It was not weird that she preferred animals over people. Animals do not disappoint you or play with your emotions. They do not talk back, and though many can be temperamental and cop an attitude, it is still better than dealing with human emotions.

Animals needed her to take care of them. All they wanted was to be loved and fed.

It was going to be her life's work. She never needed a man for anything.

And then one of her favorite little animals rushed over to her behind the counter of the pet store where she worked. The gorgeous little animal scratched at her faded blue, scrub-covered legs.

"Snowy, what are you doing here baby?" She grabbed the fluffy white purebred poodle in her arms. Such a gorgeous dog. It could be a show dog, he was so gorgeous, but his owner did not have the patience.

"Where did that damn beast go!" someone yelled out in the store.

The dog yelped and barked at the voice, and he never did that.

"What's wrong baby, who's trying to hurt you?"

It wasn't strange that the dog wandered behind the counter at the grooming area of the store where she worked, but it was strange that her owner, who she knew well, was not with her. She had been at West End Pet Store for two years and Snowy came to get perfectly groomed every six weeks. Now was his scheduled time, but Mrs. Richardson would have handheld him right up to the counter. The store was not that big, it also was a pet supply store in the front area. Customers had to come to the back area and had to have an appointment.

"Snowy, you stupid animal, where are you?"

That was no way to talk to an innocent dog, so she knew whoever the voice belonged to was not a nice person. Around the corner came a face she never recognized but that was beyond gorgeous to her. She had to take a deep breath to see if he was real or some kind of figment of her imagination. Her eyes fluttered a bit, but she could not stop staring at him. No one who looked like a movie star ever stepped into her world, much less in the scruffy confines of the pet store.

"Snowy!" the man yelled at the dog.

He did not seem to notice her holding the little white dog, his focus was only on Snowy. The dog, recognizing the voice and the face, perked up a bit then snarled and barked. He moved around in her arms and she nearly dropped him. For such a small dog he was a handful.

"Sorry, do you know Snowy?" she asked, but that was a dumb question because the man said the dog's name.

The man stopped glaring at the dog in her arms and his eyes made their way to hers. All she noticed were his eyes at that moment. They were dark brown but had a fleck of gold in them, they were mesmerizing. She had a thing for nice eyes because hers were pathetically boring brown.

The man's demeanor suddenly changed. The angry scowl about the dog left his face and even his eyes became brighter. The gold flecks seemed like sparkles in his eyes.

Then she noticed he was tall, with broad shoulders. She was rather tall for a woman at five feet nine, he was a few inches taller.

"Well, hello there!" He flashed her a grin and she knew instantly he was the type of guy that had everything.

That grin on his face made her notice he had nice lips. His smile was kind of mesmerizing. Great! Perfect, straight white teeth, smooth, hazelnut brown skin, nearly clean shaven, just a touch of stubble, with a low haircut that looked like he walked straight out of the barbershop five minutes ago. He wore a tailor-fitted suit, that accentuated his broad shoulders. There was an expensive-looking watch on one wrist, but no wedding band she noted.

Why did she notice that? And why did she care?

She repeated her question to him. "Do you know Snowy?"

He waved that question off with a flick of his hand. Even his fingernails were very well manicured, compared to her stubby nails she did herself.

"And what's your name?"

This strange man chased Mrs. Richardson's dog throughout the store, did not tell her how he knew Snowy, and now asked for her name. He rubbed her the wrong way, and she did not even know him.

"I am not-" she started to say but he interrupted her.

He leaned over the counter and read the nametag she wore. "Lila," he read. "Hmmm, you don't look like a Lila."

She was not a Lila, not really, it was the shortened version of her name that people seemed more comfortable calling her. "It's short for Galilahi," she said, wondering why she was telling him her real name. "It's Native American, it means-"

"No, don't tell me, I know what it means." He flashed her that grin again. "Pretty. I mean, because you are."

That made her giggle a little because he was close to right as anyone ever was. Now she was intrigued by this handsome man who knew something about her Cherokee background. She was sure it was not an educated guess that he knew Galilahi meant attractive. She bore no resemblance to her Cherokee heritage even though she could trace it directly back to her grandfather being a half-Cherokee.

"I'm sorry, who are you?" And where had he been all her life? And why was he this good-looking? Did he know he was this good-looking? Sure he did. It was a shame she looked like a peasant in her scrubs, her dark brown locs needed a retwist, no makeup, and bad nails. Not like she needed to be glammed up to work with animals. The few people she came in contact with never cared what she looked like.

"Name's Richard, my mom's Elaine Richardson."

She waited for him to say something else. But that was it. He was serious about his name.

"So...your name is Richard Richardson?" She would not laugh at that man's name, it was not his fault. Blame his parents.

"It's Richard Richardson the Third actually," he proudly stated. "My mother is out of town and wanted me to bring that beast in for...well, whatever it is you do to him.

"You're Mrs. Richardson's son?"

"Yes, that's me!"

She knew a few things about Elaine Richardson. She was filthy rich for one. Part of the biggest, richest family in St. Louis, Missouri. They were into real estate, but she did not know much else. She was not a native of St. Louis, she was here for college, and this was her fourth year at St. Louis University.

What she knew was that Mrs. Richardson was stupidly rich, thus her son must be as well.

Out of her league, so she knew to keep it strictly professional. Just because he was a handsome man, she did not need to get any ideas in her head.

"So, uh, Mr. Richardson...I can take care of Snowy for you, he should be ready in a few hours then you can come pick him back up."

He was still leaning over the counter and still with that grin on his face. "I'd rather come back and pick you up, Pretty."

Why was he calling her that when he knew her name? It made her feel some kind of ways

"I don't think so, Mr. Richardson, good day." She turned to take Snowy to the back to start his grooming, but Mr. Handsome Richard's booming voice stopped her.

"No, wait, I want to get to know you. Tell me about yourself. Do you have a man? Do you want a man? Or maybe we link up and I can show you a good time....you know, adult time."

Now he was being rude and an ass. Sex, that's what he was talking about. That was all he wanted from her. Of course, he was the type of guy that got everything he wanted. Gorgeous, rich, and spoiled rotten. Girls like her probably threw themselves at him, to get a minuscule amount of his wealth. Money-hungry, greedy girls.

But that was not her. She was not interested in dating him or any other man. The only thing she had time for was finishing her last year of college, getting into the graduate veterinary program of her dreams, and continuing working with all types of animals.

"Mr. Richardson, that will never, ever happen. Now, good day."

She turned and walked to the back spaces where they groomed the animals. She took in a long breath and let it out with a whoosh. That man was intoxicating, and the sooner she forgot all about him the better.

He was trouble.