Page 92 of Worst in Show

“Ha, ha.”

“Dude, I’m telling you, you are overthinking this. Enjoy him. He’s here now, you’ll figure the other stuff out, and for what it’s worth, I don’t think he’s going anywhere. He’s very into you.”

That, finally, brings a real smile back to my lips. “I know.”

“Well, there you go.”

“Okay.” I shimmy the gloom away and raise my glass. “To friends who make other friends see reason.”

A quiet smile plays across Leo’s lips off and on during our drive into the countryside. With a playlist of random hits on in the background, the rush of the day slowly fades. After my lunch with Micki, the afternoon was a constant stream of customers. Unfortunately, I had to turn two of them away without making a sale. We’re out of one of our bestselling dry foods and more should have been delivered last week at the latest. I’ll have to get to the bottom of that in the morning.

“You good?” Leo asks as we stop at a light.

“Yeah, it was a hectic day.” I lean my head against the headrest and turn it his way. “You’re in a good mood.”

He presses his lips together briefly. “I suppose I am.”

“Any particular reason?”

“No.”

His answer is too quick. I squint at him. Something’s going on. “Let me guess, Tilly learned a new trick?” Which reminds me, Cholula and I need to practice the talent portion of the pageant. That’s the one thing I don’t want to do in front of Leo, and I still haven’t figured out how to progress her balancing act.

“No, no new tricks. I don’t know why I even bothered training on Sunday when Cholula wasn’t there.” Leo’s grip tightens as he turns off the main road onto the bumpier country one. I think he’s going to explain himself better, but instead he says, “We’ll eat first, train later. I didn’t take a lunch today.”

“Yeah, I noticed.”

His face lights up as he puts the car in park. “Did you now?”

“Not in a creepy way. Micki was over, and I happened to look out the window, and there were customers.”

He stops me by nudging my thigh with the back of his hand. It’s a split-second touch, but I’m already wound so tightly that it triggers a ripple of heat up my spine. “You don’t have to explain,” he says. “I’m glad I was on your mind.”

Once at the house, we walk into a cloud of heavenly sweet and savory smells. Something warm and sugary drifts behind more demanding scents. There’s a glow coming from the kitchen, and some eighties band sings about not being able to fight a feeling anymore over the built-in speaker system. How apt.

Leo takes my jacket and hangs it up. I turn to follow the dogs into the interior of the house, but he takes my hand and holds me back. “One thing first,” he says, eyes shifting away from me. He smiles to himself but hesitates.

“Yeah?”

He takes a deep breath. “If this is too much, promise you won’t get mad.”

“What are you up to?”

“In here.” He leads me through the doorway, not to a midweek dinner, but to a feast.

“Surprise!” Diane calls out, coming at me with outstretched arms.

I stare in awe at the scene before me. The table is set with fancy china, flowers, candles, cloth napkins, and decorative confetti. There’s a balloon tied to one of the chairs, and on the counter sits a two-tiered chocolate cake.

“Happy birthday,” Leo says in a low voice next to me.

I force my jaw shut and blink at the scene before me. “How… I mean, I didn’t…”

“I overheard you on the phone with your mom that night.” He looks suddenly nervous. “It is your birthday, right? If not, I’ll feel like a total jackass.”

“No, it is.” I take another step into the room, a lump forming in my throat. “But this is…”

“Too much?” He scratches his neck. “Sorry. I just love birthdays and I wanted you to have a good one.”

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