A Teaspoon of Trouble by Shirley Jump

Author:Shirley Jump [Jump, Shirley]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Contemporary, Fiction, Love Stories, Romance, Romantic Comedy, Women's Fiction
ISBN: 9781945879807
Google: _fjZDQAAQBAJ
Publisher: Tule Publishing
Published: 2017-02-07T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eight

Matt changed clothes three times. Once because Roscoe jumped up and slobbered on him, then the next two times because he waffled between a blue tie or a green tie. He finally remembered Carolyn’s favorite color was blue, and went with that, pairing it with a white button-down shirt, dark blue dress pants, and dress shoes that were still shiny from the last time he’d worn them—to a funeral.

He loaded Roscoe into the back of his SUV, then drove across town. Roscoe panted and paced the leather seat, then started to whine when he pulled into the driveway of Carolyn’s parents’ home. Matt came around the car, clipped the leash on Roscoe, then led him up the walkway. “You’re home, buddy. Now, remember what I taught you about being patient. Okay?”

The dog wagged his tail. Let out a soft “woof.”

“All right. I’m gonna hold you to that.” Matt straightened his tie, then rang the doorbell. A little flutter of nerves started in his gut. He was an adult, for Pete’s sake. He shouldn’t be nervous about taking a woman out to dinner.

But he was. Because Carolyn was no ordinary woman.

She opened the door a second later, and he had to take a breath. She was stunning in a dark red dress that hugged her curves and dipped in a delicious V in the front. “You’re on time.”

“I told you. I grew up.” He grinned, then held the leash out to her. “Here’s your dog, a little bit more obedient.”

“That I’ve got to see.” She waved Matt in. “What did you teach him?”

“Patience.” Matt fished in his pocket for the small bag of dog treats. “Watch this.” He motioned to Roscoe. “Lie down.”

The dog hesitated a second, then sat on his rump and slid his front paws forward until his belly was on the wood floor. Matt took one of the dog treats and laid it on the floor a couple of inches from Roscoe’s nose. “Leave it.”

Carolyn gave Matt a dubious look. “He’s really going to do that?”

“Yup.” At his feet, the dog twitched, whined a bit. “Leave it.”

And Roscoe did. He held perfectly still, muscles tensed, waiting for the command that would let him grab the treat.

“I can’t believe you taught him that,” Carolyn whispered. “Will it work for anything? Like my shoes?”

“It should. You need to practice with him, and keep reminding him that you’re in charge. Reward him once in a while, too. Good boy, Roscoe.” Matt flicked a finger at Roscoe. “Okay, get it, Roscoe.”

The dog jerked forward and ate the treat in one bite. His tail thumped a happy beat against the floor.

“That is amazing.” She smiled at him, and it felt like his heart lit up, just as it had when they were young and she’d given him that same hundred-watt smile. It rocketed through him, drawing him closer.

Damn. Maybe this date was a mistake because he was clearly already in too deep.

Emma came running around the corner. “Hi, Dr. Matt! Yay! Roscoe’s home!” She dropped down to give the dog a tight hug.

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