Chapter 2
CHAPTER TWO
Jenna
I parked at my apartment and hurried to the front door, resisting the urge to scan the lot.
“Hi, Lucy,” I called to the huge white poodle sniffing the flowers near the entrance.
Lucy looked up and wagged her tail. Luckily, her owner looked at me too, and my shoulders sagged with relief that I wasn’t alone.
“Hey, beautiful night for a walk, isn’t it?” I said with a friendly smile.
“Sure is. Hope the heat keeps holding off.” He unlocked the door and held it open for me.
“Thank you. Are you coming in?”
“No, we were just heading out.”
“Oh, that’s nice. Enjoy your walk!” I kept talking—kept his attention on me—until the door was practically closed behind me and I was safely inside the building. Thank you for the unintended escort inside, Lucy’s owner.
I took the elevator up, and Thor’s excited whines greeted me before I even reached my door.
“Hi, baby!”
Thor spun in circles at my feet as I kicked off my shoes and hung my keys, and the second my bags hit the floor, he ran ahead to the living room and leaped onto the couch to wait impatiently for his proper greeting.
Not that he needed the couch to reach me, he just liked that it got him closer.
He was a big, sweet mutt with the coloring of a German shepherd, the build and short coat of a Rhodesian ridgeback, and the personality of a golden retriever, even though he was probably none of those.
Sitting up on his haunches, his paws waving wildly in the air, he beckoned me into his embrace.
Just as I came within reach, he lunged, grabbed my shoulders, and pulled me in close.
Or, you know, he hugged me. Because Thor gave the best hugs.
I sat and hugged him back. He pressed his face against mine, asking for his kisses too, and I happily obliged, pressing kisses to the soft sides of his muzzle and into the little divot between his eyes.
“Sorry it’s so late, baby. How was your day? Did you see anything interesting? Any squirrels in the trees?”
Thor tightened his paws around me in response.
“Hungry?”
He jumped down and ran into the kitchen.
After he wolfed down his dinner, I put his harness on.
“We’re just going to the dog run tonight.
It’s late,” I told him in the elevator. “We’ll go on a long walk tomorrow.
” He wagged his tail in agreement. Mondays and Tuesdays were the library’s late days, so I’d have time to take him for a long walk before going in at noon.
Creepy men and mysterious cars wouldn’t be so scary in the light of day.
I’d moved to this building specifically for the dog run.
It was securely sandwiched between two wings of the building and was well-lit, which eased some of my worries.
The added perk of a dog-friendly building that I hadn’t anticipated, but greatly appreciated, was that people like Lucy’s owner came and went at all hours to take their dogs out.
We walked through the lobby and out the side door to the dog run where fortunately there were two other dogs. Thor was happy to play, and I was happy for the company.
“Beautiful night, isn’t it?” I said to the older couple with the two French bulldogs. We made a little small talk before they headed in, leaving me and Thor alone.
In the sudden quietness, the shadows grew darker, and I called Thor to me. “Sorry, baby. It’s late.”
I walked into the lobby toward the elevator, disappointment flooding me. That wasn’t the reason we were headed inside so soon, and I hated it. I didn’t want to admit, even to myself, that I was still unnerved from earlier. And that pissed me off. “Fake it till you make it, right Thor?”
He wagged his tail and licked my hand.
“You’re right, let’s go.” I changed direction, and Thor sped up as he realized we were headed for the front door.
Thor stopped to sniff the first tree, and as I waited, a black SUV slowly drove past. My heart thudded in my chest. I froze, torn with indecision. One more tree. Then we’d go home. Because that’s what I wanted, not because I was scared. There were thousands of dark SUVs in San Antonio.
I hurried Thor to the next tree, then turned and jogged home. Just to give him a little exercise. No other reason.
Safely locked in my apartment a few minutes later, I gave Thor a treat and made myself a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
Thor curled up on the couch next to me, and I pulled out my phone to text Juliette and Nicky while I ate.
Me: We’re moving forward with the sensory room!!!
Nicky: Awesome!! I have so many more ideas.
Juliette: Me too!
Me: Of course you do. BTW, the cloud activity was a huge success! Thank you!
Nicky: Knew it would be! I do it every spring.
Me: OTs, a librarian’s best friend!
