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“So, you work from home, I guess,” she said.
She’d settled onto the couch, a blanket over her, watching me work. I was trying to keep her from distracting me, but I’d gotten a glimpse of her body when she took her coat off. Those jeans hugged some serious curves.
Curves I’d like to get my hands on.
“Work from home?” I laughed. “I guess you could say that. I’ve made more than a few trips to people’s houses. If someone can’t get the car here, I go to there.”
“Wow. I wish we had something like that in Tampa. A mobile mechanic.”
I looked back at her. She was smiling.
“You drove all the way here from Tampa?”
Surely not. That had to be at least a ten-hour drive.
“I can’t fly,” she said.
Of course, she couldn’t. Not with her dog. But Max was an emotional support dog. Couldn’t she take him on an airplane? Maybe the reason she couldn’t fly had something to do with the reason she had the support dog.
“I don’t mind driving,” Meredith said. “It actually relaxes me. Besides, Emerald was one of my closest friends in school. I don’t know what I would have done without her. So when she told me she was getting married, I had to come. And then she asked if Max could be the ring bearer.”
As if he knew was being talked about, Max ran over to her feet and stood, waiting until she reached down and scooped him up. She settled him on her lap.
“Is it okay if he’s on the furniture?” she asked. “I can keep him here.”
I nodded. “He can go wherever he wants.”
The more I looked at this woman, the more I wanted to do whatever it took to keep her safe and happy. If it meant her dog dirtied up my home, I’d just clean up once they were gone. It would be well worth it.
Where had that come from? I normally didn’t want anyone in my home. I lived alone.
Shoving all those thoughts aside, I stood. “You hungry?”
“I had a big breakfast,” she said. “But I could use a glass of water. I know the power’s out, so you can’t open the fridge.”
“If it’s going to be out for long, I’ll just fire up the generator. I’ll have to run out and get some gas, though, so I prefer to wait at least a little longer if we can.
She nodded, and suddenly something hit me. If I headed out on those roads and got stuck, she’d be here alone with no electricity and a fire that would eventually peter out.
No, she needed me here, making sure she and Max were safe and warm. Taking care of them.
“Does your dog eat steak?” I asked.
As soon as I said the words, I braced myself for the answer. Max was no doubt on some sort of special dog food. She probably spent more on her dog’s meals than she did her own. And that would rule out my next offer, which was to fill a bowl with tap water.
“I have some bottled waters out in the garage,” I blurted before she could answer. “Let me go grab them.”
“Steak would be great.” She smiled, her expression softening. She was relieved that her dog wouldn’t starve. “Not now. But later. He eats at five. And tap water would be fine.”
My eyebrows arched as I continued out the door. I was impressed that she was open to regular food and tap water. Still, I found myself heading to the garage for the pack of bottled waters that had been out there since my mom visited last summer. I drank tap water and ate whatever I could get my hands on. I definitely was not a pampered pooch.
I was turning back toward the door, twenty-four bundled bottled waters in hand, when I saw Meredith standing at the garage door. Her gaze was firmly fixed on the car closest to her.
“Is that a classic car?”
I nodded as I stopped in front of my blue 1965 Ford Mustang. “I’ve been restoring it as a side project for the past couple of years. I originally was going to fix it up and sell it. It’s worth a lot more than I paid for it if I can get it in good condition. But I’ve kind of fallen in love with her.”
When I turned back to Meredith, she wore an amused expression. “Her?”
