With This Ring Read Online Free

minutes later he reached his destination. The shelter was part of a seen-better-days, L-shaped strip center, the kind that proliferated in Houston. The sign proclaimed the shelter to be PET HAVEN and took up the entire short leg of the L. There were two doors, one leading into the adoption center, one leading into an accompanying pet supplies shop.
    Sam opened the door to the adoption center, and a bell tinkled. The small reception area had a beat-up tile floor and a distinct animal smell. A symphony of barking greeted his arrival.
    A few seconds later, a girl carrying a large black cat emerged from the back room. She smiled at Sam.
    Sam took one look, and his fingers itched for his camera. His photographer's eye rapidly took in the details of her appearance. She looked about seventeen—small, with a heart-shaped face, enormous green eyes, and a flawless complexion with just the barest smattering of freckles across her nose. Her hair, thick and dark and curly, was loosely tied back from her face with a narrow green ribbon and she wore a jaunty green beret angled down over one eye. An oversized black T-shirt and black tights completed her costume. Long silver earrings in the shape of stars dangled from her ears and sparkled in the morning sunlight. She wasn't beautiful, Sam decided, yet she was totally captivating.
    He was already imagining how he'd place her against a white backdrop with maybe a green park bench in the foreground. Maybe some bright red geraniums or azaleas to add a counterpoint of color. And that cat in her arms was perfect, too—a match with its black fur, green eyes and silver collar.
    "Hi," the girl said. "What've you got there?" Her voice was surprisingly husky.
    "It's a stray I found. I can't keep it, and a friend told me to come over here and you'd take it." He couldn't stop staring at her. She had a wonderful face—expressive and open and sweetly innocent. And that smile! Oh, man, he'd love to shoot her, even though he rarely shot people.
    "Oh, sure," she said, her gaze connecting with his. "We'll take it." But for a long moment, she didn't move. Finally, with an obvious effort, she tore her gaze away and put the black cat she'd been holding on top of the counter separating her from customers, saying, "Now you stay there, Jasmine." She pulled a form from somewhere under the counter and looked at Sam again. "Um, okay. Name?"
    "I don't know."
    She frowned for a second, then gave a throaty little chuckle. "I meant you, not the kitten."
    Sam grinned foolishly. She was enchanting. He liked everything about her. The way she looked. The way she talked. And he especially liked the way she laughed. Too bad she was jail bait. "Well, in that case, my name is Sam Robbins. What's yours?"
    Her eyes sparkled with good humor. "Nice to meet you, Sam. I'm Amy." She pointed to her shoulder.
    Belatedly, he noticed she wore a name tag. It read: Amy Carpenter . "Carpenter, Carpenter . . . are you by any chance related to Jack Carpenter, the dentist?"
    She shook her head. "Nope. Afraid not." She continued asking questions and filling out the form, and when she finished, she smiled again and reached for the kitten. She petted him, saying, "We'll find him a good home. Don't worry."
    Sam knew it was time to say thanks and leave, but he didn't want to, and he didn't think she wanted him to leave, either. "You're doing good work here," he said, stalling.
    "Thanks."
    "Do you work here full time?"
    "Oh, no. I just volunteer a couple of days a week."
    He nodded. "Are you a student?"
    "Actually, I'm a teacher."
    "Really? You don't look old enough to be a teacher."
    She eyed him for a moment, a smile hovering at the edges of her mouth. "I know. I get carded everywhere I go. But I'm twenty-seven. I've been teaching for five years."
    Sam grinned. "In that case, I won't be considered a dirty old man if I ask you out, will I?"
    "
Are
you going to ask me out?"
    "How does dinner tonight sound? If you don't already have plans, that