He didn’t growl.
He didn’t lunge.
He wasn’t aggressive with other dogs or cats, but he damn sure wasn’t friendly with them either. I was pretty sure in his mind he was the only dog on the planet. At least the only one that mattered. The king of his own little world.
I kept one eye on my snoozing dog while I filled out the vet’s forms. I wouldn’t put it past him to use the restroom in the front lobby to mark his territory in front of the other pets and owners.
“Pepper Jack.” The vet tech called for us from an open doorway. He popped up and walked alongside me easily as I rose from the bench, and I released a sigh of relief. From one moment to the next, I wasn’t sure what I was going to get. For the first two nights, he’d been docile, sweet, and the best copilot. Day three, it had all turned to shit. I woke to a living room full of couch fluff, and the one surviving cushion was occupied by him. His front legs were crossed and his chin was tilted in the air as he stared at me, challenging me. Before that moment, I would’ve laughed at anyone who said a dog could smirk, but I swear Pepper Jack was smirking as he surveyed the damage.
So here I was for a wellness visit, vaccines, and an assessment to join in on the class the vet offers. It covers everything from basic training to obedience to behavioral issues. According to my sources, these classes are the best Austin has to offer.
“Hi, I’m Alicia. I’ll be assisting Dr. Conroy today.” Alicia took the leash from my hand and guided Pepper Jack onto the scale. I rolled my eyes when the measly number popped up on the screen. How in the hell had he given me so much trouble as we were coming in? He trotted by her side into the exam room, not giving her a lick of trouble, immediately following orders, all with a wagging tail. If he kept this up, they wouldn’t believe that I wanted behavior training.
Alicia took Pepper Jack’s temperature, checked his paws and tail, and ran her hands down his body while asking me a few questions. She marked a few things on a tablet. “Dr. Conroy will be right in.”
“Thank you, Alicia,” I said.
I tugged my phone from my pocket, connected to a VPN, and logged into MarxMen’s secure network to look at the afternoon update on our current accounts. Roman had started MarxMen in Nashville fresh out of the army, and I’d joined him, standing by his side while it grew and when we’d moved it to Austin after he’d reunited with Harper. It had expanded a lot in the past several years. It had gone from focusing on security to taking on anything from security detail jobs, to patterning with the police department, to tracing criminal activity, to legal hacking for companies. Well, mostly legal hacking. I’d tackled a lot of the bother so Roman could spend time with Harper and their son. Now they had another kid on the way. I didn’t have anything to go home to, so I could pull the all-night shifts and take the business trips to secure contracts.
I locked my screen, immediately severing the connection, as the latch popped and the door swung open. I leaned to the side to deposit my phone back in my pocket to focus completely on Pepper Jack’s appointment. My gaze shot up as I heard a soft gasp. My gaze locked with deep brown eyes that were wide open with shock. I scanned her face. As part of the training drilled into me during my army days, I observed every nook, cranny, and person inside every room I walked into. I’d never had trouble with women. I wasn’t an idiot. I noticed when women stared at me. In fact, I liked it.
I saw their expressions. Appreciation. Lust. Curiosity. Outright shock was a new one though. I wiped a hand over my face. Was there a piece of the burrito I had scarfed down at lunch hanging from my chin? I glanced down at my shirt, making sure Hudson hadn’t switched my shirt at the gym and given me something scandalous or some shit. That fucker liked his jokes more than anyone else.
Dr. Conroy recovered quickly and gave a little shake of her head and cleared her throat. A strand of deep brown hair fell from her neat bun. Everything about her seemed to have its place, and I had the urge to mess it all up. Her gaze flitted nervously around the room, looking everywhere but at me, until she settled on Pepper Jack. His head was tilted far to the side; he was observing her too.
I know it, buddy. She is damn pretty.
“Dr. Conroy?” I asked, standing up. She hadn’t said a single word since coming into the room. I was only assuming this was the vet and not someone who had stumbled in here by accident.
“Oh. Um. Yes, that’s me. I’m Dr. Conroy. Who do we have here?” Her cheeks were stained a gorgeous hue of pink. I wanted to smile but held back. Her olive-green scrub top fit her nicely. Better than I had ever seen scrubs fit anyone else, and I somehow knew she’d had them tailored to fit her.
“I’m Kiernan Brooks and this is Pepper Jack.”
She crouched down in front of him, stroking his neck and looking into his eyes. “Hi, Pepper Jack. Ready for your exam?”
His long tail whipped against the tile floor and he lunged forward, attacking Dr. Conroy’s face with kisses. She chuckled. “Pepper Jack,” I hissed and pulled him off of her. “I’m sorry. He’s never done that before. Though I’ve only had him for two weeks.”
“It’s alright. Getting messy is part of the job. Let’s get him on the exam table.”
“You don’t look like you get messy,” I said and smiled. Her still-pink cheeks deepened
