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Sebastian, my parents, and Trey join me in the kitchen, where we pray for God’s comfort and peace, not only for me but for the family of Mr. Halbert Jenkins. My family was visibly upset when they learned of the threat Halbert’s son had made against me, but they also know people say things in anger or despair they don’t really mean. Hopefully, that’s the case in this situation.
“Make sure you keep a close eye on my girl,” my father says. Trey and Sebastian nod in unison, and I feel the noose tightening around my neck. They aren’t going to let me out of their sight until they’re sure there’s nothing to worry about.
“I’ll keep a close eye on her as well, Mr. Arbaroa,” says a voice behind me. I turn around to see Carter standing there looking ready for a fight, his chest heaving as if he’s run from the city to get here. “Of that, you can be certain.”
Chapter eight
Carter
Melissadidn’thaveachance to say much at our encounter in the parking garage because I had received a text from Trey telling me that Leanna had lost her first patient and needed a friend. I immediately clicked the key fob for my truck and explained to her that I needed to go.
Melissa touched my arm to stop me. “I owe you an apology, and I’d like the opportunity to explain if you’ll let me,” she said, sounding as sweet as I remember and equally as sincere.
“It’s been a long time, and it’s in the past. Don’t worry about it,” I told her, trying to play it off. I just wanted to get home and away from there.
“Carter Zane Andrews! I will stand in front of your truck until you give me a chance to explain. Otherwise, you’ll be forced to run me over.”
“I see you are as manipulative as ever,” I said, slamming my door and walking back over to her. “This is not the time nor the place to have this discussion, and I have somewhere urgent I need to be. If you really want to apologize and explain, you can meet me at a coffee shop on Wednesday in Newark at 7:30 a.m. The place is called #JavaGoodTime and is on the corner of Fourth and Main. Be there or not, I don’t care.”
“How do I know you’ll show up?” she asked.
My face heated in annoyance at having my integrity challenged, requiring me to take three deep breaths to calm down enough before saying, “I am not the one who broke promises. I didn’t then, and I don’t now. If that’s not good enough for you, then don’t bother with an apology. It’s not needed.”
“Fine. I’ll see you on Wednesday.” Out of the corner of my eye, I barely noticed the cute smile and flirty pose she tried to flash me, but my attention was wholly focused on someone else–someone far more important to me.
As soon as Melissa was clear of my truck, I pulled out of the parking space and sped away. On the drive home, a call came through from Sebastian.
“How is she?” was the first thing I asked when the call connected.
“She’s trying to be tough. I was going to send her home, but she insisted on staying here at the station. I hoped that when our parents showed up, she would cave and decide to go with them. None of the guys here would judge her for losing a patient and having an emotional reaction. I’m positive that’s why she’s trying to put up a good front.”
I didn’t necessarily agree with him. While neither ofuswould judge her, it doesn’t mean that everyone else feels the same way. There are a few arrogant guys who would razz her about it. “I’m on my way and should be there in less than half an hour.”
“You aren’t leaving work early, are you? I didn’t mean to take you away from an event,” Sebastian says apologetically.
“Nah, we had already wrapped up, and the timing couldn’t have been more perfect. Tell me what happened.”
He did. He told me about the emergency call, the loss incurred, and the threats that followed. I typed the name Halbert Jenkins into my computer system, and his basic information populated quickly. I scrolled through the information on my dashboard screen that is linked to my computer system.
“Halbert Jenkins has one son. The son’s name is Mark Jenkins, age 56. His wife is deceased, and he has two children, Amanda and Braydon. He’s a lawyer—disbarred eight years ago—currently employed with an insurance company in their Human Resources department.”
“You got all that from typing his name? I need to download whatever search engine you use because that was like Google on steroids!”
I chuckled at my friend’s ability to find humor in any situation. “It does come in handy to have the best toys at my disposal.”
“Thanks for the update. I’ll pass the information on, and we’ll see you when you get here.” He hung up, and I put the pedal to the metal. This wasn’t a crisis situation by most people’s standards. But then again, no one outside of Leanna’s family knows her like I do. The only tears I’ve ever seen her shed were from laughter, not distress. For her to cry openly and have tear stains on her cheeks means this is a code 1 best-friend emergency.
It felt like forever had passed by the time I pulled up to the station, when, in fact, I arrived in record time. The firehouse was eerily quiet since almost everyone was upstairs and asleep at the early hour. I followed the voices echoing from down the hall and stopped when I overheard the family praying. I bowed my head along with them. When they were done, I resumed my trek in silence to avoid interrupting.
I entered the room after Leanna’s father, Nicholas, told the men around the table, “Make sure you keep a close eye on my girl.” Sebastian and Trey both bobbed their heads in agreement.
The Arbaroa family isn’t alone in their need to see Leanna safe from harm, so I spoke up and said, “I’ll keep a close eye on her as well, Mr. Arbaroa.” Leanna jumped at the sound of my voice and turned to face me. When our eyes locked, I continued, “Of that, you can be certain.”
Leanna didn’t leave her shift to go home, but with only a few hours remaining, it wasn’t a difficult decision for me to stay with her and keep her company. I was far too wound up to sleep anyway. Daphne texted me before she left for work this morning after noticing that my truck wasn’t in the drive. I gave her the bullet points of the events that had transpired and told her to keep a lookout for anyone suspicious.
“It’s probably too early for any type of retribution from Mark Jenkins, but it’s better to err on the side of caution. That means setting the alarms, even if you’re home.” I’m grateful that Daphne doesn’t argue with me. However, her next statement raised my hackles.
“It’s nice to see you finally admit your feelings for Leanna. The flowers were a nice touch, especially since you know that wildflowers are her favorite. They smell wonderful.”
