Someone tried to Google her on their phone, but they were caught and shamed for cheating.
As everyone pushed back from the table, Russ focused his eyes on her like a laser.
“You answered yes to the question, ‘Do you work with animals?’”
“Correct.”
“But you answered no to, ‘Are you a veterinarian?’”
“I’m not old enough to be a vet.” Erin grinned over her tea. “Vets are at least twenty-six. They attend eight years of school.”
“No wonder it costs so much to get Shadow’s shots.” Russ fell into step with her as they all filed toward their cars and a round of late-night laser tag. “Vet tech?”
“Nope.”
“But I’m close?”
“Yes.”
“You make house calls?”
“Yes.”
Russ held open the restaurant door, and Erin thought of how his manners mirrored Travis’s. Was she destined to compare every man to Travis?
He snapped his fingers as they walked toward their cars. “You rescue animals.”
The smile spread across her face of its own accord as it did every time she thought of what she did. “Correct.”
“Wow.” The admiration in his voice was genuine. “There was a special on the national news not long ago covering animal rescue people and what happened during Hurricane Katrina. It’s a gutsy job, Erin.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment, so thank you. Most of what I do isn’t nearly as dangerous as what happens during or after a hurricane though.”
“I’ll bet you have some stories to tell.” He stopped by her truck and waited while she unlocked the cab.
She felt torn. It was nice to have someone express a genuine interest in her and in her work. Someone who wasn’t judging her for doing something too dangerous for a woman. And Russ seemed like a generally pleasant guy. She peered at him in the darkness and held in a sigh.
Is this what Travis wanted? For her to give someone else a try? A fist squeezed around her heart, and she struggled to ignore the sensation, to maintain the light mood they’d shared all evening.
“I want to hear some of those stories, but if we don’t hurry, everyone else is going to be through round one of laser tag—a game I usually win.” His grin in the reflection of her dome light magnified his youthful appearance. How old was he? Twenty-two? Twenty-three? Practically a child.
Then she caught her own reflection in the driver’s window and realized she was twenty-two. Why did she feel so much older? She didn’t realize she was shaking her head until Russ placed his hand on her arm.
“Don’t worry. If you’ve never aimed a rifle, I can help you. It’s pretty simple.”
The competitor in Erin raised its head. “Oh, I’ve aimed a rifle. I own a Pneu-Dart 178 Air Activated Rifle, among other things.”
“Ever use one with a night scope?”
“Of course. I get called on night rescues.”
Russ threw his hand up in a high five, and she couldn’t help responding, even though it made her feel like a teenager again. As she followed him out into the small line of cars, she realized maybe that wasn’t such a bad thing. Perhaps it was okay to leave behind her grown-up responsibilities for a few hours.
And it definitely would be okay to win some rounds of laser tag. Finally, a game she would be good at playing.
Thirty-Four
The problem was not the rifle.
The problem was the garb.
“Are they serious?” She held the vest in one hand, the helmet in another.
“Afraid so, sweetie. Boys will be boys.” Mitzi pulled the vest around her considerable bosom and tightened the cords as though she’d done it a hundred times.
“Or in this case, men will be boys.” Elaine plopped the helmet over her hair, flipped up the visor, and grinned. “It is kind of a rush. I always wanted to be on a SWAT team.”
“Why do you two know how to do this?”
“They hang out here.” Russ walked over, already suited out. “I’ve seen them on Saturday nights, taking down the high school crowd.”
“That is not true. Tony loved laser tag though.” Mitzi flipped her visor shut, but not before Erin saw the wetness in her eyes. “Fair warning—I’m good at this.”
Turning, she marched off to her team’s huddle.
“She’s not lying,” Elaine said. “She’d beat her husband every time he came home on leave. It made him crazy.”
Russ had been demonstrating how to adjust Erin’s vest straps, but he froze at Elaine’s words. “Is this too, uh, emotional for her? We could do something else.”
“No way. If I know Mitz, it will help release some of her tension. I’d stay out of her line of fire though. You two are on the opposing team.” Elaine saluted and jogged to catch up with her best friend.
“I’m never going to get these strap things adjusted in time, Russ. Go on without me.”
“It’s not that hard once you get the hang of it. Pull up on the black catches here and pull down on the straps here. See?”
“I see the catches on yours, but mine don’t seem to be in the same place.”
“They should have given you a teen vest. This one’s too big. Do you want me to exchange it?”
“No.”
“I think it will work if you’d just pull the straps tighter.”
“Do it for me.” Erin looked over at their team. Homer was waving at them wildly to hurry and join them.
“Okay. Hold your arms out.” He moved closer, pulled the straps tight, and she felt the vest snug to her body.
Just as Russ looked down and into her eyes, pulling the last strap tight, Erin felt someone else watching her. Arms still out, she turned so Russ could check her straps one last time.
That was when she saw him.
Travis was standing on the sidelines, and his eyes locked with hers.
For a moment she felt as if all the wind had been squeezed out of her body, then she realized it had.
“Too tight,” she gasped.
“Huh? Oh right. Sorry.”
