“I probably should have slept a little longer.”
He gave me a wink. “Probably. Doug told me you went to Maine. I’m sorry for your loss, Sydney. I hate that I missed the funeral. I had to go home and help my mom.”
I powered through it, though part of me wanted to cry. “Thank you. I hope your mom is okay. Yes, I went there to scatter his ashes in the same place he took my Grandma’s. That was where they met for the first time.”
“She is, thanks.” Officer Murphy held out his hand to help me up. I had two options: take his hand to ensure I got up, or try on my own, which most likely would end up with me flat on my ass again.
It was a no-brainer.
I put my hand in his as he helped me up and felt the same pulse between us at the moment of contact. Unable to meet his gaze, I glanced down as I retracted my hand and kicked at an invisible rock. My foot nearly caught on the invisible string again, and I wavered. With lightning speed, he caught me by the shoulders.
“Steady there.”
Do not take another step while he is here.
I gave a smile. “Thanks, I’ve got it now. Sluggish feet are the worst.”
Not to mention a short-circuiting brain due to testosterone overload.
I brushed off my hands gently after he released me. “Thanks again, Officer Murphy. Come by the clinic sometime if you ever need a vet.”
What. The. Hell?
If you ever need a vet?
For the most part, I was a fairly intelligent individual. But this man turned me into a babbling, tripping goober.
“Mike.”
“Mike? Is that the name of your dog?”
He barked out a laugh. “No, that’s my name. Please, call me Mike. I’m only Officer Murphy when I’m in uniform.”
After this, I needed to have a serious talk with myself.
“Mike? Is that the name of your dog?” A person should only be allowed so much humiliation in one day.
I tried out his name, which came out sounding like a question. “Mike?”
“Yes, Syd?”
Oh hell, he thought I was asking him a question. What do I say? “Oh, I was just trying out your name to see how it felt on my lips.” Think fast.
“I was saying it out loud to commit it to memory. You know they say if you say a person’s name while looking at their face, it helps you remember.”
I mashed my lips together, forcing myself to stop talking. Maybe Mike would walk away, thinking I was too crazy to talk to. Or he’d move away from Salem altogether to save me from remembering these two wretched incidents every time I ran into him in the future.
But no, he smiled, and dammit if he didn’t have dimples. I was so royally screwed. “I’m glad you want to remember my name. Do you want me to walk you back?”