The waiting is driving me insane and even though Luke has been trying hard to keep me distracted with projects around the house and mind-blowing marathon sex-filled nights, I still can’t shake the feeling that the worse has yet to come.
It’s taking a toll on me, and people are starting to notice. My new nurse supervisor asked me if I need to take an extra day of vacation to get more adjusted to my new shift just before I clocked out.
“You seem a little more stressed than usual,” she casually mentioned but I could see the worry in her eyes, wondering if she made the right choice in letting me switch shifts. After reassuring her I was just a little stressed preparing for the wedding this weekend and that I won’t let it affect my work, she nodded and told me have a good weekend.
Collecting my thoughts as I head out to the employee parking lot, I don’t even register that someone has been calling my name until Sheriff McKnight taps me on the shoulder.
“Whoa.” He steps back when I spin around so fast and let out a little squeak. “You okay?”
“Yeah, sorry, you scared me.” I exhale, forcing myself to relax before pasting on a smile. “How can I help you, sheriff?”
“Call me Warren.” He smiles as his eyes scan over me. He isn’t checking me out but assessing me, reading my body language. I hate that I can be so easily to read.
“How can I help you, Warren?”
“Are you sure you’re okay?” he asks, eyeing me more suspiciously, hooking his thumbs in his belt loop.
“I’ve got a lot on my plate right now,” I confess, hoping he doesn’t try to pry further. I’m not even sure how I would begin to tell him what is really going on in my life, and whether I should tell him.
“Can I walk you to your car?” He gestures toward the exit leading to the employee parking lot.
“Oh, uh . . . sure?”
“I don’t bite, Amber.” Warren chuckles and signals to follow him.
“I know you don’t bite.” I roll my eyes and follow him out. “I’m sure you have other things to do than walk me to my car.”
“I have ulterior motives.” Warren winks over at me. “I wanted to see if your sister was going to be at Clint and Dawn’s wedding.”
“Sarah? Yeah, she’s part of the wedding party,” I say, side-eyeing him as we maneuver through the cars.
“So, she’s coming into town? Does she plan to stay through Christmas?”
“That’s the plan.” I stop just before we reach my car. “You like my sister?”
“She’s a beautiful woman. What’s not to like?” Warren smirks down at me.
“I noticed you were on the wedding guest list. I thought you hated the Colson men.”
“I never had any issues with Clint or Luke. Eric and Jax were thorns in my side, but that was a long time ago,” he says, rocking back on his heels.
“Glad to know my boyfriend is on your good side.” I smile, not really believing his word, and pull my keys out of my purse. “Are you wanting me to invite you over when Sarah’s in town so you can make a move?”
“I wouldn’t object to an invite . . ..”
“Eric plans to stay with us. Not sure that will work out well.” I laugh out loud and walk around the hood of my car to the driver’s side.
“What the heck?”
“What’s the problem?” Warren asks as he comes around to where I’m standing.
I look at him in disbelief. “I think my tires have been slashed.”
“What?” He leans down to inspect the large gash in the tire wall of my driver side tire. Straightening, he looks around then bends to look into the car parked next to mine. The windows are tinted, but not so dark that you can’t see in, and there appears to be a man sitting in the car. It’s running, too. I was so busy talking to Warren that I never even noticed.
Warren walks around it and knocks on the driver side window. I hesitate for a moment, then come around to see the man sitting behind the wheel. His hair is a shaggy, dirty blonde color that could use a wash. I can’t tell his height, but he looks tall since his head is close to hitting the top of his car. Nothing about him is familiar to me, but he glares at me as if he knows me.
“Can I see your license and registration?” Warren asks, stepping in front to block me from the man.
“Why do you need to see it?”
“Why don’t you step out of the vehicle?” Warren opens the man’s door, but he doesn’t let it full open before tugging on it hard and slamming it shut.
“I wasn’t doing anything but sitting here. I don’t have to give you shit,” he spits out, the sound of his car door locks engaging.
Warren steps back when the man starts to roll his window up and says something into the radio on his shoulder. The man pulls out from the parking spot and when his license plate is visible, Warren reads it into his radio.
“What just happened?” I ask Warren when he finishes talking to whoever is on the other end of his radio.
“Nothing you need to worry about. Let’s get your tire changed and I’ll follow you home.”
“Thanks, Warren, but I can call Luke or my dad to help me. I wouldn’t want to waste any more of your time,” I say staring at the tire that I know how to change but really don’t want to.
“Nonsense. I’ll change your tire and maybe you can help me make a good impression on your sister,” Warren says as he rolls up his shirt sleeves. “Can you pop your trunk?”
“Two things wrong with that.” I chuckle, hitting the trunk button on my key fob. “First, Eric has made his claim on her, and I need to play nice with Eric.”
“And the second reason?” Warren smiles big at me, pushing the trunk lid up and lifting the carpet covering my spare tire.
“Second, she lives on the East Coast. Why would you want to start a long-distance relationship with someone who lives so far away, and I think who may be still hung up on Eric?”
“Do you really believe Sarah is still hung up over Eric?” he asks, pulling the jack and spare out of the trunk as if it weighs nothing.
“Those two have history, you know that.”
“I do, but that doesn’t mean they have a future.” He kneels by the slashed tire.
I kneel next to him. “You are putting me in a very precarious position.”
“Nah, I’m just stacking the deck.” He winks and gets to work on changing my tire.
∞∞∞
“Amber, finally! What took you so long?” Sarah greets me as I come through the backdoor. The excited smile on her face puts me on high alert as she leads me through the kitchen toward the living room.
“Sorry I had . . .. Wait, who are you?” I ask the strange Thor-like man dressed in a milkman costume standing by the couch next to an over eager looking Jax.
“He’s Dawn’s wedding present,” Jax says with a wild smile on his face.
“Wedding present?”
“Oh, dear, don’t be daft.” Miss Janet sighs as she pours what I suspect is a margarita into a cup and hands it to me.
“Is he—”
“A stripper?” Jax finishes my sentence. “Yes, he is. You’re welcome.”