Need You for Mine (Heroes of St. Helena)

by Marina Adair

  Jesus. The guy was practically drooling all over her. And Chief Lowen was no better. The man seemed completely disarmed, smiling at Harper as if she were the most charming person on the planet. Which she was.

  Harper had this way about her that was warm and welcoming and, as he was discovering, compelling. But when she smiled, man oh man, he couldn’t seem to stay away. Which only made him wonder why he had never noticed it before.

  Sure, he’d noticed Harper around town. It was hard not to with her bright clothes and everything is awesome attitude. But somehow he’d overlooked just how sexy she was. Or maybe it was that she was finally letting her sexy show, and he was lucky enough to witness it.

  Either way, he wasn’t about to let a prick like McGuire witness any more than he already had.

  “McGuire, I need you to help Seth empty the engine,” Adam said, and all four sets of eyes were on him. “Hey, Cap. Chief.” His gaze met Harper’s, and that buzzing inside that was constantly set to Go shifted. It was still there, but if felt softer somehow. “Harper.”

  “Hey, Adam,” she said, gifting him one of those bright smiles that made everyone’s day brighter. “I stopped by to drop these off.” She held up a box of cookies, but her hands shook slightly, telling him she was nervous.

  And he knew why. She needed his answer on modeling for her grandma’s shop. An answer that, two seconds after he said he needed to think about it, he’d made up his mind about.

  Posing shirtless in a calendar for charity was one thing, but posing in silk boxers and a man’s leisure robe would invite Hugh Hefner jokes. If word ever got out about the shoot, and it would, then his guys would call open season on him and the wisecracks would be never ending. That was saying nothing to how it might weigh in on Lowen’s morality meter.

  Seeing her in that summer dress, looking like a breath of fresh air, didn’t help his resolve. In fact, it took his No way in hell to a solid As long as you wear that dress in two seconds flat.

  “What is all of this?” McGuire asked, holding up the red plastic cups as he unloaded the engine. “Is this for our beer pong rematch next weekend?”

  McGuire might not technically still be the FNG, but he sure as hell acted like it.

  “They’re for Beat the Heat,” Seth defended.

  “You bought drinking game glasses for a family event?” Chief Lowen asked.

  Adam wanted to explain this in Cap’s office, with Emerson’s menu on display, but now Lowen was looking at him as if he’d better explain immediately or there wouldn’t be a meeting and come tomorrow he’d be on trash duty for the rest of his career.

  “I went with a red theme, like a, uh . . .” He almost said tailgate party, then realized that was one step away from beer pong. “Like a picnic.”

  “Beat the Heat is a picnic,” Lowen pointed out. “So the theme you picked, after a week of planning, is the event itself?”

  When said that way it sounded as if he’d half-assed the project. And maybe he had. He’d spent the last week trying to figure out how to get someone else to do his job, rather than put in the sweat equity toward a promotion. And spent this morning realizing he was ill equipped in the party-planning department.

  That unfamiliar tightness in his chest was back. Adam realized it was panic—a strange sensation to have for someone who feared nothing. But looking his superiors in the eye, knowing that he’d screwed the pooch yet again, Adam knew this failure would cost him.

  He didn’t do failure, but somehow he’d managed to get himself pretty close.

  A gentle hand came to rest on his lower back, and he immediately felt the heat.

  “An old-fashioned picnic,” Harper said, her fingers subtly moving on his back in a way that was meant to soothe. And damn if it didn’t work. The tightness disappeared, only to reappear when he looked over at her and found that from his angle, he could see right down her dress. And cream-colored strapless lace was the answer of the hour. “The town would love it, and it would go perfectly with the menu Adam and Emerson hand selected. Cold lemonade and a selection of different sweet teas, red-and-white checkered tablecloths—”

  “Ah, these are solid red,” McGuire said, and Adam shot him an Are you fucking kidding me? look.

  To which McGuire lifted a What did I do? brow.

  You were born. That is enough to screw with my day.

  Are you PMSing or what?

