Page 112 of Wag More Bark Less

“No worries. It was just a Marco Polo message. I’ll finish it later.” I was suddenly stammering like a fangirl because this wasn’t just Luke’s sister. It was Diana Davenport, bestselling paranormal romance author. But it might be a little aggressive to immediately tell her I owned all of the Veltori vampire books she’d ever written. Or that I’d purchased her most recent release on my first full day in town and read it cover to cover in less than twenty-four hours. So instead, I settled with, “Hey, Kira. Luke’s told me so much about you. I’ve been hoping to meet you.”

My gaze dropped to the blond shepherd husky dog with its head poking over the table.

“This is Husker,” Kira said.

“I’ve heard a lot about you too,” I said to the dog. Husker looked at me with the biggest brown eyes I’d ever seen, head tilted. His massive ears reminded me of Yoda, and I smiled. Had Kira been the Star Wars fan her brothers and father obviously were, that would likely be his name.

“He does have quite the reputation around here,” Kira said.

“You look like you want a sample,” I said to Husker. Then I looked at Kira. “I have some extra bacon. May I?”

“You’ll be his new best friend,” Kira said, laughing lightly.

I offered Husker a piece of bacon, and he gobbled it instantly. He stared at me with those large brown eyes, hopeful and expectant for more.

“You’re renting Luke’s condo,” Kira said.

“I am.” I broke off another piece of bacon and offered it to the eager pup.

“But you’re not staying?”

“I have about two more weeks in town. Then I’m headed to Lansing, where my family is. My sister’s having a baby soon.”

I was overexplaining myself, but something about meeting Luke’s sister made me extra nervous. The longer she stayed, the more I realized it had less to do with her famous author status and more about wanting her approval.

I glanced toward the row I spotted Luke in earlier, but he was no longer there. I suspected he was pulled away by someone else.

Ever since we set up camp in the park two hours ago, the people of Bluebell Springs approached him in droves, as though he were the most popular guy in town. It didn’t matter that he’d taken a couple weeks off, or that his officers were more than capable of handling the town in his absence. The residents of Bluebell Springs looked to Luke as one of their leaders. He belonged here in a way I’d always hoped to belong in a place I’d yet to find.

Someday.

“He seems better. Less bitter and grouchy,” Kira noted, following my gaze until it landed on Luke talking to Frank and Dylann Mercer four booths away. “I haven’t seen him like this since before our mom died.”

“He’s certainly not the same grumpy pain in the ass he was when he held the door code hostage my first day in town,” I said honestly.

Kira laughed, and the tension in my shoulders eased.

“I don’t know if you know this, but Luke doesn’t do casual. Even in high school when half the girls wanted to date him. He’s as loyal as they come. You must mean something to him.”

I remembered his confession the first night he took me up against the wall. How he hadn’t slept with a woman in the three years since his ex-fiancée left him in a church full of guests. I’d taken his celibacy for bitterness. I considered it might be more than that, but surely not the more Kira was insinuating.

“He knows I’m leaving,” I said, light defensiveness rising in my tone despite my best efforts to push it down.

“That’s too bad,” Kira said, a sad sort of smile forming. “I’ll miss seeing him this happy.”

“That’s not really fair,” I said quietly, the sting of tears threatening my eyes. Well, this was not how I expected the first meeting with his sister to go. I loved how protective she was of Luke. I just wished that her love for her brother didn’t make me feel like the villain.

“You misunderstand me,” Kira said. “His happiness is not your responsibility or anyone else’s.”

“Then what are you saying?”

“I’ve just missed my brother.”

She slipped away, Husker at her heel. The pup kept looking back at me, as though I was going to toss him a parting gift of bacon. I considered it, but I didn’t quite know how to feel after that interaction.

I focused on stirring the chili to avoid searching for Luke.

He and I had talked about our arrangement, and agreed to enjoy what time we had left. He never once pressured me for more. I never once had to twist his arm. And yet, I was suddenly the bad guy? It didn’t sit right with me.