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Sydney hadn’t been home when Adam stopped by to see her. He’d been disappointed, but maybe it was for the best. He would have had to explain where he was off to, and she might have ended up coming.

Right now, he was feeling like it was better she didn’t know about this.

He stood backstage with the other bachelors. There was a fireman, a local veterinarian, a teacher from the nearby academy, all kinds of professional men. All of them were sharply dressed, making him glad he’d splurged on the suit.

But when it came to resumes, the best he could do was that he worked for the town. Because of the supernatural element, his actual job couldn’t be revealed. At least they were including his military experience in his bio. That was something.

Doubt and Veronika’s words crept in. Maybe she’d been right. He needed to do more with his life. He’d been ready to start that personal security business, but she’d basically stopped him with her complaints. Why had he listened to her?

Because he’d loved her and wanted to make her happy.

Now look where he was.

He could still start that business. He had a few connections. Couldn’t hurt to call them and see if they’d talk to him when he returned to Chicago.

Of course, that was five and a half months from now. If they had a job for him, they’d expect him to start immediately.

And it wasn’t what he really wanted to do. His dream was to cook and, eventually, have his own restaurant. Or something like that.

Truth was, that dream seemed a little out there now. He didn’t even know where he’d be returning to. The apartment was Veronika’s. He’d have to find a place. And buy furniture. At least working in Nocturne Falls would give him the money to do both those things.

Out on the stage, the emcee, a nice woman by the name of Delaney Ellingham, who was apparently part of the vampire family that owned and operated Nocturne Falls, was welcoming the crowd.

Based on the amount of applause, the crowd was excited about the evening.

He blew out a breath, not exactly nervous but really hoping he went for more than ten bucks. This could be very embarrassing. He didn’t want Nick or Willa to regret asking him to fill in.

Willa had already said hi to him and checked him in, so there was no escaping now.

A few new people came through the rear stage doors, all of them with dogs on leashes.

The man leading the group announced, “Okay, gentlemen, we have your partners. I promise they have all been walked, so no one should need a bathroom break, but dogs are not always predictable, so if something happens, just roll with it.”

Adam’s eyes narrowed. “Partners?”

The guy next to Adam answered. “Yeah, we’re all walking out with a dog in the hopes of getting them adopted.”

“Oh, that’s cool.” Adam liked that idea. Getting the dogs adopted would be great. Their presence might help with bids, too.

One of the women in the dog group came over to him. “Here you go.” She handed him the end of a sparkly pink leash that held the smallest dog in the group. “This is Sugarbelle. She’s a chipoo.”

“A what?” He stared down at the tiny thing. He guessed she’d fit in his hand. Her curly fur was the color of toffee. She was pretty stinking cute but looked like she’d be better suited to riding around in some fancy woman’s purse than in his presence.

“She’s a Chihuahua-poodle mix—in this case, a teacup poodle, so that’s about as big as she’s going to get.” The woman grinned. “I hope you don’t mind. We thought it would be funny to give the biggest guy the smallest dog.”

“Yeah, I get it.” The little dog looked apprehensive. Poor thing. “She going to be okay with all the crowd noise?”

The woman glanced down at Sugarbelle. “Let’s hope so. I don’t think she’ll try to take off, but just keep a firm grip on the leash. You shouldn’t be out there too long.”

She moved on to deliver the next dog.

Adam crouched next to Sugarbelle. He wasn’t worried about her bolting so much as he thought she might freak out. He held his hand out to her. “Hey, there, pretty girl. Don’t be afraid. It’s probably going to be noisy, and there will be bright lights, but I’ll protect you, okay?”

Sugarbelle sniffed Adam’s hand, then gave it a little lick. Something in his heart gave way. “Aw, good girl. Don’t be afraid.”

He scratched her head. Her fur was silky. “Look how sweet you are. Is that why they named you Sugarbelle?”

She inched closer to him, seemingly eager for more attention.

He could hear Delaney call out the first bachelor. The auction was starting. He looked up and watched the man and his dog, a black Labrador, walk through the curtain and out onto the stage.

Adam’s heart beat a little faster. He was last on the roster, which was part of his worry. What if everyone was out of money by then?

He petted Sugarbelle, who was now sitting against his legs. “Listen, you don’t worry about me, okay? You just look as cute as possible, and I bet somebody adopts you right away.”

She looked up at him, her big brown eyes framed by little lashes.

He smiled. “You’re already as cute as possible, aren’t you?”

A huge roar went up from the crowd, and the first bachelor and his dog returned through the curtain. They both looked very happy.

“How much?” one of the other men asked.

“Eight grand, and King’s got at least two women interested in him.”

Eight grand. Adam’s heart sank. That was a huge amount. He stood up and did his best to nod at the man as he went past. “Great job.”

“Thanks.”

The next bachelor was introduced and strode out through the curtain with his dog, a beagle.

Adam tried to think positively. If someone was willing to spend that much on the first guy, there had to be more money in that crowd. He just hoped they saved some for him. And thought he was worthy of it.

A little whimper caught his attention, and he felt tiny paws on his leg. He looked down to see Sugarbelle staring up at him, her two front legs on his shin.

How could someone not adopt this little thing? She was adorable. “You want more pets?”

She sort of sneeze-woofed, which looked very much to Adam like a no. “If you want treats, you’re out of luck because I don’t have any.”

Another whimper, this one somehow more demanding.

He almost laughed. “I don’t speak dog. What do you want, little girl?”

The guy in front of him, who’d gone all out in a tuxedo, turned around. “She wants you to pick her up. My sister’s dog does that all the time.”

“Got it,” Adam said. He made eye contact with Sugarbelle again as he held his hands out. “Is that what you want? For me to pick you up?”

Sugarbelle danced on her back legs, enthusiastically giving him a soft woof.

Adam bent down and scooped the tiny dog into his arms. What was a little hair on his suit? She barely weighed a thing. She wriggled and licked his face, obviously happy that he’d finally understood her.

“Hey, now, I have to be presentable.” Laughing, he scratched under her chin to distract her.

The next bachelor returned from the stage. “Seventy-five hundred,” he proudly proclaimed.

That was good. Not much different than the first guy. Could set a trend. Adam hoped that was the case.

Two more bachelors and their dogs walked through the curtain. The crowd seemed to be keeping its energy, but Adam’s nerves had yet to subside.

Then the next bachelor pulled three rubber balls from his pockets and walked out juggling them. That earned him twelve grand.

The man after him walked out on his hands with the leash in his mouth and made a cool fifteen thousand.

Adam’s only party trick was turning into a gargoyle, and he couldn’t do that in front of a mixed crowd. If anything, that would probably send the humans running.

He thought hard. He could do one-armed push-ups, but would women really be impressed with that? And what if Sugarbelle got scared?

He looked at her. “Any ideas?”

She just stared back at him, her little pink tongue sticking out of her mouth.

He sighed. “That’s what I was afraid of.”