Boss On A Leash: A Single Dad Billionaire Romance, Kara Hart [free ebook reader for iphone .TXT] 📗

but my endorphins are helping every step of the way. There is just something uplifting about his smile, and his wholesome eyes keep me grounded. I keep forgetting who this man is, what he does for a living, and how nice his life is. Our past history aside, he’s just someone who makes me happy.

Sometimes, falling for someone is as simple as that.

“I’ll see you later,” I say.

He pulls me in for a quick kiss. I turn my head to look for Sammy, and he’s already back in to kiss my cheek. One, two, three kisses.

Sammy is nearing the stop sign at the end of the block. “Last one there is a rotten egg!”

He keeps pulling me in for kisses.

“Marc, I have to get to your daughter,” I grunt. “You heard her. If I don’t get there fast, I’ll be a rotten egg.”

He lets go, placing his hands in the air near his chest. “We don’t want that.”

Backing away from the door, I grin. Then, I run ahead and catch up with Sammy. Today is going to be a great day.

I just know it.

Marc

Today is going to be the hardest day of my life. I just know it. Why? Because I’m the idiot who is head-over-heels for a woman I still don’t entirely know.

It’s crazy.

Fucking insane.

A massive risk.

I have a rule with women. If she makes your world feel like it’s about to fall apart, she’s worth taking a second look at. Sometimes, that can lead to some disastrous outcomes. I’m more optimistic about my chances with this one.

Problem is, I’ve put all my chips on her. And tonight is a special night. After Sammy goes to sleep, I’m taking her on an adventure. Somewhere that will hopefully remind her just how special she is.

As I drive across town, I narrowly miss traffic. Rowdy butts his head through the middle of my Mercedes. Hair is flying everywhere, his drool is getting all over the leather upholstery, and he kind of stinks. Agreeing to watching him was another stupid idea.

I’m just loopy for this woman. But in the twenty or so years of dating women of all kinds, that dizzying, exciting feeling always went away. This feels different. If I have to ruin my car with a big stinky dog, I’ll do it for her.

I pull us into the parking garage. From the back, Rowdy jumps into the front seat and places a paw on my chest. He issues a soft whine.

“Treat?” I ask.

Digging through the center compartment, I find a bag of treats I bought for Ragamuffin, the bane of my existence. This dog is at least well behaved. Who would’ve thought?

“All right. Outside, and you eat,” I say.

Stepping out of the car, I come to the side door with his leash and treat in hand. I open the door and leash him up before teasing him with a tantalizing treat.

“You hungry?”

Rowdy’s entire body lights up, tail wagging and smacking the ground. He lifts his head, licks my hand, and sinks his mouth over my entire hand. When he pulls back, the only thing that’s still there is a layer of slime.

“I didn’t say you could eat my whole hand,” I tell him, shaking some of the dog saliva onto the concrete.

Ali’s dog stares at me lovingly, always breathing like he’s just ran a mile. I can’t stay mad at something so cute. I can, however, hand-sanitize before I get through those doors and have to shake some hands.

Inside my building, I’m seeing funny looks, questionable expressions, and what I first assume are mean comments about my hair. They’re not. They’re about Rowdy. He looks like a total beast, but he’s a pretty nice dog at his core.

“Be nice,” I shout. “He’s only a dog.”

Laughter echoes across the first floor. I step into an open elevator and lean against the wall, looking out through the glass as we rise over the city. There are two other women here, some staffers I can’t remember the names of. As soon as they see Rowdy, their hearts melt, and my moment of peace is over.

I recognize the tall blonde to my right. Brian once tried to date her. It ended with him groveling. Ten voicemails later, she told him to F-off.

“Oh, my gosh,” she coos. “He is so stinkin’ cute. When did you get him?”

“The dog’s not mine,” I say.

The other woman is a shorter brunette. I’ve never seen her in my life. “What a good boy,” she says, bending to pet the back of Rowdy’s head.

“Does he do any tricks?” Blonde asks.

Yeah. If he’s hungry enough, he can make your whole hand disappear.

I glance at the women in the elevator. “Like I said, he’s not mine.”

Disappointed faces. I’m used to seeing them around here.

The bell above rings as I reach my floor. When the door opens, I see Brian sitting in his office, throwing a tennis ball at the wall. However, Sandra is like a hawk. She swoops in my direct line, ready to intercept me with more work than I care to do on a holiday.

All I want to do is sit and think about Ali. If I can’t do that, then I want to talk about her to everyone in the room. It’s weird and maybe a little pathetic, but I can’t change how I feel.

“You’re late,” she says.

I keep walking, eyes on Brian’s office. “Oh, yeah?”

Her eyes drop to Rowdy. “Another dog?”

How many times am I going to have to tell people? “It’s not my dog.”

“You know, women won’t sleep with you just because you have a dog,” she says.

Repeat after me. “It’s not my dog.”

She’s keeps up with me. “You have voicemails,” she says.

I’m so close to Brian’s office. “That’s nice,” I say.

Gaining ground, Brian looks up and waves. Rowdy does the exact opposite. Finding something delicious smelling on the floor, he digs his nose into the carpet and starts to paw.

Panting, Sandra grabs the back of my jacket. “You know, you should bring your dog more