New York, Actually (From Manhattan with Love 4)

“No.” Daniel straightened. “But we can talk about it tonight. And we can talk about that kiss.” He nodded toward the road. “Rob will take you home, or to my sisters’ apartment, or wherever it is you want to go.”

“The car will be covered in dog hairs.”

“Rob is a man who can handle most things. I can’t imagine a few dog hairs are going to throw him off his stride. Your address?”

She hesitated and then told him. “If you show up, I might kill you.”

Daniel smiled. “I’ll see you at eight, Molly. That should give you time to figure out a few million ways to achieve that objective.”

Ten

She did not need to figure out how she felt. She knew how she felt. She was mad at him! He’d lied to her. Did he seriously think she was going to get involved with him after the stunt he’d pulled? And as for the suggestion that she was using what had happened as an excuse to push him away. It wasn’t an excuse, it was the truth.

No woman in her sound mind would get involved with a man who borrowed a dog to meet her.

She simmered as the sleek car purred through the traffic that clogged midtown Manhattan.

When she arrived at the twins’ house, Harriet opened the door, looking guilty. “I don’t know what to say to you. I feel terrible about this. If you don’t want to speak to us ever again, I’ll understand. I’ll recommend new dog walkers.”

“You’re the best dog walkers in Manhattan. I don’t want anyone different. How’s my best boy?” Molly waited for Valentine to come bounding to meet her but instead he stayed where he was, head on his paws, uncharacteristically lethargic. “What’s wrong?”

“I was going to ask you about him. He seems a little off-color.” Harriet closed the door and then removed Brutus’s lead. “Was he fine yesterday?”

“Yes. And he was fine when I took him to the park this morning.” She watched as Brutus nudged Valentine. When the other dog wouldn’t play, Brutus lay down next to him.

“They’re so darling together,” Harriet breathed. “Could Valentine have eaten something? He often tries to do that, doesn’t he? It’s one of the reasons I don’t usually walk him with another dog. I have to keep a close eye on him.”

“He didn’t eat anything. We weren’t even there for long.” Molly thought back. She’d been lost in thought, preoccupied by Daniel. She hadn’t been paying as much attention as usual. Guilt punched her in the stomach, and underneath the guilt was anxiety. It wasn’t like Valentine to lack energy. “I suppose he might have eaten something. It’s possible.”

“I’m sure it’s nothing. I’ll ke

ep an eye on him and if I’m worried I’ll call the vet.”

“I’ll cancel my meeting.” She started to hunt for her phone but Harriet shook her head.

“Don’t do that. You’re not far away and I’ll call if I’m worried. How did it go with Daniel? I hope he apologized.”

Molly dropped to her knees next to Valentine, anxious about him. “He’s saving that for tonight.”

“Tonight?”

“He’s coming round to have a conversation.”

Harriet’s face brightened. “Oh, well that’s—”

“It’s not anything.”

“That’s a shame. You’re the first woman who might actually be able to handle him. Daniel is used to women falling all over him. It happened the moment he hit puberty. Girls came up to Fliss and I, wanting to know how to attract his attention. He’s always had the pick of the bunch. I honestly don’t think he has ever heard ‘no’ from a woman.”

“Well, he’s heard it now.” Except that he didn’t appear to be listening.

“You’re totally mad at him. I don’t blame you at all.”

“What upsets me isn’t only that he pretended to own a dog that wasn’t his, but the convoluted story he made up about his background. Can you believe he actually told me Brutus was a casualty of a bitter divorce case? He told me the man only kept him to punish his wife because he knew how much she loved the dog, and then when he realized he didn’t want the dog the wife wouldn’t take it back because she thought he deserved it. I believed him. I was upset for Brutus.”

“Oh, that part wasn’t a lie. Daniel really did rescue the dog from that vile divorcing couple up in Harlem. That was the truth. The only bit about that story he conveniently missed out was that he didn’t keep the dog—he brought it straight to us.”

Wrong-footed, Molly stared at her. “But why would he even have known about the dog?”