To hug puppies.
Not sure what to do with this information, I just watch her in her element, hugging each and every puppy, rubbing their bellies and baby talking to them. For a split second I wonder if it’s possible for her to take one home, or maybe even ten, because it obviously makes her happy as fuck. It looks like this right here is her happy place.
I glance down at my watch and realize we’ve already been here an hour. The pet shop owner keeps giving Shayla dirty looks, probably because she knows she’s here just to get her puppy fix. Every time she looks like she’s about to say something though, I send my own look in her direction, which shuts her up.
“Vinnie, how cute is this little guy?” she asks, lifting up a giant puppy in her hand.
“Do you want to get one?” I ask, once again without thinking.
Fuck.
What was wrong with me?
“No,” she says, smiling and shaking her head. “I’d love a puppy, but I wouldn’t buy one from a pet store. I’d rather get one from a registered breeder.”
I open my mouth, then close it, having no idea what she was raving on about. Why did she want to come here then?
“I just wanted to see some puppies,” she says, shrugging with a small smile on her delicious lips. “Do you want to get something to eat now?”
“Sounds good,” I tell her, rubbing my stomach. “I could seriously go for a burrito.”
“Burritos it is,” she says, easily agreeing when once again I expect her to argue. This is her chance to go and eat in a fancy restaurant or something, after being cooped up for so long, eating nothing but takeout.
“You sure? We can go eat somewhere else if you like,” I say as we get back into the car, glancing over in her direction. “I can grab a burrito on the way home.”
“A burrito actually sounds good,” she says, kicking her bare feet up on the dashboard. “Chicken, white rice, and chipotle sauce.”
I grin at that. “Fuck yeah. Looks like we finally agree on something.”
SIX
Shayla
“I CAN order things online,” I explain to him. “It’s not my name or credit card, so it can’t be traced to me. So that’s why I don’t really need to do any shopping.” I walk by some green grapes and pick up a bag, putting them in the cart. “Grocery shopping, however . . . I’m in heaven right now.”
Vinnie shakes his head in amusement and grabs some salad. “Are we going healthy then?”
I grin as I put some potatoes in the cart. “Half healthy, half junk food?”
He throws his head back and laughs. “My kind of girl.”
We both look into each other’s eyes after he says that, a weird tension building between the two of us. It’s me who clears my throat and changes the subject. “I think the two burritos you had covers the junk food for the day.”
He shakes his head, disagreeing. “There’s corn and shit in there. That makes it healthy. What are we going to do for dinner?”
“You cooking?” I ask, raising an eyebrow.
“I was hoping you would,” he says, flashing his straight white teeth at me.
“Since you took me out today, I’m sure I can make an exception. What would you—”
“Lasagna with breaded chicken,” he says quickly, before I can even finish the sentence.
“Isn’t that a little weird?” I say, brow furrowing. “Did you make that up, pairing those two together, or is it an actual thing?”
“You asked and that’s what I’d like.” He pauses. “Please.”
“Okay,” I say, dragging the word out. “Sounds easy enough. I’ve never made breaded chicken before, but I’ll just google a recipe.” I pull out my phone and check the ingredients. “Simple.”
“Fuckin’ awesome,” he mutters under his breath, making me smile.
“What about dessert?”
“I’ll let you choose that,” he says, grabbing some steaks and putting them in the cart. “Anything chocolate works for me.”
“How about Oreo and Nutella cheesecake?” I ask him, knowing the recipe by heart.
He stops in his tracks. “You can make that, no shit?”
“No shit.”
He smiles and I return it.
“You’re not so bad, Shayla,” he says, turning his face away from me, but I see the corner of his lips kick up.
“Right back at you, Vinnie,” I say, watching him as he bends over to pick up something. My gaze zones in on his tight ass. “Right back at you.”