Page 67 of Dead Pretty

If I wasn’t already half-gone for him, I would be now.

Jack tries to shrug it off, like the cool guy he is, but I know better. “I like to walk, and these guys need walking.”

“How come you don’t have a dog?” I ask him.

“One, I don’t think Eleven would be happy if I brought one home. And two, dogs demand more time than I can give to one right now. But it is nice to do this, to help the dogs out in this way.”

“I get that,” I tell him. Doing something for others leaves you with a sense of worth. “So, tell me the rules for walking these guys.”

“Okay, so no letting them off their leads unless in a designated area where you can do so. No letting them chase wildlife. And always scoop the poop.”

My face scrunches up at that thought. “Okay. Do you have poop bags?”

He taps his jacket pocket with his hand, grinning. “Yep. Oh, and one thing I forgot to mention … Pork Chop might be the puller, but Gary is the shitter.”

“What do you mean, he’s the shitter?” My eyes narrow, and Jack’s grin widens.

“Gary likes to save all his shits up for his walks. Minimum he’ll take on a walk is two.”

“Two craps is the minimum!” I stare down at the dog. “What is wrong with you?” Then, I look back to Jack. “What is wrong with him?”

Jack is howling with laughter by this point.

“It’s not funny!” I gesticulate. “Right, that’s it! We’re swapping dogs.” I hold Gary’s lead out to Jack. “I’ll take Pork Chop the puller, and you can have Gary the pooper!”

“No can do.” Jack wipes his laughing eyes. “You’ll hurt Gary’s feelings if you switch now.”

“What?” I look down at Gary again. He’s staring up at me with those gorgeous Jack eyes, and now, I just feel mean. “Fine,” I huff. I keep up the pretense of being annoyed, but seriously, how can I be with this cutie staring at me? And I am talking about Gary, not Jack.

Or maybe I do mean them both.

“Bring me on a date and have me picking up dog crap.”

Jack chuckles. “Baby, it is nothing but the high life with me.”

“Hmm,” I grumble, steadfastly ignoring the way he just called me baby and the way my body reacted to it. “You’d better feed me good after this. Well, that is, if Gary and his hundreds of shits don’t kill my appetite.”

“It’s not hundreds. Probably around five.”

“Five!” I shriek.

Jack sputters out a laugh. “Kidding. Four at the most.”

I frown at him.

His grin is unrepentant, and it lights up his whole face and those stunning eyes of his.

I have to fight a smile from creeping onto my own face.

“You’re an ass.”

“A hot ass though.”

I shake my head, still fighting that damn smile.

“Okay, how about I scoop the poop for you? It’s the least I can do since you agreed to come on a date with me.”

“Wow. And there I was, thinking chivalry was a thing of the past.”