The Wrong Man (4 page)

I grunted by way of reply, which made Luke chuckle. Loudly.

“Shh. Quiet. I need a few minutes,” I groused.

“Okay, we’ll whisper.” Luke’s eyes twinkled merrily. At least one of us was having a good morning, I mused. “What did you do or who did you do last night?”

“Ha-ha.” I lowered my glasses for a moment, but my eyes weren’t ready for the glare. “I… I think I had fun. Honestly, it got a little hazy at the end but alas, I went home alone.”

“Hmm. Better that way.” Luke observed primly. “Are you still celebrating Trevor’s departure? Or was it something else?”

That was why I loved Luke. He knew me. He’d allow me the excuse of wallowing in a breakup he knew I was over if I wasn’t ready to share. The reprieve would only last until the caffeine and aspirin took hold. I didn’t want him worrying about me all day, so I cleared my throat and took a sip of coffee before taking off the sunglasses.

“Lizzy asked me to watch a dog yesterday.” I chuckled at Luke’s incredulous expression. “Don’t make me laugh, please. It hurts.”

“You watched Lizzy’s dog? I didn’t know she had one. Sorry Bran, but that’s not like you,” he commented with a furrowed brow.

“I know, I know. She bamboozled me. Whatever. It wasn’t her dog anyway. She said he belonged to her sexy new neighbor. A firefighter named Jake.”

I paused and gave Luke a meaningful stare. He didn’t catch on.

“Yeah? So? Was he hot? What’s the story?”

“Luke, it was Jake.”

“You already said that. What are you—” He stopped and quirked his head to the side. His eyes narrowed shrewdly. “Jake? Like from high school?”

I nodded and took another drink. I was starting to feel human again. Thank God. There was a shitload of things to be done before I opened the door. I sighed as I stood and carried my coffee to the back office, inclining my head to wordlessly ask Luke to follow.

“There’s nothing much to tell. It was weird. As in, what the fuck? The chances of him moving to West Hollywood are—”

“Maybe he finally came out. Did he say if—”

“I didn’t ask! I don’t want to know. I don’t want anything to do with him. It was twelve years ago. You know the saying about fish and family after three days. There’s got to be a good one about closeted ex-boyfriends resurfacing after a dozen years.”

“The past is never where you think you left it,” Luke quoted. His love of literature and poetry hadn’t diminished over the years.

“Who said—never mind. I don’t want to know. I have a very strict policy regarding the past. No exceptions.”

“Katherine Anne Porter was responsible for that piece of wisdom.” He paused for a moment. “Bran, I’m not suggesting you get reacquainted. I think it’s weird too. And yes, I know your policy. Live in the present only. I get it. But are you… okay? He was important to you once and—”

“Once. A long time ago. I admit it was odd and out of context, and I took the excuse of it being Friday night to party a little harder than usual to forget about things and people I don’t want to remember. I’m an idiot, but….” I sighed deeply and flashed Luke a reassuring grin. “Give me ten more minutes to recuperate, and I’ll be back to normal. Enough about me! Tell me about your sexy soccer man. What did you boys do last night? Feel free to share details. I’m a single boy again. I’m living vicariously, sugar!”

Luke’s lovely smile lit his handsome features. He blushed furiously as he launched into a somewhat tame story about a restaurant in Laguna, a romantic sunset, and then I tuned out. It was all so sweet and domesticated. I had to laugh at myself though. Isn’t that what I wanted eventually too? Holding hands at the theater and romantic dinners by candlelight with lots of steamy sex in between sounded good. Sure. But so did something a little naughtier. My errant imagination conjured melting wax from a wayward candle enticingly dripped on my bare torso by a fireman in uniform. Well, minus the shirt, who’d come to rescue me from—

“Well, was he?”

I blinked in an attempt to focus on my friend, who was giving me an expectant look. I gave up. I had no clue what he was talking about.

“What?”

“Was Jake still good-looking, or was he balding with the beginnings of a beer belly?”

