Before We Kiss (Fool's Gold #14)

The greeting came from a sultry blonde in the hallway. Her skintight workout clothes showed that either Mother Nature had been extremely generous or her plastic surgeon had been willing to go larger than suited her frame.

Two years ago he would have paused to talk. Three years ago he would have been backing her into the closest private room and letting her have her fifteen minutes of fame. Now he simply nodded and walked on.

As he waited for the elevator, he checked his cell phone. He hadn’t heard from Shelby in a couple of days and that bothered him. His half sister had recently moved home to care for her dying mother. An admirable decision, but one that worried him. Mostly because it put her in close proximity to their mutual father.

Nigel Gilmore looked and sounded like a British diplomat. But he was also a brute with a temper. He was a man who enjoyed hitting women. Kipling had been saved by both his gender and his quickness. Early on, he’d learned how to duck. But Shelby and her mother weren’t so lucky. Kipling didn’t understand why some women stayed with men who beat them. He’d protected Shelby as best he could. His leap to the top of the pack had meant endorsement deals and money to pay for Shelby’s college. They’d vowed to never go back home.

But that had changed a few months ago when Shelby’s mother had been diagnosed with stage four ovarian cancer. She was in the last stages of her life and Shelby had wanted to be with her. Unfortunately that meant facing Nigel.

He didn’t like that he was half a world away from the small Colorado town where he’d grown up. He liked it even less that Shelby was there on her own.

He stepped into the elevator when it arrived, then exited on his floor. As he walked down the hall, he saw the window at the end. Snow continued to fall. Tomorrow would be a good day, he told himself. He would be back on the mountain searching for the ultimate goal—going faster than anyone ever had.

CHAPTER FOUR

FAYRENE STUFFED HER keys into her jeans pocket and headed for the front door. She was going to swing by Dellina’s to have yet another heart-to-heart with her older sister. She needed a plan to get Ryan to propose and Dellina was the best planner she knew. But before she could reach the door, someone rang the bell. She pulled it open a second later.

Mayor Marsha stood in the hallway of her triplex. Fayrene rented the bottom floor, mostly because it had a tiny yard. She liked seeing grass and flowers when she looked out her kitchen window. The upstairs units had a better view of the town, but she liked where she was.

Fayrene looked at the older woman. Of course she knew the mayor—everyone who lived in town did. But the other woman had never once come to her apartment.

“Hello,” Fayrene said cautiously. “May I help you?”

“I hope so,” Mayor Marsha told her, then smiled. “I understand you have a pet-sitting service.”

It was only then Fayrene noticed that Mayor Marsha was holding a leash in one hand. And at the end of the leash was a fluffy, adorable Pomeranian.

Fayrene immediately dropped to her knees. “Who is this?” she asked in a soft voice.

“Caramel.”

“Hi, pretty girl,” Fayrene said softly as she stroked the dog’s head.

Caramel’s button eyes widened as her face seemed to relax into an adorable doggy grin.

Mayor Marsha picked up a tote bag and handed it to Fayrene. “There’s a folder with instructions inside. Caramel is very friendly. She prefers people to dogs. She likes squeaky toys, bacon, Thai food and tummy rubs. It’s probably best if you don’t leave her home alone. She likes to be involved in what’s going on.”

Fayrene stood. Somehow she found herself holding the bright pink leash, along with the tote. Caramel gave a little spin.

“I didn’t know you had a dog.” She’d never seen the mayor with one before. Or heard her talk about one.

“This is a several-week commitment,” Mayor Marsha told her. “Will that be all right?”

“Sure. I have a few temp jobs right now, but there’s no reason she can’t go with me.”

Mayor Marsha gave her a few instructions about feeding Caramel, then mentioned the name of her vet. Before Fayrene could figure out what was happening, she found herself alone in her building’s hallway, facing a fluffy Pomeranian.

“Okay, then,” she said slowly. “I guess it’s you and me.”

Caramel gave another spin, as if expressing excitement.

Fayrene stepped back and pushed opened the door to her apartment. “Want to come in?”

Caramel walked into the apartment. She waited while Fayrene unclipped her leash, then set off to explore her new home. Fayrene unpacked her dog food and set out a bowl of water. She found Caramel on her bed, curled up in a nest of decorative pillows.

“Not the type to sleep on the floor?” she asked.

Caramel wagged her tail a little, as if to ask why anyone would choose the floor when there was a perfectly comfortable bed for the taking.