“Addie, you mean?”
“Yes,” he said, turning to look at Addie, whose eyebrows shot up. “If you don’t mind.”
“No, not at all,” she said. “I’d love to meet her. Rodney says she was great.”
“If that means that she insisted I go to the hospital and get stitches in my head, then yes,” he said in a dry tone.
“Anybody who can handle you gets a thumbs-up from me. But the fact that she got you to a hospital for treatment is two thumbs-up.”
And, with that, and bright laughter, she hung up. He looked at Addie, who stared at him. “Sorry. I kind of sprung that on you,” he said. “Don’t feel like you have to say yes, but I just wanted to make that invitation possible.”
“Absolutely,” she said. “And it would be fun.”
“Good,” he said, “it would be nice to have somebody there too.”
“Ah, that silent-support thing.”
“Yes,” he said. “It’s kind of odd, when you think about it. But, after going to so many weddings, it seems like I end up as the odd man out. Hate that.”
“At the same time, I understand completely. Is it a formal affair though?” she asked, worried.
He said, “I’m wearing a suit, not a tux.”
“Ah,” she said and turned to look back at her house. “I just don’t know if I have anything to wear.”
“I can tell you quite honestly that my sister couldn’t care less. She’s been working toward this wedding for a long time, but she’s the one who’s been holding back. So I don’t think having the right clothes to wear is a problem for her. Believe me. I do understand the need to at least be within the range of a proper dress code.”
“Yes,” she said, “but it’ll be in Saint Pete’s Beach, right?” Tucker nodded. “So maybe just a sundress will do.”
“We have a long drive too,” he said. “I’ve got a hotel room there for the night. If you want, you can share it with me.”
She looked at him in surprise and then said, “You know what? That might be quite nice.”
“Good,” he said. “It’s a deal. I’ll stay here tonight, and you can come to the wedding with me and stay there with me over the weekend.”
“I don’t think I’ve ever been to Saint Pete’s Beach.”
“Miles of white sand, dotted by various benches touting ads with hotel-themed colors all up and down the beach,” he said. “Very much a tourist trap but, if you step out of that to just enjoy Mother Nature, what she has to offer is beautiful.”
“Great,” she said. “I’m looking forward to that. In the meantime,” she said, standing up and pulling the plates toward her, “I’ll clean up the kitchen. It is quite late, and I’m getting tired. So I’ll have a shower, and I’ll show you to your room.”
“And what about Bernie here?” he asked. Bernie just looked exhausted at his feet.
“I figured we’d give her the inside of the house. What do you think? Take her out one more time before bed, then tuck her in for the night with us.”
“I think that’s a good idea. If we leave the bedroom doors open, she’ll come and go, as she needs to make sure that we’re still here. She’ll likely have abandonment issues for quite a while.”
“I can’t imagine how she wouldn’t,” she said. “I feel like I’ll have abandonment issues if you take her away. She was always really close with me, but I’m just not set up for a big dog like that,” she said, motioning around at the small house. “No doggie doors. Long hours at work. Floating days on and off.”
“It doesn’t seem like a long-term solution for you here.”
“It isn’t,” she said. “It was a solution to get away from my family.”
“Speaking of which,” he said, “have you had any contact with your sister?”
She pulled up her phone, checked, and said, “There’s a text from her, asking where I am.”
“You didn’t answer her?”
“I didn’t see it until now,” she said with a shrug. “I’ve been a little busy.”
“Understood,” he said, “looking after me. Sorry about that.”
She looked up, smiled, and said, “I’d rather look after you than her.”
“Well, I’d rather you didn’t have to look after either of us,” he said. “Not exactly the strong macho male I’d like to appear as.”
She snorted. “Nothing personal,” she said, “but that’s very overrated.”
He burst out laughing. “Well, I’m glad you think so,” he said, “because really, at this point, it’s all about making the best of the situation.”
“I guess the question is, do you think we were followed here, like they followed us to the restaurant from the construction site?” she asked. “It occurred to me when I was driving, but I didn’t want to bring it up because you were dozing.”
“I was thinking about it too, and I’ve texted Badger about that. Texted Rodney as well.”
“I have a security system,” she said. “It’s not much, but it is something.”
“Well, let’s get it set,” he said, standing up to his feet. “First I’ll take the dog out and give her a chance to go to the bathroom. Then I’ll bring her in, and we’ll go upstairs.”
She nodded and headed into the kitchen. He walked around the backyard and waited for Bernie to do her business and then headed back inside, asking Addie for a bag. She shrugged and said, “I don’t really have any poop bags, but here’s a kitchen bag.” So she gave him a small bag.
He cleaned up the mess and put it in the garbage can outside, his gaze assessing, as he looked around the area to ensure nothing new or different was going on, hating the thickness in his head. Just one of the reasons why he didn’t like taking medications; they always dulled his senses. If they were still in danger, he didn’t want to consider being attacked while drugged.
With the kitchen done and the dog happy to come inside, they set the security system and headed upstairs. He was pleased to see that his body moved easier, and climbing the stairs didn’t make him dizzy or light-headed. She showed him the spare room, and he nodded in approval. “Nice and simple. Thank you.”
“And your bathroom’s here,” she said. “I have an en suite in my room.” She led the way into the master, and she gave him a quick tour of her place. “I’ll sleep here.”
“Leave the door open for the dog,” he said.
“Sure.” She smiled and said, “Good night then.”
He cleared his throat. She stopped, looked at him in a questioning manner, and he said, “I did want to thank you for looking after me today.”
She gave him a beaming smile. “It was a pleasure,” she said. “It’s not exactly the trip that I had imagined, but, hey, it was a whole lot better than sitting at home, wondering how I was related to my sister,” she admitted. “Now go get some sleep.”
“Will do.” He gave her a boyish grin and asked, “Don’t I get a kiss good night?”