Chapter 6
TYLER
“You said he’s already there, right?”
Melissa glances over at me with a nervous yet hopeful expression. Anticipation brings a flush of color to her cheeks. There’s a spark in her eyes that wasn’t there in the hospital, and I’m relieved to see it back.
“Yes,” I reply. “Indy picked him up from the animal hospital first thing this morning.”
I already told Melissa that Oscar would be at the house by the time we arrived, but I can’t blame her for asking again. With all the shit she’s been through over the last few days—the last few weeks, actually—it’s understandable that she’d want the reassurance.
Like she read my mind, Melissa says, “Sorry. I know you already told me. I guess—” She hesitates, then exhales softly. “I’ve just been missing him so much. And I don’t want to get my hopes up, only to be disappointed.”
“Mel—”
“God, I’m sorry.” She shoots me an apologetic look. “That sounded terrible. Like I thought you were lying or something. I don’t. I’m not sure why I asked you when I already knew the answer. Forget I said anything.”
I come to a stop at a four-way intersection and rather than driving through; I stay put and turn to look at her. “It’s fine, Mel. You’ve been through a lot. I don’t mind if you want to ask me again.”
Her forehead creases. “It’s a bad habit of mine,” she admits.
“Even when there’s no reason, I automatically assume the worst. Like something happened to Oscar—he got sick from something at the vet, or he somehow slipped his collar and took off into the woods—and no one wanted to say anything to upset me while I was in the hospital. ”
I reach over to pat her hand. “If something happened to Oscar, I would have told you.”
Melissa gives me a wan smile. “I know. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to imply that you were hiding anything from me.”
A car pulls up behind me and gives a short beep of its horn. Putting both hands back on the wheel, I accelerate through the intersection while saying, “It’s fine. Don’t worry about it.”
After a moment, she replies softly, “Okay,” and then falls silent, her worry a palpable thing.
I hate that she’s worried about upsetting me.
Or that she thinks she did something wrong.
And really, we haven’t known each other long enough for her to automatically trust what I say.
If she has some reservations about me, or the Blade and Arrow team, that’s understandable.
Trust takes time, and I can’t expect to have earned hers in just a couple of days.
Although I trust her, don’t I?
When she called me from the hospital, asking for help, I never considered it might be an elaborate ruse.
When she told me about everything that’s been happening over the last few weeks, I never doubted that it was the truth.
And when she insisted she knew nothing about the drugs her attacker came for, I believed her. There was no evidence to back up her claims, but I didn’t need it. I just knew she was being honest with me.
Okay, I did some research after she told me everything, but not because I didn’t believe her.
I wanted to get a handle on what we’re dealing with and what kind of resources we’ll need to solve her case.
But even as I was pouring through online records, I never considered she might be lying.
There was just something in my gut that told me she wasn’t.
But if I feel that way about her, maybe she could be on her way to trusting me, too. And maybe I really want her to.
Wanting to brighten Melissa’s mood, I decide to change the subject. “So. I’m really looking forward to meeting Oscar after hearing so much about him.”
As she inevitably does whenever I bring up her beloved dog, Melissa smiles.
Turning to me, she replies in a much cheerier tone, “Oh, I can’t wait for you to meet him, too.
He’s just the best. I know everyone says that about their dog, but Oscar really is.
And he’s going to love you. I can tell already. ”
“Oh?” The turnoff for Melissa’s street comes up on the right, and I make a careful turn onto it. With Mel’s concussion and all her bruises, I don’t want to risk jostling her and causing her any more pain. “Why do you say that?”
“Well, Oscar likes most people,” she replies. “But you, I think he’ll really like. There’s just something comforting about you.”
“Comforting?” Oddly enough, I’m not crazy about her description.
And what would you prefer? a little voice in my head asks.
I don’t know, I silently reply. Something better than comforting. Something that sounds like she thinks of me as a man, and not a fuzzy blanket or a cute stuffed animal.
Why do you want her to think of you as a man? the voice parries back. Isn’t she just a friend?
Annoyed, I retort, I don’t know. And stop bothering me when I’m trying to concentrate on Melissa.
“Maybe comforting isn’t the right word,” Melissa says. “I guess… I just feel safe with you. Like as long as you’re around, everything’s going to be okay.”
