*Rhett’s fingers tapped against his bouncing knee, his fingers twisting the hair tie on his wrist. Eventually, he took it off and pulled his hair up off his face. Five minutes later, he took it out again. Twenty minutes was all that separated him from Jasmine and Rebel.
“Where do you want me to drop you off?” Dan asked.
Rhett watched the empty furrows in the fields fan out as they made their way back home.
Only, it wasn’t home. Home was a concept that he struggled with before he left for DC. Now, after just a few weeks, he was even more uncertain about what that looked like for him.
“If you can drop me off at the vet’s office, that would be great.”
“Of course, I forgot. You must be excited to see Rebel again.”
And Jasmine.
It took all of his self-control not to jump out of the car and run the rest of the way to Colton so that he could see her in person; he needed to know for sure she was real again and not just an image on the screen. Just for one moment, he needed to have that moment. It would be enough, he told himself even though his heart whispered, Liar.
“Thank you for the ride. I figured you would stay in Jackson.”
Dan smiled, his hands flexing on the steering wheel. “I want to see Reid. It’s been over two weeks and—”
“You can’t wait to see him again.” Rhett voiced his own feelings.
“Yeah. I wasn’t sure I’d ever find… my person. Now that I have, I can’t stand a minute without him.”
“Do you worry about his safety?”
Dan’s brow furrowed. “In what way?”
“With your job, there are people who want… revenge. Aren’t you concerned about the people around you getting hurt?”
“No, not really. I’ll always worry about my family and Reid, but not because of my job. Isn’t it part of loving someone that you worry about them?”
Rhett reflected on Dan’s statement for a moment. “I guess so, but I don’t want to be a burden. I don’t want to be the person someone has to worry about.”
Rhett ignored the sharp look he got in return. Dan didn’t understand.
Soon enough, green fields gave way to low brick buildings and clapboard cottages. They turned the corner into the town square, and Rhett’s gaze was drawn to the vet clinic at the end of the block. Dan barely came to a stop before he grabbed the door handle and opened it. He grabbed his pack from the back seat and waved goodbye as Dan took off again.
He’d been thinking about this moment every day since he left, and now that it was here, he was frozen, afraid to take the next step.
*
Every time someone came into the clinic, Jasmine rushed out to the lobby to see if it was Rhett. Each time, she admonished herself for being overeager. It wasn’t as if she was going to throw her arms around his neck when he walked in, even if she’d thought about it more than once.
“Anything I can help with?” Imani asked when Jasmine lingered at the front desk, eyeing the front door.
It had thrilled Jasmine when Imani Burke walked in and applied for the veterinary assistant’s job. Imani had just graduated from a veterinary assistant program at a community college nearby, and Jasmine was pleased to mentor another Black woman coming into her profession. Jasmine would do everything she could to make sure Imani would have the support and mentorship that she never received in her first job out of veterinary school.
“No, I just thought I heard someone come in,” Jasmine said, reaching down to pet Rebel on the head. The dog made each trip out to the lobby, glued to her side as if he knew his owner was coming today.
“You don’t have an appointment for another hour if you want to take a break.”
“How about I head over to the Catfish Café and grab us some lunch?”
Imani stood from the reception desk. “I’ll go. It’s the least I can do for y’all giving me this job.”
“I didn’t give you this job; you earned it, Imani. And you don’t have to keep thanking me. You’re doing a great job, and I appreciate having you here.”
Pink tinged Imani’s cheeks, and Imani’s smile widened to a grin.
Jasmine pulled a twenty-dollar bill out of her pocket. “I’ll have the meat loaf sandwich if you don’t mind.”
Imani took the money from her hand and turned toward the door. She pulled up short and stopped, looking out the door. She gasped and turned back to Jasmine, wide-eyed. “Rhett Colton is headed this way. I’d better stay and make sure everything’s okay.”
“Imani, you know Rhett was working undercover. He’s not really a racist.”
Her assistant frowned. “I know, I just… the way he acted it seemed so real.”
