Payoff Pitch (Philadelphia Patriots) (8 page)

She held the leather leash Noah had given her, its chain collar open and ready to slip over Sadie’s head as soon as she opened the crate. Noah had assigned her that task, leaving the bigger and apparently more rambunctious Toby to him. Unlike her, he seemed relaxed, the leash still bunched up in his hand.

“You should get the choke chain ready to slip over Toby’s head when you open the crate, don’t you think?” Teddy said as the agent rolled the cart to a stop a few feet from them. Since they’d already completed the necessary paperwork, they could simply take the dogs away, though she hoped the young man would wheel the crates to curbside for them. From experience, she knew they were awkward to lug, especially when holding onto a dog at the same time.

“Nah,” Noah said. “They’re not going to run off. Toby’s probably going to try to jump up into my arms.”

Teddy had already contemplated the prospect of Sadie jumping up on
her
and raking doggie nails down her bare legs. She’d been an idiot for wearing shorts tonight instead of jeans, like Noah, but she had no intention of letting a dog loose without a choke chain on her for correction. Aside from the damage Sadie might inflict, she wasn’t prepared to take even the slightest risk of having to chase the dog through the airport. If Toby got away, well, that was on Noah, and he was welcome to mount a frantic pursuit for him while she kept a firm grip on Sadie.

“Is it okay if we use the cart to haul the crates to curbside?” Noah asked the agent.

The young man gave Noah a big grin. “I’ll take them out for you, Mr. Cade.”

“Thanks, man,” Noah said, giving him a fist bump.

Teddy had to resist the impulse to roll her eyes. She’d already gotten a taste of the power of celebrity when Noah had sauntered into the special services office a few minutes ago. The agent had immediately recognized him and fallen all over himself to be helpful. With good humor, Noah had agreed to his request for an autograph.

Before Teddy could move, Noah bent over, released the catch on Toby’s crate and swung the wire door open. Toby lunged out, almost knocking Noah over.

“Hiya, old buddy,” Noah crooned as Toby went bananas, his pink tongue lolling out in obvious glee. Noah embraced him in something like a bear hug before gently shoving the big dog down and deftly slipping the collar over his muzzle and onto his neck.

“Nicely done,” Teddy said, admiring his smooth move.

“Thanks, but what are you waiting for? Sadie’s going to be mad at you for making her wait.” He winked to let her know he was pulling her leg.

Teddy crouched and unlatched the other crate as Toby nuzzled at her long hair. Unlike her brother, Sadie didn’t explode out like a cannon shot. Instead, she gazed expectantly as Teddy whispered a few soothing words of greeting while slipping the collar onto the Poodle.

Teddy could hardly believe how lovely and well-proportioned Sadie was. When she emerged from the crate and walked into a perfect stacked position, Teddy recognized she was the product of quality breeding as, obviously, was her littermate. “God, Noah, they’re absolutely beautiful. I don’t think I’ve ever seen better Poodles.”

“Wow, hear that guys?” Noah said, bending down to give each of them a quick head rub. “And listen, Teddy’s a professional, so she knows what she’s talking about when she says you’re beautiful.”

Then he leaned in close and whispered. “And they’re sure not the only beautiful things here either.”

His warm breath teased her ear and for a moment she forgot the dogs, the airport and everything other than the insanely seductive man looming over her. For a moment, Teddy even thought he might slide his lips along her cheek or neck, but instead he pulled away and made a hand gesture to the agent as he said, “Ready to go, Teddy?”

She blinked like an idiot before finally pulling herself into a semblance of order. With a quiet murmur, she gave a very gentle tug on the leash to tell Sadie they needed to get moving. She followed Noah out of the terminal to curbside, where he tipped the agent and hustled off to retrieve the SUV as Teddy settled in to wait with the dogs.

That little encounter inside the terminal wasn’t the first time Noah had given her something of a come-on, but the pure, unfiltered sexuality that had darkened his whisper banished any shred of doubt as to his interest in her. Still, Teddy’s rational mind tried to reject it. Okay, she’d been attracted to Noah, but how could the same thing possibly have happened to him? Any woman in her right mind would be drawn to his looks and laid-back charm. She, on the other hand, couldn’t be more ordinary, especially compared to the kind of women he usually dated.

