9. Maggie #2
“Like a leash?” Luke folded his arms over his chest and smirked.
“We’re not breaking any laws today, Officer.” I lifted the palm with the leash handle looped around it as evidence.
“Today being the operative word,” Luke said.
“Actually, I was here about baseboards,” I deadpanned.
The mortified expression was worth the jab, and I laughed so hard tears pricked the corners of my eyes.
“Not fucking funny,” Luke muttered.
“Do you two know each other?” Connor guessed, looking back and forth between us.
“Maggie rented the duplex for the next few weeks,” Luke explained.
“Wait,” Connor said, looking at Ellie. “That’s the destructive dog you were worried about?”
The little girl giggled at this, and the sound warmed my heart.
I’d been secretly hoping Violet would have a little girl this time.
I loved my nephews, but I wanted a little niece to spoil rotten.
Since Violet refused to find out the sex, I’d have to wait a few more weeks to see if my wish was granted.
“She’s calmer than Husker,” Joe remarked of Ellie. To Luke, he added, “You never worried about him chewin’ up your baseboards.”
“The only thing you have to worry about with Husker is him cleaning out your kitchen,” Connor pointed out.
“Husker?” I asked.
“My sister’s dog,” Connor explained. “He’s a good boy, just a bit of a spaz at times. He’s way more likely to eat baseboards than this angel, and the odds are still relatively low unless they’re slathered in pizza sauce.”
“In my defense, I hadn’t met Ellie until you got in yesterday,” Luke said, rubbing a hand over the back of his neck. He was clearly exhausted, but whether it was from this conversation or a lack of sleep was still up in the air.
“You mean after you finally decided to show up and stop holding the code hostage?” I chimed in.
“I was on a call.”
“So you said.” I believed him, but damn it was fun to rile him up.
“What was the call?” Connor asked.
“A break-in, if you must know.”
“Ah, the killer crow,” Joe said, chuckling. “Heard all about the drama from Agnes Mosby. She was telling anyone who’d listen about the possessed bird who crashed through Dana’s window and tried to kill her.”
“I swear that woman only eats lunch at Kat’s Place to create drama,” Luke muttered.
“I think Ellie wants to look around,” the little girl said, standing. “Can I walk her around the store?”
“Opal, she’s not your dog,” Connor said, his gentle tone a warning to his daughter and an apology to me.
“It’s okay,” I said, slipping the leash from my wrist and handing it over. “Ellie loves kids, don’t you, Ellie Belly?”
“Ellie Belly?” Luke repeated.
“Is he always this way or do I just bring out the grumpiness?” I directed the question to Joe, but I looked at Luke as I said it. Big mistake. Even frowning, those light blue eyes were too much. The coiling of heat low in my belly warned me as much.
“He came out of the womb wearing a permanent scowl,” Connor said.
“And how would you know? You weren’t even born yet.” Luke’s phone rang, cutting him off as he pulled it from his pocket. “Sorry, got to take this.”
“His heart’s in the right place,” Joe said, dropping his voice even as Luke disappeared down the paint aisle. I couldn’t decide if I was relieved for the separation or tempted to follow him. “He’s one helluva cop. Also, one helluva soldier. Both my boys are.”
“Were,” Connor corrected.
“Once a soldier, always a soldier,” Joe said.
I’d been out of the Army for almost a decade, but I understood the sentiment. It was likely why I kept gravitating toward military-adjacent jobs. I felt most in my element around active duty and military veterans.
It was also likely the reason I fell so easily for my ex.
Jason was career military. He understood me.
And admittedly, I got caught up in the fantasy of being an officer’s wife who traveled the world.
One who worked with active duty soldiers or veterans in some meaningful way.
But with how busy Luanne kept me with wedding planning these past three months, I’d barely had time to look for my future job in Lakewood, much less secure one.
“What was your MOS?” I asked Connor, eager to push thoughts of my ex as far away as possible.
“Fifteen tango. What was yours?”
“Ninety-two alpha. I bought your helicopter parts,” I said, shaking my head in disbelief. I’d spent most of my time in the military around Blackhawk mechanics, but it was rare to run into them in the wild if I wasn’t near a base. The aviation branch of the Army was small compared to the infantry.
This made choosing Bluebell Springs seem that much more kismet.
“Well, I’ll be,” Joe said.
“Dad was infantry,” Connor said. “Hence the hair.”
“It’s good-looking hair,” I said, meaning it. Joe had an older Kurt Russell vibe going for him, and the hair really cemented it.
Because I kept stealing glances at the door in the back wondering if Luke was part of the aviation sector too or maybe military police, I forced myself to focus instead on the wall of dog toys, wondering if Ellie would play with any of them.
Considering she happily trotted off with Opal without a second thought, I doubted it.
“Luke didn’t always take life this seriously,” Joe said as Connor excused himself. He returned to the tool aisle to continue whatever task my initial presence interrupted as Joe added, “My kids lost their mother a few years back, and well, Luke took it pretty hard.”
Dammit. The last thing I wanted—or needed—was a reason to feel compassion for my irritating landlord.
“I’m so sorry for your loss,” I said to Joe, touching his arm.
Joe offered me a weak smile.
“Ellie wants these socks,” Opal announced, hopping to a stop at the end of the aisle and offering me a pair of hunter-green socks with marshmallows and campfires. Ironically, the marshmallow characters were holding roasting sticks.
“I’m surprised she didn’t con you out of more pairs,” I said, accepting the leash handle.
“She tried.” Opal and Ellie shared a long, intent look, and I swore the two were having some sort of secret, telepathic conversation.
I grabbed a stuffed moose from its wall hook—I wasn’t brave enough to risk the doorknob with Luke lurking nearby—and followed Joe to the front counter as Opal rushed back to help her dad.
“I’d tell you to let me know if Luke gives you any more grief,” Joe said, handing me the shopping bag over the counter, “but I suspect you can handle him just fine on your own.”
Luke, I could handle. But me around him? That remained to be seen.