He was still looking at me, and I couldn't look away. That smudge of dirt on his cheekbone needed to be brushed off and I wanted to be the one to do it. His hair was messy, probably from running his hands through it.
"What?" Julian asked and touched his cheek.
"You have dirt on your face."
He wiped at the wrong cheek. "Did I get it?"
"Other side."
He tried again and missed. I reached over and brushed my thumb across his cheekbone.
"There." I pulled my hand back.
"Thanks." There was color in his cheeks that hadn't been there before.
We sat with our shoulders touching. His scent was a little different without the panic underneath. I was tempted to lean closer and figure out if it was his body wash or just him.
The vet came out twenty minutes later with good news. Bailey had been given activated charcoal and was on IV fluids. She'd need to stay for observation, but the prognosis was good.
Julian's relief was immediate. He took a deep breath and grinned. I pictured the tension draining out of him.
"Thank you. When can Mrs. Walker come get her?"
"We'll keep her overnight for monitoring. You can have the owner call us to arrange a pickup tomorrow."
After the vet left, Julian pulled out his phone. "I should call Rita and Mrs. Walker." He managed a shaky smile. "And probably cry a little, but I'll save that for when I'm alone."
"You held it together."
"Barely." He looked at me. "Seriously, thank you. I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't been there."
He would have driven or called an Uber. He was resourceful and would have figured it out. "I'm glad I could help."
We walked out to the parking lot. "I can drop you wherever you need to go," I offered.
"The van is still at the park."
The drive was non-eventful. Julian kept glancing at me, and I inhaled his scent which was more potent in the confines of the car. I couldn’t help noticing his knee was inches from mine.
When we pulled up at the van, Julian didn't immediately get out. He placed his hand on the door handle.
"It's complicated," I said. I hadn’t planned on saying that.
"What is?" Julian asked.
"The thing that’s stopping me from you know." I couldn't look at him.
"From opening up more?” There was no accusation in his voice.
"Yeah."
"It's okay." He grinned. "I'm pretty patient."
Then he got out, but before he closed the door, he leaned back in.
"Next time you want to almost kiss me in a hallway, maybe actually do it."
Then he was gone and I sat in my car trying to remember how to breathe.
