“Don’t be jealous!” I called after him, knowing he’d disappeared under my bed. He’d be mad at me until dinner.
I poured myself a glass of wine and ran a bath, dropping in a bath bomb. I set my phone on the closed toilet lid and twisted my hair up. Climbing into the tub, I let out a sigh of contentment as the hot, fizzing water eased the tension in my muscles.
My cell phone rang, and I picked it up. Kelsey’s photo and number flashed on the screen. I answered and put her on speaker. “Why are you interrupting bath time?”
“Why aren’t you texting me back?” Kelsey answered my question with one of her own.
“Sorry. I didn’t realize you’d messaged me. I just got home. Had to deal with the landlord.”
“Gross Greg came by? Didn’t he come by last month?”
“Yeah, but apparently he wants rent every month,” I teased. “What did the texts say?”
“Not to make any plans next Sunday; we’re going dress shopping!” Kelsey squealed with excitement.
“Oh, yay! Wait…who’s we?”
“Mom, of course. And Elliott’s mom…”
“Ugh.” I scowled. Elliott’s mom was an uptight woman, and that wasn’t a snap judgment, it was the truth. She walked around with her nose in the air all the time, and I rubbed her the wrong way. “Fine,” I sighed.
“Gee, don’t sound so excited!” Kelsey deadpanned.
“I am ridiculously excited to watch you try on dresses,” I said sincerely. “I’m less excited that Judgy Janice will be there, too. But I get it, she’s going to be your mother-in-law soon. My condolences, by the way.”
“She’s not that bad,” my sister said in her defence. I could hear the frown over the line.
“You’re right, there are definitely worse in-laws out there, probably,” I relented, shrugging. “Anyway, I’ll be there, with bells on.”
I was gathering my things after work on Friday when the door to the shop opened, and Alaric walked in, his welding helmet tucked under his arm, and his handsome face covered in metal shards.
It was the first time I’d seen him since Tuesday night. He’d shown up before me and left after me through the shop doors. I’d never minded how little I had to interact with my father’s employees until him, and now it bothered me that it was so hard to catch him alone.
“Is it too late to pick up my pay stub?” he asked, his eyes raking over my body. I was wearing a tight red skirt with an attached navy polka dot top. My hair was up in a twisted bun with some curls framing my face. I knew I looked good, but with his gaze on me, I felt sensual.
“Nope. It’s in that tray on the counter.” I tilted my chin in the direction of the metal tray. I looped my purse over my shoulder, worrying my lip as I watched him. I moved toward the counter. “So, how’s the dog?”
“Good,” Alaric replied, his eyes moving to me briefly before returning to the tray in front of him. “Still haven’t been able to find his owners.”
“That’s too bad.” I frowned, feeling sorry for the dog. “Did you reach out to the rescues?”
“I did. Somehow, I got roped into fostering him.” Alaric chuckled, shaking his head. “Took him to the vet last night. No microchip either.”
I let out a heavy sigh, feeling sorry for the pup. “He could have traveled for miles before finding you.”
“That’s what I’m thinking, too.” Alaric sighed, looking conflicted as he pulled an envelope from the pile and put it in his back pocket before facing me.
My thighs quivered at the sight of all six foot two inches of him covered in grime from a long day of welding. I’d never found welders attractive before. Granted, we’d never had a welder that looked like him in the shop.
I dropped my gaze to the floor before meeting his eyes again. “Well, if you feel like celebrating the end of your first week and your new status as a foster dog-parent, we could check out that Shiny Bootleg Ale at the Watering Hole.”
His eyes heated, but when he blinked he’d regained his composure. “I’ve got somewhere I need to be tonight.”
“Oh, of course,” I said quickly, flustered and embarrassed. Of course he was busy. I should have never opened my mouth. “Have a good weekend.” I grabbed my keys and high-tailed it out of there, mortified at the rejection.
In my bustle to leave, I almost forgot I was the one who had to lock up, which meant I had to wait for Alaric. I paused, letting him walk by.
“Maybe next week, though. I wouldn’t mind sampling some of that Shiny,” he said, his voice heavy with innuendo as he moved past me.
