Page 43 of Catching Sparks

“But you assumed I’m such a stick in the mud that I wouldn’t approve?” He finishes the thought for me.

“I heard about your reaction to Brody punching Anna’s ex.”

“Brody is my employee. I have to put his public image above all else.”

“You threatened that guy for me,” I mutter.

A heavy pause. “I threatened him because he deserved it.”

“Would you have really gone through with it?”

“Which part?”

“All of it.”

Johnny flashes a smile at the both of us as we get closer to the curb, and I know my window of opportunity is closing fast. Once we reach Johnny, Garrison will be done talking about this, and fuck me, I want him to answer me. It shouldn’t matter whether he meant it or not. But God help me, I won’t be able to let it go if I don’t know for sure.

Risking the chance that my brother is watching, I circle Garrison’s wrist with my fingers and tug softly, just enough to catch his attention. He stalls his steps, shifting to shield me from the view of everyone at the fire station. It’s only Johnny behind us now, watching as I peer up at Garrison, and that’s a hell of a lot better than my brother.

“Answer me,” I push against my better judgment.

He swallows, holding my stare in a way that sends shivers down my spine. I let him see my reaction.

“I’d do a lot worse than what I threatened him with, Poppy. And I don’t know if that makes me a bigger fool for risking it or you for asking in the first place.”

15

GARRISON

Johnny hasn’t stopped looking at me since I left Poppy standing outside the fire station and ordered him to get back into the truck. His stare is far too curious for his own good as he watches me from the driver’s seat. Curiosity doesn’t just kill the cat; it plays with it first, drives it to insanity before finally putting it out of its misery.

I’m still half out of my head, reeling from my actions. The carelessness of them. The sheer absurdity. Threatening a man like that in public? That’s a PR nightmare waiting to happen. My stay in this town relies heavily on my anonymity. I’ve risked that over a woman. A woman I have no duty to stand up for.

“You look upset,” Johnny says, risking yet another glance in my direction. I glare at him. “Okay, definitely upset.”

“That should be your sign to stop talking.”

“It might help to talk about it. I’m a great listener, just saying.”

“My silence should have made my wish to not speak about it quite obvious,” I grunt.

“See, but I didn’t want to assume. Sometimes women get quiet when they’re upset, but they actually do want to talk about it. They’re just hoping we’ll make the effort to ask.”

Despite my best efforts not to allow it to happen, his blunt words have my lips twitching. The kid is hopeless, but he just may know more about women than I do.

“How are you so adept in knowing what women want? You’re a kid,” I say.

“Maybe. But I’m also a kid with three sisters and two moms. One sister who happens to be my identical twin,” he explains, turning the truck into the parking space in front of the guest house. “It would probably be a bit ridiculous if I didn’t know so much about women.”

“You’re the only man in a family of five women?” I ask, surprise coiling in my gut.

“Yeeep. And the youngest. Why do you think I spend so much time here?”

“Everyone is always here. I figured you had to be.”

He shakes his head, long hair flying. “Nah. Believe it or not, it’s just nice to be around all this testosterone.”

“I don’t have any siblings.”

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