Christmas Romance (Best Christmas Romances of 2013) (5 page)

“Nice to meet you Tennyson. My parents like golf and yours were hoping for a boy that played racket sports.”

She laughed. It made her brown eyes sparkle and his mouth felt a little dry. He’d had his share of girlfriends in the past, but it had been months since he’d even been out on a date. All work and no play. Just what his father wanted.
I should ask her out on a date
. “Hey… what are you–”

“Mobley!” she shouted. “Be careful, you’re going to hurt Boci if you play that hard.” She stopped and watched the three dogs run down the hill. “That other dog is still here. I don’t see anyone again and I’m starting to worry.”

Par looked around. “You’re right. This is the second day. Do you think he’s been here alone since yesterday?”

“The park keeper would have seen him.”

He shook his head. “Not necessarily. I’m sure the park attendant comes at closing and takes a quick look around. If there are no cars, they assume all the dogs are gone. It’s twenty acres.”

“A dog could get lost. Out by the main gate, there’s a number to call in case of emergencies.”

Par followed Tennyson and listed while she dialed the number listed by the front gate and explained the issue. Her brows were knit into a frown as she replied to the voice on the other end of the line, “That’s okay. I’ll take care of it.” She ended the call and dropped her phone back in her purse.

“What did they say?”

“He said that they would send the Animal Control out. I don’t like that idea. Poor guy. There’s water but he’s had no food for a few days. How could someone do that? Just leave their dog?”

“Not everyone in the world is nice.” When the three dogs made another run past them, he stepped in front of the last dog to stop it. Bending down, he looked at the tag on his collar. “Duke. There isn’t a contact phone number, but at least we have his name.”

Tennyson reached into her purse. “Here boy,” she called as she unwrapped her sandwich. The dog quickly came to her. She held the bread out to him.  He ate it in one gulp and wagged his tail. “I had a Lab when I was a kid. Duke’s black, I had a Golden, but they are super sweet dogs.” She looked up at him. “What should we do? I can’t take him back to my place; it’s super small and my roommate has just come to terms with Mobley. She says she’s a cat person.”

“The park owner mentioned the—“

“No,” she stated solidly. “They can’t take him there. He’s scared, cold and hungry.” She bit her lip in concentration, obviously trying to think of an alternative.

“I can take him”

“You can?” She stood and brushed off her hands. Her face brightened. “That would be great.
I can make flyers and maybe his owners will come back for him.” She dug back in her purse. “Damn, I left my phone with a camera at home.”

“Do you have a piece of paper and a pen?” He motioned to his shorts and t-shirt. “I don’t carry much on me when I run.”

“Sure.” She pulled out a green metal case, and then handed it to him.

“This is my address. Why don’t you come by around seven and you can take a picture of him for the flyers. We can design and print the flyers there; I have lots of ink and paper. Could I also interest you in dinner?”

She paused for a long moment, and then said, “Sure. Today’s my day off so my evening’s open.”

He glanced at his watch. “I better get back to work. You wouldn’t by any chance have a spare leash in your car. I have to get them both back to my house and I’m not sure how well Duke follows orders.”

She held the leash out to him. “Here, take mine. I only have to get Mobley back to my car.”

Par stepped closer and put a hand on her arm. She looked down at his hand before she met his gaze. He wanted to touch her cheek to see if her skin was as soft as it looked. “Duke will be fine. We’ll take care of him, so don’t worry.”

“I’m not worried… now.”

Touch her cheek, hell, what he really wanted to do was kiss her. It was such a nice treat to meet a woman who was more interested in another living thing than if her purse matched her shoes. He reluctantly dropped his hand and hooked the leash onto the silver hook on Duke’s collar. “Come on guys,” he said to the dogs. As he jogged away, he turned back and said over his shoulder. “See you at seven.”

“Can I bring Mobley, or would that be too much?”

“No, sure bring him. I have a big house.”

The dogs were the least of his problem. He’d offered to make Tennyson diner. Good God, he was the world’s worst cook. What was he thinking? Now, what would he do?

Chapter Three

Tennyson pushed the remaining hangers to one side and peered into her closet. There was a pile of clothes strewn across the bed and more that fell onto the floor. Mobley watched her with intense interest.

