Page 34 of Hold Me Instead (Elmwood Falls #1)

Charlie

“You’re here early.” Zachary’s deep timbre vibrated beneath her skin.

Charlie shivered and turned from the window. “So are you.”

Maple shuffled over with a happy greeting, then settled onto the dog bed.

Charlie inhaled sharply when she looked up, watching Zachary’s slow approach.

He wore one of the clinic’s long-sleeve navy T-shirts, the name and logo printed in white across the chest, with little paw prints floating on the top left.

It was the same one she wore, and it looked way better on him than it had a right to, especially paired with his well-worn jeans.

“I had a feeling you’d be here before anyone else,” he said. “How are you today?”

“Much better. Sleep helped.” His texts in the evening to check on her had also put her on a euphoric cloud that had lulled her to said sleep.

“Good.” His gaze traveled over her face, roamed her body, his mouth twitching when he reached her feet. “Those sneakers…”

She threw her hands on her hips in mock annoyance. “What about them?”

“I like them. Part of your uniform. But they say a lot about you. ”

Charlie glanced down, her berry sneakers their normal selves. “What do they say?”

“They’re bright, obviously. Matches your personality.”

“Well, that’s sweet,” Charlie mumbled, her heart rate picking up as Zachary inched the final distance toward her.

“They’re clearly a go-to.”

“True. When these finally wear out, I’ll just buy another pair.”

“Same color?”

“Most likely. Predictable?”

He chuckled, his fingers brushing hers as his warm scent invaded her space. “Reliable.”

“Oh.” Charlie’s mouth twitched, the game amusing and somehow extremely titillating.

“Charming,” he added.

“You know, they do wink at me daily.” Her eyes darted away from his, down to their hands as his fingers clung more boldly to hers, despite her bad joke.

“Strong.”

“My shoes are strong?” Her voice was strained, his closeness interrupting her brain waves with thoughts of closer , please .

“Kind.”

“Okay, now I’m questioning your observational skills.”

“Feisty.”

She sighed. “I can see that one.”

“Charlie.”

Her eyes locked on his instantly when her name fell softly from his lips, her stomach executing a clumsy flip of excitement. His use of any part of her name held a weight no one else could replicate .

“Yes?” It was a whisper, her heartbeat so fast she could jumpstart his.

His fingers tangled with hers as the other hand traveled her arm, sending rays of heat over her torso, until he cupped her jaw in his palm. Their feet nestled together, his closeness a calming blanket that made her want to curl up inside him.

His brown eyes caught a glint of light from the window, small flecks of gold more visible the closer his face inched toward hers. The rugged stubble on his face marred his normally pressed look in a sexy way he surely underestimated. She bit her lip in anticipation.

Zachary brushed the backs of his fingers against her cheek and tucked her hair behind her ear. “Want to have dinner with me tonight?” he asked.

“Yes.”

He smiled, breaking out those laugh lines. She gave in to temptation and traced her finger over one, pressing into it when his smile grew, effectively deepening the happy crease.

“I’ve wanted to do that for a while,” she admitted.

His eyes widened, then softened as he pressed closer. “Have at it.”

“Mm, they’re good,” she hummed, grinning when he chuckled.

The faint echo of the employee door to the clinic sounded, voices filling the air. Zachary stepped back, and Charlie instantly missed his body against hers. She watched him squat by Maple to give the pup some pets. When he looked back at her, he grinned, and she realized her smile had never left.

“Ah, of course, you’re both here.” Maura appeared in the doorway and glanced at her watch. “I hope you haven’t been here for hours already.” She tossed a motherly look at Charlie.

“Not too long,” Charlie replied .

“Well, I’ve put on some coffee to get us through setup,” Maura said.

“Amazing, I didn’t get that far.”

“I’ll see you out there.” Maura returned to the kitchenette.

Charlie grabbed her clipboard, the plans for the day set out in a much clearer way than the top of her desk looked.

“How’d everything go with your dad?” Her mind had volleyed all night—thinking about Zachary helping Daniel, thinking about Zachary, thinking about kissing Zachary.

Then her heart would dive as nerves for pursuing anything with him would take hold, fear looming that they’d only have that one kiss.

One luxurious kiss.

Zachary sighed and stood. “Mostly well. By the time I got there, Mom was kinda tipsy, thanks to Sandra. So that was amusing. Pretty sure that’s the first I’ve witnessed it. Put Dad in a better mood for a while.” He shrugged. “It’s sweet, though, both dogs stay by him all the time.”