“Sadly he’s hotter than ever with a full head of hair and a flat stomach. No doubt his abs are to die for too.” I sighed dramatically and stood up. It was time to get to work.

“I figured as much.” Luke commiserated as he followed me back into the store.

“Help me go through the receipts from yesterday. I didn’t get to them last night.” I stopped suddenly and turned to Luke with a serious expression. “By the way, your writer friend was wrong. I know exactly where my past is and that’s where it’s staying.”

H
AVE
YOU
ever noticed the person you hope you never run into is the one who seems to be everywhere you go? I had not set eyes on Jake Westley in twelve years, and suddenly he and his dog were omnipresent. I saw them walking along Melrose almost daily. I saw them at the coffee shop around the corner from my shop. I even ran into them at the dry cleaners. It felt like I was being followed but the sentiment smacked of paranoia, so I shrugged it off and tried to strike a friendly but distant vibe.

If it hadn’t been for Mack, I probably would have turned around or pretended not to see him. Granted, that was immature, but I was desperate to avoid Jake if possible. The problem was I couldn’t ignore Mack. He seemed to recognize me. His tail went crazy when he saw me. He would dart at me as though directing Jake toward a special friend he simply had to greet. I was charmed by the old dog’s attention. He was ancient in canine years, and he certainly moved like a senior citizen. The fact he mustered the extra energy for my sake was endearing.

I was standing in a longer-than-normal line, waiting to order my daily caffeine fix one morning before opening the store. A trip to the coffee shop was as much a part of my routine as brushing my teeth and getting dressed. I had a fabulous commercial-grade machine at home, so there really was no excuse for spending money on my extra-large drip every day. But I loved the friendly baristas and the fact I didn’t have to tell them my name or order. It made for a pleasant start to my day. Waiting in a line wasn’t my favorite though. I sighed heavily and pulled my phone from my pocket. My gaze was glued to my cell, but I heard the running commentary of the young women in front of me. They were gossiping about a coworker when one of them stopped and drew in an exaggerated breath.

“Check out the guy who just came in. The one wearing a fire department T-shirt. He is gorgeous! Hmm, he can come put out my fire any time.” Her companion giggled appreciatively. I paused mid-text, instinctively knowing who I’d see when I looked up. Yep. The ubiquitous Jake Westley.

“Hey, there! Wow. We seem to run into each other a lot lately,” he greeted me warmly as he took his place in line behind me.

“I was just thinking the same thing.” I put my phone away and glanced at him briefly before stepping forward.

The girls were correct. He
was
fine. His wavy hair was slightly damp and mussed like he’d finger brushed it after showering. He was wearing a basic LAFD tee and form-fitted jeans. There was nothing special about his clothing but it couldn’t be denied he wore them well. The way the white T-shirt clung to his biceps and stretched across his broad shoulders was mouthwatering. I gulped. He might be hot, but Jake was off limits.

“Busy day?” he asked conversationally.

I sighed and turned to give him a snarky reply but something stopped me. He looked tired. Exhausted actually.

“Yeah. You okay? You look like you haven’t slept.”

“I haven’t.” He chuckled softly and gave my arm a slight push to keep me from holding up the line. “I’m just coming off a four-day shift. So yeah, I’ve slept, but it’s different when you’re not in your own bed.”

“How does that work? Is it like the movies? Do you have a bunk you share or what?” I was curious in spite of myself.

“Pretty much. I was bunked with a serious snorer last night.” He shook his head mournfully.

“Earplugs?” I glanced up to see I was next in line and smiled at Juan, the barista. My coffee would be waiting for me when I got to the register.

“Nah. I’ve adjusted to sleeping lightly at the station and soundly at home. I wouldn’t have lasted long in my profession if I asked for earplugs and quiet to get a night’s rest, Bran.”

I started at the affectionate inflection in his tone when he spoke my name. It was oddly familiar and sent an instant shiver down my spine. I licked my lips and looked up at him distractedly. He smiled sweetly and gave my shoulder a gentle tap.

“Let me buy your drink.”

