Our dinner was fun, full of flirtatious banter and rising sexual tension. As much as I enjoyed the food and the good conversation, I couldn’t wait to get Grayson home. I was ready to get naked with my man.

As we were leaving the parking lot, however, I spotted something that made me tell Grayson to stop the car.

A dog was trotting across the road, head down in defeat, and all his ribs were on display. “Grayson, look at him.”

Grayson didn’t hesitate. He parked the car and jumped out to approach the dog.

The dog stood still, tail wagging. His warm brown eyes regarded us, full of both sweetness and despair. He hesitated, wanting the best from us, but expecting the worst.

Grayson knelt down in the dirt, in his best dress pants. “Come here, boy. Come here.” His tone was gentle and sweet. “Come on, boy. It’s okay.”

I held my breath. Finally, the dog came over, full of fear, but seemed determined to trust us anyway. Grayson rubbed his ears and waited for the dog to okay more contact. The dog put one dusty paw on Grayson’s knee.

“Look at him. He looks like he hasn’t eaten a good meal in months.” The dog glanced up at me when I spoke, then walked over to me and licked my hand.

Grayson stood up. “Let’s take him home. We can take him to the vet tomorrow and get him checked out. Maybe he’s microchipped, and we can find his owner. If not, at least he will get a good meal tonight. We can take him to the pound after the vet sees him.”

I opened the door to the back seat, and the dog jumped in without hesitation. He laid down, exhausted. Grayson and I got back in the car and drove straight to the grocery store. I sat in the car with the dog while Grayson shopped.

I laughed when he returned ten minutes later with a fifty-pound bag of dog food, feed bowls, a leash and collar, a plush bed, toys, and an assortment of dog treats. “Staying for one night only, huh?”

Grayson shrugged, sheepish. “He looks like he needs someone to make a fuss over him.”

I smiled and took a bag of treats. I opened it and gave one to the stray. He gobbled it up with no hesitation and asked for more with pleading eyes. I gave him three more.

“Let’s go home. He doesn’t need to wait a minute longer to get that good meal.” I put my seatbelt back on, and Grayson drove the three of us home.

We took the dog straight to the backyard, and Grayson wasted no time filling up a bowl with fresh, cold water. I opened the dog food and filled the other bowl. We set both bowls in front of the dog on the patio and waited for his reaction.

He wagged his tail with enthusiasm, gave us sloppy “thank you” kisses on our hands, and then he started eating. After a while I started getting nervous that he might eat so much he would make himself sick, but he finally stopped on his own. He drank a little water, and then lay down and rested his head on his paws.

Gratitude shown from his eyes.

I was touched, but I knew a healthy dog would explore the backyard to sniff all the good smells and mark his territory. He was too tired and weak to do so. I hoped all he needed was some good food and a little attention to get back to good health.

Grayson squatted down next to him and rubbed his ears and back. “You feel better, boy?”

Another polite wag of his tail.

Grayson went inside and got a bottle of wine and two glasses. “Might as well continue our date while we watch over the big guy here.”

He pulled out a chair for me, and I sat down next to him.

As he poured the wine, he eyed me. “Where were we? So far I’ve scored panties and nothing else.”

Smiling, I accepted a glass of wine from him. “I’m still waiting for that perfect line.”

The sun had gone down, and we were left sitting in the warm summer air with nothing on but the twinkle lights again. I glanced at the hot tub and thought fondly of that night we had sex there. I hoped to repeat that experience sometime soon.

“Let me see what I can do.” Grayson tipped his chair back and swirled his wine around in his glass while he thought it over. “How about this one?” He dropped the chair back down, and leaned toward me, wiggling his eyebrows once more. “Does this handkerchief smell like chloroform?”

“Grayson, that is truly awful.” I couldn’t help but laugh anyway.

“Do you have a band-aid? Cause I just scraped my knee, falling for you.” He put one hand over his heart as he spoke.

“Ding, ding, ding. That’s a winner.” I stood up and handed him my wine glass.

Curious, he sat up very straight in his chair.

I lifted my dress from the bottom hem and pulled it straight over my head. I was left standing in front of him with nothing on but my lacy bra and long pearl necklace.

The summer breeze swirled around me, causing goose bumps to rise up on my back. Or was it the way he was looking at me that caused my reaction?

Grayson sucked in a breath. “How about you take off the bra, too, sweetheart?”

I smiled and put one hand on my hip. “Let’s hear another line.”

He leaned back and spread his legs out in front of him, his impressive erection straining at his pants. “Do you have a name or can I call you mine?”

I took off the bra.