Kenzi squared her shoulders. I’m going to hear it sooner or later anyway, so why not now? “I should go talk to him. I won’t be long, okay?”
“Take all the time you need,” Willa said.
“Hey, there’re three of us. If he gives you trouble we can take him,” Lexi said with a wink.
“It’s Lance,” Kenzi said in resignation to her fate. “He won’t yell at me, he’ll just tell me all the reasons this wasn’t a good idea and possibly suggest some ways we could squash the story before the media picks it up.”
Willa looked from Lance to Kenzi. “We’ll squash him if he is anything but supportive.”
Kenzi chuckled at Willa’s uncharacteristically aggressive comment. Most people were intimidated by her brothers, but Lexi and Willa never had been. That was one more reason Kenzi loved them. “I’ll be right back.”
The students had left by the time Kenzi made her way over to where her brother was standing. Kenzi prepared herself for whatever Lance would say. No matter how angry or how disappointed he was in her, she couldn’t let it diminish how good she felt about what she’d just done. She stopped a couple feet from him. “Lance, before you say anything—”
Lance raised a hand and cut her off. His face was tight with anger. “How could I have not known? How could none of us have known?”
Kenzi shrugged helplessly. He’d heard her how and why. She didn’t have answers beyond that.
“Dean knew, didn’t he? That’s why he—”
Kenzi nodded wordlessly.
Lance blinked twice, and his eyes looked glassy for a moment. “Kenzi, I don’t know what to say.”
Kenzi sniffed as her own eyes misted. “I had to do this, Lance.”
With his hands clenched at his sides, Lance said, “I know. I mean, it all makes sense now. Dad asked us to give you some space to figure some stuff out. This is what you were figuring out, isn’t it?”
Kenzi made a little face. “Yes.”
“Dad thought it was about your birthday, because we didn’t celebrate it.”
Typical that my father thinks I’m worried about something that superficial—that narcissistic. Why wouldn’t he? What have I ever done that mattered? When have I ever looked beyond myself?
“That did bother me, Lance, but it was all entwined with this. I feel badly that I didn’t tell the family first, but I knew someone would try to stop me. I don’t want to live a lie anymore. I don’t want to be perfect anymore. I want to get angry sometimes and not worry that everything will fall apart if I raise my voice. I want to cry when I’m sad. Say what I want to say. Outside of our family people fight and forgive each other. They work things out. They don’t hide everything they feel. I want to be like that, Lance. I tried the other way, and it was killing me. I know no one will be happy with what I did today, but I hope you respect that I had to do it.”
Lance rubbed a hand roughly up his jaw. “Okay.”
In surprise, Kenzi asked, “That’s it? Okay? What does that even mean?”
Lance raised and lowered a shoulder. “It means I understand why you’re doing this, and you have my support. If you need me to explain it to Mom and Dad, I will.”
Kenzi clasped her hands in front of her as the love she had for her brother doubled. “No, I’ll do it. The hardest part is behind me. I’m not afraid anymore.”
He hugged her, and Kenzi took a moment to savor the calm before what would surely be a storm later with her family. She stepped back and said, “Lexi and Willa are taking me to lunch. Would you like to join us?”
Lance glanced over at her friends. “The way Willa is glaring at me I probably shouldn’t. You go and enjoy yourself. I have to get back to the office.”
A quick look confirmed that Lance had put the right name on the right twin. “She was just worried you’d say something to upset me.”
Lance winked at Willa. “Tell her if she keeps frowning at me like that I’ll stop considering her the prettier one.”
With the tension falling away, Kenzi looked back at her two friends and said, “May I suggest you never have that conversation with either of them?”
Lance smiled, agreed, and left. Tempting as it was to tell Willa what Lance had said, Kenzi kept it to herself. If there was one thing she’d learned over the years, it was that comparisons between twins were never welcomed.
Kenzi spent a very enjoyable lunch with her friends at a sandwich shop near her house. She was tired when she said goodbye to them early in the afternoon, but she felt as if a huge weight had lifted from her. With that weight gone, she knew she could handle her family’s reaction. She checked her mail on the way in and saw an envelope with just her name on it. She knew the handwriting.