Charlie pressed a hand to her chest. “Keeping an eye on their guy.”

Zachary dragged a hand through his hair. “He wants to come today. I thought it’d be too much, but…he’s going to do what he wants. Sandra encouraged him to stay home, but I feel like she’ll give in too.”

“It sucks, not being able to fully celebrate right now.”

They were quiet a moment, Charlie watching his brow furrow and twitch.

“We’ll keep an eye on him if he shows,” she finally said.

Zachary straightened and opened his desk drawer, pulling out a piece of mail. “Yes, well…” he said, voice tight as he folded the envelope and tucked it into his jeans. “Hopefully, he won’t show. Best he gets his rest,” he added.

Charlie nodded, watching him look everywhere but at her.

“Charlie! We’ve got vendors!” Maura called .

She blinked to attention, smiling as Zachary finally looked her way. “Well, let’s get started.”

***

The late afternoon air smelled of crushed leaves and the grill Zachary managed. Charlie pulled up the hood of her cornflower-blue puffy vest and pressed against the Lee’s SUV, shivering as the driver’s side window rolled down.

“Hi! Look what the bakery made!” She held up a plate and waved a hand over dog-and-cat-shaped cutout cookies, decorated with bright royal icing.

“Oh! Look, how adorable are these?” Jeanie took the plate and swiveled to the passenger seat to show Daniel, a flicker of happiness nudging through his tired features.

“I, um, wanted to make sure you got some,” Charlie said.

When Sandra and her family had arrived, she’d mentioned her parents were parked, watching, debating on whether to walk through the cookout.

There was only a little over an hour left, so Charlie had taken it upon herself to pay them a visit, if only to satisfy the need to see Daniel at his own event.

“That was sweet of you. You know, we were trying to decide if we should walk over or not, but it’s gotten so cold,” Jeanie said. She glanced at Daniel, then back at Charlie. “Know what? I might get us a hot drink and maybe grab a little something from the grill. Do you mind keeping him company?”

“I don’t need a babysitter,” Daniel grumbled .

“I don’t think I could pay anyone enough to babysit you, honey,” Jeanie said, smiling once he snorted a chuckle.

Charlie stepped back as Jeanie maneuvered from the car and gestured for her to sit. She moved almost in slow motion, taking the plate back from Jeanie, scooting into the vehicle, next to Daniel, where they’d have time to talk. Alone. Without doctors or nurses nearby…

“I’ll be back in a few,” Jeanie said, shoving the door closed.

Or Jeanie .

Charlie and Daniel watched in silence while she waved and shouted greetings to people as she approached the cookout, her bright red and white winter coat a beacon.

A brisk breeze whirled through the car, and Charlie rolled up the window.

The sky had darkened throughout the day, gracing them with a nice, crisp cookout and promising a storm as soon as it ended.

Sweatshirts and coats increased in size to accommodate, but it didn’t stop anyone from attending and taking their time to visit every booth, to meet the dogs up for adoption, to chat in line at the food tent.

Families huddled together to eat, bundling up with blankets until they could move their bodies again.

The support from the community warmed Charlie, and watching each year grow was electrifying.

There were folks who attended every single one, no matter the weather.

It didn’t matter if people had pets or not, showing up and participating went a long way.

It was evident the man who started it all was the force behind it.

She slid back her hood and shifted. Daniel was way more lucid than her last visit to the hospital—he’d dozed off and on, giving her time to focus on how tired and worn he looked.

She’d hated it, seeing him like that. It had felt like a dream, watching nurses walk in and out of the room as they checked on him while he gave them small smiles of appreciation for their lighthearted approach, as they told Jeanie to make sure she stuck around for a hospital dessert actually worth enjoying with him.

She’d merely been part of the scene, waiting for someone to wake her up, tell her he was okay.

That the concern of it happening again was gone. But no one had.

Sitting beside him now, it felt like a later scene of the same dream, with a facade of normalcy.

There was no longer a hospital bed. He was at his anniversary cookout—parked yards away and staring from the safety of his SUV.

He was awake, alert, and available to talk.

Which meant she should say something of substance.

“How are you feeling?” Immediately, she dropped her head and closed her eyes, cursing her small-talk inabilities.

Daniel grunted.

She smirked. At least they were on the same level of communication. She opened her eyes, the plate of cookies beaming up at her.