Deciding not to feed the flames, I raised my invisible flag. “The coolest thing about choices, bud, is they’re yours. You don’t have to like anyone if you don’t want to. You should never be rude without cause, but there is nothing that says you have to like Mr. Garrett.”
“I just don’t think you should like him.”
I pushed down a laugh. I honestly had no idea how I felt about our burly, hot-to-cold neighbor.
After Jamie had sprinted into my parents’ house with a shouted “Goodbye!” I’d stood outside for a few minutes, chatting with my mom. She’d scheduled several things for them to do over the weekend, and I was thrilled. A solid distraction was exactly what he needed.
I’d be swinging by to see him before working tonight, and I planned on waking up early so I could see him tomorrow morning before I did my payroll shift, but other than that, he’d be with my parents the entire weekend.
I had no idea how we ever would’ve made it without them, how any single mother, teenage or not, could ever make it without some sort of help. Single parents were expected to work full time yet stay home with our kids, be educated yet not abuse federal assistance, and somehow afford rent, bills, food, clothes, and gas by ourselves.
And heaven forbid we ever need to hold up a register line to pull out a WIC check.
I knew, without a shadow of a doubt, I never would’ve brought Jamie and me to the comfortable point we were at if my parents hadn’t been available to watch him while I worked, and if I hadn’t been willing to accept that help. Not everyone in my situation was that lucky.
I nodded, excited for the things Jamie would get to do with them. He’d have a blast, and my mom was always good about taking lots of pictures when they did stuff without me.
“All right, I’m going to head out, but I’m only required to shadow a guard for six hours, so I’ll have time to swing by this evening. And tomorrow morning I’ll be here bright and early to make breakfast for everyone.”
“I can’t promise we’ll be up.”
I rolled my eyes. She and my dad were the definition of morning people. They’d absolutely be up. Jamie, on the other hand, I’d have to hit with a pillow.
Walking onto the community college campus was a crazy feeling. I hadn’t stepped foot on it since I graduated, and now here I was being trusted to guard it. I wasn’t necessarily scared of something actually happening, it was more of a fear of disappointing people.
When people put their faith in me, I wanted to show them they were right to. I was motivated and determined, and when I set a goal, I accomplished it. But I didn’t feel any of that confidence with this job, and that’s what stressed me the most.
Reaching for the handle to the building, I yanked. No go. I pushed. No go. Confused, I stood there frowning hard enough to create new wrinkles before I stomped around the building looking for another entrance. Nothing.
I didn’t have the guard office’s number, just Jim’s cell. Rob had given me his, too, but I’d flipped off the email and refused to save it like the petty bitch I was.
Stepping back up to the door, I gave three hard raps on the glass pane and looked around, fidgeting. After what seemed like ten minutes and several more knocks, the door finally flew open.
The man standing on the other side was dressed identical to me, but he definitely pulled it off better. He gave off a Hollywood bootcamp sergeant vibe, except for the ten-watt smile he was currently giving me.
“You must be Madison. I hope you haven’t been standing here long. I’ve been sitting in the office waiting for you to give me a call that you’d arrived.” He stepped to the side to let me pass.
“No, sir, just a few minutes. I don’t actually have the office number, so I knocked a bunch.” I offered a small laugh, “I’ll happily take that number now though.”
It didn’t take long for me to begin to feel more comfortable with the job. My trainer seemed to understand my apprehension and knew what to say or do to show me how I could accomplish a task.
My primary job would be to drive the perimeter of the campus in the company suburban and then park and begin the on-foot patrol. He walked me through each building, showing me where lights were and explaining what all I’d need to check. Once that was all done, I was free to sit in the office until the next round of surveillance was due.
Overall, it had significantly helped ease my fears and made me feel way more prepared and capable. I was still nervous about how I’d handle anyone who got pushy about being on campus, but I supposed I’d cross that bridge if I ever came to it.
By the time I got home, I was dragging. I’d already started wearing down by the end of the six hours, and that was before I’d gone to my parents’ place. Waitressing involved a decent amount of walking, some nights an insane amount. But patrolling around, into, and through every building on a college campus, numerous times, involved a lot of walking and a lot of stairs.
Then when I’d swung by to see Jamie, he’d asked me to throw his new boomerang around with him. By the time we’d moseyed back inside to annihilate some chocolate chip cookies, my feet and legs were aching.
So now here I was, sitting in the driveway, wanting nothing more than to curl up and sleep, fully aware I’d feel even worse when I woke up tomorrow. But I needed to move, I only had maybe five minutes to change and reverse back out.
Dragging my sorry ass out of the vehicle, I was audibly groaning and mumbling when the feeling of being watched hit me. The hairs on my neck raised, and the air around me seemed to almost condense, pressing down on me. I already knew who it was. The only person who had a stare intense enough to feel from a distance.
Garrett had the hood of his Nova propped up and was leaned over it, a rag thrown across his shoulder. He was sporting his usual jeans with a white long-sleeve. The sleeves were rolled up, and his muscles flexed as he extended his arms on either side of him and rested his weight.
He was staring right at me, scrutinizing me. It should have ruffled my feathers to have a man blatantly staring at me with no care, but I was doing the same to him. I’d never been a car girl, I couldn’t tell one car from another, but seeing him leaning over the front made me want to invest in a photo calendar…or a wrench and pliers.
His eyes left my face, drifting about my body like he expected me to show up with a broken leg or something. Once he was satisfied with his findings, his gaze snapped back to mine, and for a second I thought he looked relieved. But it was there and gone in a flash, replaced by his usual pressed lips.
I gave him a silent nod of greeting and dashed away, now down to only three minutes to change.
Sadly, for my sanity, but luckily for my eyes, he hadn’t moved an inch in the few minutes I’d been inside my house. I’d had to let the dogs out to pee, and it’d taken me a few extra minutes, so I ran out, digging through my purse for my keys.
And like I was living in a goddamn comedy, when my fingers finally closed around them and yanked them out, I moved too fast and tossed them to the ground. The grumbled curses that exited my mouth were not graceful or attractive in the least.
I snatched them from the cement, twisting to make it to my Jeep, but came to an abrupt stop when I noticed Garrett had moved closer, his hands tucked in his pockets, watching me fumble.
I uttered an awkward hello and then forced myself to ignore his domineering presence and climbed into the vehicle. He was still standing in the same position, watching me with that eerie intensity, a pinch in his brows, as I reversed out of the drive.
I had no idea what his deal was, but I really hoped he’d figure his shit out and stop staring at me soon, because apparently, I had no idea how to act like a rational human being when he did.
Chapter Eight