Page 59 of Swept for Forever
Something I couldn’t see.
“I’m so sorry,” the man with the shepherd said before dragging his dog down the street, and I let Lulu lead us a few steps farther before stopping just behind the bus shelter.
She was still keyed up, still growling low in her throat.
“Lulu,” I warned quietly. “Shush.”
But her eyes stayed fixed on the opposite end of the block.
I followed her line of sight.
A black Jeep idled at the curb, its windows smudged just enough to keep its occupant hidden.
From the open car window came a voice, the speaker unseen. “Pickle! Let’s move!”
Seconds later, the bakery door swung open, and a man lumbered out. He was definitely not the coffee-fetching intern type. You’d need a cryo tube the size of a minivan to pickle this guy. He was fucking massive!
“What’d you do, grind the beans by hand?” the voice continued.
Lulu let out a warning breath, ready to bark again. I stopped her with a quick hand.
“What’s up with you?” I whispered. “You know that guy?”
She looked up at me, hesitant. There was no bark this time. Just a low whine.
“Didn’t think so,” I muttered.
The pickled bouncer climbed into the passenger seat. The Jeep peeled off a moment later and disappeared down the street.
I gave Lulu a pat. “Let’s keep moving.”
And we did. But I didn’t stop glancing over my shoulder for at least two blocks.
“You were scaring the hell out of me, Lu.”
Back at the motel, I tried the dress on. I smoothed my hands over the fabric, liking what I saw in the mirror. I’d wear this anywhere—porch coffees, river walks, maybe even in the kitchen making jam. Okay, more like eating bread with jam. Still, they were scraps of a life I’d never let myself picture.
Then came a knock.
I instinctively moved away to a spot where no one could see me from the window if they decided to peep in.
Lulu ran to the door first, her tail whipping in excitement. I pushed the curtain aside just enough to peek through.
Dom?
I hadn’t expected him to come to me first. Not after lastnight. Not after I’d practically thrown myself at him, and he’d pulled back.
And yet there he was, in a snug T-shirt and khaki shorts, looking too attractive for a man I was trying not to think about. The cap nearly did me in. Seriously. He was too charming for his own damn sake.
Taking a breath, I opened the door but didn’t let him in.
Dom stood there, and for a second, he looked…stunned.
His gaze flickered over me as if recalibrating. The dress must’ve reset something in his brain.
Then, he recovered, clearing his throat. “Well. Didn’t you scrub up well.”
Dom didn’t usually go for a cliché, but I’d let it slide. Especially since my decision to buy this dress had already paid for itself in full, albeit unintentionally.
