Switched At The Altar. Metsy Hingle

in his eyes worsened. Alex blinked several times and reached for the handkerchief in his back pocket to wipe at his tearing eyes. “What’s with this cat, anyway?”

      “She likes men,” Desiree offered by way of explanation.

      Like mistress, like cat, Alex thought silently as his eyes continued to water and burn. His nose twitched again. Despite his efforts to control it, Alex gave in to the inevitable and sneezed.

      “Bless you,” Desiree said. Walking over to the desk, she pulled open a drawer and withdrew a box of tissues. She shoved the box toward him.

      “Thanks.” Alex stuffed his handkerchief back into his pocket and snatched a handful of the tissues just before the next round of sneezing hit him.

      After several moments the worst of the allergy attack was over. He wiped at his eyes again and watched as Desiree stooped down and retrieved Maggie. “Come on, sweetie. I think you’re making poor Alex sneeze.” She nuzzled the furry creature, heedless of the black fur it left clinging to her white shorts and blouse.

      Alex stared at those long, slender fingers as she stroked the cat. Silently cursing himself, he tried to block out thoughts of what it would be like to have her fingers stroking him the same way.

      Her hand went still at the sound of a tap on the door, and Alex breathed a prayer of thanks.

      The tap sounded a second time. “Hey, Des. You in there?” The minister—minus his collar and robe—stuck his head in the door.

      “Right here, Charlie.”

      The fellow stepped inside, then he looked from Desiree to him and back to Desiree again. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to interrupt anything.”

      “You weren’t. Mr. Stone and I were already finished our discussion. What’s up?”

      “That real estate lady, Miss Marilee, you know, the one with the fancy hats? She just called and said she’s on her way over. She wants to pick up the key to the cottage. Says she’s got a real hot prospect coming with her who might rent the place from you.”

      Alex didn’t miss the look of hope that came into Desiree’s eyes as she slid open a desk drawer and removed a ring with a gold-colored key.

      “Well, let’s hope Miss Marilee’s right.”

      “Want me to wait out front for her and give her the key?” Charlie offered.

      “Thanks, but I’ll do it. You go on home.”With the cat in her arms, Desiree started for the door.

      “Ms. Mason. Desiree—” Alex began, only to sneeze again when she walked past him with the cat.

      “Bless you.”

      “You getting sick?” Charlie asked. “Nothing worse than a summer cold.”

      “I don’t believe that’s a cold he’s suffering from, Charlie,” she said, pausing as the other man opened the door for her. “I have a strong suspicion that Mr. Stone here is allergic to cats,” she said as she cuddled the ball of black fur in her arms.

      “Pets,” he corrected before sneezing again. “I’m allergic to pets period. It’s the animal fur. And quit calling me Mr. Stone. My name’s Alex.”

      The corners of her lips curved upward. “Well in that case, Alex, I’m sure you really don’t want to spend any more time at Magnolia House than you already have.”

      Alex narrowed his still-tearing eyes. “I think I can manage to survive one little cat.” That is, he could if he got some antihistamine tablets.

      “Oh, but I wasn’t referring to Maggie. I meant the rest of my little four-legged family.”

      “The rest?” he asked suspiciously, not liking the Cheshire Cat grin spreading across her lips.

      “Uh-hmm. At last count, I believe there were thirteen of them.”

      “Thirteen! Nobody has thirteen cats!”

      “Oh, but they’re not all cats. Although I admit, several of them are Maggie’s adorable siblings. I also have three dogs, a squirrel, a rabbit and—”

      “Stop!” Alex held up his hand, his eyes filling again at just the thought of being subjected to all those animals—and the resulting bout of sneezing and weeping eyes.

      She released a squirming Maggie, and the cat scooted out the door. “When you get back to Boston, you might want to see an allergist about some medication. Looks like you’ve got a bit of a rash starting on the side of your face.”

      Alex’s hand went up to the right side of his face instinctively. He hadn’t broken out with hives since he was a kid. At the twitch of her lips, he let his hand fall back to his side.

      “And don’t you worry. When Kevin gets back, I’ll be sure to tell him that you came by.” With a smug look on her face, she slipped out the door.

      Frowning, Alex noted the seductive sway of her hips as she made her way down the hall with Maggie trotting at her heels.

      “She’s not kidding, you know.”

      Alex jerked his attention back to Charlie, the minister, who leaned against the doorway, an intent look on his face. “What was that?”

      The older man folded his arms across his chest and gave him a measuring look. “I said she’s not kidding about all those pets, so if you are allergic, you might want to take her advice and put some distance between you and this place.”

      “I’ll keep it in mind.”

      The other guy shrugged. “Suit yourself. But if you hang around here you’re liable to run into more than a few of Desiree’s critters. She’s got herself a whole mess of them. Cats, dogs, even a squirrel just like she said. Doesn’t matter what it is, if the creature shows up here on her property, the next thing you know, she’s given the thing a name and made it a part of her family.”

      “She sounds like a veterinarian’s dream.”

      Charlie’s lips kicked up in a half smile. “Yeah. I suspect she is.”

      Which was one more reason Kevin and his trust fund would be attractive to her. He had friends who claimed to spend a fortune on only one pet; he could imagine the tab for thirteen. With the cat gone, his breathing was becoming somewhat easier, Alex realized. Now he just had to get rid of the fur Maggie had left behind. Tossing the soiled tissues into the trash, he began brushing at the black hair on his jacket and pants.

      “So, you planning to stick around?” Charlie asked.

      Alex looked up at the other man. “I might be. You have a problem with that?”

      “Depends on your reason for sticking around. That Desiree, she’s a real sweet kid. Sometimes too sweet for her own good. She’s got this tendency to take in strays—both the two-legged and four-legged variety, if you know what I mean.”

      He understood all right. “You mean she’s a soft touch.” Which surprised him, given her profession as an actress and her latching onto his brother.

      Charlie rubbed at his jaw, looking less and less like a minister and more and more like a papa bear guarding his cub. “I guess that’s how some people would see her. Me? I see a beautiful woman with a generous heart. Sometimes that big heart of hers gets her into trouble.”

      “I bet.” If Charlie was to be believed, the woman was a cross between a saint and Mother Teresa. But he didn’t recall any of the nuns from his grade-school days looking like Desiree Mason. He thought of that heart-shaped mole on her shoulder, the way she’d trembled when he had touched her. He had a hard time tagging Desiree as the naive woman Charlie described when just looking at her had his brain shutting down and his body aching for her in his bed.

      Irritated with himself, Alex gave up on getting rid of the cat hair and started for the door. He stopped when Charlie put his short, round body in his path. “Was there something