A second later, she blushes. And shit, it makes her look even prettier than she already does. “Is that weird, saying that?”
My chest fills with unexpected pride. “No, it’s not weird. And I’m glad you feel that way. I want you to feel safe with me. That’s why I’m here.”
Melissa looks out the windshield at the road ahead of us. “I do. Feel safe.” She pauses. “Anyway. Oscar’s a great judge of character. So I think he’ll pick up on the same thing. And with all the craziness of the last few days, I think helping him feel safe is a good thing.”
Melissa’s been worried about Oscar, and I can’t really blame her. Physically, he’s fine—Griffin checked on him at the animal hospital before heading back to Syracuse—but I know she’s concerned about how he was impacted by the intruder and the unplanned stay at the animal hospital.
Never having had a dog myself, I can’t imagine how he was affected.
But when I asked Griff, he assured me that Oscar would be fine.
“Dogs are resilient,” he said. “Much more resilient than people. I’ve seen some dogs who were treated horribly by their previous owners.
Those dogs, they had every reason to mistrust humans.
But they didn’t. Put them in the right home, with the right people, and they just blossom.
But Oscar? He knows he’s loved. And once he’s back home, he’ll be fine. ”
Since Griff is the expert, I’m taking his word for it.
“He’ll definitely feel safe,” I tell Melissa. “With you back home, plus me and the guys, we’ll make sure he does. And if there’s anything special you want us to do with Oscar, like feeding or letting him out, just let me know.”
“Oh, you don’t have to do that,” she says quickly. “I’m just thankful you’re helping me out. I don’t expect you to take care of my dog, as well.”
“I know you don’t expect it. I want to. We all do.
” At her questioning expression, I explain, “When I told Indy and Webb that there would be a dog around to play with, they were both excited about it. Webb and Noelle—she’s Webb’s fiancée—have been talking about getting a dog. So this will be good practice for him.”
At the mention of Webb’s name, Melissa looks uneasy. She opens her mouth to say something, but before she does, she spots her driveway coming up on the left and leans forward eagerly.
I only just stop myself from pushing her back against the passenger seat, so it’s safer. But that would be presumptuous and overbearing, so I tighten my grip on the steering wheel instead. “Here we are,” I announce. “Home, sweet home.”
Melissa shoots me a look of surprise.
“My dad always said it,” I explain. “Whenever we’d go on a trip, he’d say it as soon as we hit the driveway. Home, sweet home, he’d say. There’s nothing like it. I guess it just stuck with me.”
She smiles. “I like it. And I definitely can’t wait to be home. Even if—” Her smile fades. “Anyway. It’s good to be out of the hospital.”
I was hesitant to bring Melissa back to her house after she’d been attacked there—back to the scene of the crime, and all that. I don’t want her to be triggered when she walks into the living room, or not be able to sleep because she’s scared the attacker will come back.
Aside from it scaring Mel, I wouldn’t mind if he did. Because if he shows up this time, he’s going to have more than just an innocent woman to deal with. He’ll be faced with trained operatives who really don’t like men who beat up women.
But after talking to my team, we decided that bringing her back here would be the best strategy. That way, if anyone gets the idea to pull another prank on Melissa, or send another damn druggie to her house in search of drugs she doesn’t have, we’ll be right here to take care of it.
As I turn into the gravel driveway, I get my first in-person glimpse at Melissa’s rental house.
It’s a two-bedroom, one and a half bath ranch, which should make it interesting considering we’re going to have five people living there for the foreseeable future.
I looked at the photos online, of course, plus the layout of the interior, so I could plan for the new security system I’m going to install.
But seeing it in person is different. In person, I can see the little touches Mel added since the photos were taken, like the planters on either side of the porch and the wind chime hanging from it, plus the cheery welcome flag blowing gently in the breeze.
While I’m quickly taking everything in, Melissa seems to read my mind again—something she’s been doing more frequently the more time we’ve spent together. “I hope it’s not uncomfortable for you guys,” she says. “My house isn’t very big. And if your friends are anything like you...”
Her gaze flickers to my chest. Then her cheeks go red. And damn it, if I don’t feel my pride puffing up.
But shit, the way she looked at me—it was like she liked what she saw. Like she noticed the muscles I work out almost daily to keep, and appreciated them.