Run the Risk & Bare It All by Lori Foster

Author:Lori Foster
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HQN Books
Published: 2015-12-15T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER FOUR

ALICE MISSED REESE the moment he left. Her apartment, that once felt peaceful with only her in it, now felt empty. Too quiet.

Even sort of lonely.

“Bleh.” She turned to Cash. “It’s ridiculous, isn’t it?”

Cash gave her a sleepy yawn, wiggled a little on the couch and started thumping his tail when she walked over to rub his ears.

“I’m glad I still have you. But for how long?” She cupped his furry face and put her cheek to his head. “It breaks my heart, but you’re not really my dog. Reese loves you, so someday, if he moves or gets involved with a woman, I might not be able to see you anymore.”

Cash crawled into her lap and tried to lick her face. Dodging the majority of his sloppy affection, Alice gave a laugh that sounded far too close to a sob.

Damn it, she would not cry. God knew she had nothing to cry about. Not anymore. She controlled her life, and if things weren’t exactly as she’d like them to be, well, she had no one to blame but herself.

Even with the pep talk, her throat went tight and her eyes burned.

A knock on her door had her sucking up the excess of emotion real quick.

Cash did a doggy feat of launching away while barking like a crazed beast.

“Cash, behave.” Assuming Reese had forgotten something, Alice quickly wiped her cheeks and drew a cleansing breath. Going to the door, she put her eye to the peephole—and straightened with incredulity.

Taking his cue from her, Cash ramped up his barking to a berserk level.

“Shhh,” she told the frantic dog. “It’s okay.” Maybe. But why in the world would—

“Open up, Alice,” came a deep, compelling voice. “I know you’re in there. I hear Cash.”

As the dog recognized their visitor, his reaction transformed from outrage to utter elation. Giving a high-pitched whine, he turned circles and kept looking at her, waiting for her to open the door.

In a whisper, Alice reminded the dog, “You don’t know him any better than I do.”

“I can hear you, too, Alice.” The amusement came through loud and clear. “Now open up.”

She bit her lip to hold back the groan. Good grief, did he have supersonic hearing or something?

Heartbeat accelerated, Alice put a hand to her hair, but of course it was already tidy. She was always tidy. And boring. And too cautious...

Stop it.

She straightened her shirt, licked the lips that Reese had just kissed and unlocked the door.

Cash charged forward in excitement, but he didn’t get far. “Hello, Rowdy,” she said as he caught the dog’s collar. Luckily, being around Reese had gotten her somewhat used to large men.

Because Rowdy Yates was that, and then some.

He was also drop-dead gorgeous in a devilish, careless, edgy way. Where Reese tempered his sex appeal, Rowdy threw it out there without reserve, bludgeoning innocent bystanders with his raw magnetism.

“Hey, yourself.” He went down to one knee to acknowledge the dog. “What a welcome! I missed you too, bud.”

“Odd,” Alice remarked at the dog’s reaction.

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