Jane laughed at the picture of Oreos that Cameron had texted over. They’d been texting on and off for the past week. It had all been friendly banter, and Cameron had asked about her dad a few times. She’d assured him that her dad was fine now, although she was pretty much a nervous wreck over playing the vigilante to her dad’s diet and medication.
She made him start a food journal, and it was the first thing she checked when she came home from work. Tonight, Jane had curled up in bed with her Kindle, while her dad watched TV at full volume in the living room. Who cared that it was Friday night, and she was sitting home, again. She didn’t mind. Not really. Tomorrow night, she’d take her dad to the assisted living center and get in plenty of social interaction.
Reading through the recent text strand from Cameron, Jane wondered what he was doing tonight. He’d sent the picture a couple hours ago—probably before he left to go do whatever wealthy single men did on Friday nights.
Jane groaned. She had to stop thinking of him as a “wealthy man”—it wasn’t really fair to him. Besides, she was starting to feel that he was more than just a courteous guy. He was becoming her friend.
Her phone rang, and Jane flinched at the unexpected sound.
“Hi, Mom,” she answered.
“Jane, where have you been?”
“I’m at home,” Jane said, then backtracked. “Dad’s house. Why?”
“Did you get my message?”
Jane pulled her phone from her ear. There were no missed calls or messages. “No, Mom. When did you call?”
Her mom sighed. Jane tried not to get worked up when her mom did this. She often made a big deal out of small things.
“Gina invited me to a weekend getaway, and I can’t find anyone to watch Sparks.”
Jane hid a groan. Sparks was her mom’s fifteen-year-old dog that was mostly blind and had a permanent limp. “What about Mrs. Felt? Hasn’t she fed him before?”
“We’re not exactly on speaking terms,” her mom said, breezing past any explanation. “Please, Jane. I’ve called everyone, and they all have excuses. You’re my last resort. Can you please come get him before Sunday? We’re flying out early in the morning.”
“Did you call the Doggie Barn?”
“Ugh. You know Sparks got sick last time he went to that kennel.”
“When did he ever go?” Jane asked.
Her mom didn’t answer, which told Jane that the dog hadn’t been to the Doggie Barn. “I’ll give you gas money.”
“It’s not the money, Mom,” she said. “I have to work tomorrow afternoon, then take Dad to his game night after that. I’d have to leave at 6:00 a.m., drive two hours to your house, then back here. Plus, are you going to pick up Sparks at the end of the trip?”
“Yes, I’ll pick him up,” her mom said. “I appreciate this so much, sweetie. Thanks a million. Just text me when you’re on your way so that I can get his medicine put together.”
Jane opened her mouth to give her mom more suggestions just as her mom hung up. Jane stared at her phone. Then she closed her eyes and leaned back on her pillows with a groan. Her mom was the master manipulator. Whatever she wanted, she got. No matter how it might inconvenience someone else. Her mom was overbearing where her dad was nonconfrontational. Two people couldn’t be more opposite.
Jane rolled over onto her side, plugged in her phone, and stared at the opposite wall. What would she do with an arthritic dog for a whole week? She didn’t know how her dad would react, and Jane would have to make sure she stayed on top of the dog’s medicine. Now Jane would have two things to worry about all week.
She sighed and climbed off her bed, then went to tell her dad she’d be leaving early in the morning to pick up Sparks. He just shook his head; they both knew how hard it was to argue with her mom.
The following morning, Jane’s alarm went off at 5:30 a.m. She forced herself to climb out of bed, took a quick shower, then pulled her hair back into a ponytail. She dressed in ratty jeans and an old T-shirt. Sparks liked to drool and shed, so Jane didn’t want to wear anything nice.
Before she left the house, she set out instructions for her dad and his breakfast. He’d be annoyed, but it made her feel better.
Jane jumped in her car and threw an old blanket in the back seat. Her mom refused to put Sparks in a dog carrier, so he’d be lounging all over Jane’s upholstery if she didn’t have a blanket to protect it. Yawning, she backed out of the driveway, then noticed that her gas tank was only a quarter full. If she filled it up now, she could make the round-trip without filling up again.
So Jane drove to a gas station to fill up. A silver Audi pulled into a parking place in front of the convenience store a couple of minutes later. Jane glanced over, wondering who else in Pine Valley was up so early on a Saturday, and the name VANCE on the license plate caught her attention. Cameron had an Audi. As Jane was trying to comprehend the coincidence, the driver’s door opened, and Cameron climbed out.
Jane didn’t know why she did it, but she ducked her head, avoiding eye contact. She probably looked worse than she had at the hospital. From the corner of her eye, she saw him go into the store. Great. She could hurry and leave before he came out.
Jane pulled out the gas nozzle, even though the tank wasn’t all the way full, and jumped into her car. She turned the ignition. Instead of firing up, the engine just clicked, then went silent. Jane made sure the car was in park, then turned the ignition again. No, no, no. Her car couldn’t die now. Her dad’s old truck wouldn’t make it out of town, and if she didn’t get Sparks this morning, she’d have to reschedule her cleaning appointments—which would be a ripple effect on everything else.
Jane tried the ignition again. No luck. She wanted to scream. She dropped her head onto the steering wheel. She’d had the lube and oil done two weeks ago, and the car had passed state emissions last month. Wouldn’t something have been found if there was anything wrong?
A knock on her window made her jump.
She looked up, her pulse racing, and saw Cameron standing there, a cup of coffee in his hand.
Because the car was off, she couldn’t roll down the window, so she cracked open the door.
“Hi,” she said. “You scared me.”
