Collared (Going to the Dogs) Read online

  “Let me buy it for you, then.”

  He bristled and shook his head. “Fuhgeddaboudit!”

  After that awkward moment passed, he said, “You can come with me if you want. I think it’s a bad idea, but I want to see you again, too.”

  She smiled in a way that made his heart skip.

  “Can you hold onto Quinn for a little bit longer? Sorry about the burden, but if Tripp finds out my dog is here, he won’t be happy about it.”

  Harper nodded. “I’ll keep him as long as you want me to. He’s no burden. He is so cute.”

  “Cute? Are you kidding? That dog was trained to be intimidating.”

  “Okay, if you say so.”

  “You’d better get back to Tripp before he comes looking for you and finds me kissing the hell out of you.”

  She took a deep breath and nodded.

  When she got back to the dining room, Tripp watched her with edgy blue eyes.

  “What’s going on between you and Shaw?”

  Well, he wasn’t as dumb as she’d thought he was. “We’re just friends.” Harper had no qualms about lying. She would not be the cause of problems for him at work. No way.

  “Of course you are. He’s so far below you in class, I’m not even sure why I was worried.”

  Harper so wanted to respond to that rude comment, but defending Caleb would only make Tripp suspicious again.

  The person who had no class was sitting across from her, and it would be a cold day in hell before she’d ever even consider dating Tripp McDonald again.

  When he started talking about his mayoral aspirations, Harper tuned out. Instead, she amused herself by counting the hours till she could see Caleb again.

  Chapter Eight

  Harper directed Blue and Quinn through the dog park gate and released them out into the park. With joyous barks they raced off. She’d decided it was time to get Quinn out of the pool before he turned into a fish.

  Four days had passed since she’d seen Caleb. She missed him more than was warranted, since she’d only just met him. But she couldn’t get him off her mind. She’d been so distracted…. She’d think she was okay, busy with everyday activities, then she’d remember those dark eyes, and how heated they got when he looked at her, the feel of his mouth, and simply the way he interacted with her, so easy and confident.

  There had been a robbery at the Bank of Manhattan, and Caleb was working with the FBI to apprehend the suspects. It had been on the news. One of the robbers was killed at the bank, but he’d shot a security guard and one of the bank patrons. Both bystanders were dead. The other three robbers were still at large.

  Harper was relieved that Caleb was working the case, but also scared out of her mind. It was clear these men had no compunction about shooting people. She would be on pins and needles until he called her again.

  The good news, Poe was home! She and Jared had gotten in sometime late last night. It was time for the friends to gather at the dog park and catch up.

  Harper settled on the bench and watched as Callie arrived. She was surrounded by three full grown Danes, Tilly, Jack, Jill, plus the newest littlest addition to the family, Ozzie. Callie let them all go and made her way over to Harper. “Looks like you’ve got extra dogs here today, too.”

  “Yes, they’re all happy to have a chance to run and wrestle. Especially Ozzie. I found a home for him,” Callie said.

  “Wait. Awww, are you sad?” Ozzie was the offspring of another mating between Callie’s and Owen’s Great Danes, Jack being a black-and-white Harlequin and Jill a Mantle. The pup’s registered name was Lassiter Run’s Diamond Blackjack, but his call name was Oswald with Ozzie for short. He was a cute, gangly rascal, almost all back with white markings. He would grow into quite a handsome boy.

  “Nope. Ian is taking him. He’s so excited. He fell in love with him when he was born, but was trying to resist. Then when I had some interest in him, Ian commanded me not to sell him. He also insists that I train Ozzie first. So, I’ve already started, and he’s a good listener.”

  “Excellent. Who could be a better owner then your own brother?” Harper said.

  “Exactly. Wait…extra dogs?”

  “Who has extra dogs?” Brooke asked, letting Boxer, her ten-month-old bulldog go. “I don’t see Cleatis.”

  “It’s not Cleatis,” Harper said. Her brother’s beautiful black and tan Doberman wasn’t with her today.

  “Who, then?” Brooke settled on the bench and took a sip of the soda she had in her hand.

