“You’re welcome. I will be back to check on you, just to make sure you’re alright. Take care of yourself, alright? I know this is hard but you don’t have to go through this alone.”
Tom left and Jenny sank down on the couch, putting the urn on the coffee table in front of her. That was exactly what she had to do, go through this alone. The silence in the home was deafening, and the view of the empty dog bed brought new tears to her eyes. Toto would have jumped on the couch with her by now, and instead she was alone on the couch. No dog, nothing to cuddle. No small movements or disgruntled looks when she jostled her, no wet nose pushing into her hand when she wanted to be petted. Jenny pulled the blanket off the back of her couch and pulled it around her, hoping to find some kind of comfort. Putting her head on the armrest of the couch, she was soon dozing off to sleep, the events of that day finally catching up to her.
She had no idea how long she had been asleep, but when she woke up it was still light out and her head was pounding. Her stomach was growling and letting her know that she had missed breakfast, and possibly lunch, and it was time to find some food. Sitting up she looked at the clock to realize it was almost three in the afternoon and slowly she got up to make something to eat. She almost screamed when she walked into her kitchen to find Tom sitting there, at the table, containers of Chinese food in front of him. “You really should lock your doors,” he said in a slightly admonishing tone.
“You really should learn to knock. You brought me food?”
“I assumed you’d want some by now, and if you didn’t I would have put it in your fridge for later. How are you holding up?”
“I’m alright. I’m a little spooked to find you in my kitchen.”
“I don’t mean harm, honest. I know you have no way of knowing that, and I admit I should have just waited for you to hear me, but I’d been knocking for fifteen minutes and you weren’t answering. The food was starting to get cold and I wanted to make sure you were alright.”
“Thank you, but that’s still a little bit creepy. What did you get?” Jenny sat down across from Tom at the table, and looked at the closed containers in interest.
“Chicken lo mein, pork fried rice, white rice, some fried dumplings, sweet and sour chicken, cheese wontons and szechuan chicken. I didn’t know what you liked.”
“This all sounds good. Those are actually all of my favorites. I’ll get plates.”
Soon they were both putting food on their plates, and Jenny realized she was hungrier than she had thought she was. She decided she wasn’t going to care about eating in front of Tom, especially if he had brought the food, like she normally did with men. Apparently Tom didn’t mind as he put away even more food than she did, and smiled at her throughout. “It’s good to see a woman with an appetite. I hate it when I get food for a girl and she complains about wanting a salad. If we were meant to eat like rabbits, we would have been created that way. Salads are salads, and I always hate when I take the effort to take someone somewhere nice and they order a fifteen dollar salad. Who does that?”
Jenny chuckled as Tom seemed honestly put out by that, and she could see where that would be annoying. “Well you won’t see me ordering a salad. Maybe a side salad with a meal, but that’s about as far as I’ll go. I don’t eat junk, but I do like my meat.”
“Good. I might object to a girl eating hamburgers and French fries every day but there’s nothing wrong with a good steak. So what is your favorite food?”
“Steak, though Chinese ranks very high. I’m not the greatest cook and I rarely go out to eat, so usually I just make chicken or something equally simple.”
“I’ll have to change that. I don’t usually brag but I make a pretty good steak. Maybe for dinner?”
“Alright, what is wrong with you? There has to be something because there is a good looking guy sitting in my kitchen, feeding me Chinese after taking my dog to the vet and me to the doctor, and now offering to cook me dinner. In my world, that only happens in romance novels.”
“In my world that happens to any girl I’m interested in. Don’t worry, I’m not going to force myself on you but I would like to get to know you better. I also want to make sure you are alright because I know what it’s like to lose a loved one, and it doesn’t matter if that loved one is a dog or a person.”
“I don’t get it. Shouldn’t you be with some skinny blonde with big boobs?”
“No. I like to have something to hold onto, and remember what I said about food? Skinny blondes are skinny because they don’t eat. So what do you do for a living?”
