Page 39 of Sleeping with the Frenemy

Leo smirked. “Yep.”

“Fuck.”

9

Sometime later they were walking through the apartment door, Leo carrying the dog like a baby.

Sofi took a look around the pristine neutral-toned apartment and then at the dirty dog. “Hold up,” she told Leo, who was about to walk into the living room with it. “That dog cannot just wander around. It’s filthy.”

Leo gave her a look. “Sofi, do you really think it’s going to sit here in the entryway?”

“I don’t know what to tell you, but that dog is not roaming free in the apartment when I can literally feel the oily dirt on me after sitting on the ground with it.”

“Then I guess we’ll have to give it a bath.”

“We? What we? You mean you.”

“Fine. I’ll do it.”

Sofi motioned down the hall toward his bathroom. “Go, I’ll bring you the dish soap and a towel.”

“Dish soap? Just grab some shampoo.”

“The hellI amusing my expensive shampoo on a dog,” she said with enough attitude to make it very clear that she would not be doing that. “Unless you want to use yours.”

“I actually ran out yesterday.”

“Then dish soap it is. Besides, in the commercials they always use Dawn to take the dirt and oil off baby ducks. It’ll be fine.”

Leo just shook his head and took the dog down the hallway. It kept looking back at her and whining. “It’s okay,” she told it. “I’ll be right there.” She rushed to the kitchen to grab the Dawn from the sink. Then she went to the linen closet and tried to find the oldest and darkest towel Leo owned. She found a dark purple beach towel and snatched it up, then she booked it back down the hall. The bathroom door was closed. “Leo,” she said. “I have the stuff.”

“Give me a second,” he said. A moment later the door cracked open and both of their heads popped out. Leo was clearly trying to maintain a hold of the dog. “I’m trying to figure out how to get him in the tub. He does not look like he’s feeling this bath thing. We should’ve used yours. It has the walk-in shower.”

Sofi shook her head. “Nuh-uh. I’m about to use my shower, because I smell like trash dog.”

“You seriously aren’t going to help me?”

“Nope. It was your idea to lure this dog into the house. You can wash it.”

“And what if it gets mad and attacks me?”

Sofi eyed the dog who was now docilely sitting at Leo’s feet. “I don’t think that’s going to be an issue—” she began backing down the hall “—but you have your phone. Call 911.”

“You’re so mean to me. I don’t know why I like you.”

“You’re a masochist.” Sofi threw him a kiss, then turned the corner and headed straight into her bathroom. She peeled off the most-likely-ruined outfit that had cost her a thousand dollars, turned the shower to piping hot, quickly pulled her hair into a bun on the top of her head, and then stepped in. She scrubbed her body and face at least three times before she felt clean again. When she was done she wrapped herself in a fluffy towel and went about her normal nightly routine: applying moisturizers, creams, and serums to her entire body. Then she put on a satin pajama set and a pair of fuzzy socks (her favorite). She put her hair up in her sleep bonnet and wandered back into the open space of the apartment to see how Leo had done with the dog.

When she stepped out into the living room she stopped dead in her tracks. Leo stood in their kitchen wearing nothing but a pair of basketball shorts that hung low on his hips. The dog was lying at his feet. All the other times he paraded around shirtless, she’d done her very best not to look at him—mostly because she knew he wanted her to—but now she couldn’t help herself. She looked. Leo had always taken care of himself physically because of his job. But this was at a completely different level. It was as if his body was his entire focus now and it showed in the muscles that flexed in his back, shoulders, and legs as he moved things around in the fridge. “There’s some leftover salmon in here, but that’s Sofi’s and she does not like to share.”

Sofi shoved her tongue back in her mouth and swallowed until her throat no longer felt dry. “I leave for thirty minutes to take a shower and you’re already bad-mouthing me to the dog?”

At the sound of her voice the dog got up and trotted over to her. He leaned his entire body weight against her and stared up at her like she was the greatest thing he’d ever seen. He was even more cute now that he was clean. He was gray with a hint of brown, but he had a white chest and one white front paw. His eyes were light brown and his face was subtly wrinkled giving him a sad look. “He looks like a dog from one of those commercials with the Sarah McLachlan song playing.”

“Well, this little jerk cost me more than seventy cents a day.” He closed the refrigerator door. “He got me soaked and filthy, I had to take a shower right after him. Then his ass chewed on my Jordans while I was in the shower.”

Sofi bit her lip. She was kind of sad that she’d missed it. That had to have been hilarious. But then she noticed how he was holding one shoulder higher than the other and flexing his fingers. Fuck. She’d totally forgotten about his injury. He’d probably aggravated it carrying and bathing the dog. She should’ve stayed and helped him. She was ready to ask if he was in pain, but then she remembered how mad he’d gotten the last time she’d tried to show concern.

Tired of being ignored—or maybe he just liked the way her cocoa butter smelled—the dog began to lick her leg. “Eww. No. Stop that.”

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