  Harper ignored all of this and said, “I can just see the mason jars hanging from the trees, filled with candles.” She reached out with her free hand and tapped the chief’s shoulder lightly, as if physically bringing him to her vision. “Battery operated, of course. This is in honor of fire safety after all.”

  And just like that Lowen was there, in the picture she was painting, buying into red Solo cups and Adam’s ability to make this event memorable. She’d also managed to distract from the fact that Adam thought hotdogs and Solo cups were a brilliant idea, and make him look like a guy who had his shit together.

  It’s her gift, Adam thought with a smile, the ability to draw out the best in people, make them feel as if they belonged in her magical world. Everything about her was magical.

  A scary thought because when she was no longer there, he was pretty sure the magic would fade to a strange emptiness.

  Lowen looked at Adam and showed some teeth beneath his mustache. Adam wasn’t sure it was a smile, but he didn’t growl so Adam counted it as a win. “I like the direction, Baudouin. And I’m pleased you have come so far with the event.” He looked back at Harper. “The young lady was telling me earlier how inspiring you were in her art class this week.”

  Adam looked at Harper and lifted a brow. “Inspiring?” Because the only inspiring thing he could remember was that kiss to show up Dr. Dildo, then their talk, then how he wanted to kiss her again.

  Her ears turned pink and he smiled.

  She did too, sweet with a little undertone of sass to let him know he was on the money.

  “It was all the kids could talk about, seeing a real-life hero up close and personal,” Harper said. “They were so excited that I decided during the week of Beat the Heat, I would do a lesson on heroic portraits and hang them in the Budding Artists Gallery.”

  “You should bring them by,” Lowen said. “Give them a tour of the station.”

  Harper looked at Adam, her eyes filled with excitement and uncertainty. It was obvious she wanted to say yes, but didn’t want to put him in a weird position. Adam smiled. “I can have Daugherty set something up for you.”

  “That would be amazing.” Amazing didn’t even begin to describe what happened next. Harper smiled, and man what a smile. It was bright, joyful, and contagious as hell, because every damn guy in the room smiled back—including him. “Maybe we can even have you visit the shop on the Saturday of the event and judge them, Chief Lowen.”

  And wouldn’t you know it, Chief Lowen, the tightest ass in the entire department, actually blushed. “I can’t tell good art from a ketchup-smeared napkin, but I can wear my uniform and award a trophy.”

  “The kids’ work is more about telling a story and sharing it with others,” Harper said, placing a hand on Lowen’s arm so that her comment came off as genuine sharing of information, a connection rather than a correction. “If you could say something nice about each artist’s work, it would make their little days. Especially when they see how smart you look in uniform.”

  Adam was quickly learning that Harper wasn’t concerned with conforming to society’s standards of beauty, like most people he knew. Her mission was to make sure every one of her kids felt special and that their uniqueness was celebrated.

  “I don’t see why not.”

  “Wonderful. I was hoping to set up a display at the event this year, maybe by the stage, since the focus of the piece is real-life heroes. So maybe you and Adam”—those soulful blue eyes were aimed his way—“could judge it together. Our very own fire chief and the man who inspired the project would be the talk of the kids for months to c
ome.”

  “Inspired the project?” Adam asked, unsure who was blushing more, him or the chief, but it was obvious why this town was so protective of Harper. She wasn’t just a resident, she was their bright light.

  “When you dropped by the other day with cookies and talked to the kids, they couldn’t stop talking about how exciting meeting a real hero was.”

  “As long as my wife can come along,” Lowen said, sending a relieved smile Adam’s way. “She wants to meet the woman responsible for taking this one off the market.”

  “So the rumors on Facebook are true?” McGuire asked. “You’re dating Five-Alarm?”

  Everyone looked surprised, except for Chief Lowen, who looked surprisingly pleased by the news. Pleased that the guy who was gunning for lieutenant was spending his private time with someone the department could get behind. Someone other than his goddaughter.