“I’m a receptionist. It’s not very glamorous but it pays the bills. So you’re really an MMA fighter?”
“I am. I mostly spend my days at the gym and occasionally I have a fight. Do you have any idea who that dog was that attacked Toto?”
“No clue. I know all the dogs in the neighborhood and along the route we walk every day, and I have never seen this one before. I didn’t recognize the owner either. I can’t believe they just walked away.”
“The dog seemed trained to do exactly what it did. I will find out though, they should not get away with this.”
“You don’t have to do that. It won’t bring back Toto.”
“No, but it will bring closure for you and might prevent someone else from losing their dog to a vicious, unprovoked attack. You won’t stop me in this.”
“You’re a bit domineering aren’t you?”
Tom laughed before he got up and started closing the containers to put them in the refrigerator. “I’m not, I’m just very determined. Once I have my mind made up, there’s no changing it. So, what movie usually makes you feel better when upset?”
“Annie.”
“Interesting choice, but I can see why. Very uplifting movie, though I will never repeat that in front of others. Go put it on, I’ll be there in a second with drinks and snacks.”
“You’re staying?” Jenny asked, disbelief clear on her face and clearly confused by what was going on.
“Absolutely. I’m not going to miss out on Annie. I brought a variety of drinks and snacks, unsure what you liked. I’ll just bring it all and you can decide.”
“Alright, what planet did you come from?” Jenny asked, hands on her hips and looking at Tom defiantly.
“I really want to kick the men you’ve had in your life in the nuts if you get this worked up over a man being nice to you. I’m not doing anything extravagant, I’m just here for you during a difficult time in your life. Go. Put the movie in.”
Tom turned around and started pulling all sorts of snacks from grocery bags, while lining bottles of various drinks on the kitchen counter. Jenny stared at it all in shock, as there was literally everything she could think of. There was wine, beer, soda, juice and even chocolate milk. In snacks there was everything from salty to sweet and chocolate in at least twenty different varieties. It was clear he had gotten some of everything, hoping she’d like something. “I’ll have chocolate milk and starburst. Bring a large glass and you might as well bring the whole bag of starburst.”
“I don’t want to think about that combination but alright, I will be right in,” Tom replied, his face a grimace at hearing what she wanted. Jenny nodded and made her way into the living room where she quickly put in the movie and settled on the couch, the blanket once more around her. If Tom turned out to be a serial killer or something at least she was going to be comfortable when she died.
When Tom walked into the living room he put her drink on the coffee table and handed her the bag of starburst, before settling next to her on the couch with his own drink next to him on the side table. Jenny looked at his popcorn and quickly stole some, grinning at him as she did so. Tom chuckled and motioned for her to press play. “You can’t have a movie without popcorn. I don’t have any fights coming up so I can cheat a little.”
Tom put his arm on the back of the couch and Jenny decided to be brave and leaned against his side. Clearly that had been his intention as he laid his arm around Jenny’s should
er once she had done so and soon they were both watching the movie. Jenny hummed along with the songs, knowing them by heart, and for the first time that day she didn’t think about Toto. Halfway through the movie Tom stopped it, and he gently moved her so he could get up. “Let me get a refill on our drinks. Any more snacks?”
“No thank you. If I eat anything else I’ll probably get nauseous. Could I just have some water?”
“Absolutely. I’ll be right back.”
Once Tom was back they resumed the movie, and Jenny returned to her spot against Tom’s side. She barely knew this man and yet she felt incredibly comfortable at his side while she also felt a sense of safety. She had no idea why she felt that way, but she had always been one to go with her instincts and her instincts were telling her Tom was a good guy.
When the movie had ended, Jenny was starting to get sleepy again as she was comfortable on the couch and under her blanket. Tom shifted to look at her, and she was mesmerized by his smile as he did. “I’m going to go get things we need for dinner. I will be back. Why don’t you take a nap? You look like you could use it.”
Jenny shook her head and got up from the couch. “There’s a lot to do around here and I have to pack up all of Toto’s things. If I go back to sleep now I’ll never sleep tonight. You do know you don’t have to make me dinner?”
