She didn’t hesitate, didn’t miss a beat. “That would be great.”
Felicity didn’t know why she was accepting more help from the cop, but she sort of liked having him around. Which, of course, was kind of backwards. She should be moving on from the shoplifting incident. Putting it all behind her. Not having her house inspected for security issues or allowing Officer Russo to call in a favor.
Instead of feeling guilty about infringing on his time, she felt bad that she had nothing to feed him. Surely he was hungry if he’d just gotten off his shift.
He was still on the phone in the living room, talking to his friend, while Felicity stared into her refrigerator. She had bread, bananas, milk, cheese, eggs, apples, lettuce, and expired yogurt. She shut the refrigerator door when she heard Officer Russo’s conversation come to an end.
She was about to join him in the living room when he walked into the kitchen. His presence seemed to take over the small space. She’d never thought the kitchen was all that small until there were two of them in it. Without locks to check or bookshelves to browse, she suddenly focused on, and couldn’t decide, if he was better looking in uniform or in his street clothes. Although she shouldn’t really be comparing his looks or even checking him out in any way. He was helping her out, not asking her out.
“Grant’s on his way over,” he said.
“To drop off the locks?”
“He said he’d be happy to install them.” Officer Russo leaned against the counter, his brown eyes warm.
“I don’t want to put him out, or anything,” she said. “I can put them in.” At the surprised expression on his face, Felicity said, “Don’t tell me you’re chauvinist.”
He chuckled. “Not at all. I guess I’m surprised since you’re so bookish, and well, you know . . .”
She stared at him. “I’m what?”
The corners of his mouth twitched, but he seemed to be very good at holding back his smile. “Nothing. I think it’s great you can change out locks in a door.”
Felicity held back her own smile. “The fact is, I’ve never tried it, but how hard can it be?”
He slipped his hands into the pockets of his pants. “Not hard.”
“Okay, then, when’s your friend going to be here?” she said. “I mean, we could order pizza or something if it’s going to be a while.”
The doorbell rang, and Felicity nearly jumped out of her skin, which probably wasn’t the best reaction when she was trying to prove she was a calm and collected person to a police officer.
But Leo didn’t comment on her jumpiness. “That’s probably him, unless you did order pizza.”
“Unfortunately, no.”
Before Leo turned from the kitchen, she caught his smile, and as she followed him to the front door, she wondered if she really was going to be stubborn enough to insist on putting in the locks herself. Of course she was, since she didn’t want to make Leo or his friend stick around and do her another favor.
Grant Shelton came into the house. He was taller than Leo by a few inches, and he definitely had the build of someone who did physical labor every day. He wore his brown hair short, and she decided his blue eyes were friendly. Grant was a nice-looking man, but there was none of the draw that Leo seemed to have. For one thing, his demeanor was a lot more serious, even though he seemed willing to hand-deliver locks to a random house on a Friday evening.
“I’m Felicity Miner,” she said. “Thanks for coming over.”
Grant nodded at her, then turned his gaze to Leo. “Don’t tell me you’re going to try and install these yourself?”
Leo laughed. “Uh, no. You remember me in woodshop. I still have the scar on my thumb where I nearly cut it off.”
Felicity looked from Leo to Grant. This was interesting.
“No problem, then,” Grant said. “You can owe me lunch this time.”
“Sure thing,” Leo said.
Grant chuckled and turned to the door, fiddling with the knob. He pulled out a screwdriver from his tool belt and got to work.
“Wait a minute,” Felicity cut in. “I was planning on changing the locks. I didn’t expect you to do the work.”
Grant looked over at Felicity. “It’s no problem. I could start on the front door, and you can do the back door. Have you changed locks before?”
“Not exactly,” Felicity said. “But how hard can it be?”
Grant sent a smirk in Leo’s direction, who threw his hands up. “I can’t be good at everything, you know. I can pick locks, if that counts for anything.”
