her pink hair and bubbly personality, the day we met. And vice versa.
“Hi!” I walk around the counter and hug the woman I consider more than a colleague. “Norah, this is my … friend—”
“Her boyfriend,” Axel says.
Ignoring him and the flutter in my stomach his words cause, I continue, “This is Axel Forrester. Axel, this is Norah. She owns the shelter.”
A trust fund baby with a heart of gold, Norah took the money left to her by her grandparents and opened the rescue.
Norah looks Axel over, no doubt because of our contradicting descriptions of their relationship.
“You’re the drummer from Caged Chaos and now the Original Kings,” she says, her tone and grin those of an excited fan.
“Watch it. His ego is big enough,” I say, laughing.
Axel walks over and shakes her hand. “Nice to meet you.”
“Same here.” Norah smiles.
“Tara was just educating me on the adopt, don’t shop philosophy, and I have to admit, now that I understand, it makes perfect sense,” he says.
I shoot him a surprised glance. Even when he agreed to come to the shelter instead of the pet store, I really thought he was trying to make a good impression on me. Instead, he not only listened, he took my words to heart. And my own heart squeezes in my chest.
If I’m not careful, he’ll win me over despite all the reasons I am trying hard not to fall.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Axel
Norah pulls out paperwork and places it on the counter. “Sorry. We’re not technology-based. You’ll need to fill these out before you leave with a dog. Usually, there’s a screening process, but I think we can trust the word of our resident vet.” She grins at Tara.
“I’ll do that,” I say, picking up the pen and answering the questions as the women speak.
“How’s the fundraising going?” Tara asks, causing my ears to perk up.
Norah lets out a sigh. “Unfortunately, not as well as I’d like. I don’t want to have to close this place in the off months, but I don’t know if I can afford to keep it going if nobody pitches in.” Norah shrugs. “I put in as much money as I could on my own, but things are tight.”
“You’re having financial problems?” I ask as I scrawled my name on the final page.
Norah glances up. “Yes. I started the shelter with my inheritance, but it’s expensive to keep the place up and running without substantial donations.” She pulls out a set of keys. “Ready to check out the dogs?”
Obviously, she doesn’t want to discuss her business problems, and I respect that. We follow Norah to the door leading to the back kennels.
She pauses before letting us in. “So what kind of dog are you looking for? Big, small, medium? Hair, fur?”
I look at Tara, aware I must have a confused expression on my face. I haven’t thought about the kind of dog I want.
She laughs and pats my shoulder. “He loves a friend’s golden retriever, so he’s comfortable with that size and type of fur. Beyond that, let’s see who he takes to and who takes to him.”
No sooner has Norah opened the door than a cacophony of barking sounds loudly around us, all the dogs making their excited presence known.