Dax.
She tore the envelope open. The only thing written on the inside was an address. His?
Her hands were shaking as she dialed his number. “Dax?”
“How did it go?”
“Good. Really good.” She paused. “Did you put a card in my mailbox?”
“Yes.”
“There’s nothing on it but an address.”
“I know. I wrote it.”
With her heart beating with excitement, Kenzi asked, “What’s at that address?” You?
“You’ll have to go to find out. I suggest you go soon, though.”
“Should I take anything?” Wear anything?
“No, but call me later.”
Call him? So he’s not going to be there? Disappointment swept through her. “It’s been a long day, Dax. I don’t know. I appreciate whatever it is, but—”
“Do you trust me?”
“Yes,” Kenzi said without hesitation.
“Then go.”
Dax was sitting at his desk still smiling a few minutes after he’d hung up with Kenzi. With Kate’s help, he’d found a privately owned pet shop on Newbury Street and paid it to close for the day. Although the shop had claimed to have several breeds on hand, Dax wanted to make sure Kenzi was able to find exactly what she wanted, so he had several litters with impeccable pedigrees brought over from local breeders. Money was no option, and Dax was confident Kenzi would leave there with a new friend.
He couldn’t wait to see if she chose one of the tiny dogs women often stuck in purses or a large breed that would protect her apartment. Whatever she chose, she’d have the dog he knew she’d wanted since childhood.
“Mr. Marshall?” Kate asked.
“Yes.”
“Can I have a raise?”
Dax shook his head to clear it. “What was that?”
“You look so happy, I figured it might be a good time to ask.”
“Happy, huh?”
His secretary smiled at him. “Very.”
I feel happy. As the words popped into his head, he realized how true they were. In the past he’d done many things that had brought him satisfaction, but he couldn’t remember feeling as good about anything as he felt about getting Kenzi a dog.
“So, I’ll just write a proposal for my increase and have you sign off on it, okay?”
Dax stood and walked over to the window of his office and looked out over the city. He’d convinced himself that the best thing for Kenzi was to stay away from her, but what if that wasn’t true? She said she felt better because he’d listened to her. He felt incredible every time he spoke to her . . . or even thought about her. Maybe he was wrong. Maybe she wouldn’t hate him when it ended. “Sounds good,” he said absently. “Cancel my meeting tonight. I’m leaving early.”
Chapter Nine
Kenzi exited the cab onto the busy Newbury Street sidewalk. She double-checked the address on the card against the numbers on the buildings. Following a hunch, she went down a stairway and stood outside a pet store with a sign that read, “Closed for everyone but Kenzi.”
The door swung open and a petite woman with wild red curls opened the door. “Kenzi?”
“That’s me,” Kenzi said with a smile. The woman said something else but Kenzi couldn’t hear it over the
barking behind her.
“Come in,” the woman said quickly. “Please excuse the playpens and the noise. When your boyfriend asked if I’d let some breeders bring puppies here, I had no idea he meant so many. I’ve never seen anything like this.”
Boyfriend? No. Kenzi didn’t correct her. Labels weren’t as important as how Dax made her feel. Maybe all they would ever be was friends, but what a beautiful friendship it was turning out to be.
The small boutique was wall-to-wall puppies. Big ones, tiny ones. Some were sleeping, some were wildly barking. Kenzi felt like she’d walked into a dream. Dax did this. For me. She looked down at the nearest pen and saw the most adorable fluff of white hair. It looked too small to pick up so Kenzi bent down. It licked her hand and raced around like a tiny stuffed animal come to life.
“You can pick her up,” the woman said. “She’s a Maltese. The paperwork says her mother was five pounds and her father was four. She’ll be tiny.”
Kenzi cuddled her to her neck. She’d never held anything so delicate. She held her a few inches in front of her face and marveled at how brave the little pup was. She yipped and wagged her tail happily.
In the next pen she saw a puppy that was easily twenty times the size of the one she was holding. She put the white fluff down and picked up the yellow, short-haired Labrador puppy. It lapped at her face and squirmed in her arms with excitement.
