“Paisley Ann Hill,” she hissed. “Do not use that language with me.”
“I’m just saying.” Reaching into the fridge for an apple, I took a bite and chewed, grateful that it didn’t seem to be upsetting my stomach more than it already was.
“Your father and I always knew you might have issues in that relationship, Paisley,” she said with a huff. “You’ve never seemed attentive to his needs and wants.”
“Oh, you mean like I was my own person and not Jeremy’s pet?”
“That’s not what I said.”
“It’s what you implied.”
“Darling, be rational,” Mom said, calling upon her sugary sweetness to try and get through to me. She always did that when she felt I was being defiant. “People slip up. They make mistakes. God knows your father made plenty of mistakes before I married him.”
“Wow. That’s really comforting.” I grabbed some creamer from the fridge and poured a cup of coffee, thinking suddenly of Hansen’s lips on mine last night. “Mom, I don’t have time for this. I need to get ready for work.”
“Well, I know that you two love each other very much. And I hope you’ll soon be able to work things out with him.”
I rolled my eyes, returning to my bedroom to change into my work clothes. “I’m not working anything out with him, Mom,” I grumbled. “And if you speak to him, you can tell him. I’ll pack up his stuff and leave it on the doorstep. He can get it there.”
“Paisley, don’t be like that.”
“Love you, Mom, gotta go.” I pressed End on the cell phone and rubbed my temples, trying to ward off an oncoming migraine. I could barely piece things together. Fighting with Jeremy, seeing the other woman. Kissing Hansen in the bar parking lot—the humiliation that came with his rejection. Embarrassment. Anger. Hurt. I wanted so desperately to see him this morning, to talk to him about what had happened. Yet, at the same time, I wanted to quit and crawl back into bed and never see him again. That would certainly be easier, wouldn’t it?
Avoidance. Men were so good at that.
Chapter28
Hansen
Paisley looked surprisingly put-together when she walked into work that morning and not like she’d spent most of the night throwing back shots of whiskey at the bar. We locked gazes when she came in, and a flutter of something I didn’t recognize seized me by the chest. But she didn’t say anything to me; she didn’t even smile. She nodded once, professionally, and walked right by me to greet the others in the kitchen.
I watched her go, the sensation of her lips on mine lingering in my memory, refusing to fade. I hadn’t slept much last night, with Julia snuggled in my arms, sound asleep. I hadn’t been able to wipe Paisley’s face from my memory; her tear-stained cheeks, the sweet smell of perfume in her hair, the little black dress she wore. Something terrible had happened with her and Jeremy, and I had no idea what. It wasn’t my business. It never had been and never would be—so why was I so desperate to know?
Because you’re falling for her,I thought, and then pushed that revelation away as quickly as it had popped up.
When I joined the others in the kitchen for breakfast, Korbin was in the middle of showing Paisley the proper way to fry an egg. She watched him with a mixed expression of uncertainty and revulsion, nose wrinkling, lips pursed into a thin line.
“You know the egg doesn’t have to float in the pan, right?” she asked.
“Excuse me?” said Korbin.
“No excuses for you,” I said, playfully punching Korbin on the shoulder as I went to pour a cup of coffee. Paisley looked up at me when I came in, but her eyes darted to the floor as quickly as she’d glanced over. A slight flush crept up her neck, and I smiled despite myself.
“Where is everyone?” I asked, taking a seat at the table. Ty and Simon, a couple of my best paramedics, and a few scattered guys on Korbin’s rescue squad were already seated around the table for breakfast. But some were still missing, which was odd because if men gathered for anything, it was to eat.
“Tanner Rey and Joe Haney should be down any time now,” Korbin said, sliding a wet egg onto a plate for me. “They got up late this morning.”
“Korbin is being polite,” Paisley cut in. Her face flushed with annoyance, but she still wouldn’t look at me. I envied how she was opening up to Korbin. It was as if they hadn’t been sworn enemies mere days before.
“What do you mean?”
“There are still a few people here who can’t get on board with the fact that I’m part of the crew now,” Paisley said. She picked up her own plate of food and slid into a chair at the end of the table, reaching for the newspaper. “It’s whatever. I mean, it’s not like I can control how they feel.”
At that moment, Tanner and Joe joined us in the kitchen, fresh out of the showers. They nodded a good morning at me but ignored Paisley completely. She didn’t seem to mind; she didn’t even look up from the paper.
“I thought we all ate breakfast together as a crew,” I said. “We all need to be on the same page, boys.”
“Yeah, uh sorry, Cap. I’m running behind this morning,” Joe said, but Tanner only rolled his eyes. I opened my mouth to push the subject further, but Paisley slightly shook her head, and I shut my mouth. She was correct; she didn’t need defending. She had won over most of the guys by herself.
