Flirting with the Mountain Man (Rosewood Ridge Fire #6)

Chapter 5

5

BIANCA

M aybe it was because the area suffered a tornado over the summer, or maybe it was always this way, but Christmas had come early to downtown Rosewood Ridge. Not only did red bows adorn every streetlamp, but the buildings were decorated with lights and holly and the diner had a large, decorated Christmas tree in the front window.

“You weren’t kidding,” Tyler said from across the table as the server plopped my breakfast in front of me. “You were hungry.”

“I usually can’t eat when stuff like this is going on, but as soon as it’s over, my appetite kicks in and that’s all I want to do.”

“I can relate.”

He watched as I squirted syrup all over my peppermint chocolate chip pancakes. I had a side of bacon, two scrambled eggs, and a bowl of fruit. He, on the other hand, ordered the breakfast that had a little bit of everything in it, including country ham and hamburger steak.

“We’re not out of the woods yet,” I said. “The tests could come back with something wrong.”

“Your dad’s healthy as a horse.” He slid a heaping pile of hash browns onto his fork and held it as he finished his thought. “But even if there was something wrong, at least if they catch it early, they can do something about it. It’s better than not knowing, right?”

I took a deep breath and looked out the window. People rushed by on their way to work or court or whatever it was workers downtown did all day.

It reminded me that I still hadn’t found a job despite a solid six-month job search. The whole thing made me feel like a total loser.

“So you’re the town fire chief,” I said, partly to make conversation but partly because I was genuinely interested in this guy’s life. “Do you like it?”

He thought about that a moment as he chewed, staring out the window as I’d done. “It’s a good job. The pay isn’t the best, but part of the reason I moved here is that the cost of living is so low. I was in the military for most of my twenties. Moving around isn’t for me. I like roots. Being here lets me stay in one place.”

“The military,” I said. “Yeah, Dad said most of the guys on the crew are former Navy SEALs.”

“Yep. I served with most of them, but now that word’s spreading, we’re getting people who’ve heard we need help with our volunteer fire department.”

“You still need help?”

He immediately began shaking his head. “Not at all. We just keep gathering volunteers. It’s getting unwieldy, but how do you say no when people want to make a difference?”

That was a rhetorical question, but I still found myself searching for an answer. I should say something, but I couldn’t compare any of my life experiences to what he was doing here in this small mountain town.

“What about you?” he asked.

My head snapped up at that question. “What do you want to know?”

Please don’t ask what I do for a living. I didn’t have an answer for that. I’d never want to admit to him just how many resumes I’d sent out going all the way back to a couple of months before college graduation.

“Are you just passing through town or staying?” he asked.

Oh. That. I hadn’t expected that question, but it was all too easy to answer.

“Staying,” I said. “My sister lives in Germany with her family, and my mom died when I was in middle school, so living close to Dad is important to me. Plus, I can work anywhere. I just need internet access.”

Well, I’d stepped into that one. I hadn’t wanted to discuss my occupation, yet I’d just brought it up.

“Oh yeah?” he asked after swallowing a generous bite of bacon. “What do you do for a living?”

“Content manager,” I blurted.

It wasn’t a lie. It was the most recent job I’d applied to. But I’d planned to go into marketing. I’d just hoped to do something a little more creative than sourcing keywords and moving cards around on virtual bulletin boards.

“Sounds interesting,” he said. “So you’re staying with your dad?”

“Temporarily,” I said. “My plan is to get my own place, but I’m not sure I’m a ‘cabin in the woods’ type. I’m looking at the little cottages they’re building in the Sugarplum Farms subdivision.”

Sugarplum Farms was a gated community built on the land that was once owned by the Ivey family. The cottages were perfect for someone on a single income, but I wasn’t sure I’d be able to earn enough to pay for it. And I definitely didn’t have closing costs saved up.

“I know the developer,” Tyler said. “I don’t know what I can do to help, but I’ll do it if I can.”

We were getting dangerously close to me having to admit I didn’t have a job and therefore wouldn’t qualify for a mortgage. I couldn’t afford to rent a place right now, either. I just had to line up work and then everything else would fall into place.

“So do you get to drive the fire truck?” I asked in a desperate effort to change the subject.

“Most of the time, yes,” he said. “Last night, one of my guys drove by the station and grabbed the truck when he got the call. Your dad and a couple of the other firefighters met us at the site.”

“Must be pretty awesome driving through town clearing traffic out as you go.”

He shrugged. “Usually you’re so pumped full of adrenaline, you barely even notice. My goal is always to make sure nobody gets hurt and to get to the scene as quickly as possible.”

Oh yeah, that made sense. Maybe my comment was a little insensitive. I was searching my mind for a way to shift the topic from my blunder when he spoke again.

“You want to see it?”

I was chomping on a small section of the stack of three pancakes, but his question froze my movements. See it? Was he talking about something sexual? If so, I should be offended.

But instead, warmth spread through me, and the area between my legs felt a little tingly. I was turned on, and I wanted to do something about it, but I didn’t know what.

“The fire truck, that is,” he said, maybe sensing my confusion. “I can even show you how to turn the lights and sirens on.”

“You can do that?” I asked. “What if the other firemen are there?”

“I’m the boss, remember?” He shrugged. “Besides, if I want to give one of the firefighters’ daughters a look around the fire station after he’s been injured, who’s going to say something about it?”

That was a good point. And suddenly I was excited for an all new reason. More time alone with Tyler.

“We’ll grab your dad’s laptop and get it back to him first, if you want,” he said.

I shook my head. “The nurse said they were going to be doing a bunch of tests this afternoon. He’s not going to have time to watch TV. An hour or so of delay won’t hurt him.”

“Good,” he said. “We should hurry up and finish so I can give you a tour.” He smiled at me and lifted his coffee cup, holding it in front of him. “I might even make you a volunteer firefighter.”

I nearly laughed at that. It sounded like he already had enough of those. Besides, there was only one fire I wanted to do something about, and it was the one burning between the two of us.