“Mr. Bell?”
The voice out in the hall sounded suspicious and a little worried. Jacob flicked water on himself, leaned over the sink, and filled his palms with water. After a second the door was stiff-armed open, and Rob craned his neck around the frame. The tight expression on his face softened as Jacob mugged a surprised expression at him.
“Hey, sorry,” Rob said. He straightened up and gave his sleeves an absent tug to settle the expensively pastel-striped shirt over his shoulders. “I wasn’t sure if you were still in here. You’ve been a while.”
“Yes, sorry.” Jacob wiped his wet mouth on his sleeve. He gave a quick wipe to a convenient dark stain on the hip of his trousers. “I don’t think Fozzy was the first dog to cross the road there.”
Disgust puckered Rob’s mouth as he drew back. “Oh, ah… I don’t know if I have anything that would help with that. Umm.”
Jacob held up his hand and stalled the brewing offer before it could go anywhere. “That’s okay. I’m going to head home and get changed, anyhow. Did you find Fozzy?”
“Oh, not yet,” Rob said and glanced back over his shoulder. “I don’t think we have, anyhow. If you want to finish cleaning up, I’ll go check with the interns. They’re still looking.”
“That’s okay,” Jacob refused politely as he stepped toward the door. “I don’t think there’s anything more I can do… for my outfit. I’ll come back with you. See if Fozzy is back. I do appreciate all your help, by the way. This wasn’tyourfault.”
The faint emphasis he put on the penultimate word distracted Rob. He got out of Jacob’s way and fell in next to him as they walked.
“Abby’s a lovely person, really,” he said. “She’d be devastated if anything happened to your dog, or if you’d been badly hurt. It’s just that it’s been so hectic here. There’s the police, the lawyers, the board, and everyone just wanting to ask questions we can’t answer. Usually she’s much more careful.”
Jacob nodded agreeably, even though that was a bigger lie than the one he’d just tried to tell. He’d pulled Abby’s police sheet on the way down, and she’d been cautioned multiple times for driving carelessly, and once for driving under the influence, if not quite drunk.
The cup of tea was balanced on the arm of the couch, gently steaming honey into the air. Jacob picked it up by the rim and breathed in the heat of it.
“What’ll happen to you guys?” he asked. Rob slid in behind the desk and gave him a questioning look, so Jacob expanded his point. “Now that, well, that your boss is gone.”
“Don’t know,” Rob said. “None of us do, especially not now this whole scandal with another company has kicked off. It’s a mess, but according to Abby, we just have to keep the home fires burning until someone—”
Out of the corner of his eye, Jacob saw a blur of color through the window. He swore behind his smile and lost the confiding lean of Rob’s body as the door opened and Abby staggered in with an armful of dog.
Damn it. Jacob had assumed that, once he was off the leash, Fozzy would find his way home.
“Found him,” Abby said as she deposited the lump of heavy dog in Jacob’s arms. He winced as Fozzy rammed a bony little paw right into his ribs, and he tried to stop his tea from spilling. From the smell, Fozzy had found his way to a garbage can instead of his owner. “I don’t think he’s any worse for wear.”
Fozzy struggled in Jacob’s lap. He handed his tea to Rob and tried to get a hold of the dog, which was surprisingly muscular for something that had, twenty minutes earlier, seemed 70 percent sloth. Jacob got a faceful of hard dog skull and a lungful of sweaty dog BO. He crouched down and set Fozzy back on his paws.
“Thank God,” he said and got a death grip on the dog’s collar. It strained forward and he leaned back. Paper crinkled under his clothes. It sounded ridiculously loud to him, and the hard edges of the stolen notebook dug painfully into his backside. He shifted and resisted the urge to reach around and check that his shirt was covering it. “I was more worried about him than the bike.”
The reminder that she wasn’t the hero of the piece deflated Abby a bit. She brushed fastidiously at her shirt and tried to dislodge dog fluff and stains from the chic top.
“Look, if it needs repairs or anything, I’m happy to pay for it,” she said. “I would rather just keep this between us, though. I know I should have been more careful, and Iwillbe in future, but—”
“No harm done,” Jacob interrupted her. He caught her look at his face and grinned. “Nothing that won’t heal or get straightened out, anyhow. Fozzy was all I was really worried about. Accidents happen, and you weren’t the only one not paying attention. I should have been watching where I was going as well.”
She looked relieved. Jacob explored Fozzy’s collar. The dog had snapped his leash on something, but there was enough left for Jacob to hang on to. He twisted it around his fingers, stood up, and gave his shirt a casual tug to make sure everything was covered.
“Thanks for finding him.” He held his hand out.
She hesitated and then took it. Her soft fingers with pink polish on the nails were careful around his bruises. “You’re welcome, Mr. Bell. I really am sorry. Whatever it costs to fix your bike, just send me the bill. I’m happy to pay it.”
He shook her hand firmly and took the business card she offered. “I will,” he said. “Like I said, though, the dog’s fine, I’ll heal, and the bike can be fixed. No harm done. Bye.” He half turned to nod at Rob. “Bye. Thanks for the tea.”
“You can stay and finish it,” Abby said. She bent over to scratch Fozzy’s head. “He’s welcome too. We’re a dog-friendly office.”
Of course they were. Jacob shook his head. “Thanks, but I should go. I’ll call someone to come and give me a lift.”
That time she didn’t try to change his mind.
Chapter Twelve
