Page 4 of Undone, Love Times Three

My face is all over the advertising too, which irritates the hell out of me, mostly because the other guys do nothing but give me shit. Call me pretty boy. It’s all good natured. We have each other’s backs. We’re family.

The only thing missing from my life is a significant other. It’s damn hard to meet people these days. Even more so in my line of work, even if women do swoon all over me when they find out I’m a firefighter.

Alison hasn’t. That’s a refreshing change in all honesty. It’s made me like her even more. I love she is a florist. Creative people intrigue me. I can barely draw a stick man so meeting someone who can create things with their hands always impresses me.

I’m doing everything I can to set her at ease, but she still seems a little anxious.

“Was there anything particular that made you want to be a firefighter?” she asks after setting the napkin down. She picks up the spoon and swirls it into the cream, flattening it a little.

“It runs in the family,” I tell her. “Grandfather, dad, brother, two cousins.”

“Wow, that’s a lot.”

I chuckle. “It helps that we all love it.”

“Do you all work at the same firehouse?”

“Grandad retired, dad is an officer now, he doesn’t go out on calls. My brother and one cousin are two towns over, and my other cousin works with me.”

“That must be nice.”

“Yeah, when they’re not being pains in the backside. Do you have family?”

Shit, that sounded awful. I wouldn’t normally blurt out a question like that.

“My grandma and mom live in town. My younger sister is in college in Illinois.”

“No other siblings?”

“Just us girls,” she smiles a little tightly.

Okay, so there is some kind of history with the men in the family. It’s too soon to ask about that for sure.

The food arrives to break up that little bit of tension.

“How busy do you get in the shop? Do you get any spare time? Any hobbies?”

“There are certain times of the year when things ramp up, wedding season especially.”

“So your summer is always booked up.” I take a bite of my sandwich.

“Mostly. We close every Wednesday, though. That’s when I go see my horse.”

“You have a horse?” My eyes widen.

“Yeah, since I was fifteen,” she gives the first real genuine smile since I sat down.

“That’s cool. I’ve never met anyone with a horse before. You have someone who looks after him, her?”

“Her. She’s called Bella. She’s stabled a couple of miles out of town by a family friend.”

“You’re a good rider then?”

“You could say that. I competed with her for a while, but she retired about three years ago.”

“Competed at what?” I ask, loving this. “Showjumping?”

She nods, a little more enthusiastic. “We won a few ribbons, but nothing major.”

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