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Nothing. Zip. Zilch.
Ugh.
Suddenly scampering feet sounded on the wooden floor, and I knew it was my new best friend coming to say hello.
“Willow, get your cute butt over here.”
The black lab ran at full speed toward me, knocking me off balance just as her human arrived in the doorway. He’d peeled off his comfortable sweater and now wore only a fitted black T-shirt that did nothing to hide his gorgeous muscles.
Hello, arm porn.
Sebastian had shown me a state-of-the-art gym earlier during our tour and it was very apparent that he made good use of that space.
He glanced at my blank canvas. “No luck?”
I stared forlornly at the space that should be full of color. “Not yet.”
“Maybe food will help. Dinner’s ready.” He left before I could respond.
Willow nudged my hand with her little nose. I leaned over to give her a good pat on the head. “Come on, your human is summoning us.”
When I entered the cozy kitchen, I found a fully prepared meal on the table. There were green beans, mashed potatoes, some sort of chicken dish that smelled like it had lemons and lots of seasonings. My stomach instantly grumbled. “Wow, this looks incredible. Did you do this?”
Sebastian looked a little sheepish. “Actually…”
“Darling, I ran back to get the rolls. I made them fresh this morning.” A woman walked into the room, her hair the same dark auburn shade as Sebastian’s. Her eyes were the same shape too, although hers were softer and less steely hazel. She came to a stop when she spotted me.
“You must be Dominic’s sister,” she said with a wide smile as she set down a basket full of fresh rolls that smelled like they were from a professional bakery. She walked over and enveloped me into a soothing hug. “Welcome. I’m Constance, Seb’s mom. If you need anything from me, please let me know. I live on the property.”
She pulled away, and I immediately missed her comfort. I’d lost my mom over a year ago and in an instant this woman made me feel warm and welcome and if I didn’t stop thinking about how amazing that hug felt my eyes would start misting…
“How can I help?” I said, looking for a task, any task. “Do we need water for the table? Can I feed Willow her dinner?”
The lovely lab trotted over to me and licked my hand like she knew I needed some love. I bent down to give her some good pets as a thanks for her attention and a distraction for myself.
“We have everything we need, sweetheart. Feel free to take a seat at the table. I’m going to grab that bottle of Chianti I’ve been eyeballing.”
Across the room was a large wine rack, mostly full of reds, my favorite. Constance didn’t bat a lash as she went straight for the bottle she wanted.
I settled into a seat as Constance uncorked the bottle. Meanwhile, Sebastian put three wine glasses down in the center of the table.
“What about Willow’s dinner?” I asked.
Sebastian raised a brow. “She’s trying to con you. She ate right before we went to get you.”
Hearing her name, Willow came and placed her sweet head in my lap.
“Growing up, I had a dog named Coco and she would do the exact same thing. As soon as someone entered the room around her feeding times, she’d get all excited and wag her tail and use those puppy dog eyes on you. We’d always assumed she was hungry, but she was really just playing us. She was so smart.”
“Was that your only pet growing up?” Constance asked, filling each of our wine glasses.
“My mom loved animals, so we were always fostering. Usually kittens but occasionally we’d get a litter of puppies and that was always my favorite.”
Constance shook her head. “I don’t know if I could handle giving them back. I’d probably end up adopting them all.”
“Trust me, I felt the same way.”
I nodded to Sebastian. “How about you? Did you have any pets growing up?”
