Rue’s blue gaze widened, then fell to somewhere in the vicinity of his chest, where his heart skipped and hummed for no reason at all.
“Hey, you two. I have a literal basket full of puppies. Want to give me a hand here?” Kate’s voice cut through the thick silence, and only then did Ethan realize the actual riot of noise happening around them.
He turned away from Rue to the sound of dogs barking from another room. Kate stood not far from them with five squirmy golden puppies rolling around in a basket, and he heard Rue’s breath catch as she reached for the most intrepid of the group, who had his paws on the edge and his nose poked over the side. She scooped up the dog then looked at Ethan. “It’s a good thing I’m leaving because I’d probably adopt them all. I’d put this place out of business all on my own.”
He ignored the funny feeling in his chest and took the basket from Kate, who wished them “the best of luck” before retreating.
“Where should I put them?”
Rue stepped ahead of him and moved the bench the cat had been on. “Right here,” she cooed to the puppy. In a less sing-songy voice, she added, “We’re just going with the basket. That will be challenge enough with these guys.”
“Gotcha.” He placed the basket on the floor and settled down next to it. Rue returned the puppy to the group, then sat directly in front of them.
“Over here by me,” she said as one of the dogs rolled out.
Ethan captured the escapee and sat next to Rue. “This is going to be interesting.”
“Not the worst opinion you could have,” she said with a wink. “Your job is to try to get them to look this way. You’re probably not going to be able to do it, but we’ll see what happens.”
For the next few moments, Ethan recaptured one escapee after another while Rue shot nonstop photos. By his count, she was well into the hundreds by the time she lowered the camera and gave him a thoughtful, mischievous look. “Your turn.”
“I’m sorry?”
She smiled brightly. “Hold a puppy and give me that sexy, moody kind of scowl thing you do.”
His jaw loosened. “I’m pretty sure this marks the first time any woman has ever asked a man to be moody.” Clearly he had absolutely no understanding of women. None.
She gently scratched the puppy’s head, her hand making light contact with Ethan’s chest. The subsequent sensation made him feel shaky, like she’d spun him in circles and he wasn’t sure which end was up. “I didn’t say be moody,” she corrected. “I just want the look. The dark, mysterious, maybe dangerous and all the more delicious for it look.”
“Uh, huh. This reeks of one of your calendar shots.”
“Don’t be silly. You’re wearing a shirt.”
He rolled his eyes, but he did as she asked. Sort of. He mostly just stared at her, figuring his regular face must be the moody one she referenced. Which wasn’t so great in general, but if she thought it dark, mysterious, and delicious, then he could certainly stare.
“Now hold him up by your face and look sweet.”
Ethan scowled. “I don’t do sweet. What happened to moody?”
She grinned. “Don’t worry. I definitely see moody. Now just soften it up a little. Deep and sensitive.”
Did people really have so many expressions? He might, but not that he could pull up on cue. He had a feeling she was toying with him. “How exactly does one look sensitive?”
“You know, I had less trouble with the sharks.”
“That may be, but I have a feeling I know why one tried to take your camera. You probably told him to look moody.”
She laughed, and it was gorgeous. “Just hold the puppy.”
“Fine.” He lifted the little guy and stared at the camera. He had no intention of smiling, but then a rough little tongue curled against his cheek, and he broke into a grin.
“Perfect,” she said, taking a dozen pictures while he looked nothing like moody.
“Seriously?” He wasn’t sure if he was talking to her or the dog, but it didn’t matter. It kind of was perfect, puppy breath and all. He released the little monster and watched him trot back to his litter mates, startled when an unexpected weight landed on his shoulder.