Chapter Twenty
Grant glanced at hiswatch.“Dammit.”He hated that it had been over three days since he’d seen her.Frustration ran through Grant.He needed to see Jennifer.He missed her and needed to touch her.They hadn’t been able to see each other since Friday and had only been able to talk on the phone since Saturday.She had to be at the shelter all Saturday and had problems with some hoarding cases.She’d been called by the police late Saturday afternoon about some woman who’d died and left a mass of dogs and cats in her house.
He didn’t like the thought of Jennifer being around something so awful.She’d told him the woman had been dead for a few days, so they had the scent of a decomposing body on top of the animal smells.At last count, thirty dogs and fifty-eight cats had been in the woman’s home.He couldn’t imagine what it looked or smelled like.Grant glanced at his watch.It was early, but he predicted Jennifer would be at work already.He stood and planned on picking up food.If he had to guess, he thought she probably hadn’t eaten.He walked briskly out of his office.He needed to see Jennifer and be able to touch her.
****
Jennifer
Jennifer had to call in her whole crew and for help from surrounding counties.They took turns running the animals they’d caught to the shelter while others kept trying to catch the rest.Jennifer had never seen a hoarding case this bad before, and it broke her heart.Most of the cats were feral and had several diseases.She might be able to save the three litters of kittens.There were a few adult cats that seemed tame, and hopefully, she’d be able to make them adoptable.
Meanwhile, she would take care of all of them, and if that meant putting them down, she would do it.She never wanted to see any animal in pain, and if it were feline leukemia or aids, she would have to euthanize them.That tore her up and made her nauseated.She would be the one to determine if an animal lived or died.She and her staff would make them as comfortable as possible for now.
Jennifer guessed most, if not all, of the dogs would recover, and after some intensive therapy and a lot of medical attention, they’d be able to find homes for them.None of them seemed vicious, only riddled with several different ailments and needed more socialization.But they had treatments for most of the diseases.When they finally had all the animals, they had to assess each animal’s condition.Most needed medical attention, but Jennifer gave them time to settle before giving treatment and baths.There was still plenty to do, and it kept them all busy.
Jennifer managed to get some sleep on her couch in her office for short catnaps.She and her employees worked all day Sunday into the night again, each taking a nap when they could.On Monday morning, Jennifer sent home everyone but those whom she would need to help her keep the shelter open.Later that day, some of her staff returned to relieve the others.Jennifer was sending everyone home at different times in the last couple of days to get sleep and let them rest on cots in the employee lounge if needed.She didn’t feel she could leave and had been there from the beginning of this hoarding case.She didn’t want to leave, but Kari, her manager, had pushed her out.She even called a cab for her and had it waiting.
A wave of fatigue hit Jennifer hard.She fell asleep in the back of the cab before getting home.She pulled her exhausted, aching body into her home, and her purse tumbled from her numb fingers to the wooden floor.She knew she was hungry.She could feel the hollowness in her stomach but didn’t have the energy to look for anything.She went into her bathroom, undressed, and quickly showered.Then she put on a nightgown and laid a towel on her pillow to help soak up some moisture from her hair before falling into bed.She was in a deep sleep between one breath and the next.
A pounding at her door woke her.Jennifer rolled to the side and sat up slowly.She glanced at her bedside clock.The light that came in through the sheer drapes and threw shadows across her wood floor was not right, but she couldn’t put her finger on why.
As Jennifer made her way to her door, the pounding got more persistent as the seconds passed.“I’m coming,” she tried to yell, but it only came out as a croak.It took her a moment to unlock the door.“Grant, what are you doing here?”
He moved past her into the apartment and set a sack down on the sofa table.He walked back and closed the door.
For some reason, a shiver ran down her back in apprehension at the click of the lock.
****
Grant
Grant’s arms crossed over his chest as his gaze roamed over her and took in her short, white nightgown and sleep-tousled hair.Jesus.Had he ever seen anything sexier than this little woman?His mouth watered, and his body ached.He didn’t know how much longer he could go without her tucked under him, and he was as deep as he could get inside her.He hardened painfully, stopping his breath in his chest for a moment.He dragged his eyes up to her face and cleared his throat.
“Would you like to tell me why you haven’t answered anyone’s phone calls?And once again, you opened the door without asking who it was.”
Jennifer lifted one hand, pushed her wild hair out of her face, and looked around.Dismay and confusion skipped across her pale face.“I’m sorry.I don’t know where my phone is.I think I put it in my purse, but I seem to have lost it.”
Grant looked up at the ceiling and took several deep breaths.When he looked back at her, his eyes were just as angry, but calm and not frantic as a minute before.He’d lost it when he drove to the shelter with food and they told her they’d been trying to call her all morning.One of them was just about to head over, but Grant came instead.