She held up a grey sweater dress in one hand and a red one in the other and then asked him, “Which do you like?”

He wagged his tail and then scratched his ear with his back leg.

“I thought you said you swore off guys,” Shelly asked with her hip propped against the doorframe.

“I did.”

“I call bull.” Shelly came into the room, pushed the clothes to one side, and then flopped onto the bed. “I know you’re off work today, and you just sorted your closet by color last week, so that means you have a date.”

“It’s not a date. I met this guy at the dog park—”

“So it
is
a guy.” Shelly rolled to her stomach and braced her chin with her hands. “Come on… more juicy details. Is he cute?”

Tennyson paused before she answered, “Yes, he’s cute, but that’s not the point, the point is this isn’t a date.”

“So why all the fuss then? I still call bull.”

“I’m just going over to his place for dinner and to help make flyers. We found this lost dog, well more like abandoned dog. Par offered to take him in until we found a more permanent solution or his owner has a reality check and takes him back.”

“One dog’s enough, you can’t bring him here.”

Tennyson rolled her eyes. “I know! That’s why
he
took the dog.”

“So you’re going over there to this guy’s house to make flyers, hang out and eat his food, but it’s not a date.”

Tennyson started to speak but then snapped her mouth closed. The thought crossed her mind that tonight could be considered a date. It wasn’t a
terrible
notion. That was if she ever could make up her mind on what to wear. She’d been on tons of dates, but this was a ‘‟dog date”. She had no idea what that entailed.

She held a white T-shirt over her favorite pair of jeans on the bed. The look said casual but with a deep enough vee in the shirt that it would show a little cleavage.

Shelly grinned. “That’s your boob shirt. I knew this was a date.”

Tennyson shook her head and dropped the shirt on the bed. “Sometimes I wonder why you’re my friend.”

“Cause ya love me.” Shelly stood and gave her a hug. “I was starting to worry about you. It’s been six months. I thought you might join a nunnery.”

“Not quite. Unless it’s the Julie Andrews kind in
The Sound of Music
and I end up with Christopher Plummer.”

“You’re taking Mobley, right? So if this Par guy turns out to be a jerk Mobley could bite him.”

“I don’t think that will be necessary. I can handle myself just fine.” She laughed as she scooped up her clothes and headed for the shower. “If he turns out like James, I’ll bite him myself.”

“That could add some extra fun to the ‘date.’” Shelly called out.

Tennyson closed the bathroom door and turned on the hot water.

****

Par scrambled around the main floor of his house and frantically picked things up. He’d  gotten held up at work, like most nights, and now it was fifteen minutes until he told Tennyson to be here and the place was a mess. Pizza box. Empty beer bottle.
Man, who lives here?, It can’t be me.
Spending his precious time off at the warehouse
,
he’d come home exhausted most nights. Take out, a beer and watch an international soccer match was all he could get his head wrapped around before he fell asleep.

Par made a mental note to himself that if she wore a coat, he shouldn’t hang it in the front closet. He’d stuffed his gym bag and three pairs of tennis shoes inside, and the closet no longer smelled like a bed of roses.

Par grabbed a clean cloth out of the drawer, he scooped up cleaner and wiped down the counters. He was also a coffee grounds pig. Like everyone else, he should just buy coffee in the morning and avoid all this mess of making it himself to save a few dollars.

When he’d arrived home he noticed a cushion in the living room chewed to shreds. Par would worry about that in a few minutes. There was a knock on the door. He peeked through the hole and let out a sigh of relief. He swung open the door.

“Hi, Mom.” He kissed her cheek and took the tray from her hand.

“So, who is this girl that you are having over?”

“We found an abandoned dog—” As if on cue Duke and Boci ran into the living room. “She’s coming over to make flyers and maybe we can try and convince his owner to take him back.”

His mother raised an eyebrow. “Is she a nice
Indian
girl?”

“No, just a nice girl. Come on Mom, give me a break. You and dad have to figure out what you want. Dad wants me to work all the time, and you want me to date. There are no Indian girls at the office. And besides this isn’t a date.”