It had shocked Imani when Jasmine introduced her to Rebel and explained why she was taking care of Rhett’s dog. The young woman was well-aware of Rhett and the group he’d been hanging out with, having encountered them in her town about thirty miles south of Colton. Unlike Colton, the leadership in Imani’s hometown turned a blind eye to the white supremacist activities happening right underfoot. Thirty miles could make a difference between progress and the past.
Before Jasmine could reassure Imani again, Rebel let out a high-pitched whine and ran toward the front window, his whole body wiggling with excitement.
Jasmine tracked Rhett as he made his way toward the clinic. Her heart was beating in her chest so hard, she thought for sure Imani could hear it. It was easy talking to Rhett with a screen between them and Rebel as the reason to reach out and touch base. What was going to happen now?
Imani shifted next to her when Rhett crossed the street.
“If you want to go out through the back, you can,” Jasmine offered.
Imani nodded and scurried out to the back. Jasmine felt a brief pang of guilt for being happy Imani took her up on her offer. She wanted it to be just the two of them when she saw Rhett again.
Rebel did a little tap dance as Rhett approached the door. As soon as he came in, Rebel rushed to him with happy whines and yips. Rhett dropped his pack and knelt down, accepting the wet kisses while running his hands through his fur and whispering to his companion. Eventually, Rebel settled in his arms, panting, his tongue hanging out in a contented canine grin.
Rhett looked up, still crouched on the ground. “Hi.”
“Hi.”
All the things she’d thought about saying, had wanted to say in that moment, disappeared when Rhett looked at her. Her breath caught. His gaze was stormy blue mixed with gray. To Jasmine, it looked as if he were fighting not to be swept out to sea.
He stood up and shoved his hands in his pockets; a lock of hair pulled free from his ponytail and brushed against his cheek. Jasmine’s fingers itched to reach out and tuck it behind his ear.
“How was—” Jasmine started.
“Thank you—” Rhett said at the same time.
They both laughed.
“How was your trip?”
Rhett’s expression grew serious. “I did what I needed to do.”
Jasmine wasn’t sure how to respond to that.
“Thank you for taking good care of Rebel and for… talking to me. It helped make the days a little easier to get through.”
Her heart did a dance similar to Rebel’s when he saw Rhett. She hadn’t expected or wanted to jump into a romantic relationship when she moved. Now, the idea held a lot more appeal than it had in a long time.
Rhett looked around the waiting room. “How are things going here?”
“Good. Slow, but good. I’ve hired a vet tech, and Imani’s also helping at the reception desk, but I interviewed someone for a full-time receptionist today, and I’m going to offer him the job.”
“You’ve made a lot of progress in a short amount of time.”
“Some days, it feels like a lot has happened in a short amount of time. Other days, I look around and wonder why I haven’t accomplished more. I have to remind myself that it’s only been a few months since I moved to Colton.”
“When I left for DC, two weeks felt like a lifetime”—Rhett’s voice softened—“and it would have been if it weren’t for you. I… I don’t know how to tell you how much our nightly phone calls meant to me.”
“I’m glad I could help, I… now that you’re back, well… we don’t have to stop talking just because you’re back.”
Rhett’s gaze brightened. “I’d like that.”
Rebel came back to Jasmine’s side. She knelt down to give him a hug and said, “I’m going to miss you.”
“We’ll make sure we come back to visit.”
Jasmine looked up at Rhett, and their eyes locked. They shared a smile, and just when Rhett started to say something, the bell over the door interrupted him.
A woman came in with a pet carrier and an anxious look on her face. “Are you Dr. Owens?” she asked. “I don’t have an appointment, but Cletus got into a fight.”
A pitiful meow came from the carrier.
Jasmine jumped up. “I am. Come on, let’s get Cletus back to an exam room and take a look.”
Rhett leaned down and brushed his lips against her cheek as she walked past. “Thank you. You were exactly what I needed”—he glanced down at Rebel—“what we both needed.”
Her stomach did a little flip-flop. She smiled and whispered, “Call me tonight,” before turning to the woman and ushering her into an exam room.
*
When she finished with Cletus, Imani brought her lunch into the office and asked with a worried look, “Did everything go okay with Rhett? He didn’t try to do anything to hurt you, did he?”
