What had Rene done? She hurried to her office and threw the door open in time to see her husband picking up a little dog and pulling some paper out of its mouth.

“You can’t eat that. You can’t wreck Momma’s office or she’ll kick both of us out,” he said.

“What did you do?” She set down her things and her heart was already melting because that was a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel in his arms.

“Zep said she needed a sponsor, and I remembered how you always wanted one of these.” He held the puppy, who was trying her hardest to lick him. She was a squirming ball of energy. “She’s got a heart condition. It’s why she was turned in. I can take her back to Zep. I wasn’t thinking. I’ll pay for all her meds . . .”

“You will not take that sweet baby anywhere but home.” He remembered the type of dog she’d always wanted when she was a kid. Charles was wrong. This man was not planning on dumping her. This man was trying his hardest to keep her happy.

She’d told him they should try a dog before they thought about kids. He presented her with one the next day.

She held her hands out. She knew exactly what to name this pretty baby girl. “Come here, Lady.”

Rene handed her the puppy and smiled. His normally under-control hair tumbled over his forehead, making him look younger, like he had when they’d been in high school and she’d had the worst crush on him. “You’re not mad? I didn’t think at the time. I took one look at her and she was ours. Then Gertie pointed out a whole lot of things to me.”

Lady was the cutest puppy ever. “I’m going to need a better handbag, because she is going to be one of those dogs.”

She would get too big to be hauled around in a designer bag, but she was perfect right now.

“I think I can handle that.” He was grinning at them both as she held the puppy against her. “You two are going to be a good team. You like her?”

She was already in love. “Yes. Now tell me everything I need to know. Has she seen a vet?”

Rene leaned over and kissed her. “I will tell you everything over dinner. Let me take my lovely ladies home. It’s been a long day.”

She wasn’t going to tell him about the rumors about his mom, but she wasn’t going to hide the fact that Charles had made a play. “It has. Charles is heading to the cabin tonight. I know that because he was waiting downstairs for me.”

Rene’s eyes went wide. “What did he do?”

“He offered me a hundred grand to divorce you.”