Chapter 6 #2
“I’m not sure what the rules are for Sable,” he announced as his attention settled on an old clock on the wall, a funny googly-eyed black Kit-Cat with a tail that moved in tandem with the eyes.
“Oh, she is more than welcome in any room,” Eli hurried to say as he placed the crate on a well-used counter.
“We always had dogs, smaller ones, usually little terriers, who liked to nip at the mailman on occasion. When my wife died, I found it hard to bring another dog into the house because they were her babies. God never blessed us with children, so we doted on the dogs.”
“Thank you. She’s very well-behaved. She’ll stay with me.” Chip pulled out a chair at the round table neatly set for four. Once he was seated, Sable lay down on his feet.
“Such a good girl,” Mom said as I lifted the crockpot out of the crate, unwrapped it, and set it back on the counter beside a knife block. “The boys always had lizards and fish for pets growing up. Oh, and Devon once had a snake. My mother refused to visit with a snake in the house.”
“Dad always joked he was going to open a serpentarium to keep Granny Pauline from coming over all the time.” I helped Eli tote a tray of cheese, meats, olives, and pickles to the table while he gave the brisket one final basting and turned off the stove to let it sit for an hour or so.
“Yes, your father and her never saw eye to eye.” My granny had apparently made it clear her only child could have done better than a local firefighter who would end up dead one day and leave her widowed.
Despite Granny Pauline being a mean vulture, she kind of called that one.
The stats are high that a firefighter or cop will be hurt, or worse, in the line of duty.
“Serpents are fascinating. Did you know… ” Chip began, easing us into a long, humorous, and far too enjoyable talk about snakes, lizards, and turtles until it was time to carve the brisket.
The meat was rich, pink in the middle, and filled with juice. Mom’s macaroni and cheese was as delicious as ever, and the little dish of coleslaw Eli had made was zesty with cracked pepper.
Chip was a wonderful addition to the table.
Not only because he clung onto every word that was said as he thought it out.
But he was also humorous, polite, and frank.
So very frank. Not rude, just honest. And those green eyes.
Framed with thick brown lashes, they held me as if I were entranced.
Sable never made a sound during the entire meal.
Not even when the kosher cheesecake was served.
You’d never know she was there other than the subtle wag of her tail when people would laugh.
Three hours flew by. When it was time to leave, I didn’t want to say goodbye to Chip, but I knew deep down I needed to.
This night, while enjoyable, had pushed me to the very edge of professionalism.
I had no clue how to proceed without getting called in or written up, but we’d already said we were doing this, so I had to stop wavering. Right?
Looking down into a chasm where my career would tumble into rocks, I knew I should take a step back before we got any deeper.
When Chip smiled at me as he passed his yarmulke back to Eli—that smile was everything.
We got Mom into her car and saw her off.
He looked around the street, then at his watch, and then right at me.
“Thank you for coming over. That was a nice dinner,” I said, shoving my hands into the front pockets of my slacks to keep from touching him.
It would have been so easy. He was looking at me—our heights about even—with inquisitive jade eyes I was finding harder to look away from. “We should do it again sometime.”
“Are we going to hold hands again?” The question was an innocent one. My lips twitched as I pulled my hands out of my pockets to offer them to him. He slid his palms over mine. Rough hands, just like mine, but so warm. Just like the man himself. “This is nice.”
“Yeah, it is.”
“Would you like to go bowling with me and my friends on Sunday?”
His comment was so out of left field, I blinked stupidly for a second. “Can you bowl with a crutch?”
“I think I have a logistical plan to overcome this handicap. Also, since we’re now men who hold hands, I’d like you to meet my friends just like you had me meet yours.”
“Uhm, sure, yeah, we can bowl with your friends on Sunday. Text me where and what time.”
His eyes lit up. I desperately wanted to kiss him. Not just on the corner of his mouth either. Instead, which probably saved my job for another day, I gave his hands a squeeze before releasing them gently. “Talk to you tomorrow then.”
“Yes, tomorrow.”
He gave me a smile before crutching his way to his car parked a few houses down.
Thankfully, Patty and Gloria were out of town for a week for a wedding.
Parking spaces on this street were guarded like the crown jewels.
I waved at him as he pulled away. When I turned around, I caught Eli peeking out of his front window.
He held up a thumb before the curtains closed.
Sometimes a man just had to follow his heart, no matter where it led.
Even if that path were off a steep professional cliff. I suspected the fall was going to be exhilarating. The impact? Not so much.