Dangerous Protector (Red Stone Security #14)(12)

Bree pointed to a big brown bag by the front door. “The Mederos family sent over a bunch of food for you. I told them I’d be seeing you so they fixed up enough food for three days.”

The Mederos family owned Montez’s Grill and one of their daughters ran a lingerie boutique on the same street as Kimmy’s place. Tegan knew all of them. Everyone had been so welcoming when she started working for Kimmy and she’d redone almost all the websites for everyone on the street at a discount. She knew that people cared, but this act of giving was just too much on her emotional state right now.

Tears pricked Tegan’s eyes and she inwardly cursed as she swiped at them. She’d barely cried in the last couple of years. There had been no time in her life for feeling sorry for herself, only survival. Now… “Damn it,” she muttered as the floodgates stayed open. “I’m normally not a crier.”

Bree pulled her into another hug and patted her back gently. “You’re holding up better than I would. I’m glad you decided to show some sense and stay here. If you get tired of my son you can stay at my place.”

Laughing, she said, “Thank you.” Tears finally dried up, Tegan stepped back. God, Aaron probably thought she was a total basket case by now. Which didn’t matter anyway, since she didn’t care what he thought. Which was a total lie.

“If you want, I can take Kali off your hands,” Dillon piped in.

“What?”

“I can take Kali to Nana’s tonight.” He gave her the sweetest smile that had just a hint of mischievousness.

“That’s a great idea, Dillon. Let’s give Tegan a chance to rest. We haven’t had a dog in the house in years.” Bree gently petted Kali’s head and Kali, as always, soaked up the attention.

“Oh no, she’ll stay here. She’s already in a new place and taking her somewhere else might stress her out.” And Tegan wasn’t sure she wanted to be away from her sweet dog anyway.

Kali whined. Next to Dillon she was practically vibrating with energy as she tried to sit still. She wasn’t doing a very good job, her butt and tail wagging, moving her entire body.

Dillon placed his little hand on Kali’s head. “Nana’s got a fenced-in yard so she can go out and poop anytime she needs. Then tonight she can sleep with me. In my bed.” He looked incredibly excited at the thought.

“I don’t know…” She looked at Aaron, hoping he’d say something.

He just lifted his eyebrows and shrugged. “I’ve learned that when the two of them gang up together, it’s a good idea to just say yes.”

Tegan looked back at Bree. “Bree, Kali can be a lot to handle—”

“If she’s too much we’ll just bring her back over here. We only live a couple blocks away. We’re in the same neighborhood.”

“Oh.” Well, that made her feel better. “Are you sure?” Kali was a good dog, but Bree and her husband were older. Tegan was worried she might be too much to handle. And she felt weird being away from her dog. Kali was always a comfort.

“Absolutely. I’ll just need her leash and food and we’ll be fine. I’ve still got Bandit’s old dog bed and toys, so she’ll be fine. And my house is all tile and wood so even if she has an accident it’s no big deal. I’ll bring her back in the morning on my walk. You need some rest. Take advantage of this.”

Tegan looked at Kali, torn. “You want to go with Dillon?”

She barked in answer then licked Dillon’s face before trotting over to Tegan and jumping up on her to kiss her as well. Yes, that dog was definitely part human.

Okay then, it was settled. Tegan scratched behind her ear. “Just let me get her stuff.” Tegan felt lost letting her dog go but she was too emotional to put up much of an argument and it was clear Dillon really wanted to spend time with her. Considering Aaron was giving her a safe place to sleep, she wasn’t going to complain.

She headed for the kitchen to grab Kali’s stuff.

“You really don’t have to let her go,” Aaron said quietly behind her.

She nearly jumped as she picked up Kali’s bag of food, toys, and leash from one of the kitchen chairs. She hadn’t realized he’d followed her. “I know, but it’s hard to say no to either of them. And Dillon looks so excited at the thought of getting to play with her.”

Aaron’s mouth curved up. “Yeah, he’s been begging me for a dog for about six months now.”

“I don’t know how you ever say no to him.”

He snorted. “It’ll get easier, trust me.”

“If you say so.” She lifted the bag but he immediately took it from her.

The gesture warmed her from the inside out even as she reminded herself that Aaron was not for her. He had a kid, and even though she adored kids, they were a huge responsibility. Plus, she knew that Aaron had been hurt in the past. She might not know all the details but she’d heard Kimmy say enough that she’d managed to put some of the pieces together. She knew that things hadn’t worked out between him and his ex-wife. She wasn’t really sure of the why, though.

Not that any of that mattered. Even if Tegan had been looking for a relationship, he wasn’t the type of man she wanted. Except maybe in the sexiness department, because in that one he was off the charts.