Tuesday morning went off like a rifle. I'd completely forgotten about setting my alarm and didn't wake up until it was almost seven. I blinked at the time on the clock and when I realized I was running late, I practically leaped out of bed. Then I realized Alex was still fast asleep.
He looked so peaceful lying there with his face buried in the pillows. It was almost torture to have to wake him up. Besides that, the butterflies in my stomach were putting on a parade over the fact that Alex was still there. It meant a lot to me that he'd stayed, rather than sneaking out and leaving me in the middle of the night. It felt so good to wake up beside someone for a change.
I pulled on a robe and leaned over his shoulder, pressing a sweet kiss to his cheek and rubbing his arm. He barely stirred so I tried again, and again, until he finally opened his eyes.
"Good morning, handsome," I whispered.
Alex groaned and rolled over, stretching and yawning while his eyes adjusted to the sunlight streaming through the open windows.
"Damn," he mumbled in that sexy sleepy voice that men do so well. "I think that's the best sleep I've gotten in years."
I had to agree. I'd slept so fucking good; it was almost unbelievable. Part of me hated that I had to go to work. I would've much rather crawled back into bed and slept the day away in Alex's arms.
"Come here," Alex said huskily, giving me a lazy smirk.
I stepped back over to the side of the bed and he reached out, grabbing my waist and pulling me down on top of him. I propped myself up on his chest with a giggle and he started kissing all over my face, smiling the whole time.
"You're such a bad influence," I grinned, kissing him back and sitting up so that I was straddling him. "I'm going to be late for work, Mr. Stephens."
Alex placed his hands on my thighs, sliding his palms under my robe and up to my hips. His thumbs massaged circles into my skin and he cocked a brow seductively.
"What if I don't want you to go to work?" he challenged, adjusting his lower half beneath me. "What if I want you to stay right here... just like that... on top of me...?"
God, he was tempting! I wanted so badly to just call in sick and flip the bird to my responsibilities, but I remembered that I had that appointment with Maggie from Pet Protectors. I couldn't miss that.
"Mmm... Believe me, I'd love nothing more than to stay here with you all day," I told him. "But unfortunately, I have a meeting at ten with an animal rescue organization for my article."
Alex groaned but nodded, pulling me down for another long, steamy kiss. "Raincheck?"
"You have yourself a deal," I confirmed, grinding my hips against him as I climbed out of bed.
He cursed under his breath and sighed, slowly starting to get up.
"I'll be in the kitchen making coffee and then I'm going to take the world's fastest shower," I said on my way out of the bedroom.
Alex muttered an acknowledgement and I hurried into the kitchen to get the pot started.
When I walked in, the intoxicating aroma of the roses he'd brought me infiltrated my lungs and I breathed in deeply, pausing a moment to enjoy the smell. I looked fondly at the gorgeous pairing of pink and white while I scooped the grounds into the coffee maker.
Alex stumbled his way into the kitchen, still looking half asleep. He brushed his messy hair back and I felt his chest press against my back as he pulled me into his arms, linking them around my waist.
"I have an idea," he whispered into my ear and kissed my cheek.
His natural musky scent mixed with the faded cologne he'd worn yesterday was something you could get drunk off of.
"What's that?"
Alex breathed out and the cool air on my neck raised goosebumps.
"How 'bout we take that shower together?" he suggested with a hint of mischief in his voice.
I smiled, pressing the button to start the coffee, and as soon as I agreed, Alex's hands undid the knot in my sash and he started sliding my robe off my shoulders.
It wasn't long before we were in the shower, furiously making out under the water stream. Much to our dismay, we were running late enough that we didn't have time for shower sex. Hell, we didn't even have time for breakfast!
By the time we left my house, it was eight o'clock and I was rushing to get to the office. I'd wanted to have time to check my emails and jot down some questions to ask Maggie before our meeting. I didn't end up getting into Jersey City until nine-thirty, however, and I had to go ahead and drive to Pet Protectors to avoid being late.
When I arrived at the rescue, I could hear dogs barking. I hurried to prepare a notepad and headed inside.
The building wasn't very large and they apparently didn't have much space for storage, as there were mounds of cat and dog food bags, bags of treats, and containers of kitty litter taking up a big spot along the wall.
"Can I help you?" A young girl who looked to be about eighteen asked, emerging from the doorway behind the counter.
"I'm Kate Crawford from Satisfaction Magazine. I have a ten o'clock with Maggie," I told her.
The girl smiled. "Give me just a second."
She disappeared again and I decided to have a look around while I waited.
I noticed a donation jar with only a few coins in it. There was a board on the wall with missing animal flyers. Along another wall were pictures of animals that had recently been adopted out. There weren't very many.
"Miss Crawford?"
I turned around to see a middle-aged woman with short blonde hair standing beside the counter. She wore a black shirt with the rescue's logo on the pocket and the fabric was covered in dog and cat hair.
"I'm Maggie Newman," she introduced herself and we exchanged pleasantries, shaking hands. "You wanted to tour the facility for an article, right?"
"Yeah, and if you could also provide me with some information on your adoption rate and other things like how many animals you typically take in in a six-month period, what the public can do to help out, and so on, I would appreciate it," I said, writing down her name on my notepad.
Maggie opened the door behind the counter, leading me into the area where the animals were held. I lost count of how many chain link units there were, most of them housing two or three animals together. The building was bigger than it looked from the outside, with animal housing stretching several yards back.