I stupidly blinked after him before regaining my senses. Flicking off the lights, I punched in the security code and opened the door, stepping through it quickly. I was overly aware of Alaric standing a foot away, a cocky smile on his sinful lips, watching me. I shoved the key in and twisted, driving the deadbolt home, and turned.
He was still grinning at me, waiting for a response.
“Maybe. I’ll have to see if I’m busy,” I replied airily, walking around him with my nose aloft. I had my pride to consider, and I didn’t want to come across as too eager.
Although, I kind of was eager. The idea of being casual sex friends had grown on me, especially since Tuesday night. I was confident I could tolerate it better than being around him every day and not getting another round on that magical cock.
He barked out a laugh. “Have a good weekend, Gwen.”
“You too.” I saluted him, like an idiot, and walked to my car.
He let out another low chuckle, heading in the opposite direction to where he parked, shaking his head as he walked. I watched him climb into his blue Chevy Silverado.
I slid into my car, closing the door, and let out a sigh. Another Friday night, another boring weekend alone with my cat.
It kind of sucked that I had so few friends. Kelsey and my childhood bestie were it, really, and Renly lived in Oakville. He’d moved there for college and had never come home, preferring Oakville to Port Hope. I didn’t blame him in the slightest—it certainly offered more.
After graduating from interior design, Ren secured a job working as an interior decorator on the Home Renovation Channel’s Brightwood Interior, working with Tatum Brightwood herself as a part of her design team. His life was a thousand times more glamorous than mine.
I was a little jealous about that, and I missed my friend. I drove home, intending on calling him. But when I pulled into my parking spot, I squinted hard, spotting Ren as he leaned against the yellow brick of my building. He looked up, spotted my shitty car, and his entire face lit.
I grabbed my purse and keys, flying from the car and squealing with excitement. “Renly! What are you doing here?”
“I came to visit my girl,” he said, drawing in a deep breath for dramatic pause. “Your last message didn’t sound too chipper. I had the weekend off work and figured I’d make the trip!”
“That’s awesome! I’m so glad you’re here,” I said, unable to stop a pesky tear from leaking from my eye. I really had missed him.
Aside from my sister, Renly was my only constant. We talked daily on Facebook, Snapchat, or texting. After Erik left, Ren had really been there, and no matter what he had going on in his busy world, he made time for me.
“Well! Let’s head on up,” Ren said, squeezing my shoulders. “I brought stuff to make mojitos.”
“Did I mention you were my favourite person?” I sighed, leaning into his embrace as we started walking.
“Not lately, but that’s okay. I already know,” he said affectionately, his brown eyes softening. “You look good, Gwen. Better than the last time I saw you.” He bumped my hip with his.
“Ha, very funny.” I rolled my eyes, remembering his last visit. He’d driven out after the Erik thing and spent three days cheering me up. We’d come up with ridiculous names for Erik. Von Dick Shit was by far my favourite.
“I’m serious though. You’ve got a glow to you. What secrets are you harbouring?” Ren could always sense a cha
nge in me, no matter how subtle.
“Just you wait,” I told him, unlocking the door. The most security this building saw was the constantly locked door. You needed a key to get in, but some tenants would prop it open with a brick. On those nights, it was a little harder to sleep.
We walked up the flight of stairs to my apartment, and I unlocked the door. Mrs. Hewitt’s door opened quickly, and I waved at her.
“Another man?” Mrs. Hewitt croaked judgmentally, like the peach she was. “Girls today are far too loose.”
Ren and I looked at each other and busted out laughing. He swept at the corner of his eyes. “I missed Mrs. Hewitt. I’m glad she still lives across the hall.”
“Me too,” I confessed. “I feel much safer with her around.” I thought of Tuesday night.
“I bet,” Ren cackled, shaking his head. His dark brown hair was impeccably styled in a side part pompadour. He’d lost some weight and looked a little older. “Now what’s this about another man?” He arched a brow.
“Well, she may have caught me making out with this guy I met at a bar,” I replied airily. Renly gaped at me.
