“Okay, Audrey. Time to toughen up. Yes, he’s kind of intimidating and he gives you squishy tummy feelings, but that doesn’t mean you can’t talk to him without turning red.”
Max just looked up at me, wagging his tail.
“Right. Let’s do this. Except not you. You stay here.” I pointed to his bed in front of the couch. “Go lie down.”
His ears drooped a little but he obeyed.
“You’ll be fine. I’ll be right back.”
I went next door and found the garage door open. Josiah was inside, cutting long boards on a big saw.
Instead of his usual flannel, he wore a t-shirt that showed off the size of his arms. His jeans had a big spot of sawdust on the back pockets and no, I did not notice that because I was looking at his butt.
Fine, yes I was.
I waited until he stopped cutting and the whir of the saw died down.
“Hey.”
He looked over his shoulder and the way he furrowed his brow made my stomach flip. Why was that so sexy? I didn’t understand it.
Then his features softened and the corner of his mouth twitched. On anyone else, it wouldn’t have been a smile. But on Josiah Haven, it was as bright as the sun.
He put the board down and turned to face me. “Hey. What’s up?”
Breathe, Audrey. He’s not that good-looking.
Liar.
“I hate to do this, but I need a favor.”
He raised his eyebrows, which I’d figured out was Josiah speak for keep talking.
“Missy at Happy Paws is sick and I guess everyone at Happy Paws is also sick, so there’s no one to do doggie daycare today. Max can be at home alone for a while, but it would be best if someone could let him out once or twice to go potty. I don’t think I’ll be able to make it back today, although I could try, but if—”
“Sure.”
His single word of assent stopped my babbling. “Oh. Awesome. Thank you. That’s a huge help.”
He nodded. “Not a problem.”
What I wouldn’t give for another hug—to have those thick arms around me again. But I couldn’t think of a reason to move closer without making it weird.
“He should be fine until around lunchtime. I’ll put the leash by the door so you don’t have to worry about him running off again.”
He nodded again.
“Thank you. I think I said that already but I really appreciate it. It’s been such a hectic morning and Missy’s call was the icing on the cake, you know? And I’m new in town and I don’t know that many people.”
“Audrey.”
“Yeah?”
“Go to work. I’ve got it.”
My cheeks flushed. I’d almost made it through this without blushing, but then I had to go and run my mouth like a nerd. “Sorry. Yeah, work. Thanks. I’ll see you tonight.”
There was that almost smile again and his eyes glimmered with amusement.
Clamping my mouth shut so I wouldn’t keep talking, I turned around and went back to my house.
I was such a dork. The mayor of dorksville.
After making sure Max had plenty of water and setting his leash out where Josiah could find it, I left for work. I felt a pang of guilt driving away with Max looking longingly out the window, no doubt wondering why he didn’t get to go too. But he’d be fine. I knew from experience he’d get bored in about a minute, go curl up on his bed—or maybe mine—and take a nap. By the time he woke up, Josiah would be coming over to take him outside.
He’d be fine.
My morning flew by. I had to finish two articles, so that kept me busy. Ledger had finished a project for once, so I gave his work a good proofread before passing it on to Sandra. Lou was characteristically gruff, although he did give me a nod and a mumbled good job when he saw the half-completed layout for the next edition.
That was practically a gold star, coming from him.
I had just enough time to grab a quick lunch before I was off to visit the Annual Quilting Show to take pictures. It wasn’t exactly hard-hitting journalism, but I didn’t mind. I liked the quaintness and slow pace of Tilikum life. Maybe there weren’t huge corporate scandals, or crime rings, or massive social unrest, but that was part of the appeal. Reporting on the longest running quilting show in the central Cascades was just so dang wholesome. I liked it.
Afterward, I began my race against the deadline. Newspaper writing was fast and I was still adjusting to the need to pump out an article in barely an afternoon. There were also photos to process and a headline to brainstorm, but at least it kept me busy.