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Under the surface, the thoughts of Lisa and her grandfather’s words lingered in Emma’s mind like a heavy weight. Perhaps they were right; maybe it was time to let go of the past. Nonetheless, she reminded herself that Luke was only a friend, albeit a strikingly handsome one, but nothing more as far as she knew.
Chapter 12
Luke
“Jeremiah, come on, we’re going to be late if you don’t pick up the pace!”
Luke looked at his watch. The rescue was only a few miles away, but he didn’t want Jeremiah to make a bad first impression by being late.
“Coming!” Jeremiah yelled back, his tone laced with attitude. “You don’t have to shout so much.”
“I just want you to be on time,” Luke explained as he opened the front door.
They rushed over to the Range Rover, got in, and drove off. Jeremiah had a scowl etched on his face the entire way there. He suspected Jeremiah wasn’t excited about doing community service, but he had a hunch that once they arrived at the rescue, Jeremiah might just enjoy it. At least, that’s what Luke hoped.
As they pulled up to the animal rescue, Luke couldn’t help but notice the quaint and charming nature of the building with its bright red door and white trim. The architecture was reminiscent of a small cottage with a pitched roof and small windows adorned with flower boxes. A polished brass sign hanging above the entrance featured a silhouette of a cat and a dog engraved with the text, Second Chance Animal Rescue.
Getting out of the car, Luke looked up and saw the girl from the Sheriff’s station standing a couple yards away. Her hair flowed softly in the breeze, and she looked even prettier in the natural light. He glanced over at Jeremiah, thinking he would be thrilled to work with her, especially after he had protected her from her ex-boyfriend. However, Jeremiah’s face turned red, and he lowered his head, walking over to Luke.
“I changed my mind. I want to do the highway clean-up instead,” Jeremiah whispered.
Luke raised an eyebrow in surprise. “What? Why?”
Jeremiah shrugged, avoiding eye contact. “It’s no big deal. I just think it might be better for me.”
“It’s too late now. We’re here, and you’re going to be volunteering at the rescue today. It’s only a couple of hours, and then you can go back to wallowing in your room.”
Jeremiah stormed off, brushing past him. Luke walked back over to the car to grab the community service form out of the glove compartment before going inside to give it to Jeremiah.
“Here,” Luke said, holding out the form to Jeremiah. “Don’t forget you need them to sign it after you’re finished.”
Jeremiah snatched it from Luke’s hand and handed it to the woman behind the desk. Luke noticed the woman was the mother of the girl from the sheriff’s office. She looked surprised to see him.
“Hey, I think I remember you from the sheriff’s office, right?” the woman said, looking at Jeremiah.
Jeremiah nodded. “Yeah, that was me.”
“Thanks again for what you did for my daughter. I’m Kara, by the way. I’ll give you a tour of the rescue, and then we’ll get you started,” she said, leading the way with a warm smile on her face.
Luke grinned at Kara and then directed his attention to Jeremiah. “I’ll be back to pick you up in a couple of hours, okay?”
Jeremiah didn’t reply, ignoring him completely. Luke sighed and headed back out to the parking lot. As he opened the door and walked toward the Range Rover, he collided with Emma and an older man who were heading inside.
“Oh!” she exclaimed, stepping back. “Luke, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to run right into you.”
Luke smiled. “I’m afraid that’s my fault. I should have looked where I was going.”
“Well, it doesn’t matter now. What are you doing here?” Emma asked.
“Dropping off Jeremiah. He’s going to be volunteering today.”
“Excellent!” the older man said. “It’s always good to have new blood around here.”
“Luke, this is my grandfather, Liam. Grandpa, this is Luke. He’s new in town, and the one who found Riley.”
“It’s nice to meet you sir,” Luke said, shaking his hand. “And hopefully my son doesn’t give you any trouble. We’re both going through a bit of a rough patch at the moment.”
Liam beamed, putting a hand on his shoulder. “I’ll look out for him today, don’t you worry.”