He eased up the strap around her chest and she drew in a deep breath. It did nothing to help the ache in her heart, but it did help clear her head.
“Am I ready?” She turned her attention back to Russ.
“Yeah, except for the helmet. You definitely look ready.” He was staring at her curiously.
“What’s wrong?”
“An attack look suddenly came over your face. I’m glad I’m on your team.”
“Yeah. You should be.” She pushed her helmet on, flipped the visor down and marched over to her group, wondering if Travis would receive an electrical charge if she happened to open fire.
What gave him the right to show up and spy on her? Is that what he was doing? It would be different if he was participating, but he wasn’t. He was standing there watching, making her nervous. She’d finally begun to relax, to enjoy the evening, and then he shows up and…
Her anger evaporated as she realized how much she missed him. Missed his laughter, the feel of his hands in her hair, his lips on hers, his voice in her ear.
Why couldn’t he at least be a part of the group?
Why couldn’t he make this easier for her?
The rawness of her pain was too much.
As Homer directed her toward a three-foot wall and the lights went out, she suddenly needed to clean her body of the frustration that had built up over the last week.
The laser rifle was a handy tool.
She threw herself into the fight with all the concentration and energy she could muster. Played as if the Enemies of Morgon were chasing her, and any capture would result in Joshua living an orphaned, penniless life. She didn’t know who the Enemies of Morgon were, but she’d heard one of Shirley’s older boys discussing a video game, and they served as a good enough visual.
She didn’t waste a single shot. Her aim was true, and her instincts primed by Travis’s intrusion. When she felt someone closing i
n on her position, she threw herself behind a barrier without regard to the bruises she would have the next day.
Jerking her head around at the last moment, she caught Mitzi’s form silhouetted by a laser shot meant for someone else.
She saw Mitzi raise her weapon and knew there was only one way to escape the kill. Throwing herself over the two-foot barricade, she landed squarely on top of Russ.
“Don’t shoot me,” he muttered.
“You okay?”
“I’ll live if you point that laser gun the other direction.”
Erin quickly assumed a defensive position. “There’s at least one, maybe two hostiles on the other side.”
“Bless my mother, we’ve unleashed a fighter.”
“Put your back to mine, Russ. This is no time to play around. We have them hurting, but Mitzi wants this. They’ll attack our position any minute.”
The hail of laser fire began the second she stopped talking. One part of her mind realized it was a game, but the other part had too much invested.
Russ pressed his back against hers, turned his head so she could hear him, and offered a plan. It wasn’t a good plan, but the giant wall clock said they had one minute, twenty-two seconds left.
“On my mark?” he asked.
“Absolutely.”
“Three, two, one…”
Both stood and fired into the darkness, in opposite directions, semi-circular patterns.
Erin felt the slightest twinge in the shoulder of her vest as it immediately lit up. She pulled her trigger another three times before she accepted she’d been hit and her rifle would no longer work.
She was lowering her weapon in defeat, when Russ’s shout of victory rang out.
“Yes! We did it!”
The lights were coming on, and Erin blinked against their brightness to read the time on the game display clock. Eighteen seconds?
“We won?”
“We won. We did it!”
Then Homer, Justin, Kayli, and two others Erin couldn’t remember the names of were gathered around, chanting and celebrating, laughing and raising their laser rifles in victory.
Erin looked over at Mitzi and Elaine. They were huddled in their group, also whooping it up and celebrating their total hits for the game. Apparently, it had been very close.
Erin started toward Mitzi at the same time Mitzi turned toward her.
“Great game,” Mitzi said.
“You too.”
“Yeah. It helps work out some of my frustrations.” Mitzi sat on top of the three-foot wall and swung her foot. “I forget everything for a little while.”
Erin looked over to where Travis had been standing.
“I know what you mean,” she said softly. “Maybe you and I could meet back here for a mid-week rematch.”
Mitzi flipped off her helmet, and red hair spilled loose from underneath it. When she looked back up at Erin, a mischievous grin had spread across her face. “Maybe next time, you and I will be on the same team. Then they won’t have a chance.”
She placed her hand in the air in the universal invitation to high five. As Erin made contact, then pulled her into a hug, suddenly something from the night was salvaged. She hadn’t solved any of her own problems, but she had helped to lighten the load of a friend, even if only for a minute.
For now it was enough.
They walked shoulder to shoulder back toward the rest of the group amid whistles and mock bows of honor.
“You can all put your money where your mouth is,” Mitzi said, tossing her rifle to Elaine.
Homer tried to back toward the edge of the group without being noticed, something difficult for a former college defensive back.
“Homer, I think you bet I couldn’t finish ahead of you in the rankings.”
“Didn’t realize we’d have a new Rambo on the set,” Homer muttered.
“That’s no excuse. Conozca a su enemigo.”
“I didn’t realize Erin was my enemy, but I’ll pay up.”
“Bueno. I’d like the old greenhouse fixed up before the first frost.” Mitzi’s grin was unrestrained as they turned to walk toward their cars.
“What did he bet you?” Erin asked as she fell into step beside her.
