Page 7 of Numbers Boy (Working Boys #2)

“Yep,” Steve replies, absently stroking her ears and smiling over at me.

“It’s her house, too, so I figured she might as well have mostly free rein over it.

The only places I like to keep her out of are my office and the bathroom, unless I’m in there with her.

I don’t want to risk the electronics or all my makeup. ”

“Makes sense. You said you need her walked usually just once a week?” I double-check.

“Yeah, most days, I’m here since I work from home, but every Friday, I have a late appointment, so I won’t be home to do her last walk and dinnertime. And then I might need some weekend help, too, but I’ll let you know if that comes up.”

“Perfect. I’ll plan to start this Friday and let you know how she does.

” Part of me is curious about his weekly late-night appointment, but it’s not my place to pry.

Sticking to the topic of Stacy is safe though.

I glance down at the dog snuggled up between us and grin.

“But based on how she is now, I don’t foresee any issues. ”

“She is really great.” Steve looks back down at Stacy, and I swear there are hearts in his eyes. It’s clear that he loves her, even if he hasn’t had her very long.

“If you don’t mind me asking, why didn’t you have a pet before now? You said Stacy is a recent addition, but you seem like a pet person.”

Steve stiffens a bit, still focused on Stacy, and I’m about to take back my question when he takes a deep breath and looks up at me again. There’s a shuttered look in his eyes that dampens their usual sparkle.

“I am a pet person. Growing up, my dad and I always had a dog, and I always figured that after graduating college, I would get one, too.” He huffs an approximation of a laugh and rolls his eyes.

“But my ex was not a pet person. There was always a reason to put off getting one, so we just never did. After a while, I stopped asking, and my plan of finding the perfect pup was put on hold.”

“I’m sorry that your ex wasn’t on the same page as you.

” I know I’m an animal lover, so this particular difference of opinion doesn’t make sense to me anyways, but I can’t imagine not giving this sweet man whatever he wants.

Maybe that’s not the healthiest way to view things, but seriously, it’s a dog.

How could you see Steve with Stacy and not do anything in your power to keep them together?

“Thanks. But it all worked out. I’m single but finally have the perfect girl in my life.

” He grins and lands a smooch on Stacy’s snout.

She lifts a sleepy head and gazes adoringly up at her human.

Girl, same. I also can’t help but notice that Steve hasn’t used any pronouns when referencing his ex, and just said that he’s finally got a girl in his life.

Was that just in relation to Stacy, or have I made some widely inaccurate assumptions based on how he looks?

Lord knows I often get mistaken for a straight dude, even when my bi tattoos are on display.

“I’ve already got an Insta set up for her and everything. Want to see?”

“Hell, yeah,” I say enthusiastically. Steve moves to grab his phone out of his pocket, and as he twists, his crop top shifts so more of his waist is exposed. Before I can get too distracted by the creamy, freckle-flecked patch of skin, Steve straightens himself, and I pull my gaze back to his face.

“So, her handle is SweetAndStacy, if you want to follow her.” He turns his phone toward me, and the first picture I see is him and Stacy, probably still at the shelter.

He’s giving her a kiss, and she has a big, goofy dog grin on her face.

Under it, the caption reads “Found the love of my life fur real @PawsitivelyPurrfectPR! *heart emoji* #adoptdontshop #pawsitivelypurrfectpetrescue #sweetandstacy”

“That’s awesome,” I say and pull my phone out to find her. “Aaand, followed.”

“Oh, hey, Baxxxter99 just followed you, Stacy!” Steve grins and winks at me. “We should probably give him a follow back.”

My phone pings a notification, and I look down to see that he’s done just that.

A few seconds later, it pings again, and I see that LoveMeOrSteveMe has followed me as well.

A warm feeling blossoms in the pit of my stomach as I hit the Follow Back button and grin over at Steve.

Neither of us seems to want to say anything about it, but I get the feeling both of us wanted a reason to stay in touch other than the sweet pup falling asleep on the couch between us.

The moment stretches out, tension mounting, until Stacy lets out a snuffly snore, and we both look away.

“Um.” I clear my suddenly dry throat and start again. “I guess I’ll be here on Friday.”

“Sounds good. I’ll get you the spare key on your way out.”

Steve carefully extricates himself from under his dog, and we head back to the front door.

He grabs a key from the small console table there and holds it out with an almost shy expression, his teeth biting into his plump bottom lip.

I take it, and just like at the coffee shop, tingles race up my arm when our fingers brush.

I remind myself that this is for business purposes.

I’ve gotten keys from more people than I can count. So why does this key feel so important?

“Have a good week, Noah,” Steve says and drops his hand.

“Thanks. You too, Steve. Say good night to Stacy for me.”

MY FIRST WALK with Stacy goes off without a hitch. As soon as I unlock Steve’s apartment with the key he gave me, she’s there at the door, feet tip-tapping away.

“Hey, girly, how are you today?” I know my voice has taken on a ridiculous quality, which I’m really glad Steve isn’t around to witness.

But Stacy eats it up, bonking her head into my legs and wiggling around as I give her pets.

“That’s good, beautiful. Now, let’s get your lead on and go for a walk. ”

Stacy gives a little “yip” and sits when she sees her leash.

I clip it on without any issue, and then we’re out the door and into the cold, snowy evening.

We head to the closest dog park, and I let Stacy take her time, sniffing things as we go.

Once we’re there, I make sure the gate is latched and let her off her lead since there aren’t any other dogs around.

She takes off and then comes tearing back to me with a stick. I laugh and reach out for it.

“What a nice stick, Stacy! Want to play fetch? Drop it.”

She does, and we spend a while playing until I can see she’s starting to run out of energy.

“Good girl!” I praise her as I pull out her leash from my pocket. “Now, let’s take a picture for your daddy and head back before it gets too cold.”

I snap a quick pic of Stacy with her stick and attach it to a text to Steve.

Me: Stacy had a great time at the park. She thinks she wants to be a branch manager when she grows up. *image attached*

I’m a little surprised when he answers within a few minutes. Whatever he has going on tonight, he must have access to his phone.

Steve: *heart eye emoji* OMG, so cute!

Steve: Do you mind if I put that on her page?

Me: Go for it!

Not wanting to keep Stacy waiting or out in the cold, I hook her leash back on, and we start to head back to her apartment.

As I’m getting her paws wiped off by the door, my phone pings with an Instagram notification.

I open it to see that Steve has posted about Stacy going on a walk tonight, and he’s tagged UnLeash Your Dreams. I had seen that he had followed us with both his personal and Stacy’s account, but I didn’t expect him to use the picture I took to advertise for us.

I give the post a like and send him a quick thank you DM, which he replies to with, “No problem, thanks for helping us out!”

As I stand there, starry-eyed over how nice he is, Stacy nuzzles her nose into my free hand, asking for pats.

One look at her sweet face, and I give in without hesitation.

If they could both stop being so cute, that would be great.

Because it’s only been one official day as her dog walker, and I’m already in too deep with both of them.