Page 25 of Safe With Me

Once some of the anger and resentment over why I had to come here in the first place burned off a bit, I appreciated the nuances of Kelly Lakes compared to Philly. The eerie quiet at night was something I doubted I’d ever get used to. Sirens here would be a cause for alert, not the city white noise I’d grown up with my entire life.

I’d managed to relax a little, but I couldn’t let my guard down completely. I had to fight not to be lulled into a false sense of security, even though the chaos I’d left behind seemed far away.

As I’d told Ally, I was still in drivable distance from her and everyone else in Philly.

Now that the financials were mostly cleaned up, the hours I was putting in at Russo’s weren’t as long, and I hadn’t felt as chained to my desk, sifting through a mountain of work.

I almost missed it. I’d come home exhausted and not wanting to do anything besides settle in to watch a movie on my laptop. I’d drift off after about twenty minutes into a sleep dead enough to not dream or worry about anything.

Now, I had extra time and energy on my hands that I hadn’t figured out what to do with yet.

I settled onto one of the stools at the counter while I waited for my order. The sun was hazy, but the humidity was thick and hot. I’d always thought that the country was supposed to be cooler, but the air was sticky enough to turn my hair into a frizzy brown Q-tip. I swiped my hand over the damp nape of my neck, trying to cool off, when I registered someone’s presence behind me.

“I’m glad my father let you out for lunch.”

I craned my neck to Mike, standing next to me in his full cop uniform. And as usual, I couldn’t look at him too long because he looked that good. His broad chest pulled at the buttons on his shirt, and it was a fight to keep my eyes on his and not let them drift lower, but then I had to ignore his perfect, full mouth.

I needed a hobby besides drooling over my boss’s son.

“Yeah, your dad lets me eat. He’s a nice boss,” I joked.

His throaty chuckle settled deep in my belly.

“Well, that’s good to hear. And I’m glad that you’re not working all those crazy hours anymore. He said you did a great job cleaning everything up the last time I spoke to him.”

“It’s fairly similar to what I used to do. I’m sorry his old manager left it such a mess, but I’m glad I was able to sort it out for him.”

The core of what I had to do for Jake was mostly the same, although on a small business and not a corporate scale. I came in and did my work without pressure or catty office politics. It was only me, Jake, and the men who worked for him drifting in and out.

At Russo’s, I was able to focus on work, not the stress of the drama outside of it. At my old job, I’d come into the office and been chained to my desk for the day, working to ignore the emails Ted would send—blocking never worked because they’dcome from a different address the next day—or the odd looks I’d get when flowers were delivered almost daily. I’d throw them out after everyone had left, not wanting to explain to anyone why I didn’t want the reminder when I’d come in the next day.

When none of that had worked, Ted hung out outside my work building to talk to me. I’d wondered if he’d quit his job to follow me, but I had refused to talk to him, so I’d never had the chance to ask.

“Are you on duty late tonight?”

“I sign out at five, just in time to go to the summer festival.”

“Yes. Claudia told me that if I didn’t go, she would come to my apartment and drag me out. So yes, I suppose I will see you there.”

I couldn’t remember the last time I’d gone out at night or even in the evenings. It felt weird, but as Claudia said, the entire town would be there, and while I knew I couldn’t stick by Claudia all night, she’d be around so I wouldn’t be totally alone.

I wouldn’t have to worry about walking into a desolate parking lot to get my car. The notion of a crowd both relieved and terrified me, and I wasn’t sure if I’d just go for an hour and leave before it became too dark.

But if I didn’t try, then Ted won. I couldn’t and wouldn’t let that happen.

“I’m glad to hear it. I don’t think it’s possible to say no to Claudia anyway,” he said with a laugh.

“Yes, that’s very true. Claudia said all the businesses open booths on the street, and she booked live music for tonight. So, I thought I would fully dive into small-town life and go.”

“I’m glad.” He grinned. “I got out of working it this year, but I have to work at the fall festival.”

“There’s a fall festival too?”

“Oh, Kelly Lakes celebrates everything. Wait until the Christmas one. We all rotate the events. I did the summerfestival last year when I was a rookie. It’s fine, other than a few drunks in the heat, but being out in the sun in full uniform can be tough. Tomorrow is going to be in the nineties.”

I cleared my throat, pushing the image of a sweaty Mike from my frazzled brain.

“It goes on for two days?”

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