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The kiss had been something else. Familiar and completely new at the same time. It couldn’t possibly be as good as I’d remembered. “Probably those allergy pills messing with my head and my emotions.”
I plug my phone into the charger on the kitchen counter and take my tea with me to the living room.
I get comfortable on the couch, pull a pillow into my lap, and prop up my laptop. There’s no way I’m going back to sleep anytime soon. Might as well catch up on some work while I can. It’s going to be a challenging week.
I’m mostly caught up when my phone rings.
“I saw your lights were on and thought I’d check and make sure you’re feeling okay,” Joe says when I answer the call.
“Much better. Thanks for driving me back here. The nap helped.”
“Good, I’m glad. Hey, I’m about to cook up some steaks. Would you like to join me for dinner?” Joe asks.
“I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”
“You’re not hungry?”
“I am, but—”
“Then let me fix you some food. Nothing fancy, I promise. I’ll bring it over, and we can eat at your place. You won’t have to worry about another allergy attack. I’ll even change my shirt.”
The line is silent for a moment while I try to work through the implications of having dinner with Joe tonight. Maybe it’s not such a bad idea. We need to talk about what happened today, and I’d rather do it here than at the office.
“Alright. I’ll make a salad and bake up some rolls to go with it.”
He shows up with two humongous T-Bone steaks half an hour later.
“Something smells good,” he says as he walks in and sets the plates down. One of them is missing a small chunk of meat.
“It’s the rolls. I pulled them out a couple of minutes ago. How’s the steak?” I ask, pointing to the plate in question.
“No idea, but Spike seemed to enjoy it.” Joe grins, and that weird feeling I’d tapped down thanks to a huge mug of chamomile tea is rearing its head again.
“What’s the plan for him? Is he a permanent fixture at your place?”
To my surprise, he shakes his head. “I need to find him a good home. Maybe Cara would take him in. Doesn’t she have a couple of kids?”
“One of them is allergic to pets. That’s where the allergy pills came from. By the way, those things are no joke.” They’d knocked me out despite the high-caffeine beverage that seems to be doing its job now.
“I saw. Well, let me know if you hear of someone else who may be interested.”
“You could hang up some flyers in the building,” I say.
He shakes his head. “Not going to work. My lease says no pets.”
“That must be a stipulation by the property management company you’re leasing through. Mrs. Pearl has a cat.”
“You know, you’re right. I might give that a try. Thanks.” He turns and puts a roll on each of the plates.
“I usually am.” I grab the salad from the fridge and lead the way to the kitchen table that’s set with silverware and napkins.
Joe laughs and sits down in front of the plate that holds the steak Spike has sampled.
“Can I get you something to drink?”
“Water would be good.”
I fill two tall glasses with ice and top them off with water. Taking a deep breath to calm that jittery feeling I can’t seem to shake, I return to the table, hoping the food will calm me. My stomach growls at the sight and scent of the spread in front of me.
