Page 174 of The Nanny and the Beefcake
Shit!
What the hell was he doing, getting an eyeful of toad porn? He had to catch up to Libby and make sure she and Plum were safe.
Doug’s gaze flicked from the sex-crazed toads to the trail.
The bloke put it together as well.
Before you could sayspontaneous toad sex, the men clucked their tongues and called out a series ofhup-hups.
Sprinting, they hit the final stretch of the loop. Raz lengthened his stride, striving to pull ahead, but Doug matched his pace. The pair made the final turn, and the mountain greenery thinned out as they drew closer to town, and he caught sight of Libby and Plum. He couldn’t see any renegade butterfly tornados in their path, and the pair didn’t appear out of control. He nearly breathed a sigh of relief when a devastating realization hit.
There was no way he could catch up—no way he’d earn the blue ribbon. All he could do now was beat Doug and Ace.
He glanced at the man, who he didn’t detest quite as much as he had before the bloody race started. But that didn’t mean he wanted the bloke getting together with Libby.
This was it—the final push.
The crowd roared. Spectators rang bells and blew into noisemakers as the lady racers crossed the finish line, capturing first place. And crikey, he was proud as hell of Libby and Plum, but he couldn’t start cheering yet. No, he and Beefcake couldn’t let up. Doug and Ace were right there, running like their lives depended on it. The donkeys’ hooves hit the path in unison, mimicking their human’s matching strides. They were like synchronized swimmers—but the slightly terrifying donkey racing version. They sailed past the finish line as another devastating reality took hold.
He and Doug had tied for second place.
What did that mean for the bloody benchmark? He wanted to punch himself in the mouth for suggesting it.
“Whoa, easy, Beefcake,” he called as the animal slowed down, still in step with Ace.
“Dad, Mibby won!” Sebastian called from across the square where the boy stood next to Plum and Libby.
As Maud pinned a blue ribbon to the donkey’s bridle, their friends waved to him from the periphery of photographers and press surrounding the winner and her burro.
“We’ve never had a tie before,” Wobbly Bob said, excitement dancing in his eyes. “Head over to Maud. We want to get a picture of the three of you.”
Raz nodded to his friends and Granny Fin, standing off to the side, then worked his way through the mass of photographers. Like how they’d ponied up at the starting line, Doug and Ace flanked Libby and Plum on one side as he and Beefcake stood on the other.
Libby leaned in toward him, pink-cheeked from exertion. “I can’t believe Plum and I won.”
“I can. You’re a force to be reckoned with,” he said, staring into her eyes. Jesus, he’d had a feeling that everything would change after today, but he hadn’t expected this outcome. It was as if his only shot at happiness was slipping through his fingers—like the universe decided to throw another wrench into the workings of his life. He’d stopped running, but his heart still beat like he was sprinting down the side of the mountain.
“I think that glut of butterflies should get the real credit for our win,” she said as a flock of butterflies flitted away in his belly.
He couldn’t let this wave of emotion overtake him.
Get a grip.
“One of the reporters mentioned that the butterflies migrate through here this time of year,” Libby added. “And sorry for screaming about a rockslide. It wasn’t much more than some gravel and small stones coming loose, but it freaked me out.”
“It’s all right. I’m glad you’re okay. And I’m proud of you, plum. I am,” he said, doing everything he could to keep his voice steady.
“It’s a silly race,” she said, not meeting his gaze.
“It’s not silly. It’s your victory.”
“My victory,” she repeated like it was coming together in her head. “Why did you stop running, Raz? What were you and Doug doing in the middle of the trail?”
He sighed. “Rescuing a toad.”
Her eyebrows shot up. “A toad?”
“Yeah, it was in the middle of the trail, and the donkeys were fascinated with it. They wouldn’t move until we picked it up.”