  “Quinn.”

  “Who’s Quinn?” Poe said, and every one squealed except Brooke. There were hugs all around while Brooke explained that she’d seen Poe last night when they had come to pick up The Terrible Two.

  After they all sat down, Poe said, “Jared and I had such a good time. What a gorgeous place, Harper. I vote that we plan a girls-only vacation there.”

  “I’m all for that,” Brooke said.

  “Thank you, Harper, for letting Jared and I sponge off you for our honeymoon. I really mean that. You and your dad were so wonderful to do it. I have pictures that I can show all of you when Jared gets them uploaded on my computer. He’s good with that stuff. Anyway, it was paradise—the gorgeous color of the water, the people, the food, and your villa. It was heavenly, and Phaedra is such a wonderful person. I hope you pay her well.”

  Poe looked good, rested and relaxed. She wasn’t starting to show yet, but Harper could only imagine Poe would look all the cuter with a big, rounded belly.

  Harper smiled, “I’m tickled you had such a good time. That is truly one of the most beautiful places on this earth, and you’re right, Phaedra might be young, but she is a really good manager.”

  “So, who’s Quinn?” Poe asked again, looking out to the dogs frolicking around the dog park.

  “Remember Detective Shaw?”

  “The hunky bastard who turned you down,” Brooke said perking up.

  “Mr. Lethal Weapon?” Callie smirked.

  Callie and Brooke spoke at the same time and Poe looked puzzled. “Detective? Why do you need a detective?”

  “I was robbed.”

  “Oh, my God. How awful, Harper,” Poe said, touching her arm. “Jared is going to be so pissed. What happened with the security system?”

  “Detective Shaw thinks it was an inside job. He believes they had the code.”

  “He’ll want to talk to Jared, I’m sure,” Poe said.

  “He does, but I wouldn’t let him ruin your honeymoon. I think he talked to the person Jared left in charge at Taylor Security. But right now, he’s elbow-deep in a bank robbery and a city-wide manhunt.”

  “The one downtown?” Brooke said, shaking her head. “That robbery was so terrible.”

  “Yes, it was.”

  “Okay, I’m sure I missed something. What did he turn you down for?” Poe asked.

  “Think, Poe. I know you’ve been boinking Jared for five days straight, so you need to re-engage your brain.”

  “Ohhhh…” she said, her expression sly. “I’ve only been gone for two weeks and I’ve obviously missed a bunch. Let me get this straight. You have the hots for a sexy cop and you’re taking care of his dog?”

  “Correct.”

  Harper filled them in about why she was keeping Quinn for now.

  “You went to that bar? Are you mad?” Callie said.

  “It was fine until he showed up,” Harper said defensively. They were supposed to be on her side.

  “I’m still trying to get over that you slept with Nate. Now you’ve also been robbed, been in a bar fight and have the hots for the detective on your case,” Poe said.

  “That kiss sounds very steamy. I bet he is on your case,” Brooke said.

  “I have to ask, because he is a cop. How many slabs?” Poe said.

  “Of what?” Harper asked

  “Bacon,” Poe said innocently.

  Brooke and Callie cracked up.

  “I know you’re not referring to the term that peo
ple use to denigrate cops.” Harper did her best to sound stuffy.

  “What? It’s funny, and you know it,” Poe grinned. “Well, I think we’re all overlooking the most important piece of equipment he has on his person.”

  “What? His weapon?” Brooke sniggered.

  The other two girls giggled and Harper shook her head at their shenanigans.

  “No, although you should be sure to have him show you how to use that,” Callie said.

  “No one needs to show Harper how to handle that,” Brooke responded.

  “True. She’s a natural,” Callie added.

  Harper looked at Callie and Brooke with a mock frown. “I think I was just insulted, but I’m not sure.” Then she directed her gaze to Poe. “I’m dying to know. What piece of equipment am I missing?” Harper asked.

  “Well, those shiny handcuffs,” Poe said.

  Brooke and Callie each nudged her. “Yeah.”