“We’ll let it count.” Grant opened a toolbox he’d carried to the front door and plugged in a drill. “We need to make a hole for the dead bolt. That’s what you wanted, right?” His eyes connected with Felicity’s.
“Right.” She exhaled. “Maybe I’ll let you do both doors to keep the consistency going.”
This time Leo smirked at her.
“Did you really almost cut your thumb off?” she asked him.
He held up his left hand, and Felicity stepped closer. Sure enough, there was a long, thin scar. She took his hand and turned it over. His hand was warm and solid, and she felt her heart rate kick up. “Close call,” she said, then released his hand.
The drill started up, and Felicity’s stomach rumbled about the same time. She usually didn’t wait this long to eat after getting off work, and the stress of the day seemed to be making her extra hungry. She walked into the kitchen, away from the sound of the drilling and the men chatting about old high school antics. Pulling out her cell phone, she ordered a large pizza. She figured if the men didn’t want to stick around for it, she’d have leftovers for a couple of days. Which was fine with her.
After the phone call, she went back to the front door. Grant had the old lock entirely off and the holes for the dead bolt drilled. They were talking about pranks they used to do while on the high school football team. For an instant, Felicity could totally picture the two of them playing pranks.
“I ordered a pizza, if you guys want any,” Felicity said.
“Thanks, but I’ve got a dinner date with my kid tonight,” Grant said.
“You have Trent for the weekend?” Leo asked.
“Yep,” Grant said. “He’d love another tour of the station, if you’re working this weekend.”
“I have the night shift tomorrow,” Leo said. “Is 8:00 too late to bring him?”
“I’ll text you,” Grant said. “It might be perfect to bring him at 8:00, wear him out, so that he’ll fall asleep on the way back to my place.”
Leo nodded, then looked over at Felicity. “I’m always up for pizza.” His smile made her want to smile back, so she did.
“Okay, I hope you like pepperoni.” She ignored the fluttering in her stomach.
“I’ve never seen Officer Russo turn down any type of food,” Grant said.
Leo laughed. “Yeah. I don’t remember ever doing so.”
Grant straightened. “One lock down.”
“Wow, that was quick.”
Grant chuckled as he passed Leo. “Is your back door this way?” he asked Felicity.
“I’ll show you.” She led the way down the hall, past the laundry room, and to the back door. She stepped out onto the deck as Grant worked; then she walked toward the line of trees that separated her yard from another neighbor’s. She remembered climbing the trees as a young girl by herself, while her parents stayed inside the house to talk to her grandparents.
She wished she could go back in time and see her grandparents again. It was probably why she hadn’t changed anything about the house, except for moving her things in.
Laughter between the two men reached her, and she glanced over at them. For some reason, it made her happy to see Leo laughing with his friend. She was sure a cop’s job could be stressful, and sometimes dangerous, and it was nice to see him in a relaxed environment, enjoying himself.
Just then, Leo looked over at her, and their gazes connected. It was too late to look away and pretend she hadn’t be
en watching. So she owned up to it, smiled, and crossed the lawn toward them.
“I should probably stay close to the front door in case the pizza guy shows up,” she said.
“Hey,” Grant said before she could move past him. “I have sort of a situation you both might be able to help me with.”
Felicity paused.
“Trent goes back to his mom’s on Sunday, and my brother’s wife has set me up with one of her friends,” Grant said. “You know, blind date. But what if the two of you come, and we turn it into a double date? Way less pressure that way.”
Felicity’s face warmed, and she couldn’t think of a response. Thankfully, Leo jumped in. “We’re not, uh, dating.”
Grant’s brows lifted, and he looked from Leo to Felicity. “Oh.” Then he laughed. “Well, you could have fooled me.”
Interestingly enough, Leo’s face looked a little red too. Felicity tried not to stare. She gave Grant a half-smile, then turned to go.
