Janet Evanovich - Hot Stuff

Kellen crossed the street and approached Cate’s bench. He noticed the dog open an eye and give a nose twitch to check him out. The eye stayed vigilant, but the dog didn’t move, and Kellen assumed he’d passed the first test.

Cate turned at the sound of footsteps, and sucked in some air when she saw Kellen McBride slide onto the bench beside her. The man looked damn good in the daylight. He was wearing a lightweight sweater with the sleeves pushed up to his elbows, jeans, and running shoes. His watch looked expensive. No wedding band.

“It’s not a good sign when you sit on a park bench and talk to yourself,” Kellen said.

“I was talking to the dog,” Cate told him.

“Honey, the dog is asleep.”

“I was hoping he’d wake up. I’m tired of sitting here.”

“And?”

“I’m a little afraid of him. I don’t exactly know how to get him back to the condo.”

Kellen had his arm across the back of the bench, his hand lightly resting on Cate’s shoulder. Friendly without being overtly aggressive. He smiled and leaned into Cate when he spoke, and Cate decided Kellen McBride was a master at inching up to the line separating acceptable behavior from un -acceptable behavior. Kellen McBride knew how to move forward without getting kneed in the groin.

“I have the feeling I’m missing important information,” Kellen said.

“I rent a room from Marty Longfellow. He left for Aruba yesterday, and this morning some man came and delivered this dog. He’s supposed to be a trained guard dog. Marty thought I needed protection while he was away. Problem is, I know nothing about dogs. And this one is so big . And clumsy.”

“Why did Marty think you needed protection? This is a relatively safe neighborhood.”

“Marty was getting some weird phone calls, and I guess he panicked.”

“What’s the dog’s name?”

“Beast.”

Kellen thought the dog looked more like a Floyd. He reached out to Beast, and Beast picked his head up and sniffed Kellen’s hand.

“He’s clumsy because he’s young,” Kellen said. “He’s still a puppy.” Kellen took Beast’s leash and stood, and Beast stood with him. Kellen gave Beast a hand signal, and Beast sat and wagged his tail. “Good dog,” Kellen said to Beast. Kellen looked at Cate. “I don’t suppose you have any dog treats on you?”

“No. Should I?”

“It’ll help if you reward him for good behavior. And if you’re really in a bind you can bribe him. He’s going to be a terrific pet, but he’s too young to be worth anything as a guard dog.”

“It said on his papers he was a trained assassin.”

Kellen grinned down at Cate. “I bet you own swamp land in Florida.”

Five minutes later they were all standing in Marty’s condo.

“So this is where the famous Marty Longfellow lives,” Kellen said. “Very nice. He’s obviously making some serious money.”

“He works hard,” Cate said.

“You like him?”

“I do. We aren’t close friends. We keep different hours, and Marty’s away a lot. Still, he’s a comfortable roommate.” Cate unhooked Beast’s leash, and Beast wandered off to investigate the condo. “Lucky you came along to help me,” Cate said to Kellen.

“I live a couple blocks from here. I pass by that little park a lot.”

“On the way to work?”

“Sometimes.” Kellen went to the kitchen and prowled through cabinets until he found a large bowl. He filled the bowl with water and put it on the kitchen floor for Beast. Beast rushed in and drained the bowl.

“I have an appointment I need to keep right now, but I can come back at one and walk him with you. He should be okay until then.”

“That would be great! Are you sure you don’t mind?”

Kellen smiled at her. “Don’t worry about it. I like dogs. Although I might not be making the offer if you had a Yorkshire terrier named Poopsie, dressed in a pink sweater.”

If I had a Yorkshire terrier I could manage this by myself, Cate thought.

“I stopped at the Barks-A-Lot pet store on Tremont and got some dog treats,” Kellen said when Cate opened the door to him. “You want to hand them out sparingly. And I got you a book on basic commands. He’s obviously been through obedience school. You should work with him a couple times a day to reinforce what he’s learned.”

“How do you know so much about dogs?”

“I always had a dog when I was a kid. And I worked with a dog in my last job.”

“Which was?”

Kellen had a moment of hesitation. People always reacted differently when they found out. And he wasn’t sure he was ready for all of the questions that would follow. Still, he was increasingly attracted to Cate, and he didn’t want to screw things up by withholding any more information than was absolutely necessary.

“I was a cop,” Kellen said.

“Wow. So that whole thing about you looking like you could be a killer…”

“This isn’t a conversation I want to have at this moment,” Kellen said. “And for the record, cops very infrequently kill people.”

“Why did you change jobs?”

“It was too regimented. It turns out I don’t always play well with others.”

“And what is it that you do now?”

“Different things. Security sometimes.” Kellen clipped the leash onto Beast’s collar and handed the leash to Cate. “Let’s walk.”

“Were you a Boston cop?” Cate asked.

“No.”

“Where?”

“My turn for a question,” Kellen said. “How old were you when you lost your virginity?”

“Okay,” Cate said. “I get the message. Let’s walk.”

Julie followed Cate into Cate’s bedroom. “I saw him from my window,” Julie said. “I saw you all go out with Beast, and I watched the three of you walk across to the park and walk down the block. And I saw you come back. And I rushed right up as soon as I saw Mr. Tall, Dark, and Yummy leave. Honey, he’s delicious. Who is he? How long have you known him? Is he good in bed? He looks like he’d be amazing in bed.”

“He’s just a bar customer who took pity on me in the park when I couldn’t get Beast to go home. I don’t know much about him.”

“I think you need to take him out for a test drive.”

“I think I need to walk away and not look back. There’s something about him that makes my radar hum. He’s secretive. And he has a way of smiling with his mouth but thinking with his eyes. And he’s much too good looking.”

“Sweetie, there’s no such thing as too good looking.”

Beast rounded a corner and spied Julie. His ears went up and his eyes got bright.

“Uh-oh,” Julie said. “Your dawg is gonna knock me down again.”

Cate jumped in front of Beast and gave him a hand signal. “Sit!”

Beast sat and thumped his tail with happiness.

“Look at that,” Julie said. “Bless his heart, he’s all proud of hisself.”

Cate gave Beast a dog treat. “Tall, Dark, and Yummy taught me how to do this. He worked with a dog when he was a cop.”

“Tall, Dark, and Yummy was a cop? Oh, that’s good news and bad news. The good news is there’s nothing like a man in uniform, especially if he’s carrying a gun. And the bad news is the statistics on cop fidelity aren’t encouragin’. I know all about it because I used to date some of the guys who worked at the correctional facility in my town. And for a spell I dated Amos Cole, who was a sheriff’s deputy. Amos sure could kiss. Trouble was he kissed everybody . I haven’t seen him in a while, but my mom told me Amos had a premature bout of gingivitis and most of his teeth fell out of his head. Personally I think it might have had something to do with all that kissing. Amos kissed people in places I don’t even want to think about. He was a kissin’ fool. I heard Amos once Frenched Maynard Bailey’s big ol’ breeder sow, but that was never confirmed.”