The Penalty Box (Vancouver Wolves Hockey #3)(43)
He reached down and took the leashes off Sandy and Henry’s harnesses, and together the four of us approached the house. We searched the house, room by room, turning on the lights as we went. He didn’t even say a damn word when he stepped into the guest room and noticed my clothes in the closet and the unmade bed.
Finally, we got back to the kitchen.
“There is no one here.”
I licked my lips. I couldn’t stand the thought that someone had been able to open the door and turn off the alarm. “Maybe I left the front door open.”
“Are you going to be okay?”
I nodded, miserable.
“Do you want Sandy to stay with you tonight?”
I almost collapsed with relief. “You’d let her do that?”
“I’m not sure if she’s much of a guard dog, but at least you won’t be alone.”
“Thank you,” I breathed.
“I will go grab her dish and some food. I’ll be right back.”
He returned a few moments later with a small bag of dog food and her dog dish.
“You want me to spend the night?”
I did not want to be alone, but that gesture, no matter how platonic, was crossing a line. “That’s okay.”
He looked like he wanted to argue but he simply said, “Sandy will try to sleep with you. This one loves to sleep on the bed.”
I nodded, trying to cover my fear. “Thanks.”
He gave me a tender look. “You can drop her off in the morning on your way to work.”
*
It was after midnight. I tucked Sandy and myself in Mica’s bed. Her head rested on the pillow and her body stretched out alongside mine. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t sleep.
Mica: You awake?
Me: Yes.
I took a photo of me and Sandy and sent it to him.
Immediately, my phone started to ring.
“Are you in my bed?”
Oh shit, I’d forgotten about that. “Yes, sorry.”
“Who’s your bed partner?”
“When I got home from my walk…”
He interrupted. “Were you with the dog walking group?”
“Yes. When—”
“Is that the dude’s dog?”
“Yes, Mica…”
“So he was on the walk?”
“The front door was wide open,” I blurted out.
Silence, and then his voice changed. It was harder, colder. “What happened?”
“I left a lot of lights on and I set the alarm and locked the door. When I came home, the front door was open, the alarm hadn’t gone off and someone had turned all the lights off.”
“What do you mean the door was open?”
“It was wide open.”
He swore under his breath. “Go on.”
“Andrew walked through the house with me. There was no one here. And then he offered for Sandy to spend the night.”
“Is that the dog?”
“Yeah.”
He didn’t speak for a moment. “This is seriously starting to piss me off.”
“I’m scared,” I blurted out.
“Sweetheart, can you give me a moment? I’ll call you back.”
“Okay.”
I didn’t know why Mica needed to end the call, but I lunged for the phone when it buzzed again.
“Hello?”
“I can’t come home.”
“I know.”
“I asked, but they don’t love that idea.”
It threw me that Mica would even consider coming home, much less ask for permission. “You need to play hockey. Don’t even think about that.”
“Zoey’s coming over.”
I sat up in bed. “She is?”
“She’s on her way. She will stay with you until I get home.”
“It’s too late. We can’t ask her to do that.”
“I did and she is. She can sleep in your room since you’re already in mine.”
That I wouldn’t have to be here alone made me so happy. “Thank you.”
“You need to change the alarm code for our house.”
“I already did.”
His voice was gruff. “Call me in the morning.”
“I will.”
I scrambled out of bed and changed the sheets and towels for Zoey in my room. The doorbell rang, causing Sandy to bark.
Zoey stood in the doorway with a cute little carry-on suitcase beside her. In her hand, she had a cat carrying case. “Hey.”
I ushered her in, and a pitiful meow sounded.
I bent down to stick my finger in the case. “Who’s this?”
She grinned. “That is Ikea. I couldn’t leave her.”
“You’re both welcome.”
She hugged me. “Mica told me what happened.”
“I’m so sorry to disturb you, but I am so glad you are here.”
She grinned and bent down to pet Sandy. “I didn’t know you had a dog.”
“This is Sandy. She belongs to our neighbor, but he lent her to me for the night. Do you think she will get along with Ikea?”
Zoey kneeled down and opened the cage door. The cutest cat came tumbling out. She took one look at Sandy and hissed. Sandy responded by turning tail and taking off towards Mica’s bedroom.