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Veronika was wearing him down, but Adam knew he couldn’t let her win this one.

He turned his phone to silent and set it at the end of the counter before going to check on the homemade dog biscuits that were currently in the oven. Sugarbelle was still outside, but he’d left the door open for her.

Talking to Veronika would only make things worse. The woman did not understand the word no. She did, however, know how to push his buttons.

He refused to let her get to him, but at what point would she finally give up and stop texting and calling? If it didn’t happen soon, he was going to … what? He could block her number. That wasn’t a bad idea.

Except at least this way, he had some idea of her mindset.

The biscuits looked done even though the timer said they had two more minutes. Based on a gut feeling, he pulled both trays out and set them on racks to cool. They smelled surprisingly good, thanks to the peanut butter in the recipe.

Sugarbelle magically appeared, her tail wagging as she came in.

“You smelled something good, huh?” And apparently she liked it well enough to come inside. “They’re too hot right now but soon. And if you like them, we’ll take some over to Mackie, okay?”

Sugarbelle followed him out to the garage, where he was painting her new stepstool. He crouched down to touch the first coat. It was dry enough, so he applied a second, making sure to keep an eye on a very curious little dog who seemed determined to get paint on herself.

“Quit that.” He shook his head as he pushed her away from the paint can she’d been trying to stick her head into. “You do not want paint on yourself, or then you really will need a bath. Something I’m not the most confident about giving you.”

He finished the second coat without getting any paint on himself. He straightened. “You want a cookie? Let’s go back in.”

The biscuits were probably cool enough by now. He checked one. Still a little warm. He picked up the first tray and used a spatula to transfer the biscuits directly to the wire cooling rack. “Don’t worry,” he told Sugarbelle, “the first one is almost cool enough to eat.”

There was still some dough left. Once he gave Sugarbelle a taste, he’d roll out the rest of the dough and get them into the oven.

Since he didn’t have a bone-shaped cookie cutter, something he was thinking about getting, he’d just cut them into squares. Kind of boring but good enough for the time being.

He finished transferring the biscuits and set the empty trays on the stovetop. Sugarbelle was waiting patiently. He picked up the first biscuit, which was close to room temperature. He broke it in half and leaned down to offer it to her. “Here you go. Tell me what you think.”

She sniffed it, then immediately took it in her mouth, gave it two quick chews and swallowed.

He laughed. “I guess you like it, huh?” He gave her the other half, then found a zip-seal bag and portioned out some for Mackie. Those got set aside.

He went back to work rolling and cutting dough, getting the last two batches into the hot oven. He set the timer for twenty-five minutes.

That was more than enough time to take the biscuits next door. The second coat of paint wouldn’t be dry for a bit anyway. He grabbed the bag and headed out the door. “Back in a few, Sugarbaby.”

He cut across the lawns and went up the steps to Sydney’s front porch, knocking as soon as he reached the door.

There was no answer, but her car was in the driveway. He knocked again. This time, Mackie barked, and after a few more seconds, the door opened.

Sydney stood there in a fluffy white bathrobe, her hair wrapped in a white towel, her face bare but glowing. She looked surprised to see him. “Adam.”

“Hi. Sorry to bother you.” He held out the bag of biscuits. “I made some dog treats. Sugarbelle likes them. I thought Mackie would, too. Perfectly safe for dogs. I followed a veterinarian-approved recipe.”

“That was so nice of you.” She took the bag, opened it, and gave Mackie one of the biscuits.

Much like Sugarbelle, he sniffed it, but then he snatched it and ran off with it.

Sydney laughed. “I’d say those are going to be popular. Thanks.”

“You’re welcome. I have another batch in the oven, so I have to get back.”

She nodded. “Okay.”

“Bye.” He left. He hadn’t meant to interrupt, but clearly she was getting ready to go somewhere. Probably out with friends. Or a guy. He frowned. That wasn’t necessarily true. She might have just been showering.

It was his own mind telling him she was going out. Nothing more. She hadn’t said anything about her evening to him at the thrift store, but then he hadn’t really engaged her in conversation.

He’d been too caught up in who she was. And now, once again, he was making assumptions about her.

That was just dumb. None of it mattered anyway. Sydney was a grown woman who could do what she liked. With whomever she liked.

He just kind of wished she was doing something with him. He sighed as he went into his house. She was human. He had to keep reminding himself of that.