“That he would see about weatherproofing an old greenhouse I have behind my place. The roof leaks a little and the windows are drafty. I’d love to be able to continue to grow vegetables and my herbs in there during the winter.”
“And Homer didn’t think you could win tonight?”
“Homer didn’t think she could even finish in the top three.” Russ’s voice next to her sounded amused. “Of course, he hadn’t counted on you either. You were great in there, Erin.”
“Yeah. I had a little built-up tension to release.”
“You don’t say.” Russ studied her as she unlocked her truck. “Whatever the reason, it was a lot of fun.”
Erin shifted in the dim light of the parking lot. She thought of what Shirley had said about trusting her instincts, and her instincts were telling her right now that Russ was looking at her with a familiar light in his eyes—the same way she looked at Travis.
“You’re coming for dessert, right?”
“I can’t.”
“It’s just dessert, and it’s only nine-thirty.”
“Yes, but I need to pick up Josh.”
“That’s your little boy—the one you found?”
She nodded, unable to explain what he meant to her. Suddenly though, she needed to be with him, needed to cradle him in her arms.
Russ held the door as she climbed into the truck. “I’m glad you came tonight.”
“I’m glad I came too, but—”
“You don’t have to say anything, Erin.”
Her head snapped around, and she searched his eyes.
“We’re friends here. We back each other up. Try to get out and have some fun for a few hours a couple times a month. It’s all good.”
“I feel like I’m in a different place though.” She searched for a way to explain all the conflicting thoughts and feelings percolating inside of her.
“We’re all in different places. Drive safe.” He shut the truck door gently, stepped back, and waved.
—
Travis walked into the diner and stopped short at the front counter.
“Table for one?” The waitress had a short gray bob and looked at him skeptically over wire-rim glasses.
“No. Thank you. I’m meeting some friends.” Travis nodded toward the group in the corner, then moved slowly toward them, feeling trapped. He’d scanned the table twice, but hadn’t spotted Erin’s auburn curls. If she wasn’t there, he had no desire to stay, but with the waitress shepherding him toward the only vacant chair, he didn’t feel as if he had much choice.
“Look who decided to grace us with his presence.” Homer’s smile knocked the sarcasm out of his welcome, much as his bear of a handshake temporarily knocked Travis’s worries out of his mind.
Searching for a way to distract the big guy, Travis looked over the table. “Cherry cobbler?”
“That would be mine.” Homer released his hand and sat back down. “Should have made it here sooner Williams. You might have scored a piece. Should have made it to the laser game, too, though I doubt you would have scored there. I would have had you on the mat in the first thirty seconds.”
“Travis was at the laser game.” Elaine leaned back in her chair and blew on her steaming mug of coffee.
Eleven pairs of eyes turned to stare at him.
“Actually, I was.” Travis waved away the menu the waitress offered, but eagerly accepted the cup of coffee. He shouldn’t. His shoulders already felt like knotted rope, but the caffeine kick would help him attack the bulging bag of paperwork in his car.
“So what gives, man? The game look too tough for you?” Homer scooped up another piece of cherry cobbler, dipped it into the ice cream waiting on the side, and popped it into his mouth.
Travis wondered if the homemade desse
rt had him grinning like a fool, or if the big guy really was that arrogant. “Come on, Homer. I’ve beat you at everything this group has played.”
“Ha! And you’re scared you’ll lose at laser tag. That’s it, isn’t it?”
Choruses of “he looks scared” lapped the table. Travis took the ribbing good-naturedly. If it distracted the group from his real reasons for stopping by now and why he’d left earlier, it was worth the misunderstanding.
Ten minutes later, he’d finished his cup of coffee. He stood, stretched, and deliberately looked at his watch. “I’m afraid I have a few hours of paperwork, boys and girls.”
People waved and said good-bye. A few threw a “see you Sunday” his way. Elaine nodded, smiled, then turned to talk to her friend, Mitzi. What made him think they were talking about him?
He needed sleep. Why had he drunk the coffee?
Heading out of the diner’s door, he nearly jumped off the curb when he felt a hand on his shoulder.
“Sorry, Travis. Didn’t mean to startle you.” Russ Lawson smiled back at him in the curbside lamplight.
“Hey, Russ. I’m a little edgy, that’s all. Shouldn’t have had the coffee.”
“I know what you mean. We’ll all be up late now, what with the caffeine and the sugar. Could I talk to you a minute?”
“Sure. Like I said, I was heading out to get some work done.” Travis stuffed his hands in his pockets and tried to look overburdened with work, which he was.
“This won’t take long. We’ve always been straight with each other.”
Travis searched his mind for where Russ could be heading, but came up blank, so he simply nodded.
“I saw you come in during the laser game too. Seemed to me like you were watching over Erin, maybe checking on her.”
“No. Absolutely not.” Travis felt his face redden and tried to stop himself from over-protesting. “I mean she’s one of my clients…”
The lie died on his lips. He had no idea how to end it.
“So you’d have no problem with me asking her out on a date? Because the thing is I felt a real connection with her tonight. I don’t know if it’s mutual, but I think it might be.”
Travis stared at Russ, then realized the man was waiting for an answer to something.
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