Hakim heard the click of paws on the tiles and gave a quick whistle. Lauren looked at him in question and he smiled in return.
“My real non-work fun thing.” He dropped a hand to his side and felt a cold, wet nose press against his fingers, then a furry body brush by him.
“Oh, aren’t you a beauty!” Lauren exclaimed and leaned down to greet the dog. “Hi, there, sweetie. What’s your name?”
Hakim was amused. “This is Zeus.”
Lauren ran her hands over the friendly black lab, scratched the dog’s ears and then gave the dog a solid pat on the side. “You’re a cutie, aren’t you? Where were you yesterday?”
“He had a date with the groomer. I also wasn’t sure how you felt about dogs, so I thought it might be better not to have him around.”
“How could I not like a sweetheart like this?” Lauren stopped petting the dog for a moment, and Zeus leaned his chin on her leg. She laughed at the plaintive look on the dog’s face, and petted his head again.
Hakim watched her and wondered how he could have been so wrong about this woman. She wasn’t like her mother at all; she was funny and brave and kind, and he found himself wanting to know more about her.
His phone chimed at him and Lauren glanced up. She watched him check the message and grimace.
“Don’t you hate it when the work day starts off with something bad?” she hedged.
Hakim sighed. “It’s not bad, it’s just…”
“Frustrating? Annoying? Makes you want to run away, maybe join the circus instead?”
He cocked an eyebrow at her, but grinned. “Sometimes I think my company is the circus.”
That seemed to startle her and she laughed. “Sometimes I think the same thing about mine.”
There was a shared moment of understanding, and then Hakim’s phone chimed again. Lauren nodded at it. “You should go. There’s list of things for me to do?”
“Yes, on the counter.” He looked at her and tried to make up for the day before with an apologetic smile. “It’s not cleaning, I promise.”
Her laugh warmed him. When he picked up his plate to take it to the sink, she smiled and shooed him off with a wave.
“I’ve got it,” she said and threw him a jaunty salute.
On the drive to his office, Hakim was thoughtful. His plan, which was sound in strategy, also bordered on cruel. If he took a step back, he could see that it wasn’t the right thing to do.
He didn’t want to put Lauren in the middle of his rivalry with her mother, especially not now he had seen that she was really quite a lovely person. Honestly, he was a little embarrassed at his actions. Lauren wasn’t a woman to be bought, or ordered about, and she certainly hadn’t done anything wrong.
Continually throughout the day, he found himself getting distracted by thoughts of Lauren. He imagined her in his home, with Zeus, or sitting in the library as she read. He liked the idea that she was there.
He knew he should tell her she didn’t have to come back the next day; that it was only fair. But that would also mean he wouldn’t see her.
No, if he wanted to have this intriguing woman in his life, he’d have to find another reason to keep her around.
Chapter 7
Lauren
Lauren poured herself another cup of coffee before she looked over the list Hakim had left for her. He hadn’t been kidding; there was no cleaning to be done. She was supposed to take Zeus to the dog park, and then run a few errands for Hakim. That much, she could certainly handle.
He had left instructions for her to take one of his cars, telling her where to find the keys and the code to get in and out of the garage. He’d also left a funny drawing that showed how to hook up the seat harness for Zeus. The note said to help herself to anything in the kitchen, and left suggestions for local restaurants in case she wanted to eat out.
She was a little surprised that breakfast had been so much fun. Telling stories about theater had been easy, and he had been a good listener. Lauren loved talking about her passion, but it wasn’t something she often talked about outside of her theater group.
But Hakim had listened, had even understood, she thought. That was unusual. It had been nice talking with him, too. It was easy in a way she didn’t encounter very often.
She decided that taking Zeus to the dog park was her first priority. Then she could bring the dog back to the house and do some work, grab lunch, and then go run errands.
Zeus was more than happy to follow her into the garage and hop into the car when she opened the door. He didn’t fuss at the harness, just wagged his tail enthusiastically. The dog park was only a short drive away, and Lauren clipped a leash on Zeus before she let him out of the back seat.