Help Wanted

by Allison B Hanson

  “Hello.”

  “Kenley, I’m so sorry.”

  “How’s Sidney and the baby?” she redirected.

  “They’re fine. Good. Can I come over so we can talk?”

  “I’m in New York. I needed cheesecake.”

  “Oh. I see.” Did he think cheesecake equated to DEFCON 2 in the relationship world? “Will you be home later?”

  “I’ll be at work tomorrow morning.”

  “I won’t be in tomorrow. I have a trip.” Which he’d scheduled himself.

  “I’ll make sure to forward any messages.”

  “I think we should discuss this.”

  “I think we should just keep things professional going forward.” She swallowed and gripped the phone tighter.

  “Oh. Okay. If that’s what you want.” He didn’t sound so sure, and she almost faltered. But she didn’t want to risk her job on her irrational emotional state. Professionalism was the only option she could see. Sleeping with her boss had been a mistake. The best they could do now was put it behind them.

  “I’ll see you when you get back. Let me know if there’s anything you need me to take care of while you’re away.” She fell back into her role of assistant who managed things efficiently and pleasantly.

  “Sure. Thanks.”

  “Goodbye.” She hung up and winced from the pain in her chest.

  “You cut things off?” Liss set a plate in front of her.

  “Yes. It’s for the best.”

  “Are you sure that’s what you want?”

  “I’m not sure of anything right now.”

  * * *

  The next morning she opened the building and started coffee. A few of the guys stopped by to pick up paperwork before starting the day, each giving her a smile and a greeting as they drained the coffeepot. No one started a new one.

  It was going to be one of those days.

  Three days later she still hadn’t seen or heard from Zane. She wanted to be mad at him for hiding, but she’d insisted they keep things professional and he was away on business.

  On Friday morning she was ready to break down and call him, but then Officer Scott Porter walked in.

  “Good morning, Officer,” she said with a smile. She was so happy to have someone to talk to she didn’t even mind that she didn’t have any feelings for him. He was a nice enough guy.

  “Good morning.” He winked as he held out a small bag with a picture of a muffin on it. “Before you get all excited about me buying you a pastry, you should know I didn’t actually pay for it. Nobody lets you pay for stuff when you’re in uniform. I feel like a mobster or something.”

  She peeked inside to see a cinnamon roll.

  “Thank you for sharing your protection pastry with me,” she joked.

  “I also wanted to see if you were free tonight. My shift is over at four. I could pick you up here at five.”

  She looked down at her jeans and button-down.

  “You look great. We’re not going to do anything fancy. Just dinner and get to know each other a little. What do you say?” He was actually asking her this time.

  For a small second her mouth opened to say she was seeing someone. But then she remembered she wasn’t seeing Zane. She wasn’t seeing him, hearing him, or reading him by text or email. Other than receiving the invoices through the system, she might have thought he’d been kidnapped or something. Besides this man was not her boss.

  She could go out with him, have a nice time, and not worry that it might affect her job. It didn’t matter that she didn’t feel a spark. He was safe.

  “Sure. I’ll be ready at five.”

  “Excellent. I’m looking forward to it.” He backed toward the door. “Until then, have a great day.”

  “See you then,” she called, knowing he wasn’t the man she really wanted to see.

  The day went by quickly. She only had a few minutes to spend worrying about her date with Scott. His method of ambush dating was a godsend.

  At four thirty she stepped into the bathroom to check her hair and makeup. Good to go.

  She was tossing her lipstick back in her bag as she walked down the hall and ran right smack into Zane.

  Her bag landed on the floor with the contents scattered around his scruffy boots. As they both bent to gather her things their heads knocked together in a painful thump.

  “I’m sorry,” he said, his voice low and rough. It made her stomach flip in excitement. Unfortunately her stomach wasn’t aware of what this man had done to her heart.

  “I’m fine.”

  He put his hand on hers and looked her in the eye.

  “No. I mean, I’m sorry, Kenley.”

  “Don’t worry about it. While I don’t regret what happened, I think it best that we keep things professional. I like my job and I like working for you. I don’t want to risk messing it up.”

  He let out a breath and nodded.

  “You’re right. I’m still sorry about what happened with my parents.”

  “Don’t worry about it,” she repeated. After throwing the last of the items into her purse she passed him to go back to her desk. It was almost five.

  Of all the times for Zane to show up wanting to apologize, why did it have to be ten minutes before her date was coming to pick her up?

  But no. It wasn’t ten minutes before her date was coming. Of course, Scott was early. He stepped inside the lobby, wearing jeans and a dress shirt. Out of uniform she could really look at him. He was cute. Tall and broad-shouldered. Much like Zane, who had followed her to the lobby and gave Scott a nod.

  “Hey,” Zane said with his brows pulled together. “Did we have plans tonight?”

  Scott shook his head.

  “Not with you. I’m here to pick up Kenley.” He held out his arm like the perfect gentleman. “Are you ready to go?” he asked.

  She wanted to say no and run back to Zane, but instead she shut off her computer and nodded.

  “All set.”