“I know I don’t have to but I want to. I’ll be back soon, don’t work too hard.”
With those words Tom was out the door and Jenny turned around with a sigh before walking to the kitchen. The first thing she did was put all the drinks and snacks in the cupboards so the counters were once again empty before taking a big trash bag and putting the half full bag of dog food in it. Next went the food and water bowl, after they had been emptied, and the mat they sat on. Toto’s bed and blankets were next followed by the bed she had in the bedroom. She planned to donate everything and put the bag by the back door, intending on dropping it off at the animal shelter next time she left the house. She was no longer crying but there was a lingering sadness in her heart as she looked at all the spots where Toto’s blankets and beds had been, and her favorite spot to be on the couch. Walking to the coffee table she took the urn and put it on the bookshelf where she knew it would be safe.
Knowing that Tom would be coming back she quickly cleaned the bathroom and ran the sweeper, if only so her house didn’t look like a complete disaster if he decided to see more of it. She was glad she wasn’t a messy person to begin with, which made it easy to tidy up and make everything look presentable. She knew one of the lightbulbs in the ceiling fan in the living room needed changing, so with a sigh she walked to the hall closet to get the small step ladder and a bulb. She was standing on top of the ladder, changing the bulb when Tom came back in which startled her enough that she almost fell off. Tom steadied her before giving her a stern look and helping her down. “I’ll do that. You need to be careful on a ladder, and standing on the top step with nothing to steady yourself isn’t safe.”
“I can take care of myself you know, I’ve been doing it for years.”
“I don’t doubt that you can but you need a taller ladder so you don’t have to step on the top step. There, all done. I see you packed up all of Toto’s things, are you alright?”
Jenny nodded and started taking the stepladder back the closet. “I am. It’s hard, but seeing it there and it being empty is harder. It will be a while before I’m able to have another dog so I’ve decided to just donate it all to the animal shelter. Do you need help with dinner?”
“No, I’m fine but you are welcome to keep me company.”
Tom poured Jenny a glass of wine as she sat at the kitchen table while he started on dinner. She felt like she should be helping him but he didn’t need help and she had offered, so instead she just watched him work. She still didn’t understand what he saw in her but for now she enjoyed the comfort of having someone there. She wasn’t sure if she would have been able to get through this on her own, and having someone there to just sit with her and distract her really helped.
“I plan to go find out who was responsible and make sure they get charged with something. They should not be allowed to own a dog. I will probably do that tomorrow.”
“Thank you. I’d hate to see that dog hurting another dog and someone else going through what I went through. So what do you like to do in your free time?”
“Well I really don’t do much, but because I’m so active in my profession I like to do calm things. I really enjoy classic movies and I can get quite lost in a good book. Besides that I like to play sports, my favorites being basketball and baseball. How about you?”
“I don’t really do much, but I have a little garden out back that I love to spend time in when it’s nice out. Besides that I love movies.”
“Do you have any brothers or sisters?”
“No, I was an only child. My parents were older when they had me, and they died a couple years ago. Toto was there for all of that.”
“Dogs can be very therapeutic. They seem to know when you just need to be cuddled. Growing up I had a black lab who was my best friend. When I needed cheering up he’d do something crazy and when I was upset he would just put his head on my knee and look up at me with these sad eyes and it would somehow make things better. I think only dog owners can understand what you’re feeling right now. Alright, food is ready. Eat in here or on the couch? We could put in another movie if you’d like or we can stay here and talk?”
“Let’s do another movie, I’ll let you choose this time. Of course you are limited to what I own so I’ll like what you pick no matter what that is.”
Tom laughed at that, before handing her a plate with steak and potatoes on it, and gesturing for her to move into the living room. “Cheeky. I like it. I’ll pick out something good, don’t you worry.”
