“I will not,” I huffed with a laugh. I moved away from her and got myself a drink of water. “It’d be safer to send Clay down there to learn how to fix it than me trying to get us a price break.”
“If our dog starts fixing things, we’re hitting the road and making some money,” said Rachel.
We both heard the heavy tread on the basement stairs at the same time. Rachel’s face lit with anticipation while I eyed the door with dread. Was it too late to run past and hide in my room? With Clay so close to the door, I’d probably trip on him, and the repairman would find me lying at his feet.
Then, I saw the guy. Denim hugged his long, lean legs, and a snug shirt displayed his biceps and abs to perfection. I knew better than to stare; he would take my attention as a come-get-me signal for sure. But with a body like that, a girl had to look her fill. When my eyes finally met his, he smiled broadly and flexed.
Well, that just ruined the whole window-shopping experience. A conceited hottie. Their vocabularies didn’t include the word no, which made it difficult to fight them off. The situation called for a retreat. I turned to Rachel.
“I have to go pick up my ring before Clay gets here. He’d be heartbroken if he found out I bent a prong on the setting already. Plus, my hand feels naked without it.” While I spoke, I held out my left hand dramatically and gave it a wistful look. Maybe it was over doing it, but I wasn’t sure he’d get the point otherwise.
“The dog?” the man asked with a puzzled look at Rachel.
A nervous laugh escaped before I could stop it. “We named the dog after my fiancé. He has a good sense of humor and likes the dog, too.”
I bolted out the door and got back into my car. Clay hadn’t been fast enough for a change, and I had to leave him behind.
Not knowing what else to do, I went grocery shopping and took my time to read the labels of the different orange juices the store offered. Even after the drawn-out shopping trip, I had to drive past the house three times before the truck finally disappeared.
When I staggered in through the back door laden with groceries, Clay sat waiting for me in the kitchen. I set down the bags and peeked around the corner to look for Rachel. When I didn’t see or hear her, I spoke to Clay in a whisper.
“You better keep reading the books I bring home. You can be our repair guy. It gives me the willies that he knows where I live.”
Clay nodded his head in agreement...which Rachel saw as she walked into the kitchen. She paused mid-stride, her eyes wide.
“Did he just nod?” she demanded.
I acted natural. “Yep. I’ve been working on it with him. He caught on really fast. The nodding isn’t bad, but his smile can be a little scary.”
Rachel stared at us for a moment then shook her head.
“You’re weird, Gabby, but in a good way. Anyway, it was one hundred and twenty-five dollars to fix the washer. I covered your half. With the vet bill, you’re up to one hundred, minus the burger and drink from disaster night.”
Ouch. “Okay. I’ll run to the bank after class tomorrow.” I chewed my lip for a moment. My pathetic savings couldn’t take these kinds of unexpected hits. Life was more expensive than I’d anticipated.
I turned to unpack the rest of my groceries and noticed Clay watching me closely. Not wanting to draw Rachel’s attention to him again, I ignored his look and finished up so I could go study.
On Friday afternoon, Rachel rushed in through the back door while calling my name in a panicked tone.
“In here!” I said as I jumped up from the bed.
We nearly collided as she flew through my bedroom door at the same time I tried to leave it. I caught her by the arms.
“What’s going on?”
“Peter broke and told Scott he had plans to go to dinner with me tonight,” she panted.
I stared at her. She ran through the house to tell me she had a date? I really didn’t see how I qualified as the weird one sometimes.
“So...?”
“Peter’s coming here to pick me up, and Scott’s coming with. Gabby, I don’t think he’s going to take no for an answer tonight. Peter can’t shake him.” Her emphatic expression told me the degree of insistence Scott had used to accompany Peter.
I groaned, flopped back on my bed, and forgetting about Clay, landed on him. He didn’t even twitch, but I still reached back to pat him.
“Sorry, Clay.” I froze mid-pat then bolted upright. “I’ve got an idea! Rachel, if you have any clothes that would say I’ve been dating a guy for a while, can I borrow them?” I didn’t want to spend any money unnecessarily.
“Sure, but who are you dating?”
Rachel moved out of the way as I rushed from my room. I heard Clay hop down from the bed to follow me. I grabbed shoes from the closet. My plan could work. I just needed to convince Clay. They both trailed behind me as I struggled to slip on some shoes while I walked to the kitchen. It wasn’t easy. I almost tripped twice and covered most of the distance hopping instead of walking. I grabbed my car keys.
“I’ll let you know when I bring him home. Come on, Clay,” I called, holding the door open for him. With a baffled glint in his eyes, he followed me.
I rushed to the car and waved for him to hurry. I had the doors slammed closed and the engine rumbling seconds later. Clay studied me as I careened out the driveway and took off in the direction of the shopping district.
“You’re here to keep me safe, right?” I took his grunt as a yes. “Then, I need you to be more than my dog.” I risked a glance at him. He tilted his head at me clearly confused. “I need you to put on your skin. Be my date tonight. Please?”
I sounded desperate, but I didn’t really care. The thought of Scott cornering me gave me shivers. His normal personality probably qualified as nice, but I’d seen how the obsession had worked on others. Scott’s fascination with me had obviously advanced. Yet, if Clay were to run interference as my date, it could permanently dissolve.
“You took a shower today, right?” I expected the harrumph he let out. “Do you know what size you wear? Shirt, pants, shoes?” Unhelpful, he continued to stare at me.
Given what he’d worn when I first saw him, he probably didn’t know. It made my work a little bit more difficult, but I would manage.
I found an open spot and careened into it, slamming on the brakes at the last second. Only Clay’s good balance kept him from falling out of the seat.
“I’ll be back in a few minutes,” I said as I rushed out the door.
Inside the store, I tried to remember how he’d looked as a man. Hairy. Dirty. Tall. Well, taller than me. Had he seemed thin or chubby? I couldn’t remember. His jacket had obscured most of his shape, and I’d been distracted by the whole “hey, I’m your Mate” thing.
Usually, when I shopped on my own, it didn’t turn out well. However, my crazed sprints from rack to rack held most of the men I encountered at bay. So, I scoured the clearance racks and guessed at sizes while trying to stick with safe styles.
Panting for breath, I raced to a register. I bought Clay a linen pant and shirt set, the largest brown foam bottomed sandals I could find—I could always cut the foam down to size—and a few other essentials.
Then, I ran out of the store. Clay was standing on the seat. He just stared at me as I opened the car door and tossed the bags at him. They landed at his feet.
I started the engine and tried to think where I could take him to get dressed. Somewhere he could walk in as a dog and out as a man. I couldn’t think of a single place that allowed dogs in changing areas. I’d just have to try to pull a fast one on Rachel. I put the car in gear and drove it as if I’d stolen it. I made it to the house in record time.
Rachel was already dressed and standing outside by the back door when we got home. She had a stack of clothes in her arms.