by Cyndi Raye
She nodded and gave him a sheepish smile. Was that disappointed on her face, he wondered. Her sweet, innocent and yet inviting smile worked on him. He had to leave the room. “I plan to give the local vet a call to see if we can have Penny moved tonight to their facility. I’ll let you know.” With those words, Jon headed towards the door and out of the exam room, away from the red head who made him feel as if she were the only thing in the world he ever wanted.
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The moment the doc left the room, Abby let out a deep breath. She gritted her teeth and then puckered full lips. Her hands covered her face and she tried to contain herself from laughing out loud hysterically. What a night! Knowing that Penny was safe was such a relief and she felt secure that the dog would pull through. But, the lust she felt for the doctor was a feeling that she never had experienced before. The thing was, she just knew the doc felt the same way. He had flung her against that wall as if he were about to devour her. He made her feel as if she were the most inviting woman on the face of the earth. These raw emotions were so new to her, how would she ever get through the night!
Abby was not the kind of lady who went after men at all. She really had no experience, except for the promise she made to herself to live her life like as free as possible. She was not going to let anything stop her from enjoying every single feeling and emotion on her journey in this world. Her parents taught her that. They were free spirits, a product of the 70’s who lived on the road while they experienced the back roads and trenches of the southern state of Florida. They taught her to be the same way. She never knew any other life, wandering from place to place along the Florida coasts and the Keys until Jacob Earl came into their lives and they finally settled down a bit. She would always be grateful to Mr. Earl for what he did for all of them.
In the days when she was homeless, the only thoughts she had in her mind was to finish her schooling, which consisted of the school of hard knocks and some material her mother made sure she completed every single day to give her an education. She muddled through it, but when her parents both passed on and Mr. Earl took her into his own home, he had an extensive library that she used to learn even more. She devoured books and took some on-line courses, but the fact was, in the end, all that never really mattered. She could have gone to college, Mr. Earl would have paid for it. She could have basically done whatever she wanted to do, because he left her a large amount of money and a home. He had no one else to give it to. After his wife died in the 90’s, he lived alone until she came along and he took her in.
She missed Mr. Earl almost as much as she missed her parents. She started to take in stray animals because they tugged at her heart, she knew what it was like to be homeless. There was plenty of strays in the Keys and they loved her. She hired a homeless couple living in a small cottage on the property, helping her to take care of the animals when she was not there to do it herself. They didn’t talk much, mostly worked and spent time alone in their little cottage so she just didn’t really have another human to relate to. No girlfriends, no close friends at all. She wasn’t sure if she missed that or not, because she never had it to begin with.
Once or twice a week, Abby went to the local hospice center with one of her pets to help put some smiles on sick patient’s faces. She loved taking the animals there and came up with the idea of dressing as Pippi Longstocking one day, which everyone, young and old alike, just loved. Of course, today just happened to be the day she had come home from the hospice center dressed in her Pippi garb when she heard Penny crying and whimpering for help.
Just then, Jon opened the door and popped his head around the corner. “I have the animal hospital on the phone. They want to know if you have any idea how long she was in the trap?”
Abby shrugged. “I’m just not sure. I left the house maybe around ten, and she usually goes with me. But today I was running late and I left her at home. I returned around six and that’s when I heard her crying. As a matter of fact, I can’t believe the Millers never heard her cries. Do you think she was in the trap that long?”
Jon shrugged and spoke on the phone. He hung up and stuffed his cell in his pocket, still not entering the room, his body half in and half out of the door frame. Abby almost smiled but refrained. She knew why he wasn’t getting close to her.
“Since we have her stable here and she’s getting an IV drip, they said to keep her sedated and let her rest tonight for a few hours. First thing in the morning, they’ll send their van down to pick her up.”
Abby nodded. It was going to be a long night in the urgent care center. “Do you have any coffee?” she asked. “I’m not going anywhere.”
She heard Jon sigh. “I’ll get a pot started. If you want any, there will be some in the lobby shortly.” With that he shut the door a bit harder than normal. Abby was smiling and then she giggled to herself. She never, ever had a man stay that far from her because he was afraid of getting too close.
It was a powerful feeling.
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Thanks for reading and if you love Jon and Abby’s story, make sure to check out Josh, the agent whose been working his way around the Florida Keys. He now has his own story to tell in Key West Wild.
Here’s a chapter of Key West Wild:
Chapter 1
Joshua Eden took a long swig of Gentleman Jack, swirling the amber liquid in his mouth. It slid down his throat as his gaze wandered to a cab that stopped along the curb outside the bar. He relished this slow, laid back life right now. It was his way to rejuvenate and come back to the real world. What a relief not to be living on the edge, no drug dealers or gun runners or crime any more. A glass of expensive whiskey at his disposal was all he cared about.
