Page 31 of Their Pup to Tame

“I do get a smidge fancier than steak and potatoes,” he said, holding his fingers farther apart than I’d have considered a smidge.

“Uh-huh,” I muttered as I stood to collect our trash and throw it away. “Just do me one favor.”

“What?”

“If it’s something truly exotic, like snails or eels, don’t tell me.”

“You don’t have to worry about that,” he replied. “I keep to what I can find at the butcher shop and the grocery store. I wouldn’t even know where to go to get the kinds of snails you can cook. I have eaten them, though, and I must say, my skepticism faded at the first bite. But I am woefully untrained in the art of preparing them.”

“Shouldn’t a good British butler be prepared for whatever crises arise on his watch?”

“As the butler, my job is to oversee the household; it says nothing about cooking on my list of duties.”

“But weren’t you the one who just offered to…”

The whole façade broke at last, and he doubled over laughing. It was a good thing I’d already thrown our sundae cups away, because his hair might have gotten sticky.

“Damnit, I knew you were going to trip me up eventually.”

“Yeah, but you made me work for it.”

“You still haven’t told me the solution you came up with,” I reminded him.

“Oh, that, it’s easy. We just get Aspen to go with us. You’ve seen his condiments collection. No way he doesn’t fill half the back seat all on his own. This way we get to shop and plan out some meals together.”

“I like that plan,” I replied as he stood and arched his back.

“Me too. Think Aspen will?”

“I hope so, when you think about the way he was issuing orders this morning. You’ve still got to figure out your story or he won’t be pleased with either of us.”

“Maybe after the next stretch, I’ll have it unraveled,” he muttered.

“You could always have someone else rescue them,” I blurted. “Like one of the bike messenger guys. Maybe that’s why he winds up dead in the next book.”

He said nothing, just stared at me, bug-eyed and frozen.

“Or not,” I muttered and started to turn to head back to my bike.

I was yanked around so fast that when I collided with his chest, my head was still reeling.

“Brilliant!” he declared, kissing me while I was still trying to catch my breath. “I love it. I need to write that down. Then we can get rolling if you’re ready to go. I’m sure it will be writing itself in my head for the rest of the afternoon.”

“Glad I could help,” I murmured as his lips closed over mine, carrying the lingering essence of cherries.

He whipped a notebook out and started scribbling the moment we broke apart, while I stared off over the rows of beautiful trees running through the valley, hoping we did come back as a trio and not just once either.

I was starting to think that I might want forever with them. But what were the odds they felt the same about me? And how to find out before I broke my own heart chasing men who were out of my league? I needed an answer to that last one pronto, though I feared it was already too late.

I was falling in love with them.

9

PARKER

“Aren’t we underdressed for this place?” Phoenix asked as we stood on the walkway leading up to the steakhouse. “By a lot?”

“Not when you’re one of the owners,” I explained, shrugging, because for the most part it had been an investment. I was a, mostly, silent partner since I didn’t know fuck all about advertising or what it took to keep a restaurant running efficiently. When it came to the menu, however, I’d had the opportunity to contribute by working with the kitchen staff to pare down their old dishes, which had offered way too many options. Slowly, we’d molded Silver Medallions into a place that prided itself on making the best steaks around.