Finding Home in Redemption

Chapter Six

Meet Sam! 

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I was sitting in the foyer putting my shoes on when there was a knock on the door. I opened it to Aaron and Dog, both of whom looked like they were ready for our day.

"Wow, you look beautiful today," Aaron said before his eyes widened in shock. "I'm sorry. That was inappropriate. You just caught me off guard," he ran his hands over his hair that was pulled up into a bun.

I looked down at my outfit. Other than my tennis shoes, everything looked normal. I was wearing my favorite burgundy sweater dress and black leggings. My boots were in my bag, but those wouldn't go on until I got to work. I'd curled my hair and put a little blush and eye shadow on that morning. I told myself it was so I looked professional for my new employees, but really, deep inside, I knew it was for Aaron.

"Thank you." There was a moment of awkwardness, not knowing where to take the conversation after that and I laughed. His smile reassured me, and I motioned them inside.

"So, what are we going to do about Dog?" I asked, looking at the giant German Shepherd laying on my floor. "We could either take him with us, or we could leave him here. I already know how good he is at holding his bladder so he'd need to stay in the bathroom and I'd feel guilty. Okay, so we'll take him with us."

Aaron laughed, and I looked up at him in confusion. "I'm glad we could talk that out," he said.

"Oh, sorry, I tend to have conversations all by myself sometimes. You already know that though." I grabbed my bag and headed for the door. "Let's go."

"It's getting chilly out so you might want to get your coat," he said. I looked at him in his jacket and frowned.

"Where's your coat?" I asked. I could hear the sadness in my voice, and he started shaking his head.

"It's in the hallway, Bentley. All my things are in the hall." I peeked my head out of the doorway, and sure enough, his belongings were sitting against the wall, coat included. I walked out and grabbed the two backpacks and his coat and brought them inside.

"You can leave them in here anytime you need to. Now, grab your coat and let's roll." We walked out onto the sidewalk and started our trek to work.

"So, you walk this every day?" Aaron asked after a few minutes.

"Yeah. It's not that bad, to be honest. The walk home gets a little creepy sometimes when it's dark."

"You really should get a car. Doesn't your dad sell cars?" When he noticed the look on my face, he explained. "You told me about the place a few months ago."

"Were you ever sleeping when I was talking to you?" I asked, avoiding the car conversation and covering it up with honest embarrassment.

"Sometimes, yes. After a few times, I would lay there and listen. To be frank, I thought you were a little off in the head at first. You would just talk and talk. I got used to it, eventually."

"Why didn't you ever talk to me? I mean, why wait so long?"

"I expected you to go away," he said, and Dog chose that moment to start barking at a squirrel, saving me from responding.

We walked the rest of the way in silence. I didn't think what he said was rude or malicious in any way, but it had hurt my feelings nonetheless. When we reached Cooper's, I looked at Aaron to gauge his reaction.

"This is where you work?" he asked, shocked.

I looked out over the place and smiled. The car lot sat at the very front. The morning frost covered all the cars, and Jerry, the guy that ran the lot and my father's best friend, was already inside turning the lights on. Behind that was my childhood home. A simple three bedroom, one level house that was in dire need of fresh paint and a few decorations. Plain is how Pop liked his house, and since it was his, I couldn't argue. Last was the shop on the far left corner of the property. The garage had six bays, and two were already open with a car waiting in each.