Meet Me At Midnight

Chapter Five: A Day Out

*** Lisa's POV ***

"Wait!!!" I shouted as I gasped for air, shooting up from the bed.

The bed?!

Why am I in bed? Wait, what?!!?

Hold on!! I was so confused. I'm pretty sure I was downstairs, and I had watched those movies. Or did I? My pajamas are on, and I'm in bed?! I quickly checked my body for any marks. There was nothing on me. I flopped back down onto the bed, groaning. I replayed every detail over in my mind. My skin tingled as I recalled my mystery man's touch. I swear I can still smell his scent. It felt so real. But how was I back in bed and dressed if it was real? Am I losing my mind?!

No, it must have just been an excellent herb mixture.

My chest hurt at the thought of not being with him. How was it possible to have some sort of emotional attachment to someone who wasn't real? I wish he were real. I felt a tear slide down my cheek. Maybe I will dream about him again tonight? I need to focus on today and maybe do some sightseeing.

I stretched and slowly made my way out of bed. I made my way to the bathroom to do my morning routine. I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror and jumped back in fear.

"Holy s**t!! Talk about some troll hair!! Yeesh!" I said out loud to my reflection.

I should probably shower. Yeah, that sounds much easier than fussing about my hair at the moment.

I took my pajamas off and hopped into the shower. I didn't take my time like I usually would. His blue eyes kept flashing into my mind. So I made it a quick shower. I dried off and tossed on a pair of cut-off light blue jean shorts, a sports bra, and a loose white cropped top.

I towel-dried my hair before brushing it out and letting it settle. The heat here wouldn't take long for it to dry.

Well, that looks a lot better.

I made my way downstairs to the kitchen to get some breakfast. I was actually feeling pretty hungry today!

As I stood in the kitchen debating about what to eat with my boiled egg, the hallway to the movie den caught the corner of my eye. I sighed heavily as I went to see if there was any evidence of me being there last night. I flicked the light on; the room was spotless. No movies on the coffee table, no shameful evidence on the carpet. My ashtray wasn't there either.

I stood in the doorway, having a confused facial expression, before making my way over to the DVDs. I grabbed the one I swore I had watched; sure enough, it was the movie I watched last night.

"What the heck?" I mumbled to myself aloud.

I stared at the case for a few moments before being distracted by a loud bark at the front door. I quickly put the movie back where it belonged and turned off the lights.

I quickly rushed to the front door excitedly. I flung the door open and was ambushed by Ambrose as he jumped on top of me, knocking me to the floor and licking my face excitedly.

"Ambrose!! I am excited about seeing you too!!! But, Pfffft Ambrose, I can't breathe!!!" I laughed as I scratched his soft fur while he covered my face with excited kisses.

"Ambrose!! Ok!! Ok!! Oh my God...Oh, gross, your tongue got in my mouth!!" I sputtered as Ambrose whined excitedly.

I managed to grab and hold him back as his whole backside was swinging back and forth excitedly. What a sweetheart! He was a good boy, maybe even the best boy!

"You want to have some breakfast with me?!" I asked, trying to distract him from smothering me some more.

Ambrose jumped off me and barked loudly as his tail kept whipping back and forth. I wish I had this amount of energy on any given day!

"Yes, breakfast!! You should help me get up like a gentleman since you knocked me over!" I said jokingly as I tried to get up off the floor.

To my surprise, Ambrose walked to my side and nudged his nose under my arm, indicating he wanted to help!

"Wow, I was just joking, but this is great! Thank you. You are a good boy", I said, praising him before giving his head a gentle kiss as I used his body to pull myself up off the floor.

I wonder if he used to be a police dog. Maybe Tania's brother is or was a police officer? She never talked about him before I arrived, so this man was a mystery to me.

Ambrose and I walked to the kitchen. He stayed close to my side, ensuring his shoulder was touching the side of my knee the whole time. Oddly enough, having him next to me was comforting.

I opened the fridge to see what would be on my menu today. I gently tickled the top of Ambrose's head as I studied the fridge's contents.

"How about two boiled eggs and some shredded rotisserie chicken? And a strawberry banana smoothie?" I asked Ambrose, who gave an excited bark.

"I guess there's no food for you here? That's OK; you can have some of this chicken and some of my banana. Maybe we can go out and grab you something to eat when you come to visit me? Unless you have a strict diet?" I asked him as I grabbed the food I needed to make breakfast.

Ambrose sat next to the counter, wagging his tail, never taking his beautiful bright blue eyes off of me. I chopped up my banana, leaving some for him on a plate with the shredded rotisserie chicken. He sat so patiently waiting for me.