  “So, Harper, has he let you handle his loaded weapon yet?” Brooke asked, taking a sip of the soda she had in her hand.

  “She has a trigger finger that’s…very dangerous.” Caleb’s deep voice made Harper’s head jerk around to find him standing behind the bench with an amused look on his face.

  Callie and Poe whipped their heads around at the same time. Brooke was too busy spraying her soda all over her lap and the ground.

  He leaned his elbows on the back of the park bench and gave Brooke a deadpan look. “It could go off unexpectedly.”

  Brooke turned a deep red. Never had they ever been caught red-handed gossiping about the men they were seeing. The fact that Caleb had only made Harper giggle, and her heart bounced at the sight of him. She could hardly breathe as her eyes took in everything.

  “Is this the drop-dead gorgeous cop?” Poe asked.

  Everyone burst into laughter.

  He reached out his hand to Poe. “Yeah, I got the equipment and the handcuffs to prove it. Caleb Shaw.”

  “Poe Taylor.” She shook his hand. This time Poe colored a pretty shade of red. “Oh, geez. We’re going to have to watch out for you.”

  “Yeah, I’m a sneaky bastard. So, you’re the friend married to Jared Taylor?”

  “That’s right.”

  “I’d like to talk to him about his security setup for Harper’s penthouse.”

  “Oh, why don’t you meet us for drinks if that fits into your schedule? We’re all going tonight, including Harper.”

  “That would be fine.”

  Harper rose when he looked at her. Taking her hand, which tingled at his touch, he walked with her a few feet away. “Thank you for watching Quinn all this time.”

  “He’s had a ball playing in my pool with Blue. They’ve bonded, I’m afraid.”

  “He’s no dummy.”

  She laughed. They were officially staring at each other now. The dog park seemed to fade away, and all the sounds with it. There was nothing but Caleb in her sights.

  He took a step closer, and her breath suddenly felt trapped in her chest. He looked back at her girlfriends, sitting in a little knot, looking over at him and talking. “I hope I didn’t embarrass Brooke too much. I don’t have sisters, but I’m sure girl talk often heads down the male anatomy road.”

  His eyes were so dark, so deep, she swore she could fall right into them and not be able to or care to find her way out. “I think Brooke will be looking over her shoulder from now on. You made quite an impression.”

  He laughed. “Not much embarrasses me, Harper.”

  “No, I suspect that it doesn’t.” She wanted to touch him so badly, kiss him, but they were out in public. She could never be sure when a camera would be trained on her. “You look tired.”

  “It’s been a grueling four days of very little sleep.”

  “Do you want to skip the Fairy Tea Party tomorrow?”

  “No. I don’t back down from a challenge.”

  “Fair enough. Did you catch them all?”

  “Yes, you’ll hear about it soon enough on the news. Two of the three resisted and didn’t make it. We took one into custody.” He was in cop mode. She could tell by the tone of his voice—flat, cool, with just a slight edge.

  “Were you involved?”

  “The FBI took point, but I was there.”

  “I have to admit that it scares me to think of you in that kind of danger.”

  “Why because I got sloppy and got shot…?”

  “No!” She stepped closer to him because she wanted to get into his personal space, make sure he paid attention to her explanation. His eyes flashed, waiting for her answer.

  She played with his loosened tie. She shouldn’t be touching him at all. But it was impossible to keep her hands off him. “Because it’s dangerous work. That’s all. I would never make a comment about a mistake. People make them all the time.”

  His warm hands slipped over hers and the contact jolted her. “But in my line of work, it could be fatal.”

  She nodded. That was true, and she was relieved that eventually they would go their separate ways. She didn’t think she could handle worrying about Caleb every day. But that wasn’t going to happen. They just had a physical relationship. There was nothing more to it than that.

  He leaned down just slightly and said, “You worried about me, Harper?”

  His closeness made her shiver as their gazes locked, his dark and intense. He flashed a wicked grin. “What if I said I was?” she said, flippantly. Deep inside, where she’d thought she had control, she did feel that shiver of fear. Just like him, she knew what it felt like to come close to death.

