Downstairs, Hansen was in the middle of making breakfast for everyone. The scent of bacon wafted from a sizzling pan, and toast was already laid on the table. He was mixing some batter, a bag of flour open next to him, flour spread along the surface. I stood in the door for a moment and watched him, impressed by how easily he seemed to flit around the kitchen. A fireman and a cook, very nice.
“Hey,” I said, breaking his concentration. He looked up and winked at me. There was a streak of flour across his face that, in any other situation, would have made me fall to my knees in lust.
“Are you going to stay for breakfast?” he asked.
“It will be years before I ever touch a bag of flour again.” I pulled a face, and Hansen chuckled, which made me smile. “So, I’m going home to find what’s left of my dignity before I return.” I turned to go, clutching my jacket tighter in my grip.
“Paisley,” he said. I stopped and looked at him, hoping this wasn’t about to be something I couldn’t handle.
“Yeah?”
“I’m sorry about last night,” he said. “With the boys and their prank, I mean.”
“I should have expected it.” I couldn’t find the courage to tell him about the Kool-Aid prank. If I planned to handle my own, it was time to start now.
“I hope it doesn’t turn you off the job.”
I hesitated before answering, but only briefly. “No. No man in this world will stop me from doing what I love. If that means more flour showers, then fine. I can take it.”
I expected Hansen to stick up for me again, to apologize, but he nodded his head just once, and when he smiled again, it was true.
“Good,” he said. “See you Monday then.”
Chapter10
Hansen
“So, how did Paisley do on her first night with your boys?” Julia asked me later that night. We were curled up on the couch, surfing TV channels for something decent to watch. I tossed some popcorn into my mouth and laughed.
“Shit, woman.” I feigned shock. “So, youdoknow her name.”
“I try not to,” Julia said. “But our department caught wind of that little gun debacle. Word spread like wildfire.”
“She was great,” I said with a shrug. “She went in there herself and stabilized the woman while talking the gunman down at gunpoint.”
“Good for her,” Julia said. I laughed because I didn’t know what else to do. I knew she was trying to sound sincere, but the pettiness in her voice gave her away.
“Don’t hate her for doing her job,” I said. “She’s a great asset to the team.”
“I bet she’s much more than that,” Julia muttered. “Just give it a few weeks. She’ll be complaining about sexual harassment or unfair treatment, bringing the whole station down with her. Including you.”
“Is that what you would do if you were in her shoes?” I asked. Julia looked away from me, lips pursed. She didn’t say anything, but I knew her answer. I stood from the couch and handed her the bowl of popcorn, setting my beer bottle on the counter.
“Jealousy is not a good look on you, Jules.” Julia groaned and rolled her head to the side with a deep sigh. I made my way around the couch until I could grip her shoulders in my fingers, massaging her, trying to relax her tired, strained muscles.
“I’m not jealous,” she said with a wave of her hand. “I’m just …concernedfor the department. There’s been a lot of talk around town. People are afraid she will get hurt, or worse, hurt someone else.”
“Don’t be concerned,” I said. “Having our first female firefighter on the crew is a major success. You, of all people, should know that. It will be good for this town.”
“Don’t count on it.” Julia paused and contemplated her following words. “She’s going to bring that place down in flames.”
She turned her body around so that one hand was on my belt, and with the other, she grabbed the collar of my shirt to pull me down to kiss her. She tasted good, like peppermint and sugar, and I cupped my hand behind her head to kiss her harder. As her fingers sneaked below my belt, I closed my eyes, and for a moment—just a brief moment—it wasn’t Julia I was kissing.
It was Paisley.
Chapter11
Paisley
