“He’s really good. Loud, but good. Davian’s been a godsend with nighttime feedings, so I’ve gotten to sleep. I think he likes the boys’ time together—and it gives him quality time with Bear, too, who hasn’t left Nico’s side since we brought him home.” Sadie shook her head fondly before rolling her eyes. “But I feel like all I talk about lately is babies and baking and dogs. I need to live vicariously through another adult. What’s going on with you?”
I sighed. Where to even begin? “Well, I almost got arrested yesterday.”
Yep, that felt like a good place to start.
Sadie’s eyes bugged out. “What?What happened?”
“I’m still not sure, but I had a bizarre appointment with a guy who lives in the penthouse of the Nightingale.”
“The penthouse?” She whistled softly. “I didn’t know your clientele included big shots like that.”
“Well, he wasn’t exactly a client,” I admitted. I trailed a finger along the edge of my bowl. “Someone pretended to be him and hired me to show up at his place as a surprise.”
Sadie’s spoon froze halfway to her mouth, and she blinked. “Like a wholesome strippergram?”
I gave her a dry look before taking a generous bite of gelato.
Yum.
“It didn’t go well,” I continued after swallowing, frowning at the memory of Cade pushing my face into the mattress. “Things were extra confusing because his security let me go to his room while he was napping, and I climbed into bed with him. So he elbowed me in the face, pinned me to the bed, and threatened to call the cops on me!”
Sadie’s mouth opened and closed before she found words.
“I mean…can you blame him?” she asked. “A stranger crawled into his bed while he was sleeping. Wouldn’t you freak out?”
I winced. “Yeah, that’s fair.”
A sharp meow pulled my attention down to Whiskey’s little window. He had his furry face pressed up close to the plastic, staring intently over at the bakery side. A glance over showed a customer browsing with their Dalmatian, which explained Whiskey’s sudden interest. Apparently, his eyesight was still good enough to see dogs.
He was too cute, and I pulled out my phone to take a picture.
A notification from Sunshine Cuddle Services had me doing a double take and forgetting all about snapping pictures.
Cade Westbrook has sent you a virtual unicorn plushie!
“Oh my gosh.” I blinked hard to make sure I wasn’t hallucinating, but the notification was still there. “He just messaged me.”
Sadie perked up. “The hot penthouse guy?”
My brows rose. “I never said he was hot.”
She waved her spoon. “It was implied. What’d he say?”
“Um, he just sent a little greeting thing.” Our virtual plushies were a bit embarrassing to explain. They were a fun way for clients to show extra appreciation with a tip.
I must’ve made a good impression if Cade had downloaded the app to send me a plushie.
…Unless this was the fake Cade?
I tapped his name to pull up his profile, and it was mostly blank. No mention of unicorns or being shy. It wasn’t the same Cade Westbrook who’d booked me yesterday.
I typed a message to him while Sadie scooted closer to watch.
Ellie
Is this the real Cade?
It was a long, dramatic wait with me and Sadie staring at the screen before he replied.
