Page 18 of Silver Fox Firefighters Next Door

I swore as my eyes watered. “That’s a terrible question.”

“Alright. Scoot over.” He lay down next to me, practically on top of me, and shifted around until I was half on top of him. He folded his arms under his head and looked around. “Your style makes me think you’re not old enough to read the books you edit.”

I elbowed him in the side. “It’s from when I was a kid. I haven’t been back all that long.”

“A year.” He saw my surprise and shrugged. “Sheriff Hank talks.”

I rolled onto my side to face him. “What all did he say? When I walked in earlier, he was gossiping about my parents. Did you hear all the gory details?”

“I heard you ended a relationship to come back here.”

I stiffened and bit my lip as equal parts anger and shame washed over me like a hot flood. “Yeah, that’s right.”

“Not a good subject. Got it.” He turned to his side so we were face-to-face. “You’ve got a lot of stuff bundled up in that head of yours, don’t you?”

“No more than anyone else.” I took a deep breath. “What are you doing?”

“Making sure you go to sleep.”

“I’m not actually a child, Tate.”

“I’m very well aware. Which is why I’m also biding my time until I can cop a feel.” He scooted even closer and wagged his brows. “What are my odds?”

I laughed even as I tried to scowl at him. “Not great.”

“We’ll see.”

CHAPTER 15

Eve

When I woke the next morning, Tate was gone and the house was silent. I felt like every time I turned around I was running into one of the guys, so I was nervous as I opened my door to sneak into the bathroom. As far as I could tell, though, the cabin was empty. I took my time in the bathroom and showered before going back to my room to get dressed. I even took the time to dry my hair and put on a touch of makeup before venturing out into the rest of the world. I was overly aware of how rough I’d looked the day before and if I was going to see my neighbors again, I wanted to look somewhat attractive. Not for any particular reason, I told myself.

The cabin was empty but when I opened the front door, I could hear Grandpa giving orders and followed the sound to the side of the house. Grandpa was sitting in a lawn chair, staring up at where Aiden was precariously balanced on a ladder, painting the trim of the cabin.

“If you fall, I’m not taking any financial responsibility for it.” Grandpa grunted. “Matter of fact, I’m going to say you were vandalizing the cabin.”

“If I fall, I think I’ll be just fine. If it barely hurt you, I think I’ll make it.” Aiden glanced down and saw me. “Well, good morning, sleeping beauty.”

“Eve! I’m glad you’re finally up. Since I’m doing so much better already, I was thinking we would cook a thank you meal for our neighbors tonight. Do me a favor and run to the store? I left a list of the things we need on the counter.”

I crossed my arms under my chest and frowned at Grandpa. “Since when do you host thank you dinners?”

“Since now. Go on.” He looked back up at Aiden and grunted. “You get back to work, too, young man. Keep your eyes on the job.”

I sighed. “Please be careful. I don’t think Grandpa would call for help if you fell.”

Aiden winked at me. “Don’t you worry about me, Eve. I’m tough.”

I eyed his tanned chest and blew out a short burst of air. My brain threatened to short-circuit every time I saw all that bare skin. Clearing my throat, I forced my eyes to move away from him. “I guess I’ll be back in a bit. Do you need anything else while I’m in town, Grandpa?”

“Grab some wine, please.”

I eyed him suspiciously. He’d never asked me to get him wine. I didn’t want to ask too many questions, though, lest I hated the answers. I grabbed the list from inside and headed to town wondering what Grandpa was up to.

By the time dinner rolled around and I was seated at our small table with all three of our neighbors and no Grandpa, I had put the pieces together. Sharing a dinner of spaghetti and meatballs with fresh baked bread, I made a list in my head of all the ways I was going to get Grandpa back. He’d insisted on cooking, constantly referenced how romantic he thought Italian food was, and lit candles. All before pretending to be so tired that he had to lie down.

I poured myself a glass of wine and shook my head. “Well.”

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