  * * *

  They were nearly out the door before Zane realized what was going on. She was going on a date. With Scott.

  While Zane knew the officer wasn’t a player, he’d heard more than enough tales of carnage and mischief when they went for drinks on the rare occasion they were both not working.

  One thing was for sure, Scott Porter knew how to seduce women. And he had just walked out the door with Zane’s girl.

  Zane didn’t know what to do as he stood at the glass door watching them. Scott opened the passenger door to his cruiser and closed it behind her. He gave Zane a smile and a wave as he passed in front of the car to get in the driver’s side. This was really happening.

  Should he run out there to stop them? Maybe some cool move like sliding across the hood and pulling her out of the car in one big swoop? Would she even want him after what he’d done?

  Probably not. Truth be told, he didn’t want to be with himself much at the moment. Fear had kept him from getting too close to Kenley. Fear that he would turn back into that pathetic puppy he’d been in high school. Fear that he wouldn’t be enough to keep someone as amazing as her. Fear of the pain that would destroy him when she left him for one of the cool kids.

  Apparently Scott Porter was one of the cool kids.

  “Christ,” he muttered as he stomped back down the hall to his office, and slammed the door.

  * * *

  As Scott had promised, they spent the evening eating and getting to know each other.

  He had a lot of funny stories about his job, and he seemed captivated when she talked about herself. He even asked follow-up questions, proving he’d been paying attention.

  “So let me get this straight, someone left you in a library when you were little, and the town named you after the book you were holding?”

  “Yes. I was known as the library girl. I don’t remember it. My only memories are with my adopted parents. I think my life turned out better than it might have if my real parents had kept me.” She believed that to be tr
ue, though she did occasionally wonder why they hadn’t kept her.

  “Maybe I could run your DNA through the system and see if anything pops up.”

  She tilted her head to the side, thinking it over for no more than a few seconds before shaking her head.

  “No, thank you. I have no interest in finding them. No reason to go looking for trouble.”

  “Smart girl.”

  By the time Scott dropped her off at her house, she knew a lot about him. Including the most important thing.

  While he seemed interested in her, and he was both charming and adorable, he just wasn’t Zane Jackson.

  “Thank you for a great time,” she said when they arrived at her door. There was no way she’d invite him inside. While she wasn’t a virgin anymore, she wasn’t ready to sleep with men on the first date. Especially not when she was still hung up on the first guy.

  There might have been a warning, but she was distracted with thoughts of Zane when Scott bent close and kissed her on the mouth.

  Her body instantly turned into a plank and she couldn’t breathe until he stepped back. He was frowning down at her.

  “Okay. Don’t panic. Take a deep breath and relax. When you’re ready I’m going to try it again.”

  She couldn’t help but laugh at his reaction. Playing it up a little, she rolled her shoulders and cracked her neck as she shook her arms out like she did before a run.

  “Okay. Go.”

  Even as he was taking a step in her direction she felt her body go rigid.

  “Power through,” he said as he leaned down and kissed her again.

  Expecting it this time, she was able to kiss him back, but it was nothing more than lips moving against lips. It wasn’t a kiss so much as a handshake with tongues.

  “Hmm. That wasn’t any better,” he said honestly.

  “Yeah. I noticed.”

  “Did I do something?” he asked.

  “Oh no!” she nearly shouted. “It’s not you. It’s… I guess I’m still getting over someone. I’d hoped I already was, since we hadn’t been together very long at all, but it seems I’m not.”

  He nodded as if this made more sense than the possibility that the problem could be his kissing skills.

  “Well.” He looked up at the dark sky for a second and then back to her. “I had a good time. You didn’t get on my nerves, so maybe we could try it again. And at some point you might be over the other guy. What do you say?”

  “I would like that,” she said, though her heart was already generating a surplus of excuses. “Thanks again.”

  With a wave, she watched as he walked to the car and drove off.

  She stepped into her lonely home wondering if she’d ever get better at this.

  Chapter 12

  “I’ll be bringing a few boats out to Ohio next week while you’re there. Maybe we can grab some dinner.” Brady watched Kenley’s expression for some clue of what was going on. Zane had been acting weird all week. All he’d said when Brady teased him about the boat show trip was that it was cut short because Sidney had the baby. But something was up. Brady could tell.

  “Maybe.”

  “Are you afraid Zane will have a problem with us having dinner together?”

  Her cheeks turned a pretty pink and she looked away with a shrug.

  And there it was. Zane and Kenley had had sex.

  He nearly fell off the desk in shock. Zane had claimed her after Brady pretty much forced him into it. But he didn’t think the guy would really make a move. Good for him.

  Except they weren’t acting very happy about it. Something must have gone wrong.

  Before he had the chance to ask a bunch of nosy questions, his phone rang. He recognized the number and ducked out of the office to take the call.

  “Hello?”

  “Is this Brady Martin?”

  “Yes. Is Hunter okay?” He didn’t have the patience for a get-to-know-you if something was wrong with his little brother.

  “He’s fine. The doctor says he may have a mildly sprained ankle. He fell out of a tree.”

  “What was he doing in a tree?”

  “He found a nest on the ground and wanted to put it back.”

