Chick with a Charm (12 page)

Lily glanced at her watch. She had another four hours before she could go home. Surely Griffin wasn’t planning to sit at the bar for four hours?

But she was the consummate bartender, so after he sat down, she placed a napkin in front of him. “What can I get for you, stranger?”

He gave her a heart-melting smile. “I don’t really need another drink, but I guess if I’m going to sit here I need to order something.”

“The management likes that, yeah.”

“Then get me another beer. I’ll nurse it.”

She kept her voice low. “Griffin, aren’t you going home?”

“I thought I’d stick around until you got off work.”

“But that’s four hours away.” She considered this scenario stretching on, night after night. “Your liver can’t take it.”

“I realize it’s not the brightest plan in the universe, but I . . .” He reached out and traced a finger along her arm. “I can’t seem to leave.”

She knew why, too. She’d given him an adoration elixir, and he wasn’t happy unless he was breathing the same air she was. That made her think of Daisy, and how much Griffin had loved taking her out.

She had an idea, one that might benefit them all. “You know, whenever I’m here at the bar, I worry about Daisy and wonder if she needs to go out.”

“She’s probably fine. I’m sure you took her out before you left for work.”

“I did, but it was quick, and then I fed her. You know how that can jump-start things.” She reached under the counter and unzipped her backpack. “Take my key. You can let her out, go down to the dog park and then wait for me at the apartment.”

“I was thinking maybe we’d pick up Daisy and take her to my place.”

Lily thought about her commitment to ride to O’Hare with Anica first thing in the morning. “That won’t work. I’m doing an airport run with Anica in the morning, and I need to be at home so I can get ready for that.” She paused, wondering how much to say. “My parents have been on a yearlong research trip to Peru, and they’re making a special trip home for the engagement party and wedding. Anica and I need to be on time.”

He looked worried. “When your parents arrive, will that mean we can’t spend as much time together?”

“Unfortunately, that’s likely. Of course, I’d love for you to go to the engagement party with me on Sunday.”

“I’ll be happy to go wherever you go.”

She gulped. That sounded good on the surface, but it might not work so well in practice. “Actually, I’ll be down here most of the day, decorating with Anica, so if you could hang out with Daisy part of Sunday, I’d really appreciate it.”

He didn’t seem overjoyed to be substituting Daisy for her, but he nodded. “I can do that.”

“And if you take care of Daisy for me tonight, then you and I will have more time to . . .” Instead of spelling it out, she gave him a heated look and let him fill in the blanks.

He sucked in a breath. “Got it. Tell you what. I’ll head to my place, pick up a few things, go to your apartment and take care of Daisy, and have the bed warm by the time you get there.”

That scenario wasn’t half bad. If only he weren’t being driven by the spell she’d cast, she could look forward to having a man waiting in her bed for her when she got home. Zeus’s balls, she could still look forward to it. She’d created this situation, and she might as well enjoy herself.

Griffin took time to change into jeans and a sweatshirt. Then he picked up clean clothes, his toiletry kit and the condoms he preferred before leaving his apartment. As he stood in the living room with a garment bag over his shoulder and a small duffel in one hand, he wondered what Lily would think of the place. He hadn’t so much decorated as he had simply moved in and bought some necessary furniture.

Unlike Lily’s apartment, which glowed with color, Griffin’s apartment was filled with shades of beige. He’d never felt comfortable with the whole decorating concept, so he’d stuck with neutrals because they were safe.

His whole damned life had been safe, now that he thought about it. He’d been so desperate to avoid the chaos of his parents’ impulsive choices that he’d avoided taking any personal risks at all. Until Lily.

The more he thought about it, the more pleased he was that he’d taken that risk, followed that impulse that had made him run all the way to the Bubbling Cauldron last night. His life had been colorless until then, but he’d taken steps to pump the color back in.

He didn’t kid himself that he and Lily had a future. They were still very different people, set on very different paths. But for some crazy reason she wanted him. And for obvious reasons, he needed her. He’d walked the straight and narrow for too long.

Thinking about what they’d share later tonight, he set down his garment bag and duffel so he could rummage through a kitchen cupboard. Ah, there they were. A former girlfriend, one who hadn’t inspired him half as much as Lily had already, had given him a box full of various sizes of candles.

The relationship had ended before he’d used any of the candles. He tucked the box into his duffel, along with a book of matches. He’d never been much of a romantic, but Lily was the kind of woman who seemed to invite the romantic approach.

He was almost out the door when he remembered the bottle of red wine he’d bought months ago and tucked in a cupboard, thinking he needed to have some on hand. Because he’d been so damned picky about his dates, he’d never brought anyone home to sample that wine.

Lily would appreciate it. And he knew instinctively that she’d have wineglasses and an opener. Lily knew how to enjoy herself, and it was high time he learned how to do that, too.

Fortified with his supplies, he caught a cab over to her apartment. The place was already starting to feel familiar, and Daisy greeted him, wiggling and panting with joy. Maybe she really did need to go out.

Setting down his duffel and garment bag, he located the leash and clipped it on. Once he was out the door, he discovered that he looked forward to romping with Daisy. He truly needed to get a dog.

Out on the sidewalk, Daisy found a patch of gravel and took a quick pee. Then Griffin pointed her toward the dog park, but Daisy tugged him in the opposite direction.

“Daisy, it’s this way.” He pulled on her collar, but she wouldn’t budge, and she was stronger than he’d realized. Short of carrying her to the dog park, which seemed idiotic, he would have to go along with her new plan.

God, this was getting more like a Lassie episode every time he interacted with this dog. She definitely had a mind of her own. “Look, I don’t want to go see your friend at the coffee shop, okay? He’s way too interested in Lily.”