“You are not from the old country, I know that. So, I’m pleased that you are spending time with someone. I was so happy that you asked me to cook.” She pulled her pink sarong higher and then frowned. “Do you think that it will be too spicy? Some American girls don’t like spicy.”

“I don’t know enough about her to know what she likes and doesn’t like. But she’d be crazy not to like your Butter Chicken and
Baigan Bharta
.” Par put an arm around her and hugged.

“You’re right.” Her eyes filled with pride from his compliment. She looked around. “Would you like me to help you clean up your place before she gets here?”

“No, thanks. It’s good enough. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.” He took her arm and guided her out the door. When she started her car and drove off, he waved from the porch. He hurried back into the kitchen. Grabbing the clay baker she’d left on the counter, he cried, “Ow!” The heat burned his hand. He blew on his fingers, scooped up a towel to protect his hands, and then popped the terracotta cooker into the oven.

As the clock in the living room chimed, he knew that Tennyson would be there any second. He opted to take the time to put out a couple of wine glasses and lit a candle to erase any smelly signs of his gym bag.

Chapter Four

Tennyson looked up at the one story brick house as she got the leash, hooked it to the silver loop on Mobley’s collar and waited until he jumped out of the back seat of her car. She grabbed the shopping bag, and led the dog up the brick pathway. Rose bushes lined the sides. The place would be beautiful in spring. When she arrived at the door, she dropped the brass knocker twice and waited.

Par answered the door after a few seconds. He wore a dark beige suit, lavender shirt and striped tie. This night was only to help Duke find his home, but Tennyson felt an urge to run her hands under Par’s coat and over his broad chest. There was a funny tingling in her fingers that she hadn’t felt in a long time… a very long time. She motioned to her jeans and T-shirt and then said, “It looks as though I might be under-dressed. I thought you said a casual dinner.”

He smiled, as he looked her up and then down. “You look great if anyone’s asking me. Come in. Let me show you where the kitchen is. I just got home from work and haven’t had time to change clothes.”

“I wasn’t sure what to bring, so I made a salad and brought a bottle of wine.” She handed him the shopping bag.

“The salad looks great and red’s my favorite.”

She waited for him to check the label or make a comment that it wasn’t a good year like James always did, but he didn’t. “I like to put guests to work, so if you don’t mind opening the bottle, I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

“What’s in the oven? It smells wonderful.”

“Butter chicken.”

“You just got home, how did you have time to cook? It’s not take-out is it?”

“No. It’s not take-out.” He avoided a complete answer. “You’re in luck that’s usually what I eat,” he called as he headed down the hall and disappeared into what she guessed was the bedroom.

She found a corkscrew in the first drawer she looked in and opened the wine. She poured two glasses, stepped back and looked around the living room. It was nice and comfy. An oversized leather couch divided the dining room from the living room. He had a big screen television but other than that, the room was homey with a colorful hand-crocheted  granny square blanket and pictures of his family on the fireplace mantel. Not your typical man-cave in dark colors.

Tennyson moved into the room and looked at the smiling family’s photo. It was a college graduation shot. Par with his mom, dad, and a brother she assumed. His family looked proud and Par looked happy. He grinned from ear to ear. The second was a picture of Par and Boci at the beach.

“That picture was when I first got her. She was pretty scared for the first few weeks. I took time off from work and went to the ocean. I think she was terrified that I might take off and leave her, so I needed to spend some quality time with her.”

Par changed into a worn gray T-shirt, faded jeans and his feet were bare. Okay, the Levi’s were even sexier than the suit.
God help me.
Tennyson fought to pull her gaze back to his face.

“When I moved into my new place, Mobley didn’t eat for days,” she said. “Dogs get scared and depressed just like people.” She bent down and picked up the chewed pillow. “Did Duke do this?”

Par took the pillow and surveyed the damage. “Probably. I’ve never seen Boci chew up anything. My sofa pillow was the only causality that I saw. It’s not like I have a matching set. If I want a new one, I’ll grab one somewhere.”

“They’re having a sale at
Bergman Liquidators
.” As soon as she said it, she wished she could take the words back. He’d never shop at a liquidator’s store.