Chapter Seven
Smith rested his elbow on the rolled-down window of his truck as he returned to the fire station. He’d been to the grocery store, picking up food for the next shift, and had about thirty minutes left before quitting time. It had been a long twenty-four hours with a handful of car accidents to tend to. No major injuries, though, and he was grateful for that.
His mind rolled back to Jamie once more, returning to the bookstore and truck encounter earlier in the week, as well as the last few nights they’d spent enjoying each other’s bodies. She’d stopped by his house every night he wasn’t working, and those were the best parts of the day—the moments with her, alone in his bedroom, in the living room, even the kitchen counter, as they drove each other to new heights of pleasure. All the images were burned brilliantly in his brain. But he couldn’t rest on their chemistry. He needed to plan a fantastic date for Jamie. To show her he could give her more than just pleasure. That he was the man she could trust and depend on, like she wanted and needed.
He pulled into the fire station and cut the engine. He pushed thoughts of Jamie aside when he saw the guys starting to ready the quint. Fires were rare in Hidden Oaks, so based on the speed of the prep—leisurely—chances were good the quint was for some kind of minor incident.
“What’s the story?” Smith asked as he shut the door and carried in the groceries.
His buddy Travis strolled toward him, his low-key stride making it clear they weren’t prepping for a five-alarm anything. He pulled a quarter from his pocket, so Smith knew what was coming next. “I’ll tell you, but first—heads you win, tails you lose.”
Smith was never one to back down from a bet, even though he didn’t know the stakes. “I’m in. What’s it for?”
“If you can guess who just called. Here’s your hint: Cat’s stuck in a tree on Pine Crescent Road.”
Smith groaned as he put away the food in the fridge and cupboards. “Not again?”
“Yup. Again.”
“Never in my twenty-eight years of life have I met a cat who cannot come down from a tree on his own. Except for Melody Olsen’s.”
Melody had asked him out two years ago. Then one year ago. Then a few months ago. He wasn’t feeling it for her, so he’d said thanks but no thanks. She still liked to send him naughty text messages now and then. He ignored them all. He wasn’t going to lead her on by answering them. Lately, though, she’d been finding inventive ways to get around his lack of response. This was the second time she’d called about her cat. Fine, her tabby was quite a tree climber. But still…
“She asked for you. She wants you to go get her p-ssycat,” Travis said and then slapped his thigh.
“How long have you been waiting to make that joke, Trav?”
“Since we got that call five minutes ago.” Travis flipped the coin in the air, catching it in one quick motion, then brandishing the tails side in his palm. “And tails says you’re coming along.”
But Smith waved him off. “Let me just run out there. Save you guys the hassle. That branch is maybe ten feet high and I’ve got my work ladder in my truck. It’ll do.”
“You know we gotta answer every call, no matter how ridiculous.”
“I know. But it’s a Friday night in wine country, and we don’t all need to be off dealing with this in case something serious happens. I’m on my way home and I can take care of it.”
Thirty minutes later, he handed a loudly meowing cat—who honestly looked a little pissed, almost as if he’d been parked up there in that branch—to Melody Olsen.
“Thank you so much. He’s been there for hours, and I know he’s been terrified,” she said, as she stroked the black and silvery feline’s head.
“He’s all safe and sound now and barely nicked a nail.”
Melody held her cat tight, then tipped her forehead to her house with its wraparound porch. She’d placed two empty wineglasses and a bottle on a table by the porch railing.
“You want to join Tiger and me for a glass of wine?” she said coyly, as she stroked the cat in what she likely thought was a seductive fashion. The petting did nothing but remind him of Jamie. And how he’d like her to be the one inviting him over. Have a drink with her on the porch—beer for him, wine for her—talk about their day, look at the stars. Hell, he’d even be up for a little poetry if she wanted that. She intrigued him to no end—she was tough on the outside, but had a real vulnerable side underneath that she showed him now and then. She’d laid it out for him at the bookstore, being honest and blunt about what she wanted in life and love—a reformed playboy.
