Page 56 of Frosting and Flames

“I’ll call him now.” He excuses himself and steps out of the office, leaving me and Rachel alone.

“Do you think he likes any of it?” she whispers once Chief is gone.

“What?” My brow furrows. “He loves it all.”

She looks at me as if I’ve got three heads. “He’s been completely straight-faced the entire time.”

Ah. She doesn’t know him like I do.

I shake my head. “Trust me. The tiny head nod he gave you? The almost smile? The way he was leaning in ever so slightly instead of away? Practically a standing ovation.”

Her lips press together, gaze searching mine like she’s looking for a crack in my story, but there’s a flicker of hope buried beneath the skepticism, too. “I’ll take your word for it.”

Chief returns, waving his phone in front of him. “Good news. They’re all at the house practicing right now. You can see them in an hour.” He writes the address on a sticky note and hands it to me, then turns to Rachel. “If you can’t make it, Nick can go by himself. I understand we’ve already taken up a lot of your time.”

“No, I’ll go. What do you think of everything else?”

“Oh, it’s great.” He takes a seat again behind his desk. “The best fundraiser we’ll have ever had by far. Good work.”

She glances at me, and I keep the impulse to saytold you soat bay.

“I’ll handle permits and getting the judges to agree,” Chief says. “Might carry more weight coming from me. I’ll let you two divvy up everything else.”

“Great,” Rachel says, appearing relieved. Was she actually worried Chief would shoot down her ideas?

“So, when can we make this happen?” Chief asks. “How about Memorial Day weekend?”

Rachel blinks at him. “That’s this weekend. In two days.”

“Oh, right.” He rubs at his jaw. “How about the Saturday after school lets out for the summer? Families will want something to do.”

I do some quick calculations in my head. “That’s a little over three weeks from now.” I turn to Rachel. “Can we put everything together by then?”

“Um…” She looks at Chief, who’s looking back at her hopefully. “I think so.”

He claps his hands together, pleased. “All right then. We’ve got ourselves a fundraiser.”

She gives a small, unsure smile as she stands. “I should get home and change before we go see the band.”

“I’ll pick you up in an hour, okay?”

She nods as she rubs her palms over her shirt distractedly. “See you soon.”

She lets herself out, and I can’t help but watch her leave, whipping around guiltily when Chief clears his throat loudly.

“Things are going well with you two?” he asks, a smirk lurking over his mouth as I settle back in my chair.

I’m reminded of Mrs. Montour asking something similar earlier, but at least whatever I say to Chief won’t be halfway across town by dinnertime. “Yeah, we’re working well together.”

His brows raise the slightest bit. “Only working?”

I’m aware of the heat crawling up the base of my throat, but can’t do anything to stop it. “What makes you say that?”

He chuckles. “In all the time I’ve known you, all the calls we’ve been out on together… Can’t say I’ve ever seen you look at a woman like you looked at her, is all. Hope you can work something out.”

I mumble some kind of response and flee his office, my heart thudding dully in my chest.

If Chief can tell my feelings for Rachel that easily… can she?

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