Tom ended up picking Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and Jenny couldn’t help but smile at his choice. It was probably the manliest movie she had in her collection, and she loved it mostly because of the actors in it. They settled on the couch, this time not cuddling since they were both eating, and soon the only thing that could be heard was silverware against plates and the movie. “This steak is amazing. Thank you.”
“You are very welcome. Do you have to work tomorrow?”
“Yes, unfortunately. I can’t afford to take time off since I just took a week-long vacation.”
Tom didn’t really respond, and as soon as they were both done eating he got up to refill both their drinks before settling back on the couch, pulling her close. She had never been cuddled on the couch for that long before, and she didn’t want him to ever leave. Unfortunately that was not an option and too soon for her liking the movie was over and she was in the kitchen cleaning up the remnants of dinner. Tom had offered to help, but she had refused; stating he had cooked so she would clean. When he got ready to leave he pulled her into a hug and kissed the top of her head.
“I will talk to you tomorrow. Get some sleep and good luck at work. I put my number on the fridge, don’t hesitate to call or text if you need anything.”
“Thank you. Be careful, that man didn’t look friendly.”
“I will. Goodnight Jenny.”
Chapter Three
Tom walked down the street where Toto had been attacked, approaching a man walking his dog calmly. He really liked Jenny and he wanted to find who did this to her. There was something about her that attracted him and he felt that she wouldn’t be able to move on until justice was served. On top of that he really hated people who trained their dogs to attack, and it had been very clear that was exactly what this man had done.
“Excuse me sir? My friend’s dog was attacked here yesterday and I’m trying to find who was responsible. It was a Pitbull without a leash and they simply walked on after killing her dog. Have you seen them around here before?”
“You’re talking about Toto aren’t you? Judy down the street saw it happening and we’ve all heard. We all knew Toto, such a kind do
g, and Jenny was always up for a chat while walking her. Judy might know who it was, she saw it happening but saw you had it in hand. I have never seen a Pitbull around here but if I see it I will go in the opposite direction.”
“Thank you sir. Which house is Judy’s?”
“Number six. She usually sits on her front porch knitting in the morning so she is probably still there. Good luck, I hope you find who did this. Mrs Jones said she was taking a casserole over and I believe Mr Peterson was sending something as well. Could you let her know we will all miss Toto and we hope to one day see Jenny on her walks again?”
“Absolutely. I think she would really like to know that there were others who loved Toto as much as she did. If you would excuse me, I’m going to talk to Judy.”
Tom walked down the street to where Judy was indeed on her porch, watching him approach. He somehow had a feeling Judy knew everything that happened in the neighborhood, as every neighborhood had that person. Considering she sat on her porch every morning it was a safe bet Judy was that person for this neighborhood. “Good morning ma’am. I heard you saw what happened yesterday?”
“Yes, awful that. I’m glad you took care of poor Jenny and Toto. I’m assuming you are trying to find the man responsible?”
“Yes ma’am, I am. I’m trying to prevent this happening again.”
“I haven’t seen you here before but you seem like a good man. The man responsible has been here once before, he lives about four blocks over. My friend who lives there told me she hears dogs barking from his yard about once a week and it always sounds like there’s a party at the same time. She said he is not very nice and is rude to everyone else. She lives at number eight Crescent, you might ask her what house it is.”
“Thank you ma’am. You have a good day now.”
Tom started walking in the direction Judy had indicated while calling his friend Eric. Eric had been with the city police for a couple years now and he had a feeling he might need backup. It couldn’t hurt, and if nothing else he’d be on the safe side which is what he had promised Jenny. If there was one thing he’d do it would be to keep his promise to Jenny to be safe. “Eric? It’s a long story, but I’m heading over to Crescent Street to talk to a man who attacked my friend’s dog yesterday. The dog died and this Pitbull looked trained to attack. I have a bad feeling about him, he didn’t seem affected by the attack at all and they calmly walked away like nothing happened. No, I’m alone. I’ll be careful but I might need backup. Alright, I’ll see you there.”
Jocked Up: Sports Romance (A Secret Baby Second Chance Romance) Page 28
