“Yeah. There is.”
“I knew it!” Nate jogged back to the engine to turn off the stream of water. Darius shook off the remaining droplets and began the process of coiling the hose for stowage. Still talking, Nate jogged back to help him. “My romantic Spidey sense never lets me down.”
“She’s my new landlady,” Darius said with a smirk. “That’s all. I want to know what I’m in for.”
Nate crowed with laughter. “So Kate Robinson is your new landlady. Wait—Kate’s the one who’s been threatening to evict you?”
“Yup. That was before she met me, though.”
“And now?”
“There’s a good chance she’ll bring a shotgun with her when she kicks me out,” he admitted. “She’s a fiery one.”
For some reason, Nate couldn’t stop laughing. “Man, this should be fun. I’m gonna be needing weekly reports, Chief.”
“And you’re gonna need your ass kicked.” They reached the fire engine and together hefted the hose back onto its reel. Darius closed the hatch and latched it with a sharp click.
“Speaking of which, we’re down to our last few games before summer hiatus. You playing this weekend?”
“Probably.” They both played on the local hockey team, the Lost Harbor Puffins—or Lost Harbor Losers, according to their competitors. “Unless I’m looking for new lodgings.”
“Eh, you’ll be fine. Who would evict a fire chief? Not even Naughty Kate is that crazy.”
Chapter Nine
“Apparently I can’t evict a fire chief,” Kate told him, sounding none too happy about it. They met in the driveway a few nights later—“night” being an odd word to use, since it was still light out. A chill had fallen even though darkness still hadn’t. Kate had rattled up the driveway with a full load of furniture. He noticed dark shadows under her eyes and a hint of purple at her temple. She must be exhausted, but that didn’t affect her spunk level.
“Did you check the city code or something?”
“No. I asked my grandmother. Let me just say that I got an earful.”
Darius refrained from pointing out that she could have done that from the beginning. “Technically, that’s not true. You have every right to evict me.”
She pointed at him in triumph, her work glove aimed at his chest. “Exactly. Didn’t I say that a few times in my emails?”
“You did. More than a few. It was annoying. Want a hand with your furniture? The outside stairs are a bear.”
Reluctantly, she nodded. “I lost my helper. So sure, that’d be great. I can handle most of it, but the couch—”
“I’m happy to help,” he cut her off. “Don’t worry about it.”
They moved toward the bed of the truck. The sight of the load made him cringe. Did she know nothing about loading trucks? “Where are you from?”
“You mean, where am I moving from? Petal to the Metal, my grandmother’s farm. Let’s start with this rug.”
“No, I mean where’d you come to Lost Harbor from?” He moved aside a chair that had made the trip balanced between a coatrack and the rolled-up rug.
“Why are you asking?”
“Why not? For instance, I moved here from Texas.”
She narrowed her eyes at him as she grabbed onto the end of the carpet roll. “Okay.”
“In Texas, we learn that it’s important to use ratchet straps and bungee cords to secure your load, otherwise something could fly off and hit someone. That’s one of the reasons why I’m curious about where you’re from.”
“I’m from the Kingdom of Cities,” she said grandly. “Home to an amazing invention known as a moving company.”
He chuckled as he helped her slide the rug off the tailgate. “I’ve heard those legends, but I paid them no mind. Surely such tales can’t be true.”
“Many wonders can be found in the Kingdom of Cities. Imagine food brought right to your door. It’s called ‘delivery.’” Together, they carried the rug toward the blue staircase.
“Impossible. Next you’ll be telling me the WiFi always works.”
She giggled, looking behind her to make sure she wasn’t missing the bottom step. Her ponytail swung over her shoulder, drawing his attention to the tanned skin of her neck. Farmer’s tan, the kind you could get even in the chilly temperatures of April because the sun stayed so long in the sky.
He found it sexy as hell—that, and the way her twisted position emphasized the deep curves of her chest and waist…
He fixed his gaze on the carpet and as a result, stumbled a bit as his foot hit the bottom step.
