Page 20 of Hot Zone

“Yeah, the idea of someone else being responsible sounds great until you want to do something the responsible person doesn’t approve of.”

“Amen. I’m about ready to give up on the idea of finding a partner of my own.”

“You’re not the only one. That’s why I don’t have a boy or a girl of my own. I know I can be bossy and difficult. Believe me, Danni told me often enough. But that isn’t something I can turn off and on.”

He took a drink and then tipped his bottle at me. “That’s what makes you a good station chief, though.”

“Good chief, bad partner. I told you that Steven’s friend is staying at the house, right?”

“Yeah, you mentioned that he might.”

“Well, I’m having to bite my tongue constantly to keep from taking over this whole mess for him, and he’s just Steven’s friend.”

Polly showed up then with our food, and we thanked her and dug in.

After a couple of bites, Hawk picked up where we left off. “So, what’s he like?”

“Mars?” I smiled and shook my head. “He’s different, unique. He runs that shop, The Chrysalis Moon, over on the north side. Sells crystals and tarot cards and stuff.”

“I’ve never been in there.”

“I didn’t imagine you had. But he’s exactly what you would expect from someone with a shop like that. He’s a positive person, even now with what he’s been through, and he seems determined to find a bright side to the whole mess.”

“You like him.”

“I do. He’s smart, and he’s fun. Plus, he said my reading glasses are sexy.” I waggled my eyebrows at him, and we both laughed.

“And what about him? Do you think he’s sexy?”

“It doesn’t matter if I do or not. He’s been Steven’s best friend since they were teens.”

“But he’s an adult now, so not sure why that matters.”

It just did, but I wasn’t sure why. Besides that, I’d played with boys at the club in Austin, but I’d never dated a man. I’d never kept my interest in men a secret, but I’d never had any reason to talk about it. Hawk only knew because he frequented the same club I normally attended. Not that I’d been in a while. I simply hadn’t felt comfortable spending a whole weekend away since I made chief.

“He may be an adult, but he’s way too young for my old ass. Besides, I feel like if anyone could have put up with me, it would’ve been Danni. She’s basically a saint.”

“Nah, you just haven’t found the right person yet.”

“Didn’t you just say you were giving up? And now here you are telling me that I should keep trying?”

“I said I was almost ready, not that I was ready. Besides, if I give up, at least I’d tried. When’s the last time you even attempted to find someone for more than a night?”

“Longer than I can remember, but I’m a little busy right now. I thought when I gave up my job at the fire school to take the position as chief, I’d have more time to myself, but that isn’t turning out to be the case.”

“Do you miss it?”

I thought about it for a minute. Did I miss working at the fire school? Not really. I did enjoy certain aspects of the job, but the truth was, it had just been a way to fill all the empty hours between my shifts at the station.

“Not really. I much prefer being able to focus on the station and all the crew members. I did like teaching, but I have plenty of opportunities to do that between community education and training at the station. How about you? Do you like y’all’s new facility?”

Three Bears Tactical Services had been in business for a few years, but they recently purchased some acreage on the outskirts of town and were expanding their offerings to include tactical training for law enforcement, as well as the self-defense classes they’d always offered.

“I love it. We’ve converted the old barn on the property into a training area, and we can let people stay on-site in the old farmhouse. It’s rustic, but so far, they seem to like being able to stay on-site as a team.”

“It sounds awesome. I keep thinking we should see if we can get the city to pay for our station to come out for a day of training. You could put us through the paces.”

“Hey, I’m game. I’m sure we could work out a special pricing package for local firefighters. I’ll get with Wolfe and see what we can come up with.” His phone buzzed on the table beside his now-empty plate.

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