Page 21 of Just for Him
Vinnie ignored our weak protests and insisted that we sit down, then proceeded to get us something to eat.
“Hm. Officer Hot Pants servingmebreakfast? I could get used to this,” Wanda teased when Vinnie went back up to get something for himself.
“Don’t,” I warned. “He’s got a couple of brothers, though. Feel free to go after them.”
She laughed. “Territorial much?”
She had no idea. Actually,Ihad no idea. I had never been in a situation where I felt quite so possessive, especially not over a guy I barely knew. That wasn’t exactly true, I realized. Vinnie and I might not have officially gone out, but in a way, wehadbeen seeing each other for a while. We’d had plenty of conversations over the past couple months, enough for me to feel like Ididknow him pretty well.
After breakfast, Vinnie took Wanda home first, then me.
“Some first date, huh?” I joked softly as Vinnie walked me to my door.
He grinned. “Not exactly what I had in mind.”
Me either.“I’m sorry. Thanks for coming, though. I ... didn’t know who else to call.”
“Hey.” He curled his index finger under my chin and lifted my face until I looked him in the eye. “You can call me anytime, got it?”
Warmth rolled through me, either from his touch or his words or the way he looked at me. Maybe all three.
“Got it.”
“Get some rest.”
“I will.”
Vinnie waited until I locked the door, then I heard his footsteps fade away.
I was watching him from the window when Joel emerged from his room.
“Are you just getting home?”
I turned and watched his expression darken as he took in my appearance.
“What the hell happened to you?”
“The diner was robbed last night,” I said wearily. “They attacked Cal then set the place on fire.”
“Are you hurt?”
“No, just shaken up. Wanda and I were in the kitchen during most of it.”
I yawned. The excitement of this morning’s events was finally catching up to me and I felt drained.
“I’m going to get a shower and go to bed. We can talk more later, okay?”
I left Joel scowling and went into my room. I knew he had more questions, and I would answer them, but not right then. At that moment, I just wanted to wash off the smell of smoke and forget about how the universe seemed to be conspiring against me for a little while.