She swung her head back to check on him. “You okay?”
“Yup. Keep going.” He adjusted his grip on the roll. “Do you have a body wrapped up in here or something?”
A laugh floated across the carpet. “Knowing Emma, anything’s possible.”
“I believe it. She heard about my Harley and tracked me down to talk shop.”
“She’s a badass. Best grandma ever. Even though she doesn’t want me to move out, she’s helping me furnish this place. She insisted I take this rug because the floors need finishing.”
They reached the landing of the upstairs apartment. Kate fumbled for the doorknob as she propped the rug on one knee. When it turned, she pushed it open with her foot. He followed her through a short hallway to the front room with its breathtaking view of the town and the bay beyond it.
The floors were unfinished plywood and the pink fluff of insulation showed through a few gaps in the walls, but other than that it was a lovely space. Much smaller than his apartment, but that view made up for it.
“Here.” She stopped in the middle of the front room and set her end of the carpet roll down. He followed suit.
“Let’s roll it out,” he suggested. “See how it looks.”
Her face brightened eagerly. “You don’t mind?”
“Sure, why not? We carted it all the way up here, why not get some satisfaction?”
“Let’s do it. I’ve never actually seen what the rug looks like. She told me it’s an antique from India.” She crouched down and grabbed one end, holding it in place while he unrolled the bulk of it while backing across the room.
A bit of dust rose into the air, along with a faint sweet smell, like old rose petals.
“You might need a vacuum. Not to mention some weights to keep the corners down.”
“We can use boxes for now. Stay there.” She hopped to her feet and dragged a box his way, then used another one to anchor her end. “There!” She gazed at the unfurled carpet, and slowly her expression turned puzzled. She tilted her head, then walked around to the other side of the carpet.
He rose to his feet and stepped to her side. Then blinked.
Was he really seeing what he thought he was seeing?
“Is that…” He pointed to what looked like a…a penis. About to touch the mouth of a smiling woman. Who was being held by a naked man fondling her breasts. Who was….Where did it end?
“Oh my God.” Her face turned red as she took in the decadent backdrop of the carpet. “Emma gave me a Kama Sutra carpet.”
They both stared down at the panorama of naked figures in naughty and astonishingly flexible positions. Then they both burst into gales of laughter.
Darius’ whole body shook with the force of his amusement, so much so that he had to bend over and rest his hands on his knees, gasping for breath.
“I didn’t…even know…such a thing…existed.”
As soon as she could stop laughing, Kate blew out a breath, sending strands of her hair wafting away from her face.
His hands twitched again. He wished he could touch her.
“Oh, Emma. You win.” Kate planted her hands on her hips and gazed down at the carpet. A light flush still colored her cheeks. “No wonder she wanted me to have this. She’s probably laughing her ass off right about now. I need to get her back somehow.”
“What’s your move?”
“I don’t know.” Thoughtfully, she tapped a finger against her
chin. “I’m kind of tempted to pretend there’s nothing unusual about the rug. I bet that would drive her crazy. Oh!” She clapped her hands together. “I can tell her that the floors are just fine without a rug, and that I’m going to donate it to her church—in her name.” Her cackle of glee made him smile.
“You could probably sell it on eBay for a ton of money. It’s such a find.”
“That’s true.” With a thoughtful expression, she traced the border with her toe. “I think it might be hard to part with, though.”
He lifted his eyebrows. Hard to part with? Was that an intentional double entendre?
Her eyes went wide, and she clapped a hand over her mouth. “Sorry, that just slipped out.”
She clapped her other hand over her mouth, realizing she’d done it again.
He burst into laughter all over again. “Blame it on the rug. Bad influence.”
Above her hand, her eyes flashed with naughty laughter. Lust tugged at him, hot and fierce.
He cleared his throat and stuffed his hands in his pockets, hoping that would hide the beginnings of his erection. “So you’ve decided that you can’t evict me. That’s good news.”