“Excuse me? You brought home a guy from the bar? Tell me everything!” he said, steering me into the living room.
At the sound of our voices, Dahmer waltzed down the hall. Ren halted, spotting the cat.
“What is that?” he asked, pointed at him with a bewildered expression on his face.
“I got a cat.” I shrugged.
“When?”
“The day after you left.” I grinned. “It was really quiet without you, and without—“
“Thundercunt Twatwaffle,” Ren supplied helpfully. “Good riddance to him. He was far too bland for you. Now dish.”
“I will.” I sucked in my bottom lip, clapping my hands together. “But first…I thought I heard you say something about mojitos?”
“Ah, yes. You do have wonderful hearing, although your eyesight is crap.”
I smirked, enjoying his ribbing. Ren unzipped his duffle, pulling out a brown paper LCBO bag and a plastic sack. He headed to the kitchen, making himself right at home as he rooted through my cupboards for two tumblers and a plastic cutting board. He removed the lime juice from the plastic bag and set everything on the counter.
“Be a doll and get the sugar?” he asked, batting his lashes at me while he pulled open drawers and looked for a teaspoon.
He chopped the mint leaves, mushing them against the sides of the glass like his full-time job was bartending, not designing houses on a Canadian home improvement television network.
“Do people recognize you in the street yet?” I joked, removing the sugar from the cupboard and placing it beside the limes.
“Ha, sometimes,” Ren admitted. “But don’t change the subject. I’ve been patient enough. Spill.”
“Kelsey dragged me out last Friday and told me I needed to find a rebound.”
“I always said your sister was smart,” he remarked. “Go on.” He blinked impatiently at me as if I’d stopped talking on my own accord. It made me laugh.
“Well, she also happens to be an incredible wingman. I ended up hooking up with this sexy guy. I’m talking tattooed Thor, with long flowing locks and a beard and everything.”
“Sounds delightfully barbaric,” Ren commented, shivering. He grabbed the ice tray from the freezer and filled each glass two-thirds of the way with cracked ice.
“Right? And he was huge, too. Like, six-foot-two and packing a long schlong. I almost didn’t know how to handle it.”
Ren laughed loudly, nearly spilling the rum he was pouring into each glass when his arm jerked. “I hope you figured it out.”
“I did,” I said proudly. “It was awesome. But it was only a one-time thing. He made it perfectly clear that he wasn’t looking for a relationship, and I’m not either, so…”
“So…” Ren shook his head, waiting for me to continue. “What’s the problem, exactly?”
“One—I can’t stop thinking about him. And two, that Monday…he started working at my dad’s shop.”
“No!” Ren gasped, his hand covering his heart.
“Yep,” I said, popping the ‘p.’
“Wait…he had no idea you worked there, and you had no idea he was starting?”
“None. I might have known if I did my job better, but I don’t,” I replied, shrugging like it couldn’t be helped. “We didn’t actually ask each other for our last names, and we were mostly focused on exchanging bodily fluids.”
“Awkward.” He winced, sipping at his drink.
“Very. And as if all that wasn’t enough, I had to be an idiot and ask him for drinks tonight.” I rolled my eyes, still frustrated with myself.
“What’d he say?”
“That he had somewhere he had to be,” I repeated, sighing with defeat. “Maybe he’s just not that into me.”
“He’d have to be brainless to not be into you. You’re a catch! I’m gay, and even I can see that.” Ren said, and I grinned at him, thankful. “Maybe he really did have somewhere he had to be. Stranger things have happened. Did he say anything after?”
“Well, yeah…he said maybe next week, but I’m trying not to get my hopes up. I mean, he looks at me like he’s picturing me naked a lot. And I know I look at him like that too, because I do, picture him naked, I mean. And I’d love another go at him. But he hasn’t made a move, not even when we hung out on Tuesday night.”
“Wait, you hung out on Tuesday night?” Renly interrupted.
“Yeah, he found a stray dog, and I helped him bathe it at the pet store.”
“That’s promising,” he remarked thoughtfully.
“Yeah, and it was fun but…” I trailed off, worrying my lip.
