Page 224 of Zach
She smiles again in understanding and gives my arm a little squeeze. “I thought maybe I could-“
she stops and tilts her head, a little smile playing on her lips as the brothers, not so quietly, shuffle to
the double doors.
We watch, me with my hands covering my cheeks in embarrassment. Abby with glee, and Cadence
with a bemused smile as they casually — Nick’s even whistling — push open the door. One by one,
they slip through, somehow not once noticing us staring.
“Are…is… Hell,” Cadence says, propping her hands on her hips. “Are they who I think they
are?”
Abby and I exchange a look, but it’s Abby who answers. “Yeah.”
Again, Cadence nods, looking shockingly calm. “Ok. So a pack of billionaires just broke into my
kennels?”
Jesus. Do these guys have a PR department? I should ask. If they don’t, they really need one.
“Well, ‘break’ might be a little harsh. They just got…curious.”
Zach enters and beelines to us, still not that steady on his feet, his hands tucked behind his back.
“Where’d everyone go?”
We point to the back room, and he blanches. “Back there? With the barking and the fur?”
Oh, we are so going back there. Zach Lee, in his expensive suit, covered in dog fur, is not
something I want to miss. I widen my eyes at Cadence, hoping our shared love of dogs is enough of a
connection to convince her to play along. Thankfully, she shakes her head with a smile and steps
forward. “Follow me.”
Zach gives me a goofy grin, then steps right behind her, following her suspiciously closely. I can’t
see past his giant back, but he’s doing some sort of weird dip with every step, and his arm is moving.
Suspicious, and really worried about us all getting arrested, I sidestep to get a clear look at what he’s
doing.
I slam my eyes shut in horror, and okay, it’s really funny too. But we are definitely getting
arrested. Maybe it won’t be so bad. Lots of people end up in jail for a night, don’t they? Maybe I
should have added it to my list. I open my eyes just as Zach makes another swipe.
The damned man has a lint roller, and is swiping at the dog hair on Cadence’s back. I watch
horrified as he peels a layer of sticky tape off, then swipes again. “Zach,” I whisper yell. He turns
back, but so does Cadence. I glare at him, telling him with every fibre of my being to keep his stupid
