The Favor

Although I was saddened to know he’d only ever been to a zoo once and that he barely remembered the experience, I kind of liked that I got to see his expression when he saw some animals properly for the first time. Seeing them on TV wasn’t the same.

“Aw, look at the baby meerkats.” I snapped a few pictures of them. “Dane, I can’t take this level of cuteness. You can’t tell me your heart isn’t melting right now.”

“Can’t I?”

“No. Even the adults are cute.”

“Hmm.” There was something strangely endearing about the way he looked at them as if he didn’t really know what to make of them.

“Did you know that a group of meerkats is actually called a mob?”

“A mob?”

“Yep.” Noticing that a little toddler with pigtails was looking up at Dane like he was a fairytale prince, I felt my mouth twitch. “A little girl is staring at you all starry-eyed,” I whispered.

“And the man behind you keeps looking at your ass.” Dane palmed said ass, the bold bastard. “Let’s move before I kill him.”

“One more pic—”

“You’ll have no memory left on your phone before this day is over. Come on.” He took me by my wrist and began leading me toward the next enclosure.

I gasped. “Look over there, zebras! They’re—oh. Oh.” I turned away. “I’ll take photos of them later.”

Dane glanced down at me, his eyes smiling. “When two of them aren’t mating, you mean?”

“I’m no prude, okay, but I can’t watch animals go at it. It feels weird. I like to pretend the storks deliver the babies. Ooh, I see flamingos. Did you know they’re not naturally pink? It’s their diet that causes them to turn from white to pink.”

“Thanks for clearing that up. The mystery’s been bothering me for years.”

I blinked. “Did you just make an attempt at humor?”

His brows drew together. “If I wanted to make you laugh, I could make you laugh.”

I clamped my lips together as I fought a smile. “Of course you could.”

Sighing, he shook his head. “Just keep moving.”

My heart did a silly little flutter when the fingers he’d curled around my wrist slid down to thread with mine. We walked around hand in hand, peering at more of the many animals.

I was downright thrilled when we finally reached the Pallas’ cat enclosure. I’d watched a documentary about them once, and they absolutely fascinated me. They’d been branded the most expressive cats in the world, because they made the oddest faces.

One was curled up on a rock, staring at everything and everyone as if they were completely beneath it. No one could do “disdain” like cats. “I want to take it home.”

Behind me, Dane settled a hand on my hip. “You’ve said that about almost every animal you’ve laid eyes on.”

Someone knocked on the plastic fence, and the feline peeled back its upper lip.

I chuckled. “How amazing are these cats?”

“They’re odd.”

“That’s what I was thinking,” cut in the woman beside us, eyeing Dane with sexual interest. “Their eyes are so humanlike they freak me out.”

I sniffed and started snapping photos of the cat, ignoring how the woman kept talking to Dane like she’d known him for years, even though he completely blanked her.

Was it annoying to have to deal with this crap? Oh, yes. But I had the comfort of knowing he’d never respect anyone who’d flirt with a man who was taken, so I didn’t have to worry that she’d snatch his interest.

“I can’t see any of the other Pallas’ cats,” I said. “Can you?”

Shuffling closer to me from behind, he rested his chin on my shoulder. “No. They’re probably inside. Are you finished taking pictures of this … are you sure it’s a cat?”

“I’m sure. I’ll bet it’s called Dane.”

“What?”

“It’s the perfect name for cranky creatures.”

He snapped his teeth at my ear. “Ready to eat now?”

“Yep. Then we’ll go find the rhinos and the red pandas.”

We settled on the grass in the outdoor picnic area and dug into our lunch. It was only sandwiches, potato chips, bottled water, pots of fresh fruit, and mini chocolate muffins, but it all went down well.

Done, I stuffed our rubbish in the disposable lunch bag. “I didn’t realize how hungry I was.” I looked at my fake husband, who was lying on his side, propped up by his elbow. “You’re enjoying yourself. Admit it.”

“Watching your reactions to the animals is interesting. You blushed when a chimp flashed you. You shivered from head to toe when a praying mantis moved one leg. You squealed when a bat flew at you in a rage … even though it didn’t really fly at you, let alone in a rage.”

“I felt its hatred.”

He shook his head. “Only you, Vienna. Only you.”

“Come on, be honest; you’re not as bored as you thought you’d be.”

“Hmm.”

It might be a non-committal sound, but … “I’ll take what I can get.” I cocked my head. “Did you mean it when you said the New York trip didn’t have to be all about work, or did you just say it for Simon’s benefit?”