“Sorry about that,” Cameron said, looking at her with concern. “I wasn’t sure if it was you. Then I saw the decal on the side of your car.” He leaned down. “Are you okay?”
“Uh, yeah, I mean, no.” Jane exhaled. “My car won’t start.”
His eyebrows shot up.
“The oil is fine, I just had it done.”
“Can you pop open the hood?”
Jane pulled the lever, then climbed out of the car and joined Cameron as he bent over the front end. “Your power steering fluid is low.”
“They should have checked that at my last oil change.”
“You should still be able to start the car, though,” Cameron said. “Hang on. The gas station might have some. I’ll go check.”
So Jane waited while he went inside. A few minutes later, he came out with a young man wearing a uniform shirt—probably the cashier in the gas station. “David” was embroidered on his shirt pocket. David pulled off his baseball cap and scratched at his red hair. He checked a couple of things, then said, “It’s probably the starter. You’ll have to tow it to a shop.”
“Okay, thanks, bud,” Cameron said, and the guy walked back into the gas station. “They don’t have a power steering fluid that I trust.”
“That you trust?” Jane asked. “Are you like a mechanic, or something?”
“Hardly.” Cameron flashed a smile. “We can call Aaron’s Mechanic Shop and get them to tow it to their place.”
“Okay,” Jane said. “When do they open?”
“I think the tow service is twenty-four hours, but the shop’s not open on the weekends,” he said. “Do you need a ride home?”
She exhaled. “I was on my way to my mom’s to pick up her dog for the week. She’s going on a trip. If I wasn’t trying to get a dog here, I’d just find a bus. Well, I can actually take one to her house, then maybe drive her car back here since she’s traveling by—”
“Jane,” Cameron cut in. “I can drive you.”
She opened her mouth, then shut it. “No,” she said. “My mom lives two hours away, and her dog is... unpleasant.”
He folded his arms. “It’s no problem.”
She stared at him. He was wearing a golf shirt and khakis. Was he going golfing somewhere?
“That’s really nice of you,” she said, keeping her determination strong. “I can’t let you change your whole day to drive me. I’ll just rearrange a few things and figure it out.”
“Jane.”
She swallowed.
“Let me help you,” he said.
“But, you obviously have plans,” Jane said. “I mean, you’re getting coffee at a gas station at 6:30 on a Saturday morning.”
“I was going golfing with a couple friends, but they won’t miss me.” Cameron stepped up to the car and closed the hood. Then he turned to face her again. “Let me drive you. We’ll bring Sparky back. You won’t have to change your schedule.”
“Sparks,” Jane said, hiding a smile.
“Sparks. Sparkly. Whoever. Besides. I like dogs.”
Jane released a sigh. “Okay, but I’m paying for gas and for any snacks you might want.”
Cameron chuckled. “Deal.”
The tow truck arrived in about ten minutes, and Jane handed over her keys to Aaron himself. She was impressed to be helped by the owner of the shop, but she didn’t miss the fact that Cameron gave him a couple of bills. More fifty-dollar bills?
When she climbed into his car, she groaned. “I forgot the blanket for Sparky.”
“He needs a blanket?” Cameron said, starting his car.
“He sheds a lot and drools,” she explained.
“We can grab one from your mom.” Cameron steered his car out of the parking lot.
“Good idea,” she said. “I must be more tired than I thought. Of course we can get one of my mom’s blankets. I just hate to see anything happen to your car.”
He shook his head. “Don’t worry, really. The car will be fine.”
Jane leaned her head back as Cameron accelerated. She didn’t know much about Audis, but she could feel the power of the car as it picked up speed.
“Call Jeff Finch,” Cameron said suddenly.
It took Jane a second to realize he was using voice recognition in his car. The call was answered, and a man’s voice came through the speakers. “Hey, Jeff, it’s Cameron. I can’t make the tee time after all. Something’s come up.”
“Are you serious?” Jeff said. “This is the only time I have for weeks. Can you just come for nine holes?”
“No,” Cameron said. “I’m driving a friend out of town. I won’t be back until this afternoon.”
“Friend?” Jeff asked.
“We’ll catch up later,” Cameron said.
“Wait,” Jeff said. “Who’s this friend? Sounds like a woman.”
“You’re on speaker phone, Jeff,” Cameron said in a pointed voice. “And she can hear everything you say.”
“I knew it!”
“Bye, Jeff,” Cameron said, then pushed an icon on the dashboard screen. He glanced over at Jane. “Sorry about that.”
“I wanted to hear what he was going to say next,” she said, holding back a laugh.
Cameron scoffed. “Jeff needs to mind his own business.”
She smiled. “Do you two hang out much?”
“Not like we used to.” He shrugged. “I was engaged to a pretty high-maintenance woman, remember?”
“How could I forget?” Jane said. She didn’t know if it was any of her business, but she was curious. “How is that all going?”
“Everything’s finally canceled, at least on my end.” He sighed. “My mom had Selena send out notices both by mail and email. Even though the official invitations hadn’t gone out, I wanted everyone who knows me or my family to stop speculating.”
“Good idea.” The highway came out of the slopes of pine trees and opened into a wide valley. The sun had just broken over the eastern horizon, and the morning looked fresh and new. Jane pulled out her phone and took some pictures of the sunrise.
“You’ll have to send me a couple of those,” Cameron said.
“Sure.” She texted some of the pictures to his phone. Then she settled back into the seat, wondering what was going on with the man beside her and why he was being so nice to her. She was trying hard not to like him more and more, but it was wasn’t easy.