Page 10 of Paw or Less

“The food here is amazing. I’ve never eaten here before,” she said, looking around.

“Yeah, I come here quite a lot,” Mars found himself saying. When he looked up, their waitress was coming up to them. “They have the best food and great cocktails. You should try one.”

Rhiannon had ordered a virgin Long Island Iced Tea, forgoing the alcohol because she had to be up early tomorrow.

For a moment, Mars was tempted to ask her if he could wake her up the next morning … in person.

“Are you folks doing okay tonight?” Their waitress smiled widely at Mars, pushing her curly blonde hair behind her ear.

The waitress was lean and short and had startling blue eyes. And she was very clearly flirting with him.

“We’re doing fine, thanks,” he said in an offhand tone. “We’ll call you if we need anything.”

The waitress’s face fell at Mars's clear dismissal of her, and she threw an ugly look at Rhiannon as she walked away.

Random women flirting with him was something Mars was used to. Most people around town knew his name or knew him on sight.

He was the town’s most eligible bachelor, and women throwing themselves at him was an accurate way to describe his weekdays.

“So you’re a lawyer?” Mars leaned forward, examining Rhiannon as he did. He had not missed how her face had dropped when the waitress had flirted with him.

Did she feel it too? Did she feel the electricity of the mating bond somehow?

Asking about her work had clearly been the right thing to do. Her face lit up instantly.

“Yes, I am. I don’t work for a fancy law firm or anything, though.” She took a sip of her iced tea. “I usually do a lot of legal aid work, and I also do a lot of work for family court.”

His admiration for her grew with every second.

“That must be tough?” Mars was shocked at how tentative his voice was. “You must see a lot of bad things.”

Rhiannon’s face darkened for a second, an unknown expression flashing through her dark eyes.

What was she remembering? What was she trying to forget? How bad was it?he asked himself.

Rhiannon tried smiling then, and while it was still beautiful, it did not meet her eyes.

“Of course I have.” Her voice was open and honest. She clearly saw no reason to sugarcoat the truth. “Things are hard for people who don’t have money. Poor people go through things that none of us could even imagine. Everyone deserves a good lawyer.”

“Don’t you ever think of quitting it, though?” It was the wrong thing to ask her. He knew that right away.

He cursed himself silently as Rhiannon’s face closed down. She pressed her full lips into a thin line, looking at him almost angrily.

“And who should do the work if I quit? And why would I quit anyway?” she asked him hotly.

“It was just a question,” Mars said, his voice as soothing as he could make it. “I just figured if you want to settle down, it’s a dangerous job to have.”

Rhiannon looked at him wordlessly before looking down at her food.

“Too many people need help for me to give up this job,” she murmured, her voice low and husky.

A cold shiver traveled through him, making his skin prickle. Her voice was the best thing he had heard that night.

“I understand.” His voice was more upbeat when he spoke. Mars knew the conversation needed to turn before he completely scared her off. “Why don’t we have dessert?”

He called over the waitress who had been waiting at a nearby counter. Mars couldn’t help sighing with relief when Rhiannon ordered a large slice of cheesecake with ice cream on the side.

Hopefully, ordering a huge dessert meant she wasn’t too upset with him.

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