Page 88 of Dad Next Door

Leaving Quinn with Freddie, I dug a vase out of the top shelf of my cupboards. I put the bouquet in my office, then closed the door to keep them safe from curious eyes and mouths.

When I came back into the foyer, Quinn was petting Maple with one hand and Freddie with the other as they sat on either side of him like sentries.

“All ready?” he asked, giving me another of his million-watt grins.

I nodded, not quite trusting my voice.

All my pets had taken to Quinn, but they were my rescue success stories. Maple was the exception, and it usually took her a long time to even come out of hiding around new people. She was a sweet girl, but she’d been through a lot in her life, and it made her wary of everyone. But she adored Quinn and had taken to him right away.

Well, that made two of us.

“All set.” Quinn stood and brushed fur off his hands. “You look amazing.”

Maple took off and disappeared into the kitchen. Freddie whined at the loss of attention and shuffled closer to Quinn.

“Thanks.” I flushed hot at his appreciative look. “You do too. We should go before the others realize they missed out on pets,” I said, surprised the rest of the crew hadn’t bothered to come to the door to check things out.

That was a sign that they thought of Quinn as a member of the family, and him coming to the door wasn’t exciting or worth getting up from their naps for.

Quinn opened the door for me.

“Are you going to tell me where we’re going now?” I asked when I’d finished locking up.

“Nope.” He took my hand and led me toward his driveway.

“Not even a hint?”

“Okay, one hint.” He paused dramatically. “We’re going to Seattle.”

“Seattle?”

The city was an hour away, and I went there all the time to shop or attend social things. I liked the idea of doing our date there, not just because there were more options of stuff to do, but also because it was a liberal city and no one would look twice at two men out on a date. And the anonymity of being in a big city would help me relax so I didn’t spend the entire night looking over my shoulder for Simon or one of his many contacts.

The last thing I needed was another hissy fit letter showing up at my work, berating me for daring to go on a date with my boyfriend and enjoy my life.

“Yup. But the rest of the evening is a surprise.” He opened the passenger door for me. “Deal?”

“Deal.” I got into the car, trying—and failing—to not grin like an idiot when he closed the door behind me.

The drive to the city was quick, even with it being so close to dinner. We started off talking about our days, which evolved into another one of our epic conversations that bounced from topic to topic but always seemed to circle back, so neither of us got lost along the way.

That was one thing I loved about talking with Quinn. He was smart and constantly taught me new things, but he was also one of the few people who never had trouble following my train of thought when I went on random tangents. He listened to my infodumps and never made me feel like I was taking up too much space or that my enthusiasm was annoying. And I never had to censor myself or hold back around him out of fear that he’d judge me or use what I said against me later.

After reaching the city, he drove us downtown and parked near the waterfront.

“Are you hungry?” Quinn asked when he’d shut down his car. “Because part one is dinner.”

“Part one?”

He nodded, that sexy smirk-smile curling the corners of his mouth. “Hungry, yay or nay?”

“Yay.” I fell into step beside him as he led me down the street.

“Kristof’s?” I looked between him and the restaurant he’d stopped in front of.

“You said you’ve wanted to go for years. I’ve always wanted to give it a try too.”

“But how did you get a reservation? They book out months in advance.”