“Wait,” Grant said. “You could both still come. As friends. It would really help a guy in need—you know, the guy who answered your call.” He looked pointedly at Leo; then his gaze moved to Felicity. “A guy who just installed two dead bolts and two new doorknobs with locks on your doors.”
Felicity didn’t move. Didn’t answer. She’d let Leo handle this one.
“How about I call you later about it?” Leo said. “After tomorrow’s shift, I’ll know better what’s going on. I have some things to help my mom with, and I’m not sure about the timing. She knows I have this Sunday off.”
Grant seemed to consider this for a moment. “Okay, call me later, then.”
Felicity took it as her cue that she could leave. As she walked through the house, she felt sort of let down. She couldn’t explain it, because she certainly didn’t expect Leo to bring her along on a double date . . . They’d just met . . . And Felicity tended to let her imagination grow much bigger than life.
Which probably explained the new dead bolts on her door, because she’d been stressed about a shoplifter at her work. She blamed it on her books.
Okay, then.
She reached the door just as a red Honda Civic with one of those glowing pizza signs on top pulled into her driveway. Perfect timing. She grabbed her purse and waited for the delivery guy to reach the porch. She paid him, thanked him, then carried the box inside and set it on the table. The box was warm, and when she lifted the lid to peek inside, steam wafted out. It smelled heavenly, and her stomach growled in response.
“Thanks for everything,” she heard Leo say, his voice growing closer.
Seconds later, both Grant and Leo paused in the entryway of the kitchen.
“Thank you, Grant,” Felicity added. “You went above and beyond.”
He smiled. “Enjoy your new locks, and on Sunday night, I hope that you find some compassion in your heart to help me out—”
Leo clapped him on the back, and Grant laughed. “Thanks, man,” Leo said. “We’ll keep in touch.”
“The boss has spoken.” Grant saluted Leo, then strode toward the front door.
When the front door shut, Leo crossed to the table and opened the box. Picking up a slice, he took a bite before Felicity could offer a plate or a napkin.
“You are hungry,” she said, holding back a smile.
“Starving,” he said with a wink and took another bite.
Felicity forced herself to walk to the cupboard and pull out some plates. She would not let the fact that he’d winked at her make her think it was anything more than . . . a little flirting? She was glad he’d stayed for the pizza, because it made her feel like she’d repaid him for his time in some small way. As for Grant, that was another matter, but Felicity wasn’t about to suggest they go on a double date with him.
She set a plate on the table in front of Leo, who was working on his second slice. He mumbled a thank you, and Felicity bit back a laugh. She grabbed two water bottles from her fridge and wondered if he’d prefer something with more substance. But she pretty much drank only water, juice, and hot chocolate.
She brought the water bottles over to the table, pulled out a chair, then said, “You can sit down, you know.”
He sat, then used one of the napkins to wipe his mouth. “I guess I’m used to eating on the go.”
She took her first bite. The pizza was perfect temperature, and the cheese a perfect gooey. She took a second bite, then watched Leo as he took a pull on his water bottle.
“This is great. Thanks.” He pointed at her face. “You’ve got some sauce on your chin.”
She grabbed a napkin and wiped at her chin. “Thanks. I’m glad you’re not one of those people who doesn’t say something when a person has food stuck in their teeth.”
He smiled. “Well, if you were my sister, I might let you find out on your own. But you’re not my sister.”
“No, I’m not.” Felicity felt on the verge of blushing, so she kept talking to avoid it. “How many siblings do you have?”
“Two sisters, three brothers,” he said. “And, of course, dozens of cousins, like any respectable Italian family, one of whom you’ve had the misfortune of meeting.”
“I wouldn’t say I’ve formally met Angelo.”
“True.” Leo picked up a third piece and took a bite.
Felicity bit into her own pizza. So good. She might have moaned, and that made Leo laugh. “Sorry, I’m used to living alone. I guess I have bad habits.”
“No worse than me standing up to eat the pizza.”
“Can’t argue there.” She took another bite, then realized Leo had stopped eating and was now watching her. “Do I have more sauce on my chin?”