The lazy days he spent at bars in Key West helped him unwind from the last ten years, at least it’s what he told himself. Life in paradise helped him to forget everything, although at times it wasn’t that simple. Josh realized old habits and trained skills kept him on edge.
The windows, which ran from the ceiling to the floor gave a perfect view of the most famous street in Key West. Along the side of the building were more large doorways and that’s what Josh liked best, a wide view along the city streets. Never sitting with his back to the door kept him from sudden surprises.
It was early afternoon, so most of the crowds walking down the famous street were tourists. A beautiful woman stepped from the cab. She began to walk towards him, or at least towards where he sat behind the glass window. Her right arm struggled with a set of chic luggage.
The thing he noticed most was the desperation that rang all over her face, even if she tried hard to hide it. Long legs in tight jeans stepped one foot in front of the other. She passed by the window, so close her misty blue eyes connected with his. A jolt went through him. It surprised him because here in the Keys beautiful women were everywhere. But this one he found intriguing for some reason. He hadn’t even met her, yet. He had a gut feeling it would happen.
She walked through the entrance, struggling to pull her fancy blue and white striped luggage along. After a few tugs, she looked up to him and jerked the suitcase over the bump. A slight smile curved her lips and her long legs took her one step closer to his table.
Josh locked his eyes on her. He swirled the liquid before downing the rest in one steady stream. “Tony,” he called out, dark eyes never leaving the woman’s face.
The man stepped away from the bar and took Joshua’s glass. “Can I get you something too?” Tony asked her.
At the bartender’s question, she pulled the stool out as if she were going to sit down with Joshua. She tucked her luggage under the table so it stood out of the way. “I would like a, hold on a moment,” she mumbled and set a matching leather tote on the table.
As she dug through her purse, Joshua observed how she parted her lips and the tip of her tongue moved back and forth in the corner of her mouth.
She pulled out a card. “This is a Key West bar card and I’d like to use it for my drink purchase. I believe it’s
a two for one deal. So I’ll have a rum runner this time.” She flashed the card towards the bartender as if it were a badge and placed it back inside of her bag. She turned to Josh. “Is this seat taken?”
His brow rose, he grinned and nodded for her to sit.
“Oh thank you!” she burst out. What is she up to, he wondered?
Josh’s brow rose again as she sat down across from him. She removed her tote from the table, but first pulled out her phone and a folded piece of paper. She opened it up and began to study the writing.
He grunted, which made her look at him. She blinked and pushed her hair back from her face, her honey blonde waves falling across her shoulders. Her smile about knocked him off of the bar stool. When she smiled at him, the world disappeared, as if he were spinning in a vortex with no way out. Why did he want to pick her up and carry her off into the sunset?
“Hi. I’m Sara Rose Kelley.” She stretched out her hand and he took it, mesmerized by the silver bracelets dangling from a flawless wrist. Her soft, silky skin slid into his. He must have held it a bit longer than normal because she pulled back. He looked up into her eyes and saw them widen in surprise. The tongue came out again, and she began to rub it back and forth in the corner of her mouth. He gritted his teeth. Josh turned towards the bar, he needed his whiskey!
“You didn’t tell me your name,” Sara prodded.
“Joshua Eden.”
She turned her head at a slight angle. “Well, it’s nice to meet you Joshua Eden. I’m sorry if I picked your table out from all the guests here, but I am in a bind. You look like the safest person in the bar.”
He shrugged. “How so? I may be a serial killer.”
She laughed out loud, followed by a giggle and a tiny breath of air. “When I looked through the glass window and our eyes connected, something told me you were the one to help me. It must be in the stars. Well,” she said, lowering her voice and leaning a bit closer, “I stood on the side walk, looked around and for a slight moment defeat overwhelmed me. So I said a quick prayer for God to send me someone and you looked right at me. A prayer answered and a new friend.”
Josh sat back and crossed his arms across his chest. “What do you want?”
Her wedged sandal touched the tip of his shoe. Did she do that on purpose, he wondered? “I’m sorry. I didn't mean to hit your foot.”
From years of scrutinizing people and watching their reactions, he believed her. He needed to chill, always assuming people had an agenda.
Tom brought the drinks to the table and Sara began to dig in her purse. She pulled out a bill and handed it to the bartender. “Please, I’d like to pay for Joshua’s drink too,” she told him.
“That’s not necessary.”
“It is,” she smiled at Josh. “Because I do want something from you.” The bartender laughed out loud as he took the money. “Keep the change,” she told him and then laid her long manicured fingers across the unfolded sheet of paper.
Josh picked up his drink, holding it in his hand, eyes on her as she again stared at the paper. “What do you want?”
“You get right to the point.”
“Is there any other way?”
“Yes. Since I don’t have much time because I have to be somewhere when the sun sets, I will take your advice and get right to the point.”
