Manaconda(49)

He frowned. “Where’d you get that?” He fingered the material and checked the label. “Since when do you have anything by Hugo Boss?”

“It’s just a shirt.”

“You’re the girliest girl I know. The only thing you would have by Hugo Boss is a jacket. Definitely not a men’s shirt.”

“I’m not a nun, Carter. No matter how you like to infer otherwise.”

“Oh, boy. The teacher voice is coming out. You’re seeing him tonight, aren’t you?”

“What? No.”

Please God, no.

“Yeah you are.”

I shook my head. “I’m going to the Love & Paws benefit to make sure Bethany doesn’t do anything stupid like adopt four dogs again.”

“You have to babysit Babbles tonight?”

“Bethany and Michelle will be there.”

“The gruesome twosome. Awesome. Do you want me to come for backup.”

I shook my head. “I’ll be fine. We’re just going to make an appearance, donate some money, and listen to a few speeches. No big deal.”

“Are you sure?”

“Positive. Early night and everything. Thanks Felicity for taking care of Sammy. My schedule was nuts this week.”

“Sure. You know she loves him.”

“I do.” I slicked on another layer of crimson lipstick and tucked a lock of hair over my ear, into the braid I’d spent twenty minutes de-constructing so it looked messy. Oh, what a woman did for fashion.

“Do I pass muster?”

“You’re going to make him eat his tongue.”

“Hunter isn’t going to be there.”

“Sure he isn’t,” Carter said. “The front desk called. Your car is here, too.”

“Great. Thanks.”

We both took the elevator down and parted ways in the lobby. Carter to head to the parking garage, me to the front door where a black BMW idled.

The trip across down was interminable. A mix of traffic and Saturday night partiers made for a longer than normal travel time. By the time I got to the event, a second speaker was making a plea for donations.

I spotted Bethany in with the designer dogs that were abandoned by the Los Angeles elite when they weren’t fun anymore. She was sitting cross legged in a Nicole Miller dress with a half litter of puppies on her lap.

At least those pictures on Instagram wouldn’t require me to do any cleanup.

I made small talk with people I knew, fielded questions from a few of the reporters I knew. Three of my clients had been former ambassadors for Love & Paws so I knew a lot about them.

I ended up sitting with a few friends for so long that my wine went down the wrong way when I heard Hunter’s voice.

Michelle whomped me on the back. “Are you all right?”

“Wrong pipe,” I managed to say through my tears.

Hunter stood at the podium. His broad shoulders seemed super-sized under his suit jacket. He wore a crisp white shirt and his tie was a huge lolling dog’s tongue printed in the middle of it.

“Thanks for having me. When Love & Paws opened their doors in Los Angeles, I was one of the first in line to adopt a dog. It was one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. Lola came on the road with me and saw the world. Love & Paws also helped me when the time came for me to lay my girl to rest. They’re one of the only rescues that takes care to actually put the right dog or cat with the right owner. They aren’t just looking to unload unwanted pets, they’re trying to find furrever homes for people that need it. Please dig deep into your pockets. Keeping their doors open is very important to me, but most of all important to those animals that need homes. And I’d love to see all of you in San Fran tomorrow at the annual adoption. I’ll be there looking for a new fur-baby.”

Yeah.

I was officially shutting off my ovaries. They were having a field day jumping around and causing havoc. Didn’t they get the memo that he was bad for me?

And from the look in the room, there were a helluva lot of women having the same problem.

I tried to get up from my table before he came down the aisle, but there was no way he could miss me. Especially when my traitorous friend Michelle leaped in his path.

“Your speech was amazing.”

Hunter smiled. “All true.” His eyes flicked over to me, then away with a curt smile. He covered Michelle’s hand on his arm. “Have you adopted?”

Michelle beamed up at him. “I have two cats. Siamese.” She fumbled her phone out of her purse. “Lucy and Dezzie.” She blushed. “I spent a summer watching I Love Lucy while I was recuperating from ACL surgery.”

Hunter smiled indulgently. “I’m sure they helped keep you company.”