Dangerous Temptations

“Ooh la la. Copper is hot for you.”

My eyes shot up to Marie. “What? No, he’s not.”

“Oh yes, and I think you’re hot for him, too.”

Changing the subject, I said, “Let’s see who we have on the schedule first.”

Mike

I put Maggie Maye down in the living room and watched her race around, exploring every little nook and cranny. Part of me was happy she was a girl. Maggie Maye had been my grandmother’s beloved dog when I was a kid. I loved that dog. With a smile, I walked into the kitchen and pulled out a bowl from the cabinet to fill with water and then another for the puppy food Sydney had given me.

A short bark caught my attention, and I turned to see Maggie Maye racing into the kitchen. The moment she saw the food, she attempted to stop but failed. The back door stopped her momentum. Once she saw the large backyard through the glass, she started barking.

“Okay, okay, little one. Let’s go exploring.”

The moment the door was open, she was off. I made a mental note to pick up some toys for her. Searching the yard, I found a small stick and played fetch with her. She reminded me so much of my childhood dog, Rus. He was a boxer and had been my best friend. When my mother and father divorced and we moved to Chicago, that dog got me through the worst of it as I adjusted to a new school and made new friends.

My cell phone vibrated in my pocket. I smiled when I saw it was my mother.

“Hey, pretty lady.”

“Oh, Mike. How are you, sweetheart?”

“Doing well.”

Maggie Maye barked, clearly impatient that I hadn’t thrown the stick for her.

“Is that a dog?”

“Yeah, she’s a puppy I found outside the coffee shop here in town. No tags or chip. Sydney is going to check around to see if she was reported lost.”

“Who is Sydney? I haven’t heard you mention him before?”

With a grin I couldn’t control, I said, “Sydney is a woman. She’s one of the veterinarians in town.”

“Is that so?”

I instantly heard the hopefulness in my mother’s voice. As the youngest of her three children, and the only one unmarried with no kids, I knew she wanted me to meet someone and settle down. I wanted that, too. I simply hadn’t met the one yet. My brother, Darrin, was the oldest and was a police officer in Boston. He was married to Lynn and they had two kids—Aaron and Lucy. Then there was my older sister, Karen. She still lived in Chicago and was a nurse. She had recently gotten married and was expecting her first child with her husband, Joe.

Before I had a chance to reply, my mother went in for the attack.

“Tell me all about her! What does she look like? How old is she? When did you meet? Why didn’t you tell me you were seeing anyone, sweetheart? Text me a picture of her!”

I rolled my eyes, picked up Maggie Maye, and carried her back into the house. She started right in on her food while I made myself a quick snack to hold me over until lunch.

“Mom, my gosh, take a breath, will you?”

“I’m sorry I’m interested in my son’s life.”