He stepped in front of me and placed his order with Juan before turning to ask what I’d like. Juan smirked knowingly and gave me a funny air “high five” when Jake turned his back to him.

“I got his order, sweetheart. Can I get you boys any pastries this morning?” Juan fluttered his eyes playfully.

Damn it. I was going to have to make my own coffee starting tomorrow if my favorite barista was going to question me about Jake.

“No, thank you. The usual will do.”

Juan muttered something under his breath in Spanish but was his professional self as he rang up our order and handed us our drinks.

I followed Jake to a high bar near the front window where the milks, sugars, and napkins were placed for those interested. I grabbed a napkin from the dispenser and watched with amusement as Jake removed the lid from his cup and doctored his drink liberally with cream and a ton of sugar.

“Are you sure you wanted a coffee, honey? You just turned that poor unsuspecting cup of java into something most five-year-olds would happily drink.”

Jake’s grin was wide and full of easy humor. He laughed merrily as he stirred his coffee and refastened the lid.

“Some things never change. I’m glad.” He observed, holding the door open for me.

I bristled at the cryptic remark but stopped short at the exuberant greeting of welcome from Mack, who was tied to a bench outside the shop. His tail wagged profusely, and I swear he talked. It was dog-speak but the meaning was clear even to a canine novice like me.
I’m so happy to see you.
When he nuzzled his snout in Jake’s direction and then mine, I giggled helplessly. It was hard not to like the furry fellow. I patted him affectionately behind his ears and spoke to him in the syrupy tone he seemed to like.

“Hello, Macky. How are you this morning? You missed me, didn’t you? You’re such a good boy.”

I’m sure I kept going. Mack ate up the attention like he would a biscuit. He wouldn’t stop taking the love until I stopped giving it. Jake smiled as I made a fool of myself, then undid the leash and looked over at me quizzically.

“Can you sit for a minute? There’s an empty table over there or this ben—”

“No. Thank you. I have to get to my store.” I felt like I’d popped a kid’s balloon or something equally awful when I saw Jake’s disappointment and heard Mack’s plaintive mewl. He probably was ready to get moving but, either way, my brisk tone sounded harsh. I smiled slightly to soften my words. “Thank you for the coffee, Jake. See you around.”

“Wait.” He pulled at Mack’s leash. “Hey, um… can we walk you to work?”

I immediately caught his use of the pronoun “we,” not “I.” It was terribly clever of him. He probably knew I’d have a hard time turning Mack down. Even if he was tethered to a somewhat insistent owner with ties to my past. I stared at him for a long moment. What was he up to? I decided there was no harm in walking a block together.

“All right.” I shrugged, trying to convey a nonchalant “if you feel like it” vibe.

Jake smiled brightly. I took a sip of my coffee to hide my answering grin and immediately winced in pain.

“Ow! Fuck.” I wrinkled my nose. Shit, that was hot.

Jake chuckled beside me. “It might be a little warm.”

“You’re a riot,” I scowled.

“It helps if you add a little milk and sugar,” he said with a wink.

“A little? You drowned your drink! Sometimes less is more, sugar.”

“Less sugar? Nah. That’s boring. I like sweet things.”

The unexpected flirtation made me smile. It was on the tip of my tongue to make an offhand comment about him staying away from boys like me, but I caught the words in time. I had a tendency to casually flirt with… well, everyone. But one did not flirt with an ex. One made polite conversation only, I sharply reminded myself.

“Yeah, so I gather.” Safe enough.

I walked in front of him for a moment to let a mother with a double-wide stroller pass by. She smiled her thanks, and then stopped me with a hand on my arm. She recognized me from a yoga class and occasionally came into my store. After the briefest exchange of pleasantries, I continued up the street. I could feel Jake’s amused stare.

“What?”

“I bet you know everyone in this town.”

I snorted but couldn’t help grinning at him. “I don’t know about that. However, I do know in the world of retail, it pays to be friendly.”

“Makes sense. Seems like good advice for any business,” he observed.