Page 20 of Crazy In Love (Secrets of Suburbi 3)

"What?" I said. "It's hard to pull off being blonde." I tried to ignore his stare as I unlocked the basement door.

Snuggle Muffins stood up and started to follow me.

"You have to stay here. You're a distraction."

He just stared at me.

Now I was the one sighing. "Fine. Just this once." How many times was he going to make me say that? I opened the door and we made our way downstairs together.

"Your dog is cute," he said with a smile as soon as I un-gagged him. "What's his name?"

"Snuggle Muffins."

His smile grew. "That's adorable."

My puppy was not adorable. He was a menace like all puppies. Snuggle Muffins sat down by my feet instead of exploring the basement. The little girl at the mall was right. He really did seem depressed.

I turned my attention back to what mattered. "Hungry?" I lifted up the Pop-Tart.

"I'll eat anything. I'm starving."

Well, maybe he'd hate it after having it for the next

few meals. Death by sugar. I lifted it to his lips and watched him take a bite. He licked a crumb off his upper lip and my stomach clenched. It was so easy to picture his tongue on my skin instead. Stop.

"Have you been thinking about Sophia Tremblay?" I asked and pulled the Pop-Tart back to my side.

"I have."

He didn't offer anything else. And all I could think about was...what exactly he was thinking about her. Was he picturing her naked? Thinking about his tongue on her skin instead of mine? I felt the Pop-Tart snap in my hand. Half of it fell to the floor.

For the first time since I'd met him, Snuggle Muffins seemed energetic. The Pop-Tart was in his mouth before I could even tell him "no."

"Is that bad?" I asked as I crouched down next to him. "Is he allowed to eat processed foods?" I touched the underside of Snuggle Muffins' chin to turn his head up to mine. He looked happier than I'd ever seen him. He didn't even sigh.

"It's fine. He's a dog. Dogs' stomachs aren't as sensitive as you probably think."

"But what about puppies' stomachs?"

I was pretty sure he tried to shrug, but his hands were tied too tightly to the chair. "I don't see how that question has anything to do with your dog."

"What?" I dropped Snuggle Muffins’ chin. "He's just a puppy. Maybe I should take him to the vet."

"You definitely don't need to go to the vet. And I'm no expert, but that dog seems real old."

"Really?" I turned back to Snuggle Muffins. "But he's so...small."

"Dogs can be small."

Oh. I stared down at Snuggle Muffins. So maybe he wasn't depressed. Maybe he was just old and slow. There was something about a little old man dog that was a lot more appealing to me than a puppy. I patted his head. Good boy.

"You were asking about Sophia," he said.

I quickly stood up. What was I doing? I didn't have time for my silly old dog. I had business to attend to. "Right, I..."

"I'd never cheat on you. Ever. You have to realize that." His eyes raked down my body.

My stomach clenched again.

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