This wasn't the reaction I'd been expecting.
The bag contained a couple of whole eggs, along with a handful of steak-flavored doggie treats.
He was supposed to be offended, not amused. As I watched, he reached into the bag and pulled out a doggie treat. He held it up and gave it a quick sniff. "I think I'll save this for later," he said.
Slowly, I felt something like sanity return. And once it did, I was suddenly way too conscious that I was standing on the Parkers' front steps, looking like a crazy person. I hadn't planned for this. He was supposed to have stormed off by now, which would've given me the chance to stalk back into the house and slam the door not exactly in his face, but definitely in his back.
Now what?
He gave my outfit a long, amused look. "Penguins," he said with a slow nod of his head. "Nice."
I'm not a blushing person, but I swear, I could feel the color rise to my face. What the hell was I doing? Stupid question. I already knew the answer. I was making an ass of myself. The fight-or-flight mechanism was starting to kick in, big-time.
"I've gotta go," I said, turning to head back inside.
"Wait," he said.
I turned to face him. He wasn't laughing anymore, but I could still see the amusement in his eyes, crinkling at the corners in a way that made me want to blush for an entirely different reason. I felt myself swallow.
For a moment, he wasn't Lawton Rastor, the famous bad-ass womanizer, but merely the boy next door, which in a way he was.
His eyes were deep and dark, and I felt myself get lost in them as he stood on the doorstep, holding that paper bag of utter crap.
He reached into the front pocket of his jeans. "I found this in my car." He pulled out a small silver medallion that I recognized instantly. Chucky's ID tag. It must've fallen off his collar during the ride back last night.
"Oh," I said. "Sothat'swhy you stopped by?"
"It was one of the reasons." He held up the bag. "But hey, thanks for breakfast."
I looked at the bag. "Uh, sorry about that." I cleared my throat and took Chucky's tag from his outstretched hand. "And thanks."
"No problem."
When he hopped in his car a minute later, I shuffled back into the house, wondering what was more stupid, my misguided anger that he might show up for a pre-nooner, or my odd disappointment that he didn't. Maybe he just didn't see me in that way.
But as I caught my reflection in the hall mirror, it wasn't hard to see why. I decided that if I never saw the guy gain, it would be too soon. As bad as I looked, I should've worn that bag over my head.
It wasn't until I was halfway up the stairs that something occurred to me. He never did give his other reason for stopping by. And I'd been so distracted, I never did ask him.
Too late for that now. I stumbled back to the guest room and crawled under the covers, but no matter how hard I tried, I never could fall back asleep.
Chapter 12
I stared at my cell phone, unable to believe it. The call had come. Finally. My heart racing, I felt a wide smile spread across my face. Holy crap. I had a job.
A real job.
And I'd be starting in mid-November, just a little over five weeks away. Sure, it was a long lead-time, but there was a good reason, and I wasn't about to complain.
It was the day after I'd given Lawton that stupid paper bag, and I'd been in the shower when they'd called. But the message hit all the highlights I needed – the pay, the start-date, the benefits.
They weren't anything extravagant, but they were a lot more than I was used to. I was still dripping from the shower when I returned the hiring manager's call.
It was official. A few Mondays from now, I'd be signing the paperwork.
It had been weeks since the interview, but the job was perfect. Not only would I actually be using my degree, I'd be working regular hours for the first time in my life. The company was small, and the pay wasn't spectacular, but it wasn't minimum wage either. And I'd finally get the job experience I desperately needed to move on to something bigger and better when the opportunity presented itself.
Maybe I'd even double-up and keep the waitressing job another month or two, just on weekends. Sure, it would stink. But by Christmas, I'd be rich, at least by my standards.