“No.”
“Then why are you staring at me?”
His flush was back, but he didn’t avert his gaze. “Maybe we should help Grant out.”
Felicity stilled. “Um, what?”
“You know, help him on his blind date.”
Felicity set her pizza down and took a sip of her water, biding her time as she thought fast. She knew better than to think he was asking her out out; it was as Grant suggested, a favor. She must have taken too long to reply, or Leo read into her very long hesitation.
“How about I call you Sunday morning, and we can decide from there?”
Call me? “Uh, okay.” She wanted to say no. Because while it had been fun to half-flirt with this “smokin-hot cop,” it was a whole other thing to go on a date with him. Even if it was more of a filler date, and not instigated by him in the first place.
“You can say no,” Leo said.
His brown eyes were warm, but she knew he wasn’t teasing, and that he wouldn’t hold a grudge if she turned it down. Maybe it was because she figured police officers were generally trustworthy. Yet . . . “You call me Sunday, and I’ll tell you no then, if that’s my answer.”
“Fair enough.” He took another bite of his pizza. After he chewed and swallowed, he said, “Either I’m really hungry, or the pizza joint has upped its game.”
“Both,” Felicity said, glad they were talking about food now. “It is really good tonight.”
Leo’s gaze connected with hers again, and she tried not to read anything into his study of her. “Let me see your phone,” he said, “and I’ll put my number in it.”
Felicity blinked. Oh, right. For Sunday. She handed him her phone and watched as he created a contact. Then he texted himself and picked up his own phone to enter in her information.
“Have you been friends with Grant for a long time?” she asked.
He looked up from his phone. “Yeah, we played little league together, and then of course in high school.”
In high school she would have never sat at a table and eaten pizza with one of the jocks. “Which sports?”
“Football, basketball, and baseball.”
“All of them?”
“Small town, you know,” he said, then took another drink from his water bottle. “We could play more than one sport, no big deal. Now, it s
eems like my nieces and nephews are committing to one sport by the age of ten and playing it year-round.”
“True,” Felicity said, although she had very little knowledge of the world of kids and sports. “Do you have a lot of nieces and nephews?”
He nodded. “Fifteen. I’m the youngest of my siblings, so I have some who are in middle school.”
“You’re the baby?” Felicity asked, not sure why this was amusing to her. Maybe because he was a cop who looked like he could chase down any fleeing criminal.
Leo smiled. “I am.”
“No wonder you’re so confident,” she said, seeing that she’d surprised him with her observations. “Confident or cocky, it’s hard to tell the difference.”
He nodded slowly, his smile remaining. “Are you still forming your opinion of me?”
“Maybe.”
Leo laughed. “You’re the baby of your family, too.”
“I’m an only child; there’s a big difference.”
He lifted his brows and rested his elbows on the table. Apparently he was finished eating. “How?”
She debated if she should give him the long answer or the short answer, since she tended to put more details in her responses than other people. “An only child can’t be compared to a kid who has siblings—because all of the sibling factors and order of birth don’t apply.” Felicity shrugged. “And my parents were in their early forties when they had me. So you might say that makes my parent-child relationship even more unique.”
“More like a grandparent-child relationship?” Leo asked.
Felicity was surprised that he seemed invested in the conversation this much. She’d fully expected him to get the glazed look in his eyes that so many people did when she drilled down on details and made clarifications in conversations. “Yeah, but different.”
“Maybe you’re an anomaly, then?”
Felicity smiled. “An anomaly? I’m not sure that’s something I want to be called.”
“Why not? It’s a good thing, in my book,” Leo said. “I mean, you’re unique. I, for one, haven’t met someone like you before.”
“Everyone’s unique.” Felicity rose from the table and closed the pizza box. Then she threw away her water bottle. When she turned around, Leo had risen, too, and crossed over to the trash.
Finding Us (Pine Valley Book 5) Page 4