The shopkeeper put on her glasses and read from a piece of paper. “That one isn’t one of mine. He’s twelve weeks old and from a line of show dogs. You can’t find a more loyal dog than a Lab, but if you live in an apartment they need a lot of exercise. Regardless of which puppy you choose, payment has already been settled, so take your time and look around.”
Kenzi was overwhelmed but happily so. I’m getting a puppy. She remembered the conversation she’d had about dogs with Dax. He’d said he didn’t like them, but that hadn’t stopped him for doing this for her. On a day when I finally feel free to start living my life on my terms. What a perfect way to celebrate my new life.
Another man might have picked out a puppy for her and chosen something he thought she’d want. Or worse, something his secretary thought she’d want. Dax wasn’t like that. For all his talk about not caring about anyone but himself, he was one of the kindest and most considerate people she’d ever met.
She put the large puppy back in its pen. “I don’t know where to even start. They’re all so beautiful. I do live in an apartment though, so maybe a smaller breed would be better.”
The woman reached down and picked up another tiny ball of fur. “Pomeranians are a popular choice. This one came in last week. He is probably the quietest puppy in here. Which is strange, but dogs also have personalities. If you’re looking for one to cuddle with, I have a feeling this one will be a lapdog.”
Kenzi took the puppy in her arms, and it settled against the crook of her neck with a sigh. Her heart swelled with love for it, and she was just about to tell the woman she’d made her choice when a movement near the counter caught her attention.
“Oh, excuse me,” the shopkeeper said quickly. “I’ll be just a minute.” She went over to a small adult cocker spaniel that was standing beside a dog bed near the checkout counter. “Lay down, sweetie. I’m right here.” The dog whined but laid back down on the bed.
Kenzi followed the woman over, still holding the tiny Pomeranian puppy to her. The cocker spaniel had been shaved down, but it was easy to see that it had bald spots. It had a bandage on one foot and a healing wound that circled its neck like a collar. When the woman realized Kenzi was watching, she said, “This is Taffy. I probably shouldn’t have brought her today, but I hate to leave her alone. She’s just learning to trust people again. She should be fine now.”
“What happened to her?” Kenzi asked, unable to take her eyes off the dog, who looked completely out of place in the shop.
The woman looked down at the dog and shook her head sadly. “She’s had it tough. She was found in Florida tied up on a tar surface with no shade. It burned the pads of her feet badly. She’d outgrown the collar around her neck so it was cutting into her and was infected. I’m a tech at a vet office, and one of the clients brought her in. She said she found her when she went down to visit her family and simply took her. Stole her, I guess. She wouldn’t say. My guess is she knew the people. Anyway, she brought Taffy back with her, and that should have been Taffy’s happily ever after, but the woman didn’t realize how expensive a sick dog could be. Taffy’s feet were infected, one more seriously than the others. Her skin is still sensitive from prolonged exposure to fleas and ticks. When the woman found out Taffy would need more care than she could afford, she asked us to put her down. I offered to take her. Taffy looks worse than she is, really. With some love and the right care, she might even be beautiful one day.”
Kenzi handed the shopkeeper the puppy she’d been holding and sat on the floor beside Taffy. “She’s beautiful now.” Very carefully Kenzi offered her hand to the dog to sniff. Taffy licked her hand then stood.
“She’ll sit on your lap if you stay there,” the owner warned.
“She’s welcome to.” Kenzi rested her hands behind her, and Taffy stepped onto her lap and settled against her stomach. She was small but not as small as the designer puppies. Ten pounds or so. Thin. Kenzi gently ran her hands over Taffy, carefully avoiding the places that might have hurt the dog. “How old do you think she is?”
“She’s young. I’d say two years maybe. She’s spayed, which was another surprise. She’s small for her breed, so she was probably starved, too. I’d like to think there is a special place in hell for whoever mistreated her.”
Me, too.
There was a knock on the shop door and the woman excused herself to answer it. Kenzi stayed where she was, softly petting the dog who was now looking up at her with so much hopeful trust that Kenzi decided right then and there that Taffy was coming home with her.
