Page 66 of Her Silver Fox Firefighters
“I had already broken things off with her. As soon as I left my meeting with the guys, I grabbed her stuff from my place, tossed it into a box, and brought it over to the DA’s office. It was sort of public and humiliating for her, but she had it coming, especially when that coworker she’d wanted to join us in bed approached me, I guess to intimidate me.”
I laugh. “Intimidate you?”
“Yeah, imagine that. Jocelyn found herself alone. Four men who once adored her now wanted nothing to do with her ever again. It stung. She never got over it, truth be told. Our paths still cross with work, and every time I still see the remorse, the anger, the shame. She masks it under her so-called fierce and sharp-tongued façade, but I see the real Jocelyn, and she knows it: insecure, miserable, jealous, and impossible to please; desperate for human contact, yet incapable of opening up to someone.”
“Honestly, I feel sorry for her,” I say. “But at the same time, I’m glad she’s out of their lives, Carlos, and yours. I can no longer imagine my life without them.”
“I can’t blame you. They’re good men. They’ll go to the ends of the earth for the woman they love.” He pauses and checks his watch. “Hey, I was thinking. It’s off topic, but before I forget, it’s my day off. I thought about driving up to the cabin to bring Chloe a few things from town, maybe one of Melinda’s badass pies, fresh out of the oven.”
“Oh, that sounds really nice, and is very sweet of you,” I reply, carefully analyzing his expression. “If you can wait until after lunch service, I could join you.”
“I wouldn’t have it any other way. Does Chloe like peaches or apricots? I think Melinda’s baking a few of each.”
The shimmer in his eyes. The subtle smile. The way he lights up whenever he mentions Chloe’s name. It’s so obvious, once you get to know him a little bit better. Carlos deserves a second chance at love, and Lord knows Chloe needs a great man by her side, someone who can make her happy and keep her safe.
Maybe, just maybe…
“Peaches. Peaches, all the way, my friend,” I tell him.
The afternoon findsus driving up to his family’s cabin outside of town. It’s nice and quiet, orchards unraveling along the base of the mountain, the branches bent from the abundance of fruit, ripe and ready to be plucked.
As the sun sets over the mountain, splashing its shades of pink and orange across the sky, I take a deep breath and get out of Carlos’s car, while he collects the boxed pie from the back seat, preparing to surprise Chloe with it.
“I’m constantly amazed by how beautiful it is up here,” I say, reveling in the crisp, fresh air.
The main road winds around the mountain, connecting Ember Ridge to the rest of the county. I can see cars from up here, looking like tiny, colorful ants rumbling up and down, each carrying a story of its own.
Everything is green and clean around the wooden cabin, like something out of a rustic-themed postcard. Chloe comes out, her figure dwarfed in an oversized tracksuit I gave her and wearing a huge smile plastered across her face.
“I didn’t expect you today,” she says, coming down the porch steps to throw her arms around me.
I welcome the hug and hold her tight. “Carlos thought you’d like the surprise,” I tell her. “Also, he got you something.”
“You did?” she looks at him with genuine surprise.
“Well, we did,” Carlos says, trying to minimize his own initiative. Of course, he’s playing it safe, keeping it cool. “Melinda bakes some wicked peach pies, and Olivia says you love?—”
“I love peaches!” she exclaims while Carlos presents her with the box. “Oh, gosh, it smells sublime. Is it okay if I eat this in one sitting?”
“I’ve been doing a lot of that lately,” I reply with a chuckle. “We’ll go trekking up the mountain after the kids are born and Marcus is in prison. Until then, I say we gobble down whatever we want, sister.”
Chloe gives Carlos a soft nod. “Thank you. It was very thoughtful of you.”
“My pleasure, Chloe.” He pauses and looks at me. “I’ll let you ladies hang out while I go pick a few things from the orchard next door. Is that alright?”
“You can do that?”
“My uncle owns this part of the orchard. I’m not stealing,” he laughs.
“Sure, Carlos. Do your thing. Get me some red plums, if you can. I’ll whip up a mean cake with them and save you a big-ass slice for your trouble.”
“No trouble at all, but I will take the big-ass slice, nonetheless.”
Chloe and I laugh as we watch him head over to the property fence and slip through the small wooden gate. I didn’t even notice the gate until now. Chloe seems just as surprised.
“Huh, go figure,” she mumbles. “His family owns part of a huge orchard. He’s in law enforcement. People around here seem to love him.”
“Sounds like quite the catch, right?”