  “That would kinda make my day.” He shifted back and let go of her hands. His face went back to cop mode. “I wanted to ask you a couple of questions.”

  “Okay,” she said warily.

  “How long has your chauffeur worked for you?”

  Harper’s stomach jumped.

  “Why?” She schooled her features and could only thank the many years she’d mastered the ability to keep her face blank and not react, either for the sake of good manners or because a microphone had been shoved in front of her face.

  “I got a vibe off him.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Caleb looked away and searched the dog park. “My instincts kicked in…something about the way he carries himself.”

  “I’ve known him for three years, and he’s a very good employee. I believe he was out of town the day of the robbery.” Harper was very sure that Jeffrey had nothing to do with the breakin. She wanted Caleb to stop scrutinizing him, but she couldn’t come out and say that. It would make him suspicious.

  “He was. I checked,” Caleb said and whistled for Quinn. The German Shepherd trotted over. But before the dog got to him, Blue was there with her jingle ball and dropped it at his feet. He looked down at the ball, then at the poodle. “You want me to throw the ball?”

  Blue’s collar clinked excitedly.

  He bent down and picked the ball up, then threw it. Blue and Quinn and the other dogs took off after it, but Blue got there first and brought it back to him. She dropped it again and grinned at him. “Okay, one more time.”

  He swiped his hand over her head and chucked the ball. Harper just melted. Why Blue took to Caleb, she couldn’t say, but the poodle adored him.

  “You look good,” Harper said.

  He looked over at her and Harper’s insides went haywire.

  “You been using the wild yam I left you?”

  “Yeah.” He chuckled. “The guys on the manhunt actually thought it smelled good, but tried to play it off. Due to the Guy Code, they had to rib me about it the whole time.”

  “It works.”

  “That’s why I used it. Not a big fan of pain.”

  He looked down, those thick lashes covering his dark brown eyes. “Yeah, shoulder is feeling much better. Bruises are fading.”

  “That’s the best news I’ve heard all day.” She smiled. Very soon she absolutely had to make time to get this man fully naked and spe
nd more than just a short hour with him, or with chairs flying, or with her girlfriends staring at them like they were the main act.

  As if he’d read her mind, he gave her a heated, crooked smile and reached out and swiped her hair behind her ear. “You sure you’re not having second thoughts?”

  “No. I want you, Caleb…again…soon.”

  His lips parted and he shifted. “Fuck, you always blindside me, princess.”

  “Damn manhunts and keeping the city safe. I feel like I’m dating Batman.”

  His brows rose before he reached down to accept the blue ball from Blue. “Are we dating?”

  “Aren’t we?”

  “Harper...”

  She pressed her fingers over his lips. “I retract that, then, if you’re uncomfortable with it.”

  He clasped her wrist and brought it to his mouth and planted a heated kiss against her palm. “You want to date me? Me? Seriously?”

  “Well, I’m not fond of the term fuck buddies.”

  “Yeah, we’re definitely not buddies.”

  Harper laughed and she could see that was his intent.

  “I’m rough around the edges. I don’t know which fork goes with what. I wear clothes, not attire, and I eat ravioli out of a can.”

  “Oh, my God! That’s far too many infractions against the Social Register code. What the hell was I thinking?”

  He kissed her palm again. “Are you mocking me?”

  “Who, me?”

  He hauled her up against him. She shivered at the first touch of his lips, yearning for more. He held her gaze, his eyes mesmerizing. Then he settled his mouth over hers, and all thought ceased. Her eyes drifted shut. Her hands wound into the fabric of his dress shirt. Caleb pulled her close, slanting his mouth across hers, taking possession of it, and she returned his kiss with fervor. Helpless to do anything else. After a few more heated passes over her mouth, he pulled back.

  He pressed his forehead to hers. “I’ve got to get some sleep. I’m dead on my feet.”

  Suddenly realizing that she’d just given herself over to his kiss in a public place with Brooke, Callie and Poe all looking on, she blushed. Harper Sinclair, the woman who never let anything bother her, actually blushed. “Would you like me to send Reginald over?”