He’d have to be that for her.
“Thank you, ma’am. But no, thank you. I’m just glad your boy’s okay.” He gave the cat a quick pet between the ears before sliding into his truck to return to the fire station.
He turned the engine on as Melody waved good-bye and then made the cat wave, too. He laughed and gave an imaginary tip of the hat to Tiger. That’s when it hit him.
Cats and dogs.
Jamie loved animals. Dogs especially, and he had just the idea for her.
Not for a date, but something else.
It was a damn good thing Melody’s cat had found his way up that tree branch again, after all. Feeling pretty pleased with himself, he turned up the radio in his car, blasting a Billy Currington tune and singing along as he bumped down Melody’s long, gravelly driveway. He spotted Jamie’s car heading down the street. Her parents lived on this stretch of road, too. He waved to her, but when she gave him a sharp-eyed stare, he cursed and smacked the wheel with one hand.
She was jumping to the wrong conclusion, and he wished he could hop out of his truck and explain that he’d been saving a pet and nothing more. But from the way Jamie glared at him—even from a distance—he knew she was thinking he’d been playing cat and mouse with Melody.
He scrambled to find his phone, but by the time he grabbed it and called her, it went straight to voicemail.
…
“I heard you and Smith were hanging out in the bookstore earlier in the week.”
Jamie raised one eyebrow at her sister as they washed the sundae dishes in the kitchen while their parents played with Diane’s daughter in the living room.
“Oh really?”
“Yeah, friend of mine was there. Said the two of you looked pretty flirty,” Diane said playfully as she rinsed off chocolate syrup from a bowl.
Jamie concentrated on drying a plate, rubbing the towel over it several times so she wouldn’t have to look at her sister. She didn’t want to admit to anything, not after the promise she’d made, and certainly not after spotting Smith cavorting with that cat woman.
“Something going on with him?” Diane elbowed her.
“No.”
She stared at her. “Honestly?”
“No,” she said, but she didn’t like lying to her sister. She sighed, then managed some of the truth. “Okay, we kissed at the kickoff party. That was all.”
“You like him?”
“Yes,” she admitted grudgingly, though the word was hard to get out because she’d never planned on feeling this way. “But who doesn’t?”
“He’s gorgeous. Be careful, though. You know what happened to me when I got involved with a friend.”
“Don’t worry. Nothing more is going to happen,” she said, and that was the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. Though her heart hurt for the first time at the thought of nothing more.
“Why?” Diane asked, tilting her head and looking curiously at her sister.
“Why what?”
“Why is nothing more going to happen? You kissed him. You just said you liked him. I still think you need to be cautious, but that gets even harder when you like someone.”
Like. Sure, she liked Smith. As a friend, as a buddy, as a friend with benefits, and he’d been giving her lots of benefits the last few days and nights. That man was masterful with her body and she found herself craving more and more of his naughty mouth. Truth be told, she’d enjoyed their chats after sex too—the conversations had been just as good as when they were friends-without-benefits. That was the trouble—she’d always been able to talk to him easily. They were starting to develop more of a connection—he made her laugh, he cared about her feelings, and he seemed to genuinely not want to hurt her.
But that was all, wasn’t it? Jamie shrugged as if it were no big deal.
“Oh no. That’s not how we do it,” Diane said, poking her sister in the arm. “Do. You. Like Him? As more than friends?”
Jamie drew a deep breath, letting the air fill her body, hoping it would bring answers too. “Maybe?” she offered. “But I worry he’s going to be like you-know-who.”
“Listen, I’m not going to pretend to tell you that you can always trust someone forever and ever. But I know this much. Cara told me he was always nice to her when they went out. A total gentleman, and they’re even still friends, but she broke up with him because she thought he always had eyes for someone else.”
“Who?”
“She didn’t say. But maybe the woman he really wanted is you, Jamie.”
Her heart dared to skip a beat, and this time it wasn’t just from lust. It was from hope.