Her entire manner shifted back to all-business and she dropped her hands from her face. “The correct way to phrase that is that I can evict you. I have the right to, according to the lease. But I’m not going to.”
Uh oh. He saw a loophole there he didn’t like. “Then we should both sign a new lease that says you can’t evict me. I don’t want you changing your mind on me.”
She lifted one eyebrow. “Trusting, aren’t you?”
“I’m a trust-but-verify kind of guy. And I’d like a real lease. It can be short-term if you like.”
“Are you considering moving out?”
“Depends on how much noise my upstairs neighbor makes. The rug should help. On the other hand, that particular rug could lead to a lot more noise.”
She pulled a face and jammed her hands into her back pockets. “No need to worry about that. The other night’s close call was enough to teach me my lesson.”
He folded his arms across his chest. “Are you talking about us?”
“There was no ‘us,’” she said firmly. “That’s the other thing we should talk about. Let’s agree the other night didn’t happen.”
“What didn’t happen? Are you referring to the part that didn’t happen or the part that did happen?”
She blinked at him, bringing his attention to the brilliant dark fire of her eyes. “That doesn’t make any sense.”
When he started to explain, she lifted her hand to stop him. “It’s okay. We don’t need to relive it. None of it happened.”
He eyed her curiously. “What are you so worried about? Even if we had slept together, it’s no one’s business. We’re both single.” It occurred to him that he didn’t know that for sure. “At least, I am.”
“That’s not the issue,” she said, irritated. “Of course I’m single. I’m as single as can be.”
“I didn’t know there were degrees of single.”
“Well, there are.” She ticked off a list on her fingers. “There’s single but looking for a mate. There’s technically single but committed to one person. There’s happily single. Miserably single. Single but still having lots of sex.” She gestured at the rug as she mentioned that one. “Single but may never have sex again. Think of it as a spectrum.”
“Hmm.” Tired of standing, he crouched down next to the rug and rested one forearm on his thigh. “Interesting breakdown. Where do you land on that spectrum?”
She followed his lead and sat crosslegged on the carpet. “Maybe you should answer that question first.”
He shrugged. “Is there a spot on that spectrum for a twice-divorced, never-again kind of guy?”
Her eyes widened. “Two divorces? Okay, you might have me beat.”
“You’ve been divorced too?”
“No. Never been married. But I haven’t had sex in two years, so there’s that.”
He whistled slowly. Apparently they were letting everything out in this conversation.
“Any particular reason why?”
“Many reasons why, and many reasons not to tell you why. For instance, we just met. And I’m now your landlady. That’s why I’m talking about all this, because I want to make sure we understand each other perfectly. Even though we’re both single, nothing like that night is going to happen again.”
Was it his imagination, or was she going out of her way to insist on that? He hadn’t initiated anything last night. She had. Maybe she should give this little lecture to herself.
“So the other night…”
“Was the closest I’ve come in two years.” She smiled ruefully. “And I came away with a bruise on my head, a massive hangover, and a fuzzy memory. I’m taking it as a sign that I shouldn’t try that again.”
He had to admit, he found her decision disappointing. They had some pretty great chemistry, and he enjoyed talking to her. She had a funny way of stating things and a fast-paced style that kept him on his toes. She was also gorgeous to watch, the way expressions flitted across her face and an occasional dimple appeared an inch below her mouth, to the right, almost on her chin.
Sometimes he almost lost track of what she was saying because he found the play of her expressions so absorbing.
Maybe this wasn’t her final decision. There might be a way to change her mind. He could be patient.
Assuming he wanted anything to do with his new landlady, who seemed like big trouble. He didn’t need to get burned again. The last remnants of his formerly romantic heart couldn’t take it.
“When you say fuzzy memory…”
“Well.” Her right eye twitched. He wondered if that was a tell. “I know I was coming onto you. Flirting with you. Just so you know, I didn’t really mean it. I was pretty buzzed and uh…confusing things with a book I’d just read.”
