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  “Shut up,” grumbled his sister.

  Dylan didn’t like the look he was getting from his older brother. Luke, the born protector. Maybe his brother would take him outside and kick his ass. Hell, Dylan would welcome it right now. Anything would be better than this fucking numbness he’d felt since he’d left Carly … like a piece of his soul was missing.

  “It’s not like that, Becca.” Dylan set his beer down and rested his elbows on the bar. He rubbed the palms of his hands against his eyes before turning to look at his sister. “Why don’t you ask Carly? Because I am sick to death of falling for women who don’t want anything more than my money.”

  Dylan didn’t know what he’d expected, but it certainly wasn’t the laugh that bubbled out of Becca. “What on earth are you talking about?”

  “Dude, seriously? Carly’s not like that.”

  Great, now Luke was giving him love advice.

  Before he could defend himself and offer up an explanation, Becca said, “Well, speak of the devil.”

  Dylan whipped around so fast, he almost gave himself whiplash. He didn’t want to admit that his heart leapt with hope that Carly would walk through the door. He also didn’t want to admit the disappointment he felt when he saw it was just her mother.

  Marnie was accompanied by Sam Torrance, the builder who had constructed her shelter. He was helping Marnie off with her long, red coat when she spotted him. “Dr. Price.” She waved, then walked over and leaned in to give him a hug.

  “Hey, Marnie, you look great. Hi, Sam.”

  “Dylan, Becca, it’s good to see you.” Sam smiled and shook his hand before turning to Luke. “Luke, if you have a moment, I’d like to talk to you about the addition of the new hospital wing you’ll be working on this summer.” Sam kissed Marnie on the cheek before he and Luke went to sit in a booth.

  “Have a seat, Marnie. Let me buy you a glass of wine,” Dylan offered.

  Marnie took the spot vacated by Luke. She had a glass of wine in front of her before she turned to Dylan. “Do you know if your partner is going to be here? I wanted to thank him.”

  “I don’t know if he and his wife were planning to get out with the baby.”

  “Baby?” Becca almost squealed. “I didn’t realize Brian and Lucy had their baby already! What did they have?”

  Dylan grinned as he thought of how nervous Brian had looked when he’d asked to hold his friend’s new daughter. “They had a little girl. Teagan Grace.”

  Becca clapped her hands together. “Oh, what a pretty name!” she said, rummaging through her purse. She pulled out her phone and began tapping away. “I’m going to send them a baby gift right now.”

  As his sister busied herself, Dylan turned back to face Marnie. “Uh, you said you wanted to thank Brian? Thank him for what?”

  “Yes, for the recommendation.”

  When it was obvious he had no idea what Marnie was talking about, she said, “Oh, that’s right. Carly told me she didn’t have the chance to talk to you about it. We’re expanding the shelter!”

  “Does that mean you got the grant?” Becca asked, excitedly.

  “Yes! Sam is working on finalizing all the plans with the environmental agency.”

  “Environmental agency?” Dylan knew the plans he’d seen in Marnie’s kitchen were for green energy, yet he couldn’t help but think of how expensive that was to build. And why did Marnie need to thank his partner Brian? Had he given her money?

  Marnie squeezed his arm in excitement. “Carly helped me apply for a grant from an environmental agency. If we got it, then they would pay to expand the shelter. We have so many green practices in place already, so we thought why not?”

  Dylan swallowed against the sick feeling in his stomach. So they hadn’t needed his money?

  Marnie continued. “We needed a recommendation to complete the application. Carly said she tried to ask you for one, but she didn’t have the chance, so I asked Brian. He wrote the nicest recommendation.” Marnie clapped her hands together. “I’m just so thrilled when I think of how many more animals we’re going to be able to save!”

  He thought back to Carly’s words. “There’s something I need to talk to you about.” And he had just assumed she’d wanted money. She’d never actually said that. And then the things he’d said to her. Oh, good lord, he’d called her a whore. Dylan heard a horrible sound come from his throat. What had he done?

  “My goodness, are you okay?” Marnie put a hand to his forehead. “You’ve gone so pale all of a sudden.”