A shadow fell over Kenzi, and she looked up to see Dax dressed in a dark business suit. Even amidst an ocean of barking puppies, he looked calmly in control and even more gorgeous than she remembered. He crouched down beside Kenzi and looked over the dog in her lap. Kenzi was about to try to justify her choice, when a smile spread across his face.
“You found your dog,” he said and held his hand out. Taffy licked his hand then settled her head back onto Kenzi’s leg.
It wasn’t a question. There was no judgment or sarcasm. Kenzi looked to the shopkeeper. “If she’s for sale, I did.”
The woman smiled and wiped a tear. “She’s free if you want her. She’ll be shy at first. You’ll have to work with her on that. When a dog has been through what she’s been through, the trauma lingers.”
I know exactly how that is. Kenzi looked back down at Taffy who was giving her that hopeful, sad look again. “What do you think, Taffy? Do you want to come home with me?”
Taffy raised her head and wagged her tail.
“You could take her now, but I have some of her medicine at my house. She’ll be safe with me for one more night, and I can have everything organized and labeled for you when you come back tomorrow.”
Kenzi’s first impulse was to take Taffy right then, but the woman’s plan made sense. It would also give Kenzi time to prepare her place for Taffy. “Tomorrow sounds fine.”
“And if anything happens, all you have to do is call me.”
Kenzi’s eyes flew to the woman’s. “I won’t change my mind.”
“Some people do.”
“Not me,” Kenzi said firmly. She directed her next words to the dog who was watching her intently. “Taffy, this is forever. My family is completely dysfunctional, but once you’re one of us, there is no escape. You’re stuck with us.”
“That’s one lucky dog.” Dax offered Kenzi a hand up.
“I’m the one who is lucky . . . and grateful. This is the single nicest thing anyone has ever done for me. Thank you, Dax.” Kenzi eased Taffy off her lap and onto her bed then acc
epted Dax’s help in getting back to her feet. Normally Kenzi would have brushed her backside off, but she was enjoying the feel of Dax’s hand around hers too much to break the connection.
Dax told the woman he’d be in contact the next day. Kenzi arranged to pick Taffy up, chose all the necessary supplies, then they both exited the store. Kenzi was in front of Dax as they made their way up the steps.
Kenzi stopped abruptly, turned, and planted a kiss right on Dax’s lips. It was meant to be a quick stolen kiss, one initiated in gratitude and affection, but as soon as their mouths met everything changed.
Dax cupped her face and deepened the kiss. Kenzi wrapped her arms around his neck and arched against him. It was everything a lover’s first kiss should be and so much more than any Kenzi had ever experienced. It wasn’t just her body that rejoiced at his nearness, her very soul yearned for him. She kissed him with the bottled-up passion of a woman who had resigned herself to wanting but never having him. He kissed her back with the hunger of a man who was giving in to a pleasure he’d denied himself.
When he broke the kiss off they were both breathing raggedly. “Kenzi, I don’t ever want to hurt you, and I won’t lie to you. I don’t know what this is between us or how long it will last, but I want to be with you.”
Dax was so serious, so genuine in both his desire and his concern for her that another piece of Kenzi’s heart melted for him. “I want to be with you, too.”
He kissed her lips hungrily then lifted his head again. “Are you sure? After this morning . . .”
Kenzi laid a hand gently on his cheek. “Telling my story didn’t make me sad. It freed me. You freed me. I know you’re worried that you’ll hurt me, Dax, but I want this. I want you. For however long it lasts. Now, you can walk away again and leave us both gnawing off our limbs in frustration. Or you can come home with me and show me if you really are good enough to make me forget my name.”
“Taxi,” Dax joked with a huge smile.
Kenzi laughed when he spun her around and practically hauled her up the rest of the steps by the hand. The drive to her place was a test of restraint. They rode together in the back of Dax’s town car holding hands and both barely breathing. Another man might have taken advantage of the time and his free hands, but Dax was waiting, and it made the drive even more intoxicating.