Page 18 of Security and Submission
“I’ve gotta go back next door,” he told Tiger. “I’ll be back.”
As he opened his front door, he had the thought that Tiger might actually be helpful in the search. Although he wasn’t trained for it or anything, he knew Hope. Surely, he’d seek her out.
The color blue caught Zeus’ eye before he could turn and open the door wider, so Tiger could go with him. The blue car he’d spotted earlier in the day—and did not pay much attention to because it had disappeared so quickly—was back in Sarah’s driveway. The last time he’d seen it, Hope had been with him, but he’d been gone all afternoon.
Maybe the owner had returned while he was away.
They better not have done anything bad to Hope. Logically, he knew that most people wouldn’t do anything bad to a dog, but his faith in humanity was particularly low. Just because most people wouldn’t, that meant that some would, and there was no way to tell who was who until something bad happened.
Zeus’ jaw really was getting tired, but he couldn’t help that as he stepped out of his house, closing the door firmly behind him. He could hear Tiger whine, but he definitely wasn’t taking the dog over when there was a stranger there. Tiger was a good guard dog in that he was very loud when someone approached Zeus’ house, but if they actually came inside, they were more liable to get licked to death than anything else.
He also didn’t want to have to watch out for his dog, Hope, and whoever was in Sarah’s house all at the same time. It was better to cut down on the possible complicating factors before he knew who was there. The awareness of the gun he had tucked in his concealed carry holster tingled in the back of his head. Most of the time, he forgot about it until he might need it.
Going into Sarah’s house hot wasn’t on his agenda. The blue car had been there earlier today. It was probably just someone from her work or something.
But if it wasn’t, he was prepared.
Stepping onto Sarah’s stoop, he tested the doorknob, but it didn’t open. Getting out the key, he didn’t bother knocking. The sound of the lock turning would alert the person inside that there was someone at the door.
The door swung open, and Zeus stepped inside, blinking as his eyes adjusted.
Even before he fully saw the person inside, his subconscious had gone from high alert to a much lower alert. Not fully offline but not actively engaged.
There was an incredibly beautiful woman standing in Sarah’s house, staring back at him with wide eyes. Straight black hair flowed around her shoulders in layers and curled at the ends. Her eyes were almost as dark as her hair. The dark tan of her skin contrasted with the pale blue shirt she was wearing. Tall and lithe, she wore a pair of fitted jeans that hugged her hips and thighs in a manner that made him wonder how she looked from behind. Zeus didn’t make the mistake of thinking that just because she was beautiful, she wasn’t possibly dangerous… but she probably wasn’t.
Though her chin was tilted up, her shoulders squared, he could see the fear in her expression. Fear she was desperately trying to hide. Afraid of him or afraid because she’d been caught doing something she wasn’t supposed to be?
He wouldn’t be able to fully relax until he knew.
“Hi!” She spoke with an unnaturally cheerful, high-pitched tone. “I’m Yasmine. I’m a friend of Grace’s, who is a really good friend of Sarah’s.”
Well, okay then. Zeus wasn’t entirely sure how that explained her presence, but the threat factor was diminishing. He shifted his stance to try to make himself look friendlier than he’d felt when he came in.
“Hi, Yas,” he replied, shortening her name in an effort to make himself appear more amiable and less threatening. After all, she was a woman alone in a house with a strange man she didn’t know. “I’m Sarah’s next-door neighbor, Zeus.”
“Oh… oh! You live next door?” Something flickered in her expression, as if that statement had just explained something.
“I do. I was just over here looking for Hope to take her for a walk.”
Instead of asking who Hope was, understanding immediately suffused her expression, and her shoulders and chin dropped down as she started laughing. Zeus couldn’t help but smile in reaction to her laugh; it was loud and surprised, and really quite lovely to listen to.
The tension he’d been holding in his own body started to leak out as well.
Threat level was almost non-existent.
Any lingering doubts vanished as Yas went over her day for him, and Zeus interjected what he had been doing. It was the most insane series of coincidences he’d ever heard of. The timing, the close misses… it was like a comedy of errors.
“So, Sarah’s okay?” he asked, feeling more than a little relieved as Yas explained why she was currently in the house.
“As far as I know. Grace is doing her best to keep me updated, but she has to wait to hear from Sarah’s parents, and then I get it from her.” Yas shrugged ruefully. “I do know it’s going to be a few days before Sarah comes home, unfortunately. Do you want me to bring Hope back here?”
Zeus hesitated.
“I don’t mind looking after her if you can’t, but I was worried about how much pacing she was doing at my house. If she’s actually settled at your house, she might be better staying there, if that’s okay. I don’t want to mess with her health, and she’s not expecting to see Sarah at your house. At mine, I don’t know if or when she’ll stop looking for her.”
“That’s fine with me; I’d already volunteered for it.” Yas shook her head, the curl at the end of her hair bouncing around her shoulders. “Plus, everything but her food is already at my house.”
“That’s also a factor.” Zeus smiled at her, but then became more solemn. “Do you have the vet’s number?”
