Page 82 of You Were Invited
Annie bit her lower lip as Julian stepped back. “No, stay. We can talk more tomorrow. This is Ellie’s night.” She’d butted right into the night’s festivities.Ellie needs his help.
“And keep you waiting?” he tossed over his shoulder. He strode towards the diner. “No way. Meet ya at my cabin. I’ll be right behind you.”
She nodded, breathless.
Driving, Annie turned the radio down to a barely-there hum. The woods along the highway flew by. Even with the heat kicked way up, she shivered, already missing Julian’s warm skin against her own. Her free leg hopped to the beat of her nerves. By the time she parked in front of Julian’s cabin, most of the negative adrenaline had thankfully worn off.
I did it…With nobody around to make conversation, the evening she sensed she had ahead of her bubbled in her mind. She wasn’t strictly sure what Julian had in mind, what he was comfortable with, but she knew she needed him.Live in the moment.If they hung out and talked until sunrise, then that was fine.He invited me to his house. Don’t justassume…
She pulled out her phone. A social notification popped up. Molly had shared a post, tagging her and No Wait Diner.
“When your cabin neighbor catches the eye of your best friend,”Annie read silently. Molly definitely approved.
And a few minutes earlier, an Ellie Katz had liked the post, too. She’d commented,“I hope you’re enjoying catching up.”
A blush rose in Annie’s cheeks again.Fuck! You’d think the blood vessels in my face would take a break!
She snooped online and did her best to relax. With so little sleep and all the adrenaline now fading, that became easier by the minute. She’d closed her eyes for a second or two before a set of headlights came up the driveway.
Julian got out of his truck. While she unbuckled, he opened her car door for her.
She beamed. “Eager beaver!”
“Ellie practically shoved me out the door. Need me to grab your bag?”
At the front door, with her duffle bag over his shoulder, Julian fumbled with his keys. Much more than she felt he typically would. When the bolts opened, he muttered, “finally,” under his breath. She suppressed a giggle. He let her in first.
Annie stepped into the toasty cabin. The timber in the fireplace had burned away, but the cozy heat persisted.
When Julian turned on a light, she instantly spied a small furry figure bent over his kibble bowl in the kitchen.
“Wait,” she hissed, stepping back, gently pushing Julian outside. “He’s eating.”
“Who?”
“Kitty.”
“Ah.”
The cat stood at attention, his tail sticking up tall behind him. “Meow?”
“Haven’t heard that in months,” Julian muttered.
“Well, hello there, little guy,” she cooed. She told Julian to wait a minute before she crept towards Kitty. She squatted down and held out her hand. “You gettin’ a lil’ shnack?”
Kitty chirped, stretched his long legs, and walked confidently towards Annie. Without hesitation, he head bunted her hand.
“Good boy!” She smoothed his soft back. Before long, Kitty rolled over and stretched out his arms long. Tentatively, she petted his belly. A few fluffs of fur came loose; it was nothing a good brushing couldn’t fix.
It tugged on her heartstrings knowing that Kitty was starved for attention — only because he was petrified of Julian, and for no solid reason. She cooed at Kitty before she got the courage to pull him into her arms. He purred and closed his eyes as she scratched his chin.
“Okay... want to come inside now? Slowly?” Annie called softly to Julian. “I’m holding him.”
The door squeaked.
Kitty, who opened his eyes, stared like an owl at Julian. She waited for the cat to wrestle his way out of her arms, but he hardly tensed at all. His ears flicked.
“I’ve never held him,” Julian remarked.