While waiting for the blender to finish making my smoothy, I couldn't help but look at Ambrose's eyes and feel slightly sad. His eyes reminded me of my mystery dream man's eyes.

I placed Ambrose's plate of snacks on the floor for him as I grabbed my food and smoothie to sit next to him on the floor.

I checked my phone to see what kind of shops were around and, luckily, there was a pet boutique. I could grab him a leash so we could walk around without getting into trouble with him being off his leash. I could just use the strap from my suitcase for now.

"Oh, hey! There's a butcher shop and ice cream! We can take my truck to the parking spot and walk the main stretch together. Do you like car rides?" I asked Ambrose, who had already finished his food and was lying beside me with his head on my lap.

His head shot up and tilted to the side. I held back a giggle.

"You wanna...." I teased him as his head c****d side to side.

"You wanna gooooo... FOR A CAR RIDE?!?!?!" I asked excitedly.

Ambrose jumped up, barking, and spun in circles. I laughed at how excited he was while I cleaned our mess.

" OK, I just have to go upstairs and grab my bag and sorry, but my luggage strap until I can get you a leash. I am sure you are a very good boy, but walking with me you will need to wear one. I would feel horrible if someone tried to take you away. I don't know what I would tell Tania... Or her brother?" I said aloud as he jumped onto the bed to watch me.

I grabbed my keys and wallet and placed them in my bag. Then, I grabbed the luggage strap and turned around to face Ambrose, who gave a low growl as he laid his head on the bed.

"I know pink isn't very manly, but it is my favorite color! So I won't put it on until just before we get out of the truck, OK?" I explained to him as I pat my hip for him to follow me. He gave a funny sneeze-snort before jumping off the bed and joining me by my side.

Of course, it was another beautiful day! The sun was shining, and the sky was clear of any clouds.

I opened the passenger door for Ambrose, who quickly jumped up, making himself comfortable. I quickly snapped a photo of him sitting proud and excited about his ride. Then, I made my way to the driver's side and put the key into the ignition to put the windows down.

Our drive was pleasant and quiet, minus the Black Veil Brides music I had playing on a low setting not to hurt Ambrose's ears.

He was so cute with his head out the window letting his tongue flap around wildly.

We got to the parking lot, and I was surprised to see many accessible parking spots for disabled people! I took my place and hung my card up. I put the windows up before shutting the engine off.

I turned to Ambrose with the luggage strap. He gave me a disgruntled look, and I'm sure I saw him roll his eyes! This dog had some attitude.

"I promise we will go to the shop boutique first and get you a very manly collar and leash," I said as I slipped it around his neck, ensuring it wasn't too tight. But, of course, I didn't expect him to give me any trouble.

We hopped out of the truck and headed to the main strip of shops. It was relatively busy with music playing and the smell of many delicious foods. Unfortunately, I can't have many, if not most, of them. We walked along as we made our way through the crowds of people. Ambrose made sure to keep his shoulder to my knee the whole time. Having him with me made it easier for me to be in public, and his muscular body against my legs was comforting.

We found the cute little dog boutique and let ourselves inside. There were many things to choose from!

"Hello!!! Welcome to Sophie's Bakery and accessories! What a beautiful dog!!" Said the cashier.

"Thank you," I said with a smile.

Ambrose quickly yanked me before sitting in front of a shelf of toys. He looked at the toys, then back to me.

"Sure, what do you want?" I asked him as he wagged his tail at my approval.

He gently reached into the mess of toys and pulled out a pink tennis ball, and handed it to me. I couldn't help but smile. Wait... Out of all the balls he could have picked from, he chose the pink one.

"Did you pick this because I like pink? So it's OK if the ball is pink but not the leash?" I asked him, giving him a wink.

He c****d his head to the side as his tongue flopped out.

"That's sweet of you!" I said as we made our way to the collars and leashes. There were so many to pick from.

"How about this pretty... I mean the handsome blue color?! It matches your eyes!" I asked him.

He gave me a tail wag and a muffled "aroo" sound as his approval.

"What a beautiful choice! You also get a free dog tag with all collars and leash purchases! You just pick the shape you would like and let us know what you would like on it," said the cashier, giving Ambrose a wink.

"Oh, that's wonderful! Ummm, this one, please, with just his name, is fine," I said, pointing to the bone-shaped tag.

"Excellent choice! And what is the dog's name?" asked the cashier, getting the machine ready for the engravement.

"Ambrose," I replied, rubbing the top of his head.

"Beautiful name for a beautiful dog. Did you pick out this pink ball? Oh my, someone is going to have lots of fun, aren't they?" the cashier asked Ambrose while she rang everything up for us.

"Would you be able to put the dog tag on the collar for me, please? My hands are not that strong." I asked her after paying for Ambrose's haul of goodies.

