Page 35 of Stay for Forever

“What do I get if I win?”

“Anything you want.”

Anything I want? Challenge accepted. “What if I want your Maserati?”

He shrugs. “If you win, we’ll find a notary to sign the title over to you.”

“My dad’s a notary,” I tell him and reach out my hand.

His warm hand engulfs mine and a spark of awareness shoots from my hand through my arm and down to my belly where those stupid butterflies flap their wings with everything they’ve got in response. I yank my hand away before the temptation to pull him near – to hell with the consequences and broken heart – becomes too much.

Mav stares at me with heat in his eyes and I retreat a step. Jumping him is a bad idea, Juniper. Remember Quinn and publicity stunts and how he’s not to be trusted.

I nod to the fennec fox enclosure. “I need you to weigh the foxes and fill out the diary. After which, you need to check their urine and stool.”

Instead of balking at the words urine and stool, he nods and asks, “Where are the diary and scale?”

“I’ll bring them,” I say and hurry to get the items before I can melt into him. There’s nothing sexier than a man willing to check animal urine samples in my book. I don’t care how weird the idea makes me sound.

By the time I return to the fox enclosure with the diary and scale, Mav is cuddling several of the foxes. Dang. I guess the foxes are more susceptible to his charm than the capybaras.

Mav makes quick work of weighing the animals and recording the information in the diary. My hands shake as I retrieve the items from him. Is he going to win this bet? I can’t back out of a bet. The people of Winter Falls would banish me if they found out. Dang it!

I nod to the hay on the ground. “Have you checked their urine and stool yet?”

He grins before kneeling on the ground. To his credit, he doesn’t cover his mouth and nose when he finds a pile of stool. Considering how bad it smells, I can’t help but admire him.

“Stool appears good.”

I decide this is now a teaching moment. “What are you checking for?”

“Too fatty or too much veg in the stool.”

When I keep my mouth shut, he winks up at me. “Didn’t expect me to know the answer, did you?”

No, I didn’t, but I ask him to check the urine instead.

He frowns. “I think there might be urine crystals.”

Shit. This is no game. I kneel next to him. “Those are indeed urine crystals. What do we do?”

“Dr. Skinner suggested using cranberry extract. I believe I saw a bottle in the supply cabinet.”

I sigh as I stand. “I guess you win.”

Mav glances up at me. I expect him to be smirking, but he’s not. His eyes are full of hope. “No more questions? I’m up to the challenge.”

“I’ll get the cranberry extract,” I answer and stomp away.

Shit. Shit. Shit. Now I have to go out on a date with Mav. In public. Where everyone can observe us. Dammit. I need to learn not to accept every bet thrown my way. And those butterflies in my stomach doing a happy dance need to cut it out. This date means nothing. Judging by their inability to stop dancing, they don’t believe me.

Love a duck. Disaster and heartbreak here I come.

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