Page 7 of Control Line

Chapter Three

“Better finish up so you can get the trailer moved. I have groceries in the truck that aren’t getting any fresher, and a massive pot of my chili to make.”

Zee felt her face pinken. “Sorry about that. I didn’t mean to block your entrance up. I just got a little lazy.” She was no stranger to hard work. Hell, hiking was about to be her full-time gig. She didn’t think yogi patrol would be here yet, so she had taken advantage to be closer to Norman while she shuffled stuff around.

Barney grabbed some of her gear and turned. “I don’t believe you’re lazy for a second. Hell, look at all this stuff. You climb?” He asked as he set the stuff in the corner of the room.

When he turned, his eyes raked her up and down before surveying the room as a whole.

“Yeah, a little.” Zee shrugged and headed back out for the last of the boxes. When she turned with her arms full, she was rocked back to see the smoking hot firefighter right behind her. He reached out and steadied her before stepping around.

As she cautiously treaded down the ramp, she heard his shocked voice. “Holy shit, you’re Ruck Up. I heard some Army dude was setting up shop, but I didn’t realize it would be here and that you’re some Army dude.”

Zamantha laughed. “That would be me, the Army dude who isn’t a dude.” As she entered the cabin, she heard him say,not a dude in the least. It made her feel good about herself. She wasn’t exactly built like other women, and she kept her hair short. Most people assumed she was into ladies, and she never corrected them. Mostly because fuck them for making assumptions. It was no one’s business who she liked and why.

After she left Barney with the last box, she went to check on Norman. “Hey there, buddy. How’s it hanging, huh?” She baby talked to him as she reached inside and gingerly brought him in for a kiss. Placing him on her shoulder like a parrot, she headed to the kitchen to get him a snack.

Retrieving the celery she’d bought earlier, she snapped off a thin leafy stalk and offered it up to her bumpy companion. “Is that good? Nom, nom, nom.”

Zee turned as Barney set the last of the boxes down. “I can’t thank you enough for the help. I’ll go out and move the trailer—”

“WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?” Barney screamed as he turned.

“What?” Zamantha looked all around looking for what frightened the big bad fireman. “What is it, is it on me?”

Now she was panicking, thinking a spider was crawling on her and threatening Norman. Not wanting to risk dropping him, she reached up and plucked Norman from her shoulder and held him out for Barney to hold so she could slap the eight-legged freak off her. “Here, hold Norm while I kill the spider. Where is—”

Barney jumped back with his hands in front of him and one knee lifted. “Fuck, get that thing away from me. I’m not touching that, that. . .what the hell is it?”

Zee was puzzled and did a full turn looking for the issue. Then it hit her.

“You mean, him?” She held Norman out closer to Barney and watched him flinch. She was enjoying the big strong man recoiling at the sight of Norman a bit too much.

After her laughter died down, she cuddled her buddy close before giving him a peck on the nose and returning him to her shoulder.

“Norman is not only the most handsome guinea pig in all the land but also an amazing companion.” Zee turned and grabbed the keys. “We’ll be right back as soon as we move the trailer so you can get your groceries inside before they spoil.”

He met her smirk with a shudder. Once the trailer was moved to the designated parking area, Zee and Norman headed back. It was a short walk, but she was feeling reflective. For a moment, she missed Billy. Not the Billy he actually was the last few years, but the Billy who she’d first met who told her about this town. She wondered if Barney had known Billy or even Derek. Zee would love to meet the man who inspired Billy’s pen name.

“Come on, Norman, let’s get that too arrogant, too sexy firefighter out of our way so I can have a nice long soak and catch up on my book.”

When she entered, Barney was putting her books on the bookshelf and by the looks of things, he only had a few more to go.

“Thanks for all your help. I appreciate it, but I’ve got it from here.” Barney danced out of the way when she approached to take the last few books from him. “Oh Jesus, you’re a grown man and it’s just a guinea pig. You’ll run into a blazing inferno, but Norman makes you run away.”

“Lady, I don’t know what you’re looking at, but that’s no guinea pig, that’s a zombie rodent from hell.” He leaned toward her just a little and sniffed. “And he smells like he ate a dead opossum that was baking in the sun all week.”

Zamantha reached up and covered Norman’s ears. “Stop that before you hurt his feelings. He is a little lumpy and has some GI issues, but name calling isn’t called for.”

She spun on her heels and headed to the kitchen for another bit of celery. Setting Norman down on the counter to eat, she turned her attention back to the mean man in her living room.Not too mean, he’d helped me a lot, but did he have to be so mean to Norman?

“You forgot he is suffering from male pattern baldness and his eye is weepy. Uggg.”

“Like I said before, looks aren’t everything and you’re kind of proving that point. Norman isn’t much to look at and he got passed over for adoption because of it. But I saw past all of that and guess what? He loves me more than anyone else in my life ever has. He doesn’t judge me or care if I block a driveway. When I cry, he doesn’t run away or shut down, and he never keeps secrets.”

The words that flew from her mouth shocked even her, so she was sure Barney was plotting his exit as the words settled between them. Anger from the past, anger she hadn’t realized she’d been holding onto, got the best of her. She never allowed that to happen. Hell, she hadn’t even realized how true her words were.

“Excuse me, I need to put Norman in his enclosure.” It was lame, Norman could’ve stayed out and exercised in his ball while she unpacked, but she needed some space.

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