Page 46 of The Guy Who Fake Dated Me

I shoved one of the dogs aside and finally made it to Victoria. “Don’t move.”

She flinched as the little canine started circling her feet like a tiny, vicious shark. Tears ran down her cheeks. I wanted to hug her and make it better, but that wasn’t going to happen until we got her free of the leash.

Or got the cat out of the tree.

I could pull the rascal down, but it wouldn’t be happy. I’d probably get clawed in the face for my efforts. Would I take that chance for Victoria?

Just as I grabbed the leash, an ear-splitting whistle sounded.

All of the dogs stopped in their tracks. The people froze as if we were playing a kid’s game of freeze tag. One of them had halted mid-step and had a foot dangling off the ground.

I looked to see who had made the noise.

Greta stood in the doorway with a bag of doggie treats in her hand. She shook it. “Anyone hungry?”

All of the canines abandoned their pursuits and charged the old woman. With leashes entangled, the two people holding the big dogs got thrown together and one of them went down.

Greta rolled her eyes and bellowed, “Sit!”

The dogs obeyed.

She eyed them with a glare before opening the bag. She handed out treats as she spoke to the people holding the leashes. “Get them back inside.”

I turned my attention back to Victoria, who was trying not to cry. “I’ve got you.” I moved to her, and she wrapped her arms around me and buried her face in my chest. I wanted to hold her but decided I needed to get her out of here first. “Easy,” I said as I gently untangled the leash from her hair. “No harm done.”

“To you.”

I kissed her on the top of the head and continued to work. “Your psyche was already damaged. You’re fine.”

“I hate you,” she mumbled into my chest.

“I know.”

Chapter 13

-Victoria-

I spent the ride back to the hotel waffling between hysterics and shock. I could see the humor in the situation, but all I could feel was my insides shaking and the urge to throw up.

The others in our vehicle were going crazy about their pictures and posting them. They’d managed to capture moments when it looked like I was laughing, not screaming my head off. I left them to live in their delusion of my reaction.

“Our plan kind of backfired,” Greta grumbled as we climbed out at the hotel.

“It did,” Logan agreed. “What’s going on this afternoon?” He’d stayed close to me ever since we’d left the shelter, and I wasn’t complaining.

“Nap time,” Greta said as she headed inside.

Logan looked at me with raised eyebrows.

“Free time,” I said. “Which means I’m totally using that jetted tub when we get to the room.” I could feel cat hair burrowing its way into my skin. Plus, I needed a private place to have a meltdown.

“Can I at least pee first?” Logan asked. “I have a sister; I know how long a simple bath can take.”

“Simple?” Each step through the lobby brought strength to my trembling limbs. “An outing in a jetted tub is no small thing.”

Logan jerked his thumb toward the nearest restrooms. “Should I do my business down here?”

I feigned thinking it over as we waited for the elevator. Normally I’d tease him more, but the last thing I wanted to be was alone. “No, I can give you a few minutes.” I held up a finger. “But if this,” I waved a hand vaguely at his midsection, “is going to take a while, then yes, do it down here.”

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