It was true. Having two best friends who were brilliant pediatric occupational therapists definitely helped me run one of the best children’s libraries in San Antonio.
Juliette: Of course we are!
Me: J, how’s Dylan’s last week home? You okay?
Juliette: Good, and I will be.
Me: It’s a good thing. He needs to go back.
Juliette: I know.
Me: How are the plans for his party?
Juliette’s boyfriend, Dylan, was finally cleared to return to work after he’d been injured six months ago in a crazy fire rescue that almost tore them apart, and they were throwing a party to celebrate his recovery.
Juliette: There’s not much to do. Dylan chose the restaurant, and he and the guys invited their friends.
Nicky: I’ll take care of decorations! I found life-sized sexy fireman posters.
Juliette: LOL. No way!!
I laughed out loud for real, picturing Juliette’s horrified expression. Nicky had been trying to pull Juliette and me out of our comfort zones with her crazy antics ever since we’d all met during our freshman year of college.
Nicky: You have your own sexy fireman. I need a fake one.
Me: You could have Ryan if you’d pull your head out of your butt. We all know you like each other.
Nicky: Oh yeah? What about you and Liam?
I tried to deflect right back to her.
Me: Not even trying to deny it? I’m not the one who said I want a firefighter.
Juliette: You don’t need to say it. We know it.
Me: It’s complicated
Juliette: He’s a good guy.
Me: I know.
Me: Send pics of your firefighter centerfolds.
That would distract them for a while. I didn’t want to talk about Liam. He worked with Dylan, and I’d known him—and liked him—for almost a year, ever since Juliette and Dylan started dating and we all started hanging out together.
The guy was a firefighter and an ex-soldier.
He saw everything. There’s no way he hadn’t noticed I was interested in him.
Not that I’d ever purposely made it obvious, but still, I knew he knew a lot about me.
That I liked him. That I had more baggage than the San Antonio airport during peak hours.
And that, because of said baggage, I was never going to be the one to initiate anything.
With him knowing all that, you’d think that if he was interested in me, he’d have made some kind of move by now.
There were a few times I thought he might. Thought I saw the same thing I felt reflected in his eyes. But he never did.
I’d gone out with Juliette and the guys fairly often for a few months, usually to Nolan’s, a local bar, more than I ever would’ve if it weren’t for Liam.
It had taken me forever to get comfortable with him, then just when we were starting to get close, Dylan got hurt and we’d all stopped hanging out.
When I finally saw Liam again, so many emotions hit me at once, it was like we were back to square one.
Maybe even a negative square, if there was such a thing.
I couldn’t really blame Liam. I hadn’t made it easy for him.
Or maybe he hadn’t made a move precisely because he saw all that.
I left my phone on the couch, ignoring the ding of incoming texts, and went to grab a glass of water and a bag of pretzels.
I ran back to the couch at the sound of my phone ringing.
Which one was calling to try to get me on her side?
I was obviously on Juliette’s side. I could just imagine the firefighters’ and cops’ reactions if they walked into the restaurant to find Nicky’s scantily clad firefighter posters in all their life-sized glory.
They’d find it hysterical, but adding sexual innuendo to the already testosterone-overloaded room was a definite no from me.
I picked up the phone and my thumb froze over the screen. Liam? What the heck? He’d only called once, when Dylan was in the hospital and Juliette was missing. My stomach dropped, and I hurried to answer. If something happened to Dylan, would he call me to help break the news to Juliette?
“Liam? Is everything okay?”
“Hi, Jenna. Everything’s good. Sorry to worry you. I just wanted to ask you something.” His deep, smooth voice slid over me, washing away my initial nervousness and replacing it with an entirely different kind of nervousness.
“Oh. What’s up?”
“I was wondering if I could pick you up and drive you to Dylan’s party? We could go together.”
Oh God! Was he asking me out? Or was he just offering me a ride because he was a nice, thoughtful guy? I swallowed back my excitement and kept my voice neutral. “Yes, that would be great. Thank you.”
“Great. I know everyone will be there, but now I’m most looking forward to the ride with you.”
I smiled and grabbed Thor. This time I let my smile come through in my voice. “I’m excited for it, too.”
“See you soon, Jenna. Have a good night.”
“Wait!” I blurted out.
“Yes?”
“Um…” My mind went blank, but I wasn’t ready to say goodbye yet.