Page 73 of Housebroke

He shrugged. “About anything you want to know, I guess.”

“Hmm.” She leaned back and took a drink of her wine. “This could be interesting.”

He stretched out his legs, running his hands over Penny when she came to him. When Penny did a few circles and lay down underneath him, Hazel knew that the whole Linc-and-Penny thing was a done deal. That dog loved him as much as he loved her.

But the Q and A was still open, so she might as well dig in.

“Did you have pets growing up?”

He nodded. “Two dogs, a cat, and a rabbit. Not all at the same time. Oh, and a turtle.”

“Nice. Who took care of them?”

“When my brothers and I were all really young, mostly my mom and dad. But as we grew up we were given more responsibility for animal care. Taking them on walks, making sure theyhad food and water, cleaning their bowls or cages, giving them plenty of playtime—which for a kid was easy.”

“And who was your favorite?”

He frowned. “Aww, come on, Hazel. That’s like asking a parent who their favorite kid is.”

She laughed. “Good answer.”

“Was that a trick question?”

“Maybe.” She took another long swallow of her wine. “What do you do when you’re in the middle of a date with a new woman, and your dog decides to throw up on your fancy rug?”

He arched a brow. “Have you had this happen?”

“I have yet to experience a date with a woman, nor have I ever owned a fancy rug, but the throwing up part during a party definitely happened to one of my friends.”

“Ouch. Hope the poor dog was okay.”

“Correct answer. And, yes, the dog was fine. He had eaten some gunk from the backyard that he shouldn’t have. The timing wasn’t awesome, but everyone at the party laughed about it since they all had either pets or kids.”

“It happens. I think if you are going to have pets—or kids, for that matter—then you have to toss the idea of perfection out the window. If you’ve ever had some weird idea of perfection.”

“I take it you don’t have that idea.”

He let out a short laugh. “No, I don’t. I believe if you’re expecting perfection in any aspect of your life, you’re setting yourself up for disappointment. Life happens, and often that means disasters or things don’t always turn out the way you want them to, so you have to be willing to roll with it.”

“I agree. Though I do believe that it’s okay to dream, and want your life to turn out the way you envision it.”

He picked up her hand and started teasing his fingers along the top of it. “You’re talking about more than the perfect party.”

“Of course I am. I mean to be able to plan for a future and have grandiose dreams about what that future might entail. And if it doesn’t turn out to be exactly that, it’s okay. We all deviate from the road set out in front of us. Well, maybe not everyone. I imagine some people have a dream or outline for their lives and it turns out exactly as they planned.”

He swept his thumb over the top of hers, making it difficult for her to concentrate. Not that she was complaining. His touch set her a little haywire, and concentration was overrated anyway. “You know, I don’t think there are that many people whose lives turn out exactly as they plan. I think everyone has to pivot, even if it’s just a little bit.”

“You’re probably right about that.” She paused and thought for a minute while enjoying the way he continued to touch her. “Did you? Have to pivot, I mean?”

“Sure. When I was little I wanted to be an astronaut. Then a firefighter. Then a wrestler. None of that happened for me.”

She laughed. “How sad.”

“Seriously. But I did decide when I started college that I was going premed.”

Her brows shot up. “Really. What made you want to be a doctor?”

“Television. I watched a lot of medical shows, and the doctors were so suave and cool, not to mention all that lifesaving shitthey did. Then I got into medical documentaries and saw all the real medicine that was being practiced and decided I really wanted to do it.”

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