Page 13

It’s more like a feeling than a scent, and a shiver runs down my spine.

He closes the cabinet and spins to face me. “There might be a few things in the pantry.” He points to the door just past the refrigerator. “But I doubt there’s much. You’ll want to run to the store before they close.”

“Okay, thanks.”

Bryant nods. “Let’s exchange numbers before I forget. I want you to be able to reach me if you need anything.”

And that’s exactly what we do.

* * *

Bryant leaves me the apartment key. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t shocked. I’m not sure there’s much in the apartment that someone could steal, but still. It’s a lot of faith to put in a stranger.

I force Echo to come with me to find a store that’s open, mostly because I don’t want to risk her chewing on something if she’s left alone. She’s usually pretty well-behaved, but all dogs can chew when they’re bored or anxious.

The grocery store that’s close to Maxwell’s is closed, so I have to venture farther out. It takes a little work, but I find a mom-and-pop store that also has a gas station on the other side of the building. The small grocery store smells amazing and looks clean, so I grab food for at least three or four days, some dog bones, a chew toy for Echo, and fill up with gas before heading back to the apartment.

This entire town is weird.

It goes from a highway to this adorable little downtown area in the blink of an eye. The gym and bar are just two or three minutes away from the residential streets of the cozy little town.

It’s picturesque, like something out of a Christmas movie.

I kinda love it.

If the sky wasn’t gray and gloomy, I would have spent some time exploring, but nearly all the stores and shops were closed.

Echo paces the apartment as I put away the items that require refrigeration. The rest I leave in the bags on the counter, mostly because it feels invasive to dig around in someone else’s pantry to find space to put it away.

The fridge is stocked with beer, water, soda, condiments, and nothing else. It’s easy to see this place isn’t lived in regularly, but it’s warm and lacks that stale smell that usually takes over when a place sits unoccupied for too long.

Now that the refrigerated items are put away, I’m not sure what to do with myself. It’s awkward being in someone else’s space.

Echo comes up, bumping my hand as I stand in the kitchen.

“You want to go out again before the storm hits?” I ask, giving her scratches and patting her hard head. Her tail whips around, smacking against the cabinet. “You’re such a mess.” I laugh. “Doesn’t that hurt? Or do you just ignore it because you’re that excited?”

She barks, bouncing from side to side with her front paws.

Damn.

I got her too worked up.

We’re going to need to do some serious laps around the parking lot. While she’s mostly out of the chew-on-everything phase, I’d still rather not risk it.

It’s definitely time to tire her ass out. Maybe I’ll take a warm shower when we get back.

That sounds heavenly.

It’ll be my reward for having to drag my ass back outside in the cold.

Chapter Five

Lawson

It’s not even five, and I’ve been driving in the dark for over an hour. The sun always starts setting ridiculously early during the winter, usually about four-fifteen to four-thirty, but thanks to the storm, it’s been middle-of-the-night dark since I climbed into my truck.

The game plan was to leave no later than two-thirty or three p.m. to ensure I made it home before the storm blew in.