Free The Rebound Guy by Farrah Rochon

off.” She paused for a beat. “Okay, maybe it is a bit objectifying.”
    “I’ll try not to take offense that you’re using me for my face.”
    “Your body, too.”
    His eyes shimmered with amusement, and Asia had the decency to blush. She was grateful that he was being such a sport about this, because in all honesty, she was treating him like a sex object. Her mother would be so disappointed in her. Maybe.
    “I hope you understand how much I appreciate this,” she told him. “You didn’t have to accept my offer.”
    “I just told you that my other job is a dog walker. It’s not easy to turn down ten thousand dollars.”
    She’d thrown out that number without putting much thought behind it. She would have been willing to pay even more if it meant Cortland would eat serious crow for the vile things he’d said to her the previous week.
    “When you put it that way it does sound as if I’m making you my personal boy toy.” Or something even more degrading.
    She should feel terrible about this. She didn’t.
    Dexter leaned forward, and in a low, deep voice said, “Just remember that the sex is extra.”
    All manner of warm and fuzzy sensations traveled along her spine. If he could bottle that sexiness, he wouldn’t have to walk another dog for the rest of his life.
    Their waiter returned to take their order, providing a much needed buffer to the sexual tension pulsing across the table.
    “You want the usual?” the waiter asked.
    “With extra salsa,” Asia answered. Dexter ordered the skirt steak fajitas with an extra side of grilled shrimp.
    After the waiter departed, Asia folded her hands on the table and began. “Let’s discuss exactly what I’ll require of you for the next month. I have several upcoming events where I will be forced to see Cortland in a non-work setting. The first is the mixer on Friday night. It’s a blend of Global Partners’ employees and clients.”
    “That sounds like something I can handle,” he said, glancing toward the pier where the loud horn of the East River Ferry had just blown.
    “The mixer will be just a dry run,” Asia said. “The real test will be the wedding of our mutual friends, Rodney and Elizabeth.”
    His eyes rushed back to her. “Ouch, I have to attend a wedding?”
    “In Connecticut.” A potential snag suddenly occurred to her. “Is a dog walker allowed to go out of town? Do you have fellow dog walking colleagues ready to take up the slack?”
    “Yes, a dog walker is allowed to leave town,” he said, that shadow of a smile tracing across his lips.
    “Keep in mind that this isn’t just a few hours of your time. There’s an entire weekend of events planned. Apparently it’s some new trend with weddings,” Asia said with a nonchalant wave. “So, you’re comfortable going to Connecticut with me for an entire weekend?”
    “Shouldn’t I be the one asking that question? You don’t know very much about me. I could be a serial killer who uses this gig as a front for finding my victims.”
    Her heartbeat accelerated at his statement. “I’m originally from Camden, New Jersey. I have a gun and I know how to use it,” Asia said calmly, despite an uptick in her heart rate.
    He put his hands up, grinning. “I’m not a serial killer.”
    “I didn’t think so.”
    The waiter returned carrying an oval tray, a ribbon of smoke trailing behind him. He set a basket of tortilla chips and two small bowls of salsa before her and presented Dexter with a sizzling skillet of beef strips, grilled shrimp, and vegetables, along with the rest of the accompaniments for his fajitas. The pungent aroma of garlic and chili wafting from his side of the table stung her eyes.
    “Enjoy,” the waiter said before departing.
    Dexter’s forehead wrinkled as he stared at the bowl of tortilla chips. “Is that all you’re having?”
    “I’m not a big fan of Mexican food.”
    “But I thought you said you eat here at least once a week?”
    The salsa-laden chip she held