"Sure thing!! I hope this doesn't sound too forward, and I am sorry if I have the wrong person. But you look like one of my favorite authors, but your hair is shorter," the cashier said as she attached the dog tag to Ambrose's new collar and handed it to me.

"Oh?" I replied as I clipped the collar around Ambrose's fluffy neck, making sure the collar wasn't too tight. I took my luggage lead off of him and placed it in my bag before clipping the new matching leash to his collar.

Oh my God, he was so adorable.

"Yes, this book!" the cashier said as she pulled up a well-worn book.

I recognized the cover immediately as my own.

"Would you like me to sign it for you?" I asked her with a smile. The look on her face was funny but warmed my heart because I could tell her love of the book from how worn it was.

"Oh my God, it is you!! I knew it!! It took everything in me not to freak out!! Yes!!! I would love that!!! Your book helped me feel seen and heard even though it wasn't my story. But the situations and whatnot were so similar! I also love your new one!! The Hunter's Gaze!! I left that one at home," she said excitedly as she shook with excitement while handing me her book.

I reached into my bag and grabbed my pen. As I signed the book for her, she nervously asked me if she could also get a photo with me along with the signed book. I agreed. I know how I would feel if I met someone I admired and wanted to commemorate the moment with.

"This is so amazing!! Thank you so much!!" she said with tears in her eyes.

"You are welcome!!" I said, hugging her as she wiped her tears away.

Ambrose and I left the shop and went down the street, looking at everything the shops had to offer. My spirits were lifted after that encounter. A few other people recognized me as well and wanted photos. I was more than happy to oblige.

"How about we get ice cream and then go to the butch shop to get you some meat? That way, the meat doesn't get hot", I suggested to Ambrose.

Ambrose just gave a happy bark as he walked next to me.

Lucky for us, this street was friendly towards dogs as they had large bowls of cool water set out. I stopped and got a caramel and cream boba halfway through our walk. Unfortunately, the plain bottles of water were bland and tasteless.

We found the ice cream shop and walked up to the open window. I ordered a strawberry sundae and a doggy peanut butter bowl for Ambrose.

I sat on a bench under the overhang of the shop. I held Ambrose's ice cream bowl between my feet while I ate mine. The strawberries' sweet and bitter taste and the ice cream's coldness were a welcome treat. Ambrose lapped up his ice cream happily. He looked at me, licking his chops as he watched me finish my sundae. His blue eyes made my mystery dream man flash through my mind again.

"You know you have the most beautiful eyes for a dog. They remind me of the beautiful man I dreamt about last night. Only it didn't feel like a dream. I can't get him out of my mind!!" I said, frustrated.

Ambrose whined and placed his head on my lap, looking up at me with his big blue eyes. I gently patted his head.

Ambrose being so close to me felt nice, similar to my feeling towards the man in my dreams. Maybe this was my writer's block lifting, and ideas were just coming to me in the strangest ways.

We finished all of our shopping and returned to the house. It was getting late into the evening, and I was tired. I had sent all the cute photos I had taken of Ambrose and my adventure. She loved Ambrose's new collar and leash. Tania said her brother wouldn't have minded at all. She even said she asked the cleaning lady to drop some food off for Ambrose since he enjoyed spending time with me.

"f**k, I forgot to ask her about her brother. Ugh, oh well. I can't bug her too much while she's traveling. There is always a next time," I said to Ambrose, who was lying next to me as I sat on the patio outside my bedroom.

We had a quiet supper and went to the beach to play fetch for a while. Now we were sitting watching the sun nestle in for the evening.

As I watched the beautiful colors of pink, orange, purple, and yellow paint the evening sky, I couldn't help but wonder if I would be lucky enough to dream about my mystery man again. I stroked Ambrose's soft jet-black fur as I finished my herb. Today was hectic, and I was surprised I didn't crash!! I was starting to think Ambrose was magical.

Eventually, the sun tucked away for the night, and the stars were sparkling against the clear black sky. In the distance, I could hear the ocean waves gently crashing against the shoreline. It was a very soothing sound. I couldn't have gotten luckier with this place!! And a dog for a best friend to keep me company.

"Well, are you spending the night tonight?" I asked Ambrose as I got up to head for bed.

To my surprise, he got up and ran to the bed before leaping up and snuggling into the pillows.

"I guess that answers my question!!" I giggled as I climbed into bed.

Ambrose let out a deep, loud bark. I lay down to get comfortable, and he snuggled into me. I wrapped my arm around his sizeable, firm body, taking in his scent and enjoying his soft fur. My eyes got heavy, and sleep was quickly taking over.

Unfortunately, good dreams were not what awaited me tonight.