  Brady pinched the bridge of his nose and took a deep breath. He paid these people a shit-ton of money to watch his brother and keep him safe. He should get a refund.

  “It’s protocol to contact you if there’s an incident.”

  “You mean anytime you people aren’t paying attention to your patients?” He knew it probably wasn’t this woman’s fault. She was most likely the person who got stuck making the phone call. But it pissed him off that he couldn’t take better care of his brother.

  “There are notes in his chart that you do not want him sedated or overmedicated. Would it be okay to give him something for the pain?”

  “Something mild. I swear, if he can’t say his name when I get there, I’m going to own that place.”

  “I’ll tell him you’re on your way,” she said, ignoring his threat. Probably for the best.

  “I’ll be there in twenty minutes. You might want to wait about eighteen minutes before you tell him I’m coming. He likes to count down the minutes.”

  “I’ll meet you when you arrive.”

  After she hung up, Brady realized he hadn’t caught her name.

  He pulled in at Elmhurst Adult Care Center twenty-three minutes later. Inside he found Hunter chatting to the two women at the desk.

  “Are you sure he said he was coming? He should have been here. It’s not Saturday. Are you sure he’s coming?” Hunter’s anxiety twisted Brady’s stomach.

  “Here I am.” It never got old, the way Hunter’s face lit up when Brady walked in the door.

  “I wasn’t sure you were really coming. You were three minutes late.”

  “Traffic.”

  “Is it Thursday?” Some might think it was Hunter’s way of accusing him of making up the traffic, but no, he’d just changed topics that quickly.

  “It is.”

  “Will I still go home with you on Saturday?”

  “Yep.”

  “Two days.”

  “You got it.”

  Another woman walked out carrying crutches.

  “Okay, Hunter. Can you try these? Keep your left foot off the floor if possible. Use the crutches to hold yourself up.”

  “Brady, I get to have crutches.” To see the excitement on his face, you would have thought he’d won the lottery.

  “I see that. Maybe don’t climb any more trees.”

  “But the nest fell on the ground, and the bird would come home and it wouldn’t be there.”

  The other woman stepped closer and held out her hand.

  “I’m Dr. Walker. I just took over as director two weeks ago.” He recognized her voice as the person who had called him.

  “And how many of your patients have fallen out of trees in the last two weeks?”

  * * *

  “Do you have a moment to discuss your brother’s care?” Michaela asked, as she ignored his jab and tried to stand tall. She was on the short side, but she knew backing down from this huge man who was trying his best to intimidate her would get her nowhere.

  “Yes.” He turned to his brother and smiled. For a moment she wished he would have smiled at her. But of course he wouldn’t. He was angry. She needed to diffuse the situation. “I’ll be right back. Keep your foot up, okay?”

  “You’ll be back?”

  “Yes. Right back.”

  “How many minutes?”

  “I’m not sure. I’ll let you know when I come out.”

  “Okay.”

  Michaela led the giant to her office and gestured to the chairs in front of her desk.

  “So what’s up?” Brady took possession of the room the minute he sat. He looked completely in control as he leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest.

  “I wanted to discuss some options with you.”

  “Options?”

  “
Yes. I guess I wondered why Hunter was here.”

  “Why?” Brady looked at her like she was nuts. “Because when he was eleven he was thrown through a windshield and ended up in a coma for nearly two months before he woke up with brain damage.”

  “I’ve read his chart. I understand the injury. I’m just wondering why you haven’t looked into assisted living or group homes.”

  “That’s what this place is.”

  “No. This is a complete care center. It’s for people who need more extensive care and rehabilitation.”

  “A pretty expensive one who allows people to fall from trees.”

  It didn’t seem he was going to let it go anytime soon. “Do you know how he fell out of the tree?”

  “I’m aware of how gravity works Mrs. Walker. I’m guessing he fell down.” Oh, this guy was clever. If he wasn’t so angry she might find him amusing.

  “He went to the maintenance building and got a ladder. It was a step ladder, but he propped it against the tree and climbed up high enough to reach the limb. He actually put the nest back in the tree. He only fell on his way down when the ladder slipped away from the tree.” She took a deep breath before adding. “And it’s Dr. Walker, not Mrs.” She would like to think she corrected him because she’d worked hard for the two letters in front and the three others behind her name, but if she were honest she just didn’t want him to think she was married.

  “Did someone videotape the scene instead of stopping it?”

  “No. No. He told me every detail. He is capable of more than you think.”

  “Excuse me, but didn’t you just say you’ve only been here two weeks?”

  “Yes.”

  “I’ve been taking care of him for the last nine years. Don’t tell me what I think.”

  “Fair enough. But when Hunter would have first come out of recovery he was undoubtedly worse than he is now. I understand he was placed here straight out of the hospital.”

  “I’d just got home from Iraq. I was dealing with some other things. I couldn’t take care of him myself.”

  “I’m not judging. I just wanted to know if you’ve considered other options since he’s improved.”

  The man blinked at her, and she braced herself for some rude comment aimed to unhinge her. Instead he let out a breath and tilted his head.