Several travelers had taken up positions around her, waiting to be picked up. Toby and Sadie pulled on their leashes a few times in the vain hope that Teddy might let them pay those people a friendly visit, but she kept both dogs in a firm hold, soothing them with pats and whispers that Noah would be back soon.

As she waited, her nerves started to dance with an uncomfortable combo of anxiety and excitement at the idea that she might end up alone with Noah at his house tonight. But surely the housekeeper would be there, too, wouldn’t she? Teddy hoped so, because she really needed this job, and she needed to be a professional. What she
didn’t
need was a client relationship that was becoming more complicated by the second, complicated in a way that could eventually lead to losing a lucrative contract.

Act like a professional, Teddy, and everything will be fine.

Toby gave a loud snort against her leg, as if he understood exactly how difficult that was going to be.

“Hi, Cristina. It’s really nice to meet you,” Teddy said after Noah made the introductions. She offered her hand to the diminutive housekeeper who looked as if she’d rather be anywhere else at that moment. The three of them stood awkwardly in the foyer while the dogs remained in the car. Noah had wisely decided not to spring them on Cristina until he’d introduced Teddy.

“Hello,” the woman said with no hint of a smile. Nervousness radiated from the slim Filipina, which Teddy decided to assume was caused by the dogs’ arrival, not hers.

Cristina was a very attractive woman—despite her dour demeanor—and Teddy guessed her to be in her late thirties. Her brown, almond-shaped eyes were striking, and her prominent nose and full lips gave her face both character and sexuality. She wore her glossy, raven hair in a short, elegant cut and had dressed in close-fitting designer jeans, Polo T-shirt and new-looking, strappy sandals. She’d also had a recent mani-pedi, too, by the perfect look of her pearl nail polish. Next to her, Teddy came off like a country bumpkin.

When the stray thought whispered through her brain that maybe the beautiful Cristina and Noah were involved, she squashed it. Besides, it was none of her business who Noah was involved with.

Keep telling yourself that.

“Are you ready for them, Cristina? We’ll just let them say hello, and then you can go back to your suite if you like.” Noah maintained a serious face but Teddy could tell he thought Cristina’s apprehension about the dogs was over the top. He’d said as much when he called to ask her to come with him tonight.

His offer to let Cristina withdraw after meeting the dogs had sounded more like an order to Teddy’s ears. Maybe he was thinking the meeting might be too uncomfortable to continue. Or maybe Noah just wanted to be alone with her?

Stop thinking like that, you idiot.

Cristina gave him a faint smile. “Thank you, Mr. Noah. I’m ready.”

Teddy smiled warmly even as she wondered if D-Day had required as much preparation as this introduction. She’d never understood how people could be afraid of dogs or dislike being around them. Yes, she got it in theory, but what was there not to like about dogs? They lived to be loved by human beings and got no greater pleasure in life than making their masters happy. If she’d had any doubts on the subject, that unshakeable bond had been the only proof Teddy needed that God truly did exist.

“Back in a minute,” Noah said to Cristina as he gestured to Teddy to follow.

Getting the dogs out of their crates was pretty much a repeat of what had happened at the airport, with Toby jumping up like an idiot and Sadie acting decidedly more collected. Back inside the house, Noah kept an iron grip on Toby while Teddy allowed Sadie to gently approach Cristina, just as the two of them had planned.

“Cristina, meet Sadie,” Noah said, stroking Toby’s back to calm him down. The big dog shook all over as he swiveled his head back and forth trying to take in his strange surroundings. “She’s the easy one, as you can see.”

Cristina plastered a clearly insincere smile on her face as she dropped her hand slowly toward Sadie’s muzzle. Sadie gave it a couple of sniffs and then pivoted back to face Teddy, sitting before gazing expectantly up. If the dog could talk, she probably would have been saying something like:
why would I be interested in this new person when I have you, Teddy? You clearly adore me.

“Okay, Toby’s turn,” Noah said. “Toby, sit,” he commanded, giving a little tug on the leash. When that produced no results, he tried again, this time in a firmer voice. “Toby, sit!”

The big dog sat as ordered but couldn’t stop vibrating with what Teddy judged to be excitement, not nerves. “Let him sniff your fingers, Cristina,” Noah said softly.

