Let's go.

Part 32 - Sweetness Doesn't Often Touch My Face

"Wren!" Jerry yells at me from down the hall, "babe, we gotta go."

"Give me a minute!" I yell back.

"Wren," he says in a lower voice from the bedroom door.

I am on my hands and knees looking under his bed for my earrings and mutter back, "Just give me a second."

"Babe, you are staying in Queen Anne which means I have to take the Fremont bridge."

I look up at him confused, "okay?"

"It's a draw bridge. If we don't catch it, you ain't goin' to work today," He explains, with a warm chuckle. "Which I'm fine with," he adds and leans against the door jam with a roguish look.

"Jesus, okay, well, look for my earrings while I'm at work then," I say as I sit back on my ankles.

He chuckles, "tell me what they looked like and I'll just buy you another pair."

"They were my mother's," I say quietly.

His eyes widen and he says, "oh fuck, honey, I'll look for them while you are at work." He reaches down to help me stand up, then pulls me up against this chest for a tight hug. He smooths down my hair and murmurs in my ear, "I'll find them."

I lean back in his arms and grin at him, "thank you."

He kisses me lightly then says, "I wanna take you out for a nice dinner tonight," his eyes warm as they trace my face.

"What do you want me to wear?" I ask.

His lips twitch at the corners and he bites his bottom lip. "I know better than to ever tell you to do anything, Wren," he says with a sassy grin.

"Taken you a while to learn that one," I tease.

He chuckles and squeezes my hips. "I'll pick you up from your place in Queen Anne then take you for dinner downtown."

He leans his head down and captures my lips for a quick kiss before whisking me off into his car. He has the SUV running with the heater on and has already scraped the frost from the windows.

I buckle my seatbelt and turn to him, "for a man who only got a couple of hours of sleep, you sure are awake."

He chuckles as he backs out of his driveway.

"I'm used to operating on very little sleep," he says and winks at me.

I feel the heat rise to my face at his meaning and I reach over to run my hand down his leg.

He catches the blush to my cheeks and does a double take, "Wren, if you keep that up I am going to take you back home," he laughs but his voice is strained. I squeeze his knee then sit back in my seat.

We barely make the Fremont Bridge in time before it is raised and he drops me off in front of Claire's house. He stares at it for a moment too long.

"Have you been here before?" I ask.

He's quiet for a moment then shakes his head, "I really can't remember, but fuck, it looks so familiar."

"Do you know Claire Spenser?" I ask then add, "She is who I am staying with."

"No, no I don't, I don't think I know any Claires," he says under his breath.

"Oh, I highly doubt that Jerry Cantrell," I reply with a laugh and reach to open my door.

"Hey," he says and catches my arm. He pulls me closer to him and kisses me deeply and passionately. Then abruptly lets go of me. I feel myself reeling and dizzy from the kiss and he reaches across me to open my door.