Daisy whined and gazed down the street.

“Oh, what the hell. I suppose it doesn’t matter. I have the inside track. I can take this opportunity to inform what’s-his-name that he can look elsewhere. Let’s go.”

The retriever’s tail lifted like a banner as she trotted down the sidewalk. Once again, she seemed to be smiling.

“You are some kind of dog, Daisy. I doubt there’s another golden at the animal shelter quite like you, but one of these days I’ll have to go down and take a look.”

Daisy gave a short yip, as if she approved of that plan.

Warning himself not to turn her normal doggie responses into more than they actually were, he continued to talk to her. “Just think, if I hadn’t gone home with Lily last night, I never would have met you. There were plenty of obvious benefits to going home with Lily, but I hadn’t thought I’d find a new friend in the process.”

Daisy whined and wagged her tail.

“Same here, Daisy. Same here.”

The neon sign for Harvey’s Hangout glowed at the end of the block. Griffin wondered if he should buy a cup of coffee. Probably. It would be rude to bring Daisy for a visit and not buy any coffee.

As they approached, he noticed that tonight’s crowd was different, mostly teenagers hanging out. Then again, he was here a couple of hours earlier, so maybe that made sense. He paused, thinking he’d tie Daisy to the leg of one of the wrought-iron chairs.

Daisy didn’t pause. She kept right on walking.

“Well, I’ll be damned.” Puzzled, Griffin followed her to the corner. When he stopped to wait for the light to change, she sat down beside him.

He glanced across the street toward a neighborhood grocery store that was still open. He wouldn’t have noticed it the night before because they’d been here much later. Maybe Daisy had a friend over there, too. He’d have to ask Lily about Daisy’s habits so he’d be forewarned about the places she liked to go and the people she liked to see.

The light changed, and Daisy pranced across the street, towing Griffin. Her tail waved in delight the closer they came to the corner store. On this spring night the double doors stood open and the owner had displayed colorful fruit and vegetables in tiered bins.

The array almost made Griffin wish he could cook. Besides the produce, the display included one section of bouquets in a riot of color. Griffin considered the flowers and decided that would be a nice addition to the candles and wine.

“Thanks, Daisy. This was a great idea.” As he stood by the door, wondering whether to tie Daisy to a nearby bike rack, the owner came out wearing a green bib apron.

The small Asian man of indeterminate age was grinning so widely that the rest of his face almost disappeared. “Daisy!” He stooped down and scratched the dog behind both ears. “So good to see you, honored friend.”

Daisy whined in delight and gave his face a lick.

“She must make friends fast,” Griffin said. “Lily hasn’t had her long.”

“Oh yes, she makes friends very fast.” The small man gave Daisy one last pat before standing. “She’s a great dog.”

“Smart, too. She was determined to come down here and say hello.”

“Of course.” The man reached down to stroke Daisy’s soft fur. Then he winked at Griffin. “I give her soup bones.”

“I see. So she has ulterior motives.”

The little man gazed at him. “Don’t we all?”

Griffin had to smile at that. “I suppose. I thought I’d get Lily some flowers, and my ulterior motive is to impress her with my thoughtfulness.” He had a sudden inspiration. “Maybe I should buy her lilies.”

“No, not lilies. Buy her these daisies.” The owner plucked a bouquet of red gerberas from the display.

Griffin congratulated himself on knowing they were gerberas. He’d always liked that flower, too, and a few weeks ago he’d finally taken the time to look it up. “Maybe I should buy lilies
and
daisies.”

“No, go with these. She goes nuts over these, and I just got a fresh batch today. She always liked them before, but when her new dog turned out to be named Daisy, she decided this was the flower for her.”

“Sold.” Griffin reached in his hip pocket for his wallet. “I wasn’t sure where to tie Daisy so I could come in the store.”

“Tie her?” The man blew out a breath. “She can come with you. Daisy never bothers anything in my store. She’s a good dog.” He turned and started back inside. “I’ll get her soup bone.”

“Okay.” Griffin had never taken a dog in a grocery store, but Daisy seemed to be the exception to most dog rules he’d ever known about. Nevertheless, he tightened his grip on her leash. “Behave,” he said.

Daisy snorted as if he’d just insulted her. Maybe he had, because she walked carefully through the store without bumping a single display or sweeping anything off a shelf with her tail. Even when the owner handed Griffin the soup bone in a paper bag, Daisy kept her tail wagging to a minimum. But she was smiling to beat the band.

“Thanks so much,” Griffin said as he pocketed his change and picked up the flowers and the bag containing the bone.

“Now both your girls will be happy.”

“Uh, right.” Griffin was taken aback by the assumption that Daisy and Lily were
his girls
. That implied a deeper connection than he was comfortable with. But, after all, he was walking Lily’s dog and buying Lily flowers. The guy had a right to make assumptions.

“See you around,” the store owner said. “My name’s Bruce.”

“Nice to meet you, Bruce. I’m Griffin.”

Bruce nodded. “It’s a good name. Lily and Griffin. Sounds good together.”

Griffin had no idea what to say to that, so he simply nodded. For a man who was just in this for the sex, he sure was getting chummy with the neighbors.

All the way home on the bus Lily thought about Griffin in her apartment, waiting for her. She’d never encouraged a man to hang out in her space, but the idea of coming home to a warm bed and a hot man was appealing. Anica had been pretty negative about this spell, but Lily thought it had a positive side. Griffin was a little overeager, but she was managing that so far.

She had no key, so she had to buzz the intercom when she reached the front door.

His voice drifted through the speaker, soft and intimate. “Hi.”