Cristina held her hand out again, this time even more tentatively. Toby tried to stand up but Noah firmly shoved him back into a sit. Once Toby got the message, he gave Cristina’s hand a thorough sniff and then a lick before she pulled it away.

“There, that wasn’t so bad, was it?” Noah said with an encouraging smile. “And, look, once they get used to their new home, they won’t be any problem.”

The housekeeper took a couple of steps backward as Noah allowed Toby to get to his feet. “It’s just that with the weekend…” she said in a hesitant voice, leaving the sentence unfinished.

“We’ll talk about that again later, okay?” Noah said. “Teddy, let’s take the dogs to the back yard and let them have a little run.”

Looking relieved, Cristina headed off toward the back of the house and disappeared into a doorway to the right as Noah and then Teddy followed down the long center hallway. Teddy had managed a brief glimpse into the kitchen the day Buster escaped as Noah hurried her down this same hallway and into his basement training room. This time, she made a point of gawking at the gleaming granite counters, rich wood cabinets and high-end appliances as she walked Sadie past. The Sub-zero refrigerator and six-burner range with dual ovens caught her particular attention. She enjoyed cooking and longed to someday have a kitchen like that.

Not on a dog walker’s income, sunshine. A lawyer’s, though? Maybe.

By the time Teddy stepped through the back door onto a large, flagstone patio, Noah had already let Toby loose and the big dog had taken off like a shot toward the rear of the yard. When Noah nodded, Teddy unclipped the leash from Sadie’s collar, leaving her free to bolt after her brother.

“The installers just finished the fence yesterday,” Noah said, keeping his eyes on the back lot line where Toby raced the length of the fence.

Though the patio floodlights penetrated deep into the yard, Teddy could barely make out more than shadows as the dogs raced around. Something—probably a squirrel—skipped along the top of the fence, clearly driving Toby insane. When they reached the corner almost simultaneously, the dog lunged at the squirrel but came up short and slammed into the fence with a loud thump.

Noah chuckled. “Okay, now we know he hates squirrels.”

When Toby righted himself, Sadie started to run in the opposite direction, daring Toby to chase her. The big dog complied and the two of them raced along the perimeter at full speed, only slowing a little when they had to dodge an evergreen or a maple that was inconveniently in their path.

“The fence must have cost you a small fortune,” Teddy said. Unlike the Bennetts, he’d enclosed the whole back yard instead of just a tiny area. “Are you going to put in a dog door, too?”

He moved closer, turning to face her directly. “The fence was expensive, but necessary. I need Cristina to be able to just let them out when I’m not here, because I doubt she’d ever agree to walk them for exercise. You saw how she reacted in there.”

Teddy nodded. She couldn’t even imagine Cristina trying to rein in Toby enough to walk him.

“And no, I’m not going to put in a dog door. I don’t think it’s smart to leave dogs unsupervised in the yard for any length of time. Maybe some dogs, but not these two. Not yet, anyway.”

“I’m with you on that,” Teddy agreed. “I told the Bennetts the same thing, but it was a waste of breath.”

Sadie made an incredibly sharp turn at full speed, almost pivoting, and Toby flipped over and rolled as he tried to match it. Noah laughed as the bigger dog bounced to his feet and shook himself off with a look that seemed to say:
what the hell just happened?

Teddy had to admit it was pretty funny, though for a second her heart had been in her throat, worried the big dog might have hurt himself.

Noah’s expression went from amused to serious in a heartbeat as he locked his gaze on her again. “I need to ask you something, Teddy, and I guess I should have said something before this.”

Putting a hand at the small of her back to get her to go with him, he started to stroll down a brick walkway that looped around the swimming pool and meandered through the professional looking landscaping. Teddy followed his lead, completely at a loss as to what he was about to say to her. Whatever was on his mind, it looked serious.

“I had some hopes that Cristina would come around to the idea of doing some minimal work with the dogs when I’m away.” Noah blew out a frustrated breath. “But you saw for yourself how uptight she is around them. So, I’m not sure I could fully trust her even if she agreed to look after them when I’m on the road this weekend.”

Ah, so that’s what’s weighing on him.
Talk about an easily fixable problem.