Love in a Nutshell - Janet Evanovich [60]
She pushed at Matt’s arms. “I need to go outside.”
Matt slid his arms away, and Kate hustled for the door. She walked blindly down the parking lot’s first aisle, looking for some privacy and Matt’s truck. It didn’t take long to find something that big and red. She tugged at the passenger-door handle, but the vehicle was locked.
“Hang on,” Matt said from behind her.
Kate turned and flung herself at him. “He gave away my dog to some stranger, Matt. I never should have let him have her.”
Matt rubbed her back and gave her a chance to settle down. After a moment, she stepped back and wished for a tissue.
“I’m sorry.” She wiped her eyes. “I feel awful. I should have never trusted him with my dog, but honestly, I didn’t have a choice.”
Matt unlocked the truck and opened the door for her. “Why don’t you take a couple of minutes in some quiet? Harley and Junior have it covered inside.”
Kate nodded and climbed in.
“I’ll be back to check on you in a minute. I just have to…” He gestured back at the market building. Kate figured that could mean anything from “use the facilities” to “hide from the weepy woman.” Either way, he’d been there when she’d needed him, and in her book, he was already a hero for that.
* * *
MATT HAD to sprint the forty like a high school kid to catch up with Kate’s ex, but he did it. Richard was standing next to a black BMW, getting ready to leave.
Matt walked slowly up to Richard, trying his best at friendly. “That was pretty weird stuff in there.”
Richard’s mouth turned down. “It’s always weird with Kate. Fire her now while you have cause.”
“Thanks, but I’ll handle my own employment decisions.”
“Then keep her around, but you can’t say I didn’t warn you. She’s a soul-eater.”
Total bull, but Matt had the feeling this guy dished a lot of that. Matt got down to business. “So, Richard, I couldn’t help overhearing you and Kate, and I’ve gotta say I think you know where her poodle is.”
Richard took a half step closer to his car. “Why would I lie?”
“Good question, since you’re pretty bad at it. You were obviously scrambling when you talked to Kate, and now can’t meet my eyes. So what’s up with the poodle? Susie? Sniffy? Whatever the mutt’s name is?” Matt asked, figuring a little goading might work.
The color started to rise in Richard’s face. “Her name is Stella.”
“See? You care about the dog. It’s obvious. I’m a dog guy, too, and have been for a lot of years. I get the relationship between man and canine. But I’m also a big fan of Kate’s, so if there’s something I can do to help her get her poodle back, I’m going to do it.”
“Is that a threat?”
It was kind of funny that this professor-looking dude was ready to rumble, but Matt wasn’t a rumbler anymore. He didn’t have to be.
“If you’re asking whether I’m going to beat you up over a poodle, the answer is no. If you’re asking whether I’m going to put time and effort into getting to the bottom of this, the answer is yes. And when it comes to Kate, I have all the time in the world.”
“Don’t bother. Stella’s fine.”
“Really? And you claimed you don’t know where shoe went. Want to tell me the real story?”
Richard hesitated, but finally made a sound of capitulation. “I found her in the city shelter where my fiancée, Shayla, had dropped her. I had some friends adopt her. I visit her all the time.”
So he was cheating on his fiancée with a poodle. Matt couldn’t say he’d encountered that before or wanted to again. Mostly, though, he wanted to ask how the guy could want to marry a woman who’d done what this Shayla had. But he already knew Richard’s judgment sucked. After all, he’d let Kate go.
“Kate would be with the dog full-time,” Matt said. “She loves Stella.”
“I want Stella by me.”
“She’d be better off with Kate.” Matt paused. “And I think you know that.”
After some sour-faced deliberation, Richard pulled a slim notepad and a gold pen from his breast pocket. He scribbled something on a piece of paper, tore it out, and handed it to Matt.
“Give me five minutes