Page 41 of Captivating Anika
Tired and a bit dizzy, I close my eyes. The sooner tomorrow gets here the better.
I’m just starting to nod off when I hear the door open, and I crack an eyelid. For a moment I wonder if I’m dreaming, but then I hear her voice.
“Hey, you were sleeping, I’ll come back later.”
She starts backing out again.
“Don’t go,” I quickly tell her. “Sweetheart, come here.”
It’s not until she starts moving toward my bed, I catch sight of Bodhi in the hallway behind her. He doesn’t say anything but closes the door, leaving his sister in here with me.
“How are you feeling?”
I reach out and she slips her hand in mine. I notice her eyes look a little puffy.
“A little rough, but I’ll be fine. What are you doing here?”
“Long story,” she says, trying to brush me off.
“I’ve got nothing pressing at the moment.”
I’m glad to see her crack a little smile.
“All right. That call you were at? That was Kim’s house on fire.”
“You’re kidding.”
If that was Kim’s house, then the guy we were searching the house for would’ve been her asshole husband. That’s messed up.
“She happened to be talking to one of her neighbors,” Anika continues. “They mentioned the roof had just collapsed on some firefighters. Bill Evans confirmed it was your crew, and there were injuries.”
I give her hand a little tug to pull her closer.
“So you came here.”
She shrugs and echoes, “So I came here.”
I lift her hand to my lips and press a kiss on the inside of her wrist.
“I’m sorry we scared you.”
She waves it off. “I’m just glad it wasn’t worse.”
Me too, it could’ve easily ended much differently. It would have seriously sucked to wait all those years for only the one night with her.
How ironic, it takes someone worrying about you to realize what a lonely existence you’ve led. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t like she had to worry, but I can’t deny it’s a pretty good feeling.
Before I get a chance to tell her that, Vic and Cheddar walk in. Anika immediately pulls back the hand I’ve been hanging on to since she walked in.
They had the presence of mind to bring me the phone I left in the engine, and just want to check in on me before heading back to the fire station. They don’t stay very long, but I stop them before they walk out.
“Any news on the guy we were looking for?”
I’m pretty sure he wasn’t in the house, but you never know, he could’ve been in the garage. I’m more curious now I know the guy seen going in the house was that son-of-a-bitch husband of Kim.
“The Engine 2 guys went in and didn’t find anything,” Vic volunteers. “Won’t know for sure until the fire inspector goes through though.”
It’s kind of strange, the guy comes home in his truck, lights a brush fire in the yard he was clearly not supervising, and now he’s nowhere to be found, but his truck is still in the driveway.