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The fine print at the bottom listed three major insurance companies as sponsors. Smart—they all had a vested interest in better fire safety. And those prizes... any volunteer department in the region would be scrambling to put together their best demonstration for a shot at that equipment.

Which meant the volunteer firefighters would be heavily involved. Which meant Wayne Drummond would be heavily involved.

Maybe she couldn't convince Wayne to help her out of the goodness of his heart. But if she could find a way to make it mutually beneficial—or at least make it harder for him to say no—then maybe she had a shot.

She just needed to figure out the angle.

Robin appeared with a fresh latte, steam rising from the cup. “On the house. You look like you need it.”

“You're a saint.”

“I'm really not. But I make good coffee, which is almost the same thing.” Glancing out of the window, Robin set the cup down. “Hey, speaking of Wayne...”

Jess's heart did an uncomfortable flip. “What?”

“He just pulled up outside. Comes in quite often for his afternoon coffee fix.” Robin's eyes gleamed with mischief. “You could, I don't know, accidentally run into him. Apologize for this morning. Feel out whether there's any chance of changing his mind.”

“That's not a terrible idea.” Jess was already mentally rehearsing what she'd say. Something casual. Non-threatening. Maybe mention the fundraiser, show she'd done her research—

“What does he usually order?”

Robin grinned. “Large black coffee, no sugar, no cream. Sometimes a blueberry muffin if we have them fresh.”

“Perfect.” Jess pulled out her wallet. “Get me his usual—actually, make it two coffees. One for me too.”

“You're going to ambush him with caffeine.” Robin looked delighted. “I approve.”

“It's not an ambush,” Jess protested. “It's a... strategic peace offering.”

“Uh-huh. Well, he'll be through that door in about two minutes, so get ready for your not-ambush.”