Josh watched her bite her lip, lean over and place her mouth on the straw and take a deep drink. She closed her eyes for a moment, embracing the taste. He swallowed.
“Joshua?”
“What?”
“I lost my brother, or he’s missing. There’s something wrong here.”
“What makes you think he’s lost?”
She shrugged. “He’s my twin and we’re very close. He expected me on this flight and he promised to meet me at the airport, but he never showed.”
Josh shrugged. “Perhaps he got held up somewhere.”
She shook her head. “No, we spoke right before I got on the plane. I planned to stay at his place until I found an apartment. He would’ve been there.” She pointed to her folded piece of paper.
“What’s that?” He stretched his neck to see the paper.
“This is my itinerary.”
Josh laughed. “Itinerary! We’re in the Keys, there’s no such thing here.”
“I have a whole list of things that I planned to do while here. My brother was taking some time off work to help me get through my list.” She smiled, her sweetness drawing him in. He was in big trouble.
“Do whatever you want, but after you’re here awhile, you’ll understand.”
She took another sip of her drink. “Noted,” she told him. “Back to my brother. I waited at the airport for four hours this morning and he never showed. I got a cab and went to his apartment. He didn’t leave me a key or a note. So I get a text saying he’s sorry, his job sent him out of town and I should get a hotel room until he returns. He said not to call him on his phone, he’d contact me. He would never do this to me, I know something isn’t right. I called anyway, but his cell goes right into voice mail. Now, here I am stuck on the streets of Key West and there’s no rooms available anywhere on the island. I’ve called them all.”
Josh nodded. “This is a busy week because of the festival. You won’t find any rooms available.”
“I can’t fly back home. I gave up everything to come here.” For a moment he saw a flash of uncertainty cross her face. Slim fingers tapped on the glass of the rum runner. Her sandal touched his foot again as she swung it back and forth.
He was here to relax, to unwind, not start an investigation into the disappearance of someone’s sibling. But he heard himself say, “Perhaps I can help. What’s your brother’s name?”
“Morgan Kelley.”
Josh sat back. Morgan worked for the agency. No doubt he got called away and couldn’t contact her. “What type of work does he do?” Josh asked, careful not to show any emotion. Her answer would tell him if she realized what her brother did for a living.
“Oh, he’s a computer geek. He works for a big New York City firm that relocated here. I haven’t a clue how he does it, moving from place to place. He said he’ll be here for a few years and that’s why I decided to come too.”
That’s what Josh thought. What she wasn’t aware of is at any given time the government may need the help of Morgan’s top team of agents.
“What? Do you know Morgan?”
Her voice, now high pitched, shook Josh back into reality. “No,” he lied. Was he slipping? He masked his emotions like any expert in the field. How did she see right through him?
“Are you sure? There for a moment it seemed to me like you recognized the name.” She shook herself. “Perhaps not, I’m sorry. I’m so desperate I guess I’m grasping at straws.”
Josh sat back. Everything changed from this point on now that she was Morgan’s sister. Even though he may be almost retired from the business, he’d never be out of the game. “I’m staying at a nice, clean B&B right down the street. I can check if they have any rooms open.” Morgan’s assignment must have been an extreme emergency for him to run off without any warning, knowing he was expecting family, Josh thought.
Sarah smiled, looking in to his eyes, her blue orbs searing his soul. He pushed back the chair, needing fresh air. “I’m going outside to make a call.”
He hit the send button and held the cell at his ear. “Jake? Hey man, where are you?”
“Looking right at you, bud.” Josh looked across the street to the Irish bar. Maggie and Jake stood out front, holding hands and smiling. He flipped the phone shut and hurried across the street to join them, leaving Sara alone inside. He turned back and held up his hand to tell her he’d be right back, but she was staring down at her itinerary. It made him chuckle.
“Look at you,” Jake said, holding out his hand. “This is unusual, seeing a smile on your face.”
Josh grinned. “It’s good to see you.”
“Bull! You never smile.”
“When d
id you guys get here?” Josh asked, changing the subject. Jake and Maggie lived on No Name Key, about twenty miles away. The bed and breakfast belonged to Jake, a big time contractor. When Josh told him he’s heading to relax in Key West for a spell, Jake left the bed and breakfast at his disposal.
“Today. Seems our manager ran off with the housekeeper, who was the other housekeeper’s lover. I had three people leave their position. I hired two more housekeepers, but the managers position is not so easy to fill.”
“Does it come with a room?” Josh had an idea.
“What do you have in mind?” Jake said.
“There’s someone who needs a place to stay, more so than a job.” He told Jake and Maggie about the woman across the street.
Jake groaned. “I never hired someone from the streets.”
“This one you can. Her brother is an agent, a respected friend. I don’t think you have any worries. Besides, I’ll be there to keep an eye on things.”