  Becca snorted. “I think it’s the fever of realization.”

  Sometimes he wanted to throttle his little sister.

  Marnie looked between them, confusion evident on her face. “Well, I know there’s something going around. Carly’s not feeling well, either, but then that’s partly my fault.”

  When tears filled Marnie’s eyes, Dylan felt a thread of panic. “What’s wrong with Carly?”

  “Well, she’s just been a little off the last few days. The only thing that seemed to bring her any joy was coming home from work and cuddling that little Chihuahua puppy.”

  “Cupid?” he asked.

  Marnie looked surprised he knew the dog’s name. “That’s right. Well, I did something stupid. Carly never mentioned she wanted to keep him. I had a family come yesterday to look at the adoptables, and they decided to adopt Cupid. When Carly came home and found that he was gone, she just started sobbing.” Marnie swiped away a tear. “I could have kicked myself. If I’d known she was so attached to him, I never would have—”

  “Hey, it’s not your fault.” He tried to comfort the older woman. He couldn’t imagine how upset Carly must be. She had so obviously loved that little dog. “Do you remember who adopted him?”

  “Of course.” Marnie sniffed and dabbed at the corners of her eyes with the tips of her ring fingers. “It was Lucy Turner’s sister… Oh shoot, what is her name?”

  “You mean my partner Brian’s sister-in-law?”

  “Yes.” Marnie snapped her fingers. “Lauren. It was Lauren and her family.”

  Suddenly, a thought occurred to Dylan. He’d met Lauren several times when he’d been to Brian and Lucy’s for dinner. Recently, he’d purchased eighteen boxes of Girl Scout cookies from Lauren’s sweet little daughter to make sure the girl had enough points to get a pair of Twinkle Toes sneakers. He still didn’t know exactly why shoes were so exciting, but he just couldn’t resist the little girl’s big hopeful eyes.

  A smile played at his lips. Technically, that meant Lauren owed him a favor. He rose from his stool and planted a kiss on Marnie’s cheek.

  “Oh my, what was that for?” She blushed.

  “That’s for giving me a great idea.”

  Becca smiled and reached up to give him a fierce hug. “Go get her, big brother.”

  He ran out of the bar, ready to do anything he needed to get his girl back.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Carly poured herself a glass of wine as Batgirl jumped up on the counter. The fluffy cat gave her a judgmental look.

  “What?” she asked the feline defensively. “It’s Valentine’s Day. I can have a glass of wine if I want to.” She took a sip of the cabernet as if to prove her point. “It’s not like I have a date or anything,” she grumbled. Even her mother had a date. She’d just gone out with Sam the night before, and he was taking her out again tonight.

  Batgirl gave a tail flick of empathy and nuzzled her head against Carly’s arm. Despite her sour mood, she couldn’t stop herself from smiling as she scratched Batgirl behind the ears. “I guess it’s just you and me, huh, girl?” Setting her glass of wine down, she opened the cabinet to get Batgirl a treat, and felt a pang of sadness when she saw the bag of puppy treats she’d bought for Cupid. She’d never intended to keep the little dog, but she also hadn’t meant to fall in love with him.

  She snatched up the bag of cat treats, trying to shake off the sad thoughts. She was sure Cupid was perfectly happy with the family who�
��d adopted him. At least that’s what she kept telling herself. As Batgirl gobbled up the treats from her palm, Carly wondered how she was ever going to part with her five fluffy little kittens once they were weaned. She didn’t even want to think about that yet.

  “Carly, sweetie, can I ask you a favor?” Marnie’s voice preceded her into the room. Carly looked up as Batgirl ate treats out of her hand.

  Marnie rounded the corner into the kitchen, doing a dramatic twirl in her black dress. “Would you mind if I borrowed this scarf? It would add just the right amount of flair to my outfit.”

  Carly nearly choked on her wine as she noticed Marnie was carrying her red scarf with the little white hearts on it. Oh hell. She thought she’d shoved that to the back of her closet. She’d been close to throwing it away, but she just couldn’t bring herself to do it. She could feel her cheeks grow hot as she thought of the way Dylan had bound her hands with that scarf. And now her mom wanted to wear it? That was just weird.

