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“He looks like a cool dude,” I argue as I head upstairs to get changed.
“Hey, you up for a few beers?” Todd calls after me.
“I’m going out.”
“Where?” He sounds affronted, and I stall halfway up the stairs, cringing.
“Walking Steve.”
“I’ll come.”
My cringe deepens. “I already have a dog-walking partner.” I wipe my face clear and face him. “Sorry, mate.”
He looks surprised, but then after a few seconds of his mind heading in the totally right direction, I see realization dawn on him. I brace myself. Todd gasps. “She has a dog. The married woman has a dog.” He points down at Steve. “You only got this screeching little shit to get closer to her. Fucking hell, Luke. I thought you had a brain.” He shakes his head in disappointment. “She’s clearly leading you on, the prick tease.”
I feel my blood boil over. I can’t control it. “She’s not a fucking prick tease.” My roared words knock Todd back a bit, his mouth snapping shut. “Far fucking from it, and if I hear you utter another word to that effect about her, I’ll rip your fucking head off, got it?”
Todd steps back in shock. “All right, bro. Calm down.”
“And don’t ever call Steve a little shit again.” I dip and pick up the little shit and stomp to my bedroom, willing myself to calm down. That was way over the top of me. Way, way over the top. “She’s just a fucking friend,” I tell Steve, dropping him to his paws.
I rake a hand through my hair, sighing heavily. “Fuck it.” I throw on some jeans and a heavy knitted roll-neck jumper, as well as my double-breasted navy coat and a scarf. Collecting my Timberland boots from my closet, I make tracks downstairs, set on apologizing to Todd. I didn’t mean to blow my stack, and if he knew Lo, he’d understand why I did. He huffs and looks away from me when I enter the kitchen.
“I’m sorry, mate.”
Todd swivels on his stool, turning his back on me. “Don’t sweat it. And don’t come crying to me when it all goes tits up.”
“We’re just friends,” I say for the millionth time. “She has a dog, I have a dog. That’s it.”
My words prompt Todd to face me again. He looks insulted. “Put your hand on your heart and tell me you don’t have feelings for her.”
“I don’t have feelings for her,” I declare, thumping my chest. I really don’t. Not those kinds, anyway. I love her as a friend. She’s special.
Todd shakes his head in despair. “You’re a twat.”
“She’s not happily married.” I didn’t plan on saying that, and I feel truly awful that I have. I feel like I’ve betrayed Lo in a fucked-up kind of way. And, really, I have no facts.
Todd looks at me with wide eyes. “But you’re just friends?”
“Yes,” I assure him. “I like her. A lot. She’s . . . different. She makes me feel good about myself. But there was something not right from the moment I met her. She was so withdrawn, sad, and when I hugged her, she clung to me so desperately.” Shaking my head, I pinch the bridge of my nose. “I don’t know.” I drop my arms to my side, exhausted. “The night I nearly ran her over, I think she stepped out in front of my car on purpose.”
“What?” Todd recoils.
“Yeah.” I roll my shoulders to rid my spine of the shiver that slivers up it. “What could push a woman to think death is the best option, Todd?”
“I don’t know, but it’s not your problem.” He gets up and pulls the fridge open, grabbing a Bud. “Stay out of it, Luke.”
I sigh, knowing deep down he wouldn’t understand. He sees women in one light. I grab Steve’s lead and get going. “See you later.” I don’t hang around to let Todd try and stop me.
A bulldozer couldn’t, so Todd doesn’t stand a chance. When you care for a friend, you’re there for them. I’ll always be there for Lo.
I’ve been waiting at the end of Lo’s street for fifteen minutes clock-watching. It’s ten-past, and I’m getting twitchy. So is Steve, throwing himself around my car, yapping and barking, dying to break free. Where is she? I spin my phone in my hand, deliberating over whether I should text her. No, that would be stupid. I’ll give her ten more minutes. Those ten minutes feel like hours, and when I see someone jogging down the street, I deflate in my seat as soon as I see it’s Lo. I frantically wait for her face to become clear, searching for any signs of distress. There’s nothing. She raises her hand and waves, Boris trotting alongside her.
I slide out of my car, and Steve dives out behind me. “I was getting worried.”