But what if …

No. It wasn’t an option. Supernaturals were not supposed to reveal themselves to humans. It had the potential to cause all kinds of trouble. Not only that, but he was essentially a guest in this town. He was supposed to be on his best behavior.

Which meant not sharing the truth about himself with the hottie next door in the hopes that she’d be okay with it and still want to go out with him.

He busied himself for as long as possible with the dog biscuits and the painting, and then the cleaning up of those projects, but eventually it was time to get ready for his date.

With some reluctance, he got showered and shaved, then dressed in the pants and sport coat Sydney had found for him at the thrift shop. He wore them with the white dress shirt he’d gotten at Guildman’s, the same one he’d worn with his suit for the auction.

He was happy to see that the money he’d paid for it had been well spent. After washing and drying it, he’d hung it up, and it actually had been wrinkle-free. He might never buy another style of shirt again. At least not when it came to dress shirts.

He was putting a little cologne on when he realized his phone was still on silent and he hadn’t checked it in a while. What if the date had been canceled? Or the location changed?

He went out to the kitchen and had a look.

Nothing so good as that, but there were three new text messages from Veronika. Rolling his eyes, he read them.

Please can we talk?

I know I screwed up.

I really need to see you.

At least she’d acknowledged that she’d made a mistake. That was new. But it wasn’t going to change anything.

He set the phone back to vibrate so he’d at least hear if something important came in and went back to finish up his outfit with the belt and dress shoes he’d also gotten at Guildman’s.

He checked himself in the mirror. He looked all right. He went out to the living room. Sugarbelle was on the couch. He held his arms out. “What do you think? How do I look?”

She wagged her tail.

“I’ll take that as you think I look good. Thank you. And just for that, you get a cookie.” He went into the kitchen and grabbed her one but hesitated before giving it to her. “Maybe you should go out one more time before I leave. Come on. Backyard.”

She hopped down and followed him.

“You’re so smart, aren’t you, baby girl? You know what I’m saying, don’t you?”

He opened the door, and she ran out, did a quick pee and came right back in. “You’re either very smart or very motivated by cookies. Either way, you’re getting two.”

He got her another one and put them both on the living room rug for her. Then he gave her a little pet on the head and stood up. “Gotta go. Hopefully won’t be long because after that, I have to go to work. But when I get home, we can hang out. Just you and me, baby.”

Keys in hand, wallet in his pocket, he left. It wasn’t right to say he was dreading the date. He wasn’t. But he wasn’t exactly looking forward to it, either. He reminded himself that this woman Birdie had paid twenty-five thousand dollars to have a nice evening with him.

He was going to make sure she had a good time. He got in his Bronco, looked up the restaurant and found directions. Not too far and not hard to find. Guillermo’s, a little Italian place that many reviewers said was romantic.

He hoped Birdie didn’t have those kinds of ideas.

He found the place without any problem, parked, and went in. It was romantic. Lots of Italian ambience and delicious aromas. He checked in at the hostess stand. “I’m Adam Rockford. I’m here for the auction date.”

The young woman working there smiled at him. “I know who you are. I was at that auction. You did great.”

“Thanks.”

“Your date isn’t here yet, but your table is ready. Right this way.”

He followed her through the restaurant and out into a garden patio area.

It was shaded by a vine-covered trellis overhead, and there were fans to move the air around.

In the center stood a three-tiered fountain with water bubbling away.

Tiny lights were interwoven with the vines and sparkled like stars.

He sucked in a breath. This was very romantic. And that might be trouble.

He unbuttoned his sport coat and took a seat.

She handed him a menu, then put one at the place setting across from him. “I’ll bring your date in as soon as she arrives.”

He nodded. “Thanks.”

He’d have to make sure Birdie knew his intention right from the start. If she thought something else was going to happen and it didn’t, there might be a whole lot of hurt feelings, and that would not be good.

As he pondered how he’d handle that, the restaurant door opened and the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen walked through it, wearing a green dress that fit like a second skin. His heart nearly stopped at the sight of her, his breath catching at her sheer perfection.

He blinked twice, then pushed to his feet. “Syd?”

She smiled at him, tentatively, almost like she was nervous as she stopped in front of him. “Hi.” Her voice was barely louder than a whisper, her hands tightly clasped in front of her.

“You look…” But there were no words to describe how incredible she looked. “What are you doing here?”

She took a breath, then swallowed, lifting her chin slightly. “I’m your date.”