A Match Made In Bliss. Diann Walker

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СКАЧАТЬ you get too comfortable.” Nocchi snuggled her head into Lauren’s neck, a gesture that brought them both sheer pleasure.

      “Okay, let’s go.” Lauren adjusted Nocchi’s hat, latched a leash onto her collar, walked her out of the room and down the stairs. She saw the owner bent over paperwork at his desk. Nocchi veered a little too far over and bumped into a stand. Garrett looked up.

      “Sorry,” Lauren said to Garrett while tugging at the leash to pull Nocchi to her. She rubbed Nocchi’s noggin. “Is this a good time to take her out?”

      “No problem.” He stood and started toward the back door. “Come this way,” he called over his shoulder.

      Lauren followed him through the dining room, into the kitchen and out the back door, taking in his long strides, tall, lean frame, sweatshirt and jeans. Something about him made her want to put on a sweat suit, scrunch into a blanket and cuddle with someone under the stars. Jeff Levinger’s face popped into view, causing an ache in her heart. Six months, and she still hurt as if they had broken up only yesterday. People don’t just fall in and out of love—it takes time to get over the pain. She remembered her promise to herself to wait a year before starting another relationship. Not that there was a problem. She didn’t exactly have men waiting in line to take her out.

      “Why don’t you hold on to Nocchi, and I’ll keep Bear chained, but we can let them get to know each other a moment. Would that be all right?”

      His voice chased away the ache in her heart—for now. “Well…” She bit her lip and thought a moment. “I suppose it would be all right.” She followed him over to the doghouse, where a black Lab ambled out of the opening, his tail wagging. A good sign, she thought.

      Nocchi started barking like crazy. Lauren and Garrett worked to calm their dogs.

      Once Nocchi quieted, Lauren listened as the man soothed his dog. That spoke well of him. Men who were good to animals were true heroes in her book. This trip might be worthwhile after all.

      “I think Bear’s ready,” Garrett said, motioning for Lauren to bring Nocchi over.

      Carefully she stepped close to Bear and squatted down so the dogs could sniff one another while Nocchi stayed in her arms. Bear’s tail continued to wag. Nocchi sniffed back, her tail wagging with a trace of caution.

      “You want to put her down? I’ll see that Bear behaves.”

      “If he doesn’t, I’m afraid I’ll have to hurt you,” she said with only a hint of teasing before gently placing Nocchi inches from her on the ground.

      Garrett studied her a moment. Almost as if he considered taking her on.

      “I’m kidding.”

      “Good thing. I haven’t worked out in a while.”

      “Oh, now who’s the comedian?” she kidded before adding, “Like I could hurt you.”

      He straightened his back. Had she imagined it, or did she see him flex?

      “Well, you could try,” he said, quirking an eyebrow and flashing a biceps.

      They both laughed. “Hey, it seems they’re hitting it off,” Lauren said, looking at the dogs. “Guess you’re safe.”

      “Well, would you look at that?”

      “You’re surprised?”

      “You have to admit they’re very different. I’ve never seen Bear take to a little dog before. I knew he wouldn’t hurt her, but I didn’t expect him to actually like her.” The two dogs appeared instant friends.

      “Must be the clothes. I mean, an outfit can make all the difference,” Lauren said while examining a slight chip in her red nail polish. “I looked a long time before I found a clothing site for dogs on the Internet that I could be happy with.” She looked up to find Garrett gaping.

      Garrett snapped his mouth closed. Men just didn’t appreciate the finer things in life.

      “She’s a little self-conscious about the whole cross-eyed thing, so I thought some nice doggie clothes would make her feel better.” Lauren smiled. “Isn’t that right, Nocchi,” she cooed, patting the dogs’ head.

      He stared at her a moment then lifted a weak smile.

      They engaged in a friendly chat while they watched the dogs interact. Lauren told him she was a corporate attorney from Indiana. An ex-corporate attorney who had lost her job, she should have said, but why throw in the gory details? Besides, she was still a corporate attorney, just an unemployed one.

      Garrett told about his wife’s dream of owning a B and B, and he talked about his daughters. By the time they heard the car doors in the parking area, they had gleaned quite a bit of knowledge about each other.

      Lauren took Nocchi for a little walk around the grounds, while Garrett went into the house to greet everyone. When Lauren stepped inside, she heard the chatter coming from the house and hoped it wouldn’t be that noisy all the time. She really did need some peace and quiet. They were still standing around talking when she walked into view. The moment everyone saw her, all talk came to a complete stop.

      Lauren scooped Nocchi into her arms, more for comfort than propriety, and looked up. “Hello.” The odd mix of women looked none too friendly, from her point of view. Of course, she had to tell herself she was stressed and probably overreacting.

      The wide grin on Garrett’s face encouraged her. Everyone looked from him back to her. He walked to her side and gently grabbed her arm, a gesture everyone seemed to notice. “Ladies, I want you to meet Lauren Romey.”

      A cold chill seemed to sweep across the room like an arctic blast. No one in the room was smiling but Garrett. She didn’t know what was going on, but there was a definite competitive feel in the air.

      “Hello,” she said.

      Garrett gently guided Lauren around the room. “Lauren, this is Gracie Skinner.” Lauren felt a trifle intimidated by the tall, thin beauty with perfect hair and teeth. This woman could model for any upscale New York agency. Lauren wondered why Gracie would be at the B and B, and decided she must need a break, too. “Gracie comes from Castle Mountain, Tennessee,” Garrett said.

      “My, my, what a funny little dog,” Gracie said, pointing at Nocchi’s hat.

      Why couldn’t anyone appreciate Nocchi’s upscale appearance?

      Gracie locked eyes with Lauren. “Howdy, Lucy.”

      “Um, it’s Lauren,” she corrected.

      “Oh,” Gracie said with a fake laugh, “ain’t I bad?” She waved her hand and walked away.

      Suddenly the woman didn’t look so beautiful.

      Garrett pulled Lauren to the next woman. “This is Ellen Little from Tangly, Ohio.” Though she was a bit skinny, the woman’s red hair had a shine that could rival a washed apple. She put a hand to her meager chest and took a deep breath. Behind her trendy glasses her eyes were an interesting green, almost the color of a budding leaf. After pushing her glasses back up her nose, for a fleeting second she lifted her eyes and upturned mouth. “Hello,” СКАЧАТЬ