  But what was she supposed to say? You can’t wear it, Mom. Your lovable veterinarian, who actually turned out to be an asshole of gigantic proportions, tied me up with that scarf then fucked my brains out in the kitchen.

  “Um … uh, sure, you can wear it.” She averted her eyes as her mom tied it around her neck. She could have sworn that Batgirl actually smirked. Yep, even a cat could appreciate the situation as weird.

  “I wish you would have gone to the opening at Price last night,” Marnie said. “The food was amazing. That Linzee sure can cook.”

  Carly turned to watch her mom fluff her graying hair in the mirror that hung in the hallway just outside the kitchen. “I would have gone if I didn’t have to work.” The truth was she’d gotten off in time that she could have gone, but she just couldn’t bring herself to come face to face with Dylan yet. And that really pissed her off. She hadn’t done anything wrong, dammit. And she was certain she’d done nothing wrong because she’d analyzed the entire thing backward, forward, and sideways.

  “At least you have tonight off,” Marnie said.

  She sighed. “Yeah, it’s been a long week.” And it was Valentine’s Day. The last thing she wanted to do was work at Quigley’s and watch all the happy couples coming in for their big romantic evenings.

  When her mom didn’t say anything, Carly looked up to see Marnie standing with her arms cross with a thoughtful look on her face.

  “What?” she asked.

  “You know, you could come out with me and Sam.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Mom, I am not coming with you on your date.”

  Thank goodness the doorbell rang and stopped her mom from going any further with that awkward idea.

  Carly turned and corked the bottle of wine, as she heard Sam’s deep voice in the front hall. She picked up her glass as Batgirl leaped onto her shoulder and wound her fluffy body around the back of Carly’s neck—her favorite spot to hang out.

  Marnie walked into the kitchen and picked up her purse, with Sam following her. “Hello, Carly,” he boomed. She couldn’t help but smile as Sam walked over to her and leaned in to kiss her cheek. His easy smile could light up a room. He and Marnie really were the perfect fit.

  As he helped Marnie shrug into her coat, Sam looked up at Carly. “Why don’t you come with us?” he asked. “We’re going to Paulo’s, and I know you like Italian food.” He put an arm around Marnie’s shoulders and looked down at her lovingly. “You have that much of your mom in you.”

  Carly loved seeing the two of them so happy. She hoped she found that someday. “I wouldn’t dream of being a third wheel on Valentine’s Day.” When her mom opened her mouth to speak, Carly held up a hand to stop her. “Besides, I have a date … with Batgirl, a bottle of wine, and my Love Actually DVD. I can’t keep Colin Firth waiting.”

  After she had practically shooed her mom and Sam out the door, Carly walked into the family room and plopped down on the couch. Before she turned on the TV, she picked up her phone and looked at the display, but then she wanted to kick herself. It had been four days, and he hadn’t called. What made her think he was going to call now? Not that she wanted him to. Nope, she didn’t.

  She tossed her phone on the coffee table and turned on the TV. She wasn’t going to think about Dylan. She wasn’t going to imagine him kissing her. She wasn’t going to think about the naughty things he’d done with that scarf. She wasn’t going to think about the sting of his hand on her ass, or how hot it had made her. Or about how amazing she’d felt when he’d been inside of her, when she’d exploded around him.

  She blew out a breath and pulled her knees up to her chest. Yeah, she wasn’t going to think about it so much that she was panting. Dammit. Damn him.

  The doorbell pulled her out of her thoughts. She looked at the time on the DVD player. Eight o’clock. She wasn’t expecting anyone. Getting up, she made her way to the front door and turned on the porch light. She looked through the peephole, but saw nothing. Well, that’s weird.

  She slid the chain in place before she opened it. Not that an axe murder couldn’t just push the door open anyway, but it gave her some semblance of security. When she opened the door, she looked over the chain, but she didn’t see anything. She moved to shut the door when she heard a little yip.

  Looking down, she saw a huge heart-shaped red box setting on the porch right in front of the door. And it was moving a little. What on earth?

