After Hello Read Online Free PDF Page A

through his nose and exhaled slowly. “I need your help.”
    Sam looked blandly at the blanket. “Obviously.”
    “Not with the dog. I have to take her to the vet personally. She’ll ask me too many questions I won’t be able to answer if I’m not there. And forget going back inside without her pet. She’d have my head.”
    “Tough day at the office?” Sam asked.
    Paul’s lips flattened into an unhappy line. “Let’s just say I’m already on thin ice.”
    “Is she okay?” I asked quietly, peering forward and trying to catch a glimpse of the small animal. “Bootsie, I mean. It sounded like she was in a lot of pain.” I loved all kinds of furry creatures, and my heart ached at the thought of the poor dog’s pain.
    Paul rolled his eyes. “Apparently Bootsie likes Valium almost as much as her owner does.”
    “You drugged the dog?” I blurted out. “Isn’t that dangerous?”
    “How should I know?” He glanced between me and Sam. A line creased his forehead.
    “I’m Sara,” I sighed. I was getting a little tired of introducing myself all the time. “And before you say it, yes, I know I’m not supposed to be here.”
    “I know that look, Paul,” Sam said, an edge to his voice. “What are you thinking?”
    “You still have the book?”
    Sam nodded.
    “Good. Give it to her.” Paul jerked his head in my direction.
    “What?” I asked.
    “Why?” Sam echoed at the same time.
    Paul shook his head, impatient. “The book is the perfect distraction, which is exactly what she needs right now. And if she thinks someone from the bookstore came to deliver the book personally —”
    “No,” Sam said in a tone that refused discussion. “Not Sara. I’ll do it.”
    Paul huffed out his frustration. “You can’t.”
    “Why not?” Sam folded his arms and lifted his chin.
    “Because she’s doing a cleanse this month, trying to align her feminine chi.”
    I was impressed that Paul managed to say that without cracking a smile.
    “So?” Sam challenged.
    “So no boys allowed,” Paul said, biting off each word.
    “You were in there,” Sam said, his head jutting toward the apartment doors.
    I wondered why he was so determined to keep me out of Paul’s clutches. It was just a book. How bad could delivering it be?
    “Why do you think she’s already mad at me?” Bootsie whimpered in Paul’s arms. He looked down, grimacing. “I gotta go.”
    “But—”
    “It’s not your call, little brother. Give me the book.”
     

Chapter 6
     
    Sam
     
    Paul held out his free hand and waited. Bootsie’s whimpers rose in pitch; she panted and squirmed. Sam wondered if the Valium was already wearing off. Paul snapped his fingers, demanding more than patience.
    With a sigh, Sam flipped open the top flap of his messenger bag and withdrew the brown-wrapped package from the bookstore. He plunked it into his brother’s hand. A muscle jumped in the back of his jaw and the darkness in his eyes turned from brown to black.
    Paul immediately passed the book to Sara. “Don’t open it. Don’t be there when she opens it. Don’t ask what it is. Don’t invite conversation. Don’t sit down. Don’t touch anything. If you’re not in and out in five seconds, you’ve done something wrong.” He glared at her. “Do. Not. Get. Me. Fired.”
    Sara froze, holding the book unnaturally in front of her as though she had caught it mid-drop but then had forgotten to bring it to her side. Her face had lost the rosy blush she’d had in the elevator. Sam missed it. A little color brought her to life, and seeing her so pale and stiff felt wrong.
    Of course, there was too much about this situation that was wrong. The whole day was turning into a disaster. He should have sent Sara away with Rebecca when he had the chance. Or at least listened to Will and left Sara in the lobby. Better yet, he should have cut through the back room of Scoops and disappeared. It would have been safer—for everyone.
    Paul shifted his intensity to Sam.