"How long have you been experiencing this overcrowding?" I gestured to the number of dogs that shared units.
"Since we opened four years ago," Maggie said with a look of sadness. "When I opened this rescue, my goal was to take in as many animals as I could from the kill shelters. I wanted to give them a chance at new, happy lives with good, responsible owners. But I hadn't expected it to get this bad. People just don't adopt pets as much as they should and they end up here. We try to take care of so many, but now we're having to pair them up – luckily they seem to get along with each other – and I'm out of room so they have to share their spaces. We've only adopted out two dogs this month."
I strained to hear some of her words over the noise of the dogs barking. When we reached the cats' section, I observed the same situation. Most of the cats were sharing units, too.
"How many are you caring for right now?"
"Fifty-seven. Thirty-one dogs and twenty-six cats," Maggie said. "Sometimes we also take in ferrets, rabbits, and even the occasional baby goat. Those little guys get new homes fast, though. The dogs and cats aren't so lucky."
I shook my head. It hurt to see so many excited faces and wagging tails. They were all anxiously awaiting their forever homes – a dream that might never come true for many of them. It was heartbreaking looking into the eyes of animals that had obviously been neglected and abandoned. I wanted to hug each one of them and make them feel loved.
"We usually take in about ten dogs a month," Maggie continued as we walked along, looking at the animals. "The cats don't come in as frequently, but when they do, they're usually here for quite a while before someone takes them home."
I nodded, scribbling down the information. "In what ways could the public help out?"
"Well, it's the big organizations that get all the attention. The ones you see on TV. Small groups like us don't have the funds to be advertising like that. It'd be nice if more people could be made aware of how important it is to support your local rescues, too," she explained. "I'm not against people who buy a pet from a breeder or a pet store, but I think the adoption rate could use a tremendous boost. We just don't know how to get more people interested in adopting, though. We advertise in the paper and online on the adoption sites, but it's not enough, and we can't afford to do television ads, you know?"
I completely understood her frustration. The great majority of money that rescues have goes to the animals, not advertising. With such small budgets, it's very difficult to get the word out.
"I have an idea." I held up a finger. "Since this article is going to be published both online and in print, and Satisfaction is a very popular magazine, that will give Pet Protectors some great promo on its own; but what if you could organize an adoption day or something of that nature, and I can include the information at the end of the article? Surely, that would generate a fair amount of potential adopters."
A big smile broke out on Maggie's face and she put her hand over her heart. I could tell the suggestion alone meant a lot to her. She obviously cared deeply for each one of those animals.
"That would be absolutely wonderful!"
"In addition to that..." I expanded on my idea. "Why don't you start up a fundraiser online? I'll make my readers aware and they can donate to help out the rescue. I can also say where they can go in person to drop off bags of food or litter, whatever else you're in need of."
Maggie looked like she was about to cry. She put her hand over her mouth and paused, trying to keep her emotions under control, and looked around at all the innocent faces that were watching us.
"I really wouldn't be able to thank you enough," she told me. "We're just barely getting by as it is. Most of the food you saw up front, my sister was kind enough to buy for us, but it'll only last a little while with this many mouths to feed."
I couldn't imagine taking on the huge responsibility that Maggie had. She was a truly admirable woman.
We talked another fifteen minutes and I made some more notes for the article. She gave me the adoption information to include for my readers. The adoption fee was a mere fifty dollars and the new owners didn't have to pay for shots, worming, microchipping, spay or neutering, as the rescue had already absorbed those costs when the animal had entered the facility. In addition, Pet Protectors provided each new owner with a leash, collar, a small food bag, and – if the animal was a cat – a small container of litter.
On our way back to the door, something caught my attention. I walked passed a unit and then took a few steps back. In the back corner was a puppy sitting in the water bowl.
"Maggie, how old is this one?" I pointed to the dog.
"Oh, we think she's about three months. She was found on the side of the road in a ditch last month. We put her picture in the paper, but no one ever claimed her."
I looked back at the puppy. It was golden retriever. She looked lonely and tired. I instantly wanted to hold her and play with her.
"Are you interested in her?" Maggie asked with hopeful eyes.
I wasn't sure how to answer that. Did I even have time for a dog? I worked so much... But I'd be moving closer to work soon. That would give me more time to spend with an animal, if I had one. But what if the owner of whichever house we ended up renting didn't allow dogs?
"Let me make a quick phone call," I told her and headed out to my car.
I set my notepad in the passenger seat and called Angie. She picked up on the third ring.
"Angie, I have a burning question," I said. "That house we're considering in Belleville... What's the owner's policy on pets?"
She put me on hold a moment while she checked. I could see Maggie inside, glancing out at the parking lot where I sat.
Angie finally came back on the line. "He allows cats, and dogs up to eighty pounds. You'd have to put down a two-hundred-dollar pet deposit upon signing, and since the yard is not fenced, the owner would expect you to put up a fence at your own expense."
"That's all I needed to know," I smiled. "Thank you."
I'd come to this meeting expecting it to be just that – a meeting. I hadn't planned on those adorable little eyes lassoing my heart.
"I'm looking at a rent house this afternoon with some friends," I told Maggie when I walked back inside. "I expect that we'll decide at the time if we're going to choose that property. I checked to see if the owner allows dogs, and he does. If we pick this house, I'll be back later today to adopt her."