Page 43 of Combust
Aloud, he told her, “No need to be sorry, I knew I was dating a firefighter.”
“Thanks for understanding.” Her expression was filled with gratitude. She rapidly typed a response in the app, then turned to go.
“Dinner at my place tomorrow?” he asked. “I’ll cook.”
“That would be great.” Maggie rose on her tiptoes to give him a quick, warm kiss, then dashed for her driver’s side door. “Six o’clock okay? I’m on closing shift at the bakery.”
“Works for me.”
He stood on the sidewalk, watching her speed down Main Street, heading for the bridge that crossed the river.
It could be worse, he told himself, trying to tamp down his frustration when what he really wanted to do was punch something.At least she wants to see me again.
Tomorrow night seemed like an eternity away. He was willing to wait, though. She was worth it. Maggie Swanson was everything he wanted in a woman: strong, sassy, and beautiful. Life with her would never be boring.
And there was her family, who’d welcomed him into their clan.
If he played his cards right, he might just end up with the one thing he never expected to find: a forever home.
But first, he had to defeat all of these cursed interruptions long enough to actually claim her as his mate.
* * *
Two hours later
Maggie drove away from the Riverside Inn, feeling a sense of satisfaction. She had arrived at the hotel to discover a visiting hunter suffering from an accidental gunshot wound to his foot.
She administered first aid, and waited until Kenny arrived to make his report. She saw her patient loaded onto the town’s single ambulance and transported to the nearby Bearpaw Ridge Medical Clinic. While focused on shifter medicine, the clinic also treated Ordinary humans.
As she drove home to the ranch, she thought back over her day and her date with Cade.
She’d enjoyed getting to know the man she had once considered surly and feral.
And he doesn’t find me too bossy.That was definitely a point in his favor, along with the fact that he’d called her gorgeous and beautiful.
And she liked how, despite his growling, Cade had taken today’s interruptions in stride. Most importantly of all, he’d released his hold on her when she’d asked him.
She remembered Andrew’s mocking refusal, and shuddered. The memory made her appreciate her wild cowboy’s unexpected chivalry.
I can trust Cade.The realization was humbling.
When she turned off the highway, she glanced at the clock on her dashboard.
It wasn’t terribly late yet, even taking into account that both she and Cade had to rise before dawn to start work.
She made a decision.
After parking in her usual spot near her home, she pulled out her phone, and sent her mom a quick text.Date went well, won’t be home for a while.
That would hopefully stave off any further untimely interruptions.
Then she walked up the road for another quarter-mile.
Her heart began pounding as she reached her destination and saw that the lights were still on inside the foreman’s cabin. She stepped up onto the small porch, took a deep breath, and knocked.
“Hi,” she said when Cade opened the door. She was astonished that her voice sounded perfectly calm despite her thundering pulse and the flutters of nervous anticipation roiling her stomach. “I hope it’s not too late to pick up where we left off.”
Chapter Thirteen - Courtship Behaviors