  She unhooked the chain and opened the door wide before she bent down. Reaching for the box, she wiggled the lid, loosening it enough so she could slide it off. No sooner did she have the lid off the box, when a tiny brown ball of fur launched itself into her arms.

  “Oh my God, Cupid!” she squealed. The little puppy licked her face excitedly between yips, his tail going so hard that it looked like the entire back half of his little body was wagging. “I missed you so much,” she cried, and couldn’t stop the tears that streamed down her face. She held Cupid close as she stood up. She was so excited to see him that it took her a few moments to realize the little puppy had something attached to his neck.

  When she looked closer, she saw it was a little square card attached to Cupid’s collar with a red ribbon. Furrowing her brow, she looked up from the squirming puppy and into the night. She didn’t see anyone, but she was guessing Cupid couldn’t have found his way back home and put himself in a heart-shaped box.

  She turned her attention back to the little card on his collar. The front read, Be My Valentine? Then she turned it over and saw the writing.

  Sometimes boys are dumb … really dumb.

  But since this one gave us a second chance,

  Maybe you can give him one.

  After all…

  He loves you.

  Her heart pounded faster, adrenaline beginning to thrum through her system. Dylan. It had to be Dylan. She looked up again, and this time, he stood at the bottom of her porch steps. She hadn’t seen him in a few days, but she was pretty sure he’d gotten even more gorgeous. Her eyes trailed up his muscular body. Jeans that fit snugly in all the right places, a black bomber jacket, open at the collar to reveal a blue sweater. Then her eyes stopped on his face—his beautiful, masculine, chiseled, incredible face. The stubble on his square jaw lent a look of danger to his still form. His blue eyes studied her. They were the only thing that moved as his black hair ruffled in the breeze.

  He wasn’t moving, wasn’t speaking. Because it was her turn. Did she give him another chance? Or not?

  Clearing her throat, she reached up and swiped at her cheeks. “Dylan.” Did her voice really sound that damn shaky? “Dylan, I don’t know how … I mean Cupid—thank you. But how?”

  A grin broke over his features. “I happen to know the family who adopted him. It turns out Cupid has done nothing but lie by the door and cry since they got him. When I explained the situation, they agreed that he was homesick. He missed you, sweetheart. We both missed you.”

  He walked slowly up the porch steps as if he were approaching a wounded a
nimal. And that was an accurate comparison. After all, that’s how she’d felt since he’d walked out, how she still felt—wounded. By him.

  “Stop!” she said when he reached the top of the steps. He stood only three feet from her, and with every inch closer, her resolve weakened. “Dylan, it’s not that easy. You were … horrible to me. You said horrible things. You can’t just waltz back in here with a puppy and expect everything to be okay. It doesn’t work that way.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Dylan took a step closer, his heart nearly pounding out of his chest. “Are you sure? Because I really thought the puppy helped.”

  Carly’s chin jutted out. “This is so not funny.”

  His smile faded. “I know it’s not, Carls. I fucked up. There’s no other way to say it.” He scrubbed a hand through his hair. “When I saw the information for the shelter rebuild, my mind jumped to how much a green expansion would cost. Then when you said you needed to talk to me about something—”

  “You thought I wanted your money.”

  He looked at her face. Understanding seemed to have clicked in place for her. “Yeah. My last girlfriend did a number on me, Carly. She made me think she was the one. She put on this act as the perfect woman. Then I found out the only thing she cared about was the money.”

  Carly bit her lip. That full bottom lip that he just wanted to suck into his mouth. “Did you love her?” she asked.

  He shook his head without hesitation. “I thought I did. But she wasn’t real. The woman I thought she was, the woman I wanted, didn’t exist. I know now I didn’t love her.” He took a deep breath. “I know that because I love you, Carly. I’ve fallen in love with you.”

  Cupid had nuzzled into her chest, his little eyes looking up at her and back at Dylan as if he weren’t sure whose side he should take. Carly’s lower lip wobbled as if she were trying hard not to cry again.

  “Baby, I am so sorry. I will spend the rest of my life trying to make it up to you. I’ll never be able to forgive myself for how I treated you. Will you forgive me? Will you give me another chance? Give us another chance?”