“She’s pissed about the heater,” Eva said, tipping her chin toward the homeowner. “She said she bought it new two months ago.”
Ryder shook his head. “Pissed and lucky,” he muttered. “I wish people would bother reading the safety instructions when they buy space heaters. Who sets one up right under the curtains?”
“I heard Bobby handling the lecture already. She didn’t argue at least.” She climbed into the driver’s seat. “Cold as hell,” she muttered. “Chief says ten minutes, and we can head back.”
Nodding, he pulled out his phone and swiped over to the chats he’d sent to his EMT brothers and sisters.
Ryder:Hey man, you down for a charity calendar. You get to pose with a dog or cat.
Will:Does it pay?
Ryder:What part of charity don’t you get? It’s a fundraiser for the animal shelter and the station, fire, etc. Chief has me recruiting, so don’t make this hard on me, man.
Will:Maybe. If I don’t have to wear anything stupid or hold a snake.
Ryder shook his head, waved at Bobby, the lead firefighter on the call, and, after getting the all-clear nod, pulled his seatbelt on and latched it. “Got Will for the calendar.”
Eva pulled out onto the road and headed back toward the station. “Get him to pose shirtless and you’ll sell a million copies.” The towering emergency med tech spent more time in the gym than anyone, and it showed.
“You know it’s not that type of calendar.” He tapped out a quick text to Lucas, telling him he had another volunteer.
“I know,” she said as they made the last turn toward home. “That’s why I already agreed to it. Playing with kittens all day? Count me in.”
***
Three days later, on a rare free afternoon, Ryder returned to the dog park, his boots crunching over the frozen grass and half-melted snow. Ritz bounced in a wide circle ahead of him, the extendible leash giving him a large arc of space to sniff and explore. As they came around the last row of bushes, Ryder’s lips split into a smile. He hurried forward, unclipped the dog inside the gate, and walked over to the bundled-up figure leaning on the chain link.
Lucas cracked one of his lazy smiles, his dark eyes gleaming. “Hey. I brought something for Ritz.” He pulled a purple tennis ball out of his coat pocket. “I hope that’s okay.”
“Oh, yeah. That’s really nice of you.” He tipped his bearded chin toward the retriever. “Go ahead and throw it. He knows how to fetch.”
Lucas pulled back his arm and let the ball fly in the general direction of the dog.
It took Ritz a moment to notice the toy, but when he did, he transformed into a fluffy rocket of pure joy. He caught the ball and turned to gallop back to the two men. Ignoring Ryder completely, he bounced up to Lucas and stretched up toward the man’s waiting hand.
“Hey, Ritz. What a good boy!” Lucas took the slobbery ball and waved it playfully in front of the dog. He scrubbed his other hand around Ritz’s ears before throwing the ball again. “I didn’t know if he’d remember me or be standoffish. I figured I better bring a bribe.”
“He remembers everyone who gives him attention,” Ryder said. “And treats.”
The dog came back for more scritches and pets, wagging his tail so hard he could barely stay upright. For a second, something sharp and a little ridiculous tugged at Ryder’s gut. It wasn’t jealousy. How could he be jealous of his dog? But maybe aflicker of annoyance that Lucas seemed more excited about Ritz than seeing him again.
It shouldn’t matter. Dogs were the main reason they met and were hanging out anyway, but Ryder still wanted to yank Lucas’s attention back his way. Having those big cocoa-brown eyes on him did something to his insides he wasn’t used to. “I think he likes you better than me.”
“He has good taste.” Lucas flashed him with that smile that made his belly feel funny.
Ryder tried not to smile, but failed. His cheeks already hurt. They stood in silence for a minute watching Ritz trot around sniffing everything.If we were dating,Ryder thought suddenly,I could put my arm around him right now. It would be perfect.He shook his head.
“How’s the calendar thing coming?” he asked instead, trying to blow away those alluring thoughts in a gout of steam.
Lucas crossed his arms on the top of the fence and leaned. “I was brainstorming ideas at two a.m.. I didn’t even notice the time.”
“I’m up to Will, Eva, and Marlton as volunteers.”
Lucas bumped his arm with his shoulder. The man, although much thinner, was only about an inch shorter than Ryder’s six-foot-two. “And you, of course.”
He chuckled and shoved his hands deeper into his pockets to counter the urge to sling his arm around Lucas. “Yeah, you have me, too.”
Chapter 5