In a lot of ways, I still channeled that nerdy outcast I was in high school. Boys didn’t talk to me. They went after my older sister. His brush-off had hit my self-esteem and made me feel like I was sixteen again, getting laughed at when I asked Mike Wilson to the winter semi-formal.
“You’re adorable. You’ve got it bad,” Ren gushed, gently shoving at my shoulder.
“But I don’t. I just really liked the dick, you know?” I said, lying through my teeth.
I did really like his dick, but it was more than that, or at least…it felt like it could be more than that. Maybe. I didn’t know. Dropping my head in my hands, I exhaled heavily.
“Hmmhmm,” he said, pursing his lips thoughtfully. “So go for drinks with him next week and see what happens.”
“It’s so simple when you put it that way, but you haven’t met him. He’s intimidating, like, I honestly don’t even know how I got him into my bed in the first place. I don’t think I can do it again.”
“Stop with the self-deprecating talk right now,” Ren ordered sternly. “I didn’t come here to listen to that.”
“I know. I’m sorry.” I pouted. “But anyway, workplace romances are never a good idea.”
“That’s what makes it so fun,” he pointed out, tilting his head and waggling his eyebrows. I shrugged, taking another sip of my drink and walking to the living room. I sat on the couch cross-legged, facing Ren. “I think you should go for it. Be boning buddies! What did you say his last name was?” He pulled his cell phone from his back pocket and sat opposite of me.
“I didn’t.”
“Really, Gwen?” He arched a brow at me.
“Alaric. Petersen, I think, spelt with an ‘e’ not an ‘o.’”
“You think,” he scoffed, typing it in. “Lucky for you, Alaric seems to be an uncommon name as far as Facebook profiles go. Is this him?” he held out his phone to me, open to a photo of Tattooed Thor himself.
“Yes, that’s him,” I said, my fingers itching to snatch Ren’s phone from his hands and creep through his profile, but I promised myself I wouldn’t resort to Facebook stalking.
“His profile is on lockdown.” Ren frowned. “But you’re right; he is very hot. Good job.” He held up his hand, and I high fived him before I took anothe
r sip of the mojito. It slid down almost too easily.
“Right?” I giggled. “God, it’s good to see you. Did you really come all the way here because I sounded off in my last message?” I couldn’t even remember what the last thing I’d texted him was.
“Well…I wanted to see you, of course. But Nan’s in the hospital.”
“Oh no. What happened?” I exclaimed, feeling concerned about Ren’s grandmother. She’d always been nice to me when we were in high school, and she made the best peanut butter cookies.
“Slipped and fell off her deck, broke her hip.” He sighed, his brow furrowing with worry. “I just spent the day with her at the hospital. She insisted I leave her alone, so I’m giving her the evening free of my overzealous company.”
“How kind of you,” I said, bemused.
“I know. I’m very thoughtful.” Ren grinned. “So what are we doing tonight?”
“We could go to the Watering Hole?” I suggested, a part of me hoping we’d run into Alaric there. Wishful thinking, I knew.
“Ugh, please.” He rolled his eyes. “I’d rather stay home and pet your kitty cat.”
“He’s deadly,” I warned, remembering how Dahmer had reacted to Alaric. It had been strangely adorable to watch him try and gently shake my asshole cat off his foot. Then watching him with the stray dog, well…that had been torture.
“Exactly,” Ren deadpanned.
“I’m in the mood for carbs, anyway. You know how I get in times of stress,” I said, my stomach grumbling. “Let’s get pizza, then we’ll come back and have more mojitos.”
“Deal.”
6
Dog Gone Mad
Alaric
I rushed home and showered quickly, changing at breakneck speed. When I came downstairs, the dog followed me to the front door, his tail wagging hopefully.
I had sent his pictures to local lost and found groups, but so far, nobody had stepped forward to claim him. I even took him to a local veterinary for an appointment. He didn’t have a microchip, and the veterinary hadn’t heard of anyone missing a one-year-old Newfoundland. Dr. Han gave him a clean bill of health after a set of boosters, heartworm medicine, and a topical medication for flea and ticks, and sent us on our way.
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