“No, of course not. Rhett would never do anything to hurt me.” Jasmine frowned. “He’s not a dangerous man. He said and did the things he did to help this community.”
Imani’s shoulders slumped. “You’re right. I shouldn’t have said that.”
Jasmine took a deep breath and released the anger Imani’s questioning caused. “He just came back from testifying before Congress and training other agents who are going to be making the same sacrifice he did, going undercover with other white supremacist groups. I don’t mean to dismiss your feelings. I just… can you imagine how hard it was for him to spend that much time undercover with everyone thinking he was someone he wasn’t?”
Imani shook her head. “No, I can’t, but I know what it’s like to not feel safe in my community because of those folks.”
“There’s enough hurt and pain for everyone, isn’t there?”
“Agreeing on that is a good start,” Imani said.
“I won’t push. All I’m asking is if you can try to see Rhett for the man he is, not the role he played.”
Imani nodded. “I can do that.”
She gave her a grateful smile. “Thank you.”
Rhett was on Jasmine’s mind for the rest of the day. She wondered if he was getting settled in back at his grandpa’s and how long it would be before she saw him again. He spoke so lovingly about the place he grew up. She couldn’t wait to see it. The afternoon dragged on until, finally, it was time to close for the day and head home.
As soon as she said goodbye to Imani and locked up, she ran up the stairs to her apartment and changed into her running gear before heading back out. She tried to burn off her restlessness with a long run. She circled the park before heading out of the town square, through town, and out to the country road, leading away from Colton. Her breaths came out in little puffs in the chilly night air. Her footsteps slowed when she reached a fork in the road. Looking up at the sky, there were so many stars, they created a veil of white overhead. She was wondering if Rhett was admiring the night sky, too—and which road would take her to Rhett’s cabin when a large SUV with the sheriff’s logo came down the road and rolled to a stop.
The window rolled down, revealing her brother. “Hey, sis.”
“All quiet on the streets of Colton tonight?”
Her brother nodded. “So far.” He looked around and turned back to her. “It’s dark on these back roads after dark. You need to be careful running out here. You should wear something reflective.”
Jasmine looked down at her black shorts and gray running tights. She hadn’t even thought about what she threw on when she left; she just wanted to run.
“Want a ride back into town?” Isiah offered.
Jasmine looked down at her watch. It was just past seven. If she rode back with Isiah, she’d have time to shower and change before Rhett called. If he called.
“Sure,” she said.
She jogged around to the passenger side and climbed in. The bright lights from the large display screen attached to the dash cast an eerie glow in the darkened cab.
Isiah glanced at her as he drove back into town. “I heard Rhett Colton came back today.”
“He did. He came by to pick up Rebel this morning.”
“That’s good.”
Jasmine gave him a sharp look, and he cleared his throat.
“I just meant that now you won’t have to take care of him… I mean, Rebel.”
“Isiah, don’t start with the protective older brother shit. We agreed when I moved here that we would respect each other’s privacy.”
“Yeah, okay, you’re right. I just want you to be careful. Rhett’s been through a lot, and he’s—”
“He’s broken,” Jasmine finished.
“And it’s not your responsibility to fix him.”
“That’s not—” Jasmine protested.
Isiah’s snorted laugh interrupted her.
“What are you laughing at?”
Isiah pulled up in front of her clinic and shut off the engine. He leaned against the steering wheel. “Jas, you’ve been trying to fix everything and everyone since you were born, and it’s a great quality to have, but you give too much of yourself sometimes. Don’t try to rescue Rhett the way you try to rescue every other stray you come across.”
“What about you, Mr. Knightly?”
“Stop calling me that,” her brother said between clenched teeth.
She’d started referring to him as the hero of Jane Austen’s classic Emma when he kept telling her stories of his encounters with Presley Beaumont.
“It’s different,” he huffed.
“Is it?” she challenged.
Isiah bowed his head for a minute before muttering, “Maybe not.”
Jasmine reached out and put her hand on his shoulder, giving him a gentle shake. “Like I said, it runs in the family.”
“Be careful, okay? Rhett went through hell for two years, surrounded by hate every day. You may not be the help he needs.”