  Then there was Harper, mouth open, trying to form the word no only nothing came out. At first he thought she was just embarrassed being caught in a fib. But then her eyes went wide with panic, her face flushed fully, and Adam watched, knot in his stomach, as the embarrassment quickly turned to humiliation.

  “No. Adam and I aren’t, um . . .” She cleared her throat and sent him a small smile that was all apology and agony. “I lied,” she finished, then threw her shoulders back, and damn, if her courage in the face of utter mortification didn’t cause something inside of him to rear up.

  “You lied?” McGuire asked, and there was something about his humorous tone that had Harper fidgeting with her hands.

  She was taking in every surprised look, every questioning glance through a skewed filter. A filter that was the unfortunate side effect of expending energy and too much heart on a guy who didn’t deserve it.

  Harper nodded, her smile small and tight, as if it were the only thing holding her together. The last time she’d tried to look this brave had been when Dr. Dildo made it clear he wasn’t interested in what she had to offer. Which was a hell of a lot, if you asked Adam.

  Her hurt over the rejection was so deep it tore at his gut then, and he sure as hell wouldn’t let her go through that again. Not in front of a station full of guys.

  “She lied about when we started dating.”

  “I did,” she said at the same exact time McGuire mumbled, “She did?”

  “She did,” Adam said, slinging an arm over her shoulder and pulling her to him, as if she was his. Funny thing about that, she kind of felt like his. Had since their first kiss. “I realized how special she was a few months back, when we were shooting the latest Cuties with Booties calendar. Then I bumped into her at her grandma’s shop, and I couldn’t stop thinking about her, so when she asked if I would do some modeling for her grandma’s shop I said, Hell yeah. A chance to spend time with her? That was a no-brainer.”

  “You don’t have to do this,” Harper whispered, and he could hear her voice crack.

  He looked down into her eyes and felt himself drowning in the emotion he saw there. “I know. I want to,” he said gently.

  “Well done. The way to a lady’s heart is always through her family,” Lowen said, looking at Adam as if reciting the eleventh commandment. He turned to Harper. “I guess that’s how he sweet-talked you into helping plan Beat the Heat.”

  Now it was Adam’s turn to gasp.

  Harper, however, looked as if she was going to throw up. Or bolt. Not that he blamed her. She’d come here to help him out, and her quick thinking on her feet, outlining a vision that Lowen could get on board with, had somehow caused her to be drafted into his shit storm. Not his intention.

  “Harper is one of the most creative people I know,” Adam said. “She’s friends with just about everyone in town and would no doubt throw a party that reflects the town’s wishes.”

  “Slippery slope,” Harper quietly said to Adam, referring to his own lie by omission, and pushed through a smile that was so big it could have been seen from space.

  With a look that said he had this, Adam added, “Even though it was the perfect solution, we realized that our private relationship would be a conflict of interest.”

  They may not have slept together, but the whole town had seen their kiss. So no one was more surprised when Lowen shrugged, as if he hadn’t delivered a three-day training last spring on the negative impacts of mixing department business with personal interests, and said, “I don’t see the problem.”

  The man sounded relieved at the information that Adam wouldn’t be left to his own devices. Harper looked horrified, whether it was over the idea of coming clean about their relationship after his big speech—and tanking his shot at lieutenant. Or being drafted into planning Beat the Heat—and spending the next two weeks with him. He wasn’t sure. All he knew was that the direction had changed and someone was about to feel the heat.

  “In fact, I think it’s a great idea. The papers will love it. ‘Local art teacher brings small-town traditions back to St. Helena’s Beat the Heat.’”

  Harper took in a deep breath and he saw the word no forming on her lips, then she looked at him and slippery slope didn’t even begin to describe what Adam felt. Suddenly, he didn’t want to be Five-Alarm or the guy who played beer pong on his days off. Hell, he was too old for beer pong.

  He had no business having a girlfriend and wouldn’t even know what to do with one. But he liked who he was around her, and how he felt. And the idea of spending a little more time with her seemed right.

