Page 90 of 7 Days and 7 Nights

‘Almost done. Should be able to have you out of here in just a couple minutes.”

“Good.” JoBeth took her checkbook out of her purse, opened the driver’s door, and leaned in to set her bag on the seat. She heard the hood thunk down into place. When she came back around the car, Joe was wiping his hands on the greasy towel that hung from his belt.

“What do I owe you?”

Joe finished with the towel and looked up in surprise. "Dawg just called and said he was on his way over to take care of it.”

“No, I’m paying.” She flipped open her checkbook, her heart starting to race. She needed to be on her way before Dawg arrived. “How much, Joe?”

“JoBeth, I don’t want to get in the middle of anything. The man wants to pay the bill.”

“Joe Larson, this is my car and my responsibility. You tell me how much I owe you right now, or I’m going to call the Better Business Bureau and report you for, for...refusing to take my money.”

Joe laughed a big belly laugh that made his midsection jiggle. “First I ever heard of being reported for not charging somebody. I got to remember that one.”

“Fine. You go on ahead and write it downafteryou tell me the amount.” She did not want to run into Dawg now, after a whole week of successful ducking and hiding.

Joe mumbled an amount that had to be too low. Her pen flew as she scribbled out the check, adding another twenty dollars just to show them both who they were screwing with.

Not waiting for her receipt, she jumped into the Caddy and started her up, noticing even in her hurry that the engine turned right over. Then with a last “Thanks” and a wave, she backed out, threw the car into drive, and burned rubber in her haste to escape.

Two traffic lights later, her pulse had slowed to something resembling normal. Resting her forehead on the steering wheel while she waited for the light to change, she told herself she’d done the right thing.

Right now, avoiding Dawg Rollins was a matter of self-preservation. Kevin Middleton was a fine man who would make a good husband. He’d already started talking about his vision of the life they could have together, and she suspected he was very close to popping the question. All she had to do was find a way to fall in love with him.

???

Dawg Rollins peered through the window at the indoor running track on the YMCA’s second floor. It was a fine spring day, but he hadn’t wanted to run alone where his thoughts would have nothing to settle on but JoBeth. Here, other runners were already pounding out their miles on the cushioned rubber oval, and because it was open to the workout area below, there were plenty of distractions to help the time pass quickly. Of course, given his knees and his forty-four years, the more forgiving indoor surface was nothing to be sneered at.

Fitting himself into the flow of runners, he started out easy, regulating his breathing and finding his pace. After the first two miles, he slowed and took an inside lane to get a better view of the activity below.

Ellipticals, treadmills, and stationary bikes lined the mirrored walls. The center of the room had been divided into two sections, with free weights occupying the left side of the great room and strength-training equipment on the right. A Sunday afternoon crowd huffed and sweated its way through a hundred different workouts. Dawg’s gaze skimmed over the group, picking out the serious lifters from the weekend warriors, enjoying the sight of the women who belonged in spandex and trying to avoid looking at those who didn’t.

About mile four, he found himself focusing on an elderly couple working their way through a series of machines. The woman moved slowly as if putting one foot in front of the other required great effort and concentration. One side of her body seemed frozen, and Dawg wondered if she’d had a stroke.

The man, whom Dawg assumed to be her husband, looked fit and comfortable, but he slowed his pace to match his wife’s, and he held both of their towels, a water bottle, and a card for recording workout progress. He didn’t look around. He focused all of his attention on the woman beside him.

When a machine became available, the man would adjust the weights and settings, help the woman carefully onto it, and then talk her through the exercise, penciling in the number of repetitions on the card when she finished. The woman’s attention turned to each new machine, while the man’s remained riveted on her. Dawg could almost feel his iron will joining and solidifying the woman’s, and though he couldn’t hear his words, Dawg imagined their loving tone.

Dawg’s heart squeezed as he imposed himself and JoBeth into the scene. Perhaps it would be JoBeth leading him around, helping him grow strong again. Maybe they’d be lucky and never need to draw this deeply on each other’s strength.

But whatever happened, he now understood that this was what it all came down to: the complete giving of oneself to another, the sharing of the good and the bad that life had to offer. This was what JoBeth had been asking for, but until recently he’d been too busy sidestepping the whole issue to actually listen to what she was saying.

Dawg slowed to a walk. He’d been such an incredible fool, it was no wonder she’d been avoiding him lately.

It was time to stop circling around the issue. He loved JoBeth Namey, and he knew now just how much he wanted to marry her.

He left the track and went down to the locker room to shower. He needed an engagement ring. Then he needed to find JoBeth and tell her what he’d decided. He could just imagine the joy on her face when he finally popped the question.

Dawg toweled off, dressed, and walked out through the strength-training area, hoping for one last glimpse of the couple who’d finally made him understand what an oaf he’d been.

He saw them making their way toward the water cooler, their hands joined and their heads bent toward each other. Dawg stood for a minute watching them move slowly through the sweating, jabbering crowd, and then he stared at himself for a minute in the mirror. He was more than ready to make JoBeth Namey his wife. Thank goodness he’d come to his senses before it was too late

Chapter Thirty-Two

Matt had been in Evanston for more than a week now, and he still wasn’t sure what he was doing there. He’d visited Adam’s grave, wandered old haunts, and spent time with his nephews, who seemed eerily like he and Adam had been at their age. He told himself he wasn’t there for a reason, that he didn’t have to put himself under a microscope like some unfortunate bug just because Olivia thought he needed dissecting. And then proceeded to do exactly that.

He spent even more time thinking about Olivia herself. She popped into his head without warning, and it took a huge amount of effort to shove her out. When he caught himself contemplating how much brighter and more endearing she was than other women he’d known, he knew something was very wrong.

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