“Whatever the case, the stadium isn’t a bad idea. Missoula could use the influx of jobs, capital. Tourism.”
“No, but I have no doubts he cut corners. Anyway, if you decide you don’t want to help, that’s fine.”
Her slight shrug was followed by her grabbing another handful of crackers. I could spend the rest of the night just looking at her, but I could tell her mind was processing.
“Is this what you call getting to know each other?” I finally asked.
“Kind of. My turn to ask questions.”
“With you, everything is worrisome. Go on.” As she thought about a question, my mind was processing her idea. A charity wasn’t a bad idea, but she honestly had no idea what it would take to get something like a rodeo together. Sure, I knew people and her father hadn’t lost all his contacts.
“Why join the smokejumpers?” As soon as she asked the question, she shoved the handful of crackers into her mouth.
Even the way she chewed on treats was adorable, her moving jaw holding my attention. She’d turned on the television inthe background and the late-night comedian was already at the point of grating my nerves.
Or maybe her pointed questions were to blame.
I threw my arm behind my head, finding myself as comfortable as she seemed. As I brought the cheap glass to my lips, I decided to give her an honest answer. Why wouldn’t I? “Wow. Okay. I’ll tell you a little story that began the descent into me becoming the bad boy of Missoula. When I was six or seven years old, my parents took us camping in the mountains. My parents loved the outdoors and we used to go on an annual outing. Very rustic.”
“Oh, yeah?” She shifted, leaning forward and offering me a few crackers. When I didn’t immediately open my mouth, she pressed them against my lips.
How could I deny someone so beautiful?
She had a wry smile on her face as I finally accepted the offering, but I used my tongue to take the crackers into my mouth. Her eyes were intent on watching me. How strange that around her, I could completely be myself. There was no pretense of being some hero or the bad boy persona, which had followed me into adulthood, my reputation enhanced by some stupid as fuck decisions.
Her nose scrunched as I chewed, the girl finally pulled her arm away. “Continue. I think I need to hear this story.”
She acted as if the fact I had my mouth full wasn’t a big deal.
“Fine,” I said, swallowing the sloppy mess. “We roughed it. You know what I mean; tents with no padding, forced to carry our own packs along the trail. My dad teaching us how to make a fire from freaking sticks. My parents loved it. I was a boredfucking kid. We’d been allowed to bring two books with us, our parents insisting we enjoy the outdoors instead of hiding behind a gaming system.”
“You have amazing parents.” Her grin was far too wicked.
“Yeah, well, the problem was that I’d learned how to make fires too damn well and the flames fascinated me.”
“Oh, you did not,” she gasped.
“Oh, I did. I started a fire that caught because of the wind and one thing led to another…”
“Shit.” She scooted closer, placing one leg over mine. The immediate jolt of electricity was close to being stifling.
I laughed, enjoying the way her eyes were open wide. “Yeah, shit was the word of the day. I heard my parents calling and ran back. It didn’t take long for the wind to carry the flames through the brittle debris and leaves. Before we knew it, we were trapped on the mountain.”
“How terrifying.”
Shifting back and forth on the pillow, I realized I hadn’t thought about the horrible experience in several years. “The fire raged on and finally, a smokejumping team arrived. I swear, they were like action figures to a kid like me. They saved the day and our lives.”
“Wow. You were very lucky.”
“Yeah, and my father was pissed as hell. When I say I couldn’t sit for a week, trust me in that I couldn’t sit for a week.”
She couldn’t keep from laughing, the gleam in her eyes exactly what had attracted me to her in the first place. Years before. “How did your parents meet?”
“In college. Her hometown. Not his. And he managed to convince her to upend her life in Washington State and move here.”
“Love at first sight.”
“I don’t know about that. My mother said he was on the rebound and she wanted nothing to do with him.”