  Harper’s eyes went soft, just like his heart, and she tightened her hand around his, a little too tight for comfort, but a show of support all the same. Then smiling at their audience, she said, “What can I say? He had me at hello.”

  Why did you do that?” Harper asked when they stepped outside of the fire station away from prying ears, still shocked Adam had publicly claimed her as his girlfriend.

  Correction, he’d said private relationship, which now that she thought about it wasn’t very far from private dancer, but she knew exactly how his boss had taken the news. “Now they all think we’re really dating.”

  His brows lowered over his eyes. “As opposed to the pretend dating we were doing before?”

  “That was different. It was before our deal.” And before that second kiss. And before he’d said all of those sweet things about her. Which, having an actress for a mother, she knew was for authenticity of his role. But in that moment, when he’d said them, she’d started to believe them. And that was the most terrifying part. “The deal where I would clear things up with everyone? Which I did, right before I came here to let you off the hook for modeling.”

  “The deal changed,” he said, casual as can be. “And now you have a model for your shoot.”

  Harper set the cookie box on the hood of her car and turned to face him. “I told my grandma this morning that we weren’t dating. I told her that I’d lied. Which is pretty much like admitting it into a blow horn in the middle of town.”

  Adam smiled. “How did that go?”

  “She didn’t believe me. She said I was lying about lying.” Harper rolled her eyes. “In fact, no one believes me. It’s like they’re all convinced I can’t handle a casual relationship. Something about a bad habit of collecting people.”

  Adam was quiet for a long moment, studying her. “Do you want to collect me?”

  Whoever succeeded in stealing his heart would be an incredibly lucky lady, but Harper wasn’t that lady. She was struggling to get the safe bet interested—there was no way she could lure a man who passed through people’s lives like smoke. “I only collect people who want to be collected.”

  “Then why are you looking at me as if you want me to kiss you again?”

  “I do not.” If anything, she wanted to kiss him. Wanted to kiss him until that troubled expression vanished and he looked like the guy who could handle anything again. Because he might be acting calm and as if what happened back there was no biggie. But it was.

  And they both knew it.

 
Watching his plan fall apart in front of the one man he needed to impress was heartbreaking. Not that anyone else noticed. Adam hid his disappointment well, adopting a fireproof exterior. But Harper knew what being discounted felt like, knew how bad it stung. Adam was rarely, if ever, overlooked and she felt the urge to comfort him. What a ridiculous notion that was, wanting to comfort a guy who considered himself indestructible.

  “And we will not, so if it looks that way, just know it’s not on purpose, and walk away.”

  “Walk away from kissing my girlfriend?” His brows lifted and he took a step closer. “That would look odd.”

  “I’m not your girlfriend. And—what are you doing? Back up.” She put her hands out to stop him from getting within lip-smacking range, her hands settling on the hard planes of his chest. It didn’t help. He was closing in fast. Almost as fast as her heart was pounding.

  Unsure if he was going to kiss her because he wanted to, or to prove a point, she added, “Although I’m sure there are many girls in town who would love you to kiss them.”

  He paused a scant inch from her mouth. “Just not this girl?”

  “Sorry.”

  Challenge lit his eyes and he tilted his head lower until his lips were right there. A whisper away from touching hers. And all of the air whooshed out of her lungs. “You’re a terrible liar, sunshine.”

  He pulled back and with a wicked wink turned to prop a hip against her car. He opened the box of cookies, settled on a confetti cake kringle, and offered her one.

  Her stomach did a backflip at the thought, but she declined. “I’ve already had three this morning. A fourth would come off as greedy. Plus if I’m helping with Beat the Heat, I’m going to want to fit into my shorts.”

  “I prefer the dress anyway.” They both looked down at her dress and she decided that maybe it was time to toss out her shorts. “And you know you want another.”

  There were a lot of things she wanted. Some things were better for her than others. Telling herself that carrots are a vegetable, and therefore healthy, she grabbed a caramel pecan carrot cookie and took a bite. Her eyes slid shut in pure ecstasy as the sweet and salty combo of the caramel and nuts melted on her tongue.