Under his skeptical gaze, she maintained an expression of perfect innocence—which he didn’t believe for a second. “What book?” he finally asked.
“Excuse me?”
“I’m just curious what the book was. I’ve been looking for something good to read.”
Not true in the slightest. He didn’t have much time for reading, other than fire science journals and reports from the forest service. But he would like to read. That much was true.
“Oh, it was nothing you’d be interested in. It was a romance novel.”
“A steamy one? I’m interested now.”
“No, not at all. It’s…uh…Amish.”
“An Amish romance novel?” That didn’t seem at all plausible to him. “Is that really a thing?”
“It really is. You can look it up.” With a look of triumph—as if she’d won that round—she pushed herself to her feet. “So now that we’re on the same page, I’ll draw up that lease and leave it in your mailbox.”
“Great.” He too maneuvered himself back upright, noting the ache in his legs. It had been a long day.
He caught her quick glance at his thighs as he gained his feet. Her throat moved as she swallowed.
Good. He’d go along with her little fiction about the flirting not being real. But he didn’t believe it for a second. She was just as attracted to him as he was to her. Patience. That was the key.
He headed for the door. “Should we get that couch next? Or do you plan to hang out on the Kama Sutra carpet reading Amish romance novels all night?”
Chapter Ten
“You knew, didn’t you?” Kate confronted Maya the next time she ran into her, which was at Gretel’s Cafe a few days later. Gretel’s was within walking distance of Fairview Court, so she’d gotten into the habit of stopping in for a hazelnut latte.
“I generally know everything, so the answer’s probably yes. But what, exactly?”
“You knew who Darius was.”
“Darius?” Gretel smiled brightly as she handed over their coffees. She was new in town, a magenta-haired, fun-lov
ing free spirit who Kate had liked immediately. “Everyone knows Darius. You don’t know Darius, Kate? I can introduce you. He plays hockey with Zander. And he runs the fire department. He also plays on Open Mic Night sometimes. You should come!”
Oh no, she wasn’t going to take a chance on watching him play bass again.
“I’m good. Thanks, Gretel.”
Kate tugged Maya to the sunny table by the window and plopped her down. “You knew Darius wasn’t from Oregon. You even knew he was renting the Fairview Court house.”
“Guilty.” Serenely, Maya sipped at her coffee. “Your point?”
“Not only did you not warn me, you pushed me toward him!”
“You didn’t need any pushing.”
“Fair point. So why didn’t you tell me who he was?”
“Because.” Maya tore open a packet of sugar and stirred it into her coffee. “You would have shut it down. I like Darius. I think you’d be good together.”
Kate’s mouth fell open. As teenagers, Maya had never approved of the boys she went for. “You were playing matchmaker?”
“Sort of. Believe me, if I didn’t know Darius was such a standup guy, I would have warned you. Really, I should have warned him about you.”
Kate rolled her eyes at that. “You know my Naughty Kate days are behind me.”
“So you say. And yet you still won’t tell me what’s going on with you.” Maya’s expression turned strict, more in tune with the police chief uniform she was wearing.
“I will. I promise.”
Maya waited a beat, but Kate wasn’t about to spill everything in the middle of the breakfast rush at Gretel’s. “So how’s the house-sharing working out?” Maya asked.
“Good,” Kate admitted. “He’s an excellent tenant.”
“Not surprised. Told you he’s a good guy. I gotta get to work.” She gathered up her things, and they both headed out to the sidewalk, where they waved goodbye and went their separate ways.
Kate headed for Fairview Court, enjoying the radiant sunshine pouring from the cloudless sky.
Good to know that Darius had the Maya Badger seal of approval.
Not that it mattered. She barely saw the man. Not only did he work a lot, but he had a busy life beyond the firehouse. Hockey practice, jam sessions, city council meetings at which he delivered reports. He was rarely home, and when he was, he took care not to disturb her.
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