“That’s my alarm.” She held up her phone. “I have to get home to Henry, anyway.” She smiled, but it looked more like a grimace as she shot a look my way.
I hated that she appeared uncomfortable around me. She had no problem looking Micah or Jodi in the eye, but not me. Presumably, because she’d met them before. I knew from Savannah that she was shy at first. What the hell in her life had made her so skittish?
Then Reese spun on her heels and pushed through the door, exiting. My wolf whined, not liking the sight of her walking away from us. Again.
I didn’t either, though I didn’t pursue her. But I would. For weeks I thought I could be patient, bide my time until I got the Alliance’s approval. All I would have to do is keep my distance.
But now?
Fuck patience. She had essentially come to me.
One question came to mind as I turned to my cousin. “Who the fuck is Henry?” I demanded.
CHAPTER2
Reese
“It’s showtime,” I sang, walking through the open door of room 117 at Creekview Nursing Home. I tapped the button on my phone to begin playing the song “Come Alive” from one of my favorite musicals,The Greatest Showman.
When the song’s opening chords dropped, I stumbled into the room, just as the lyrics suggest.
Ms. Anderson, the resident I went to visit, gasped and clapped, a wide grin opening up on her face, just like I wanted.
I tiptoed across the linoleum floor with my shoulders hunched over and started snapping to the beat of the music. I swung my faux locs from side to side, feeling the weight on my scalp but uncaring since Ms. Anderson was so delighted by my act.
She giggled, and the sound of it propelled me into my full performance. I sang along with Hugh Jackman about dreaming with our eyes wide open. I rolled my shoulders and snaked my hips, increasing Ms. Anderson’s joy. She applauded and laughed along. I danced my way over to her bedside and stuck my hand under her mouth, pretending it was a microphone.
We sang the lyrics together. At eighty-five, Ms. Anderson’s voice wasn’t what it used to be, but she did her best with the harmonizing. We finished the song together, and I held up my hands, giving jazz hands as we finished our mock performance.
I allowed Ms. Anderson to come down from her laughter before I rubbed her shoulder and hugged her.
“Hello,” I said.
“Reese,” she hummed. “Be careful of your leg with all of that dancing,” she said as she wiped her tears of happiness from her eyes.
I paused the next song that started to play and waved a hand before removing the strap of my shoulder bag from over my head. “My leg is fine.”
Ms. Anderson knew that my right leg sometimes gave me trouble since she saw me stumble and almost fall a few months earlier. I placed my bag on the windowsill and moved closer to her hospital-style bed.
“It only gives me trouble when the weather’s a little wonky.”
“I thought you forgot about us tonight.”
My heart sank at the sadness in her voice. I arrived at the nursing home an hour later than usual due to my stop at LS Investigations.
I moved closer and started to rub her shoulder. “I could never forget about my friends,” I countered. “I stayed a little late at work and then,” I paused, not wanting to tell Ms. Anderson why I went to visit a PI firm. “Then I had to go home to feed and give Henry his medicine before I came here.”
I took a seat by her bed. She sat up higher.
“How is Henry? Still in pain?”
With a nod, I sighed. “Yeah, his condition is going to stick with him for life. Unless I can get him his surgery.” I pulled in my bottom lip as a pang of guilt hit me in the belly. “And seeing as how I don’t have a spare fifteen thousand dollars lying around. The poor guy will have to endure until I can save up.”
I felt like a terrible dog mom because I couldn’t get him the surgery to permanently end his hip pain.
Ms. Anderson’s eyebrows lifted. “Or unless you can get a handsome, rich man to fall in love with you and help you take care of him.”
Her comment made me snort, not the cute kind of snort either. “Like that’ll ever happen,” I mumbled.
