by Karen Foley
“Well, have you?” Callie refused to be intimidated by his closeness, and tipped her head back to look directly into his eyes, which was a huge mistake. The expression in those blue-green depths was enough to make her breath hitch, and her toes curl inside her boots.
“I have not,” he said firmly. “I’ll come by at six to get you.”
“Okay.” Was that her voice that sounded so breathy? “See you then.”
She walked away, in the direction of the cabins, conscious that he might be watching her. She had to resist the urge to glance back over her shoulder, but couldn’t prevent a wide smile at the knowledge he wanted to see her again. So maybe they couldn’t pursue anything serious, given how far apart they lived, but for now at least, she intended to enjoy whatever time they might have.
Chapter Ten
“What’s going on?” Vin asked, as Tyler joined him and the rest of the crew at the smokejumper tent later that afternoon. “Feeling better after your siesta at the hospital? Or is that just how you’re meeting chicks these days?”
“I’m good,” Tyler said, ignoring the jibe. “What’s the latest?”
“We won’t be jumping this fire again,” Vin said, sounding disappointed. “We contained it above the access roads, and the ground crews said they’ll have it completely suppressed within the next forty-eight hours.”
“So when are we headed back?”
“Tomorrow. You sure you’re okay? You don’t look it.”
Tyler shrugged, and helped himself to a bottle of water from one of the coolers that lined the perimeter of the tent. “I was hoping to spend some more time here, that’s all.”
Ace lifted his head from where he and Liam had been studying a fire map. “What’s this? Tough guy has a thing for wolf-girl? And here I thought you were a confirmed bachelor. You’re all about the job and shit, as least that’s what you’ve always said.” He dropped his head into his hands in exaggerated dismay. “Man, am I disappointed.”
“I get it,” Vin said, ignoring Ace. “She’s pretty, she’s got a great bod, and she seems nice.”
“She is,” Tyler replied. “But it’s a bad idea, and I should just keep the hell away.”
But he sounded unconvinced, even to his own ears.
“What, is she married?”
“No, worse.” Tyler grimaced. “She lives in California.”
“Ah.” Vin was silent for a moment. “That’s definitely a game changer. Could even be a deal breaker, if she’s got her heart set on staying there.”
Ace leaned forward. “Wait, are you serious? You like her that much? You don’t even know her.”
And that was the problem.
Tyler hadn’t known Alicia very well, either, when he’d asked her to marry him. If he had, he would have realized she wasn’t cut out for life in Montana. Not that he was even close to considering marriage again. But it would be almost impossible to get to know Callie if she was living out on the west coast, and he was in Montana. And he knew enough about himself to know that he could never be happy anywhere else. He thought about the acreage he’d purchased on the north ridge, with views of Flathead Lake and Swan Peak. He’d had plans drawn up for a sprawling timber frame house, and he couldn’t wait to break ground on the project.
“We’ll see what happens,” he said, noncommittal. “I invited her to eat with us tonight.”
This was met with hoots and some ribald comments. As one of the oldest members of the smokejumping crew, Tyler had been a bachelor for longer than some of the guys had been at the base. Moreover, he almost never brought women home with him. He liked spending time at The Drop Zone pub, but it was more for the company of his smokejumping pals. He’d had plenty of invitations from the women who frequented the bar, but it had been a long time since he’d accepted one.
Callie didn’t strike him as the kind of woman who did casual hookups, and there was a part of him that was glad about that. The likelihood he would end up hurting her was greater if they slept together. She was right about one thing—he regretted inviting her to the camp. He told himself he only needed to get through tonight, and then he would stay away from her. With everything she had going on in her life, she probably wouldn’t even notice when he made a quiet exit.
“Well, your mother is going to be real happy if this thing works out,” Vin said cheerfully. “She’s been dropping hints about grandchildren for years.”
“I’ll be sorry to disappoint her,” Tyler said smoothly. “Look, I only asked Callie to come grab a bite with us, so she wouldn’t have to spend another evening by herself. She’s been through a lot, her father is in the hospital, and I don’t think she has too many friends here in St. Mary.” He shrugged. “It’s not a big deal.”
Vin gave him a knowing look. “Sure,” he agreed, but he didn’t sound convinced.
*
Tyler knocked on the door of Callie’s cabin at six o’clock, and she opened it almost immediately. She wore a sleeveless cotton dress in a floral fabric, paired with cowboy boots that showed off her slender legs. Her hair was loose around her face, and tiny, silver disks winked on each earlobe. For a moment, Tyler couldn’t stop himself from staring. He’d known she was pretty, but tonight she looked sweet and soft, and utterly feminine.
“Hi.” She greeted him. She held a light sweater in her hands, and now she clutched it against her chest. “Are you sure about this?”
“Absolutely.”
He waited while she closed the door, and then fell into step beside him as they made their way across the field to where the smokejumper base camp was located.
“Are you doing okay?” he asked. “Your dad is still recovering?”
She nodded and tucked a strand of dark hair behind one ear. “Yes, he’s as well as can be expected. The doctors said they’ll keep him for another week, and then he should be well enough to move to a rehab center.”
“That’s good news.”
She gave a small sigh. “You’re right. It is good news, and I’m so glad he’s on the mend, but I just don’t know if I can stick around for another two to three weeks. I’ve already been gone longer than I’d planned.”
“There’s nobody else who can come and look after him until he’s released?”
“No. He and my mom divorced when I was thirteen. She lives in California, too, and they don’t really get along.”
Tyler sensed that was a huge understatement, but it made sense why she had settled on the west coast.
“What does your mother do?”
“She teaches middle school math and science.”
“That’s impressive. I thought you needed a black belt in karate to handle middle-schoolers.”
Callie laughed. “Well, she doesn’t have a black belt, but I think she holds her own. She loves what she does. She used to teach at the elementary school in Browning, before her and my dad split up.”
“Really? Did you ever have her for a teacher?”
“No, and I’m not sure I would have wanted to be in her class. I think she would have been tougher on me than the rest of the kids, just to prove she wasn’t giving me any preferential treatment.”
Tyler thought of all the firefighting qualification courses he’d taken, where his stepfather had been the instructor. He certainly couldn’t accuse Mike Eldridge of giving him special treatment. Even when Tyler had aced every exam, and passed every physical requirement with flying colors, all he’d received was a grunt of acknowledgment. At the time, it had really bothered him. As he grew older, he told himself it didn’t matter if he had Mike’s approval. He had a good life. Had he made his share of mistakes? Hell, yeah, but he’d also learned from them. Which was why he didn’t plan on getting married again.
But that didn’t mean he couldn’t enjoy spending time with Callie while he was in St. Mary. Watching her talk, he wondered what it would be like to really kiss her, to feel those soft lips beneath his own. Her arms were slim and toned, and she had a habit of tucking her hair behind her ear, even when there we
ren’t any loose strands. Tyler found the gesture both endearing and sexy.
They had reached the tent where most of the smokejumper crew was sitting around a fire pit. A propane grill had been set up nearby, and Garrett Broxson was flipping burgers, hotdogs, and brats. Someone had dragged a folding table out of the tent, and Greg Winters was prepping rolls and condiments. Vin and Ace rose to their feet to greet Callie, and Tyler quickly made the introductions to the crew.
“Sit here,” Ace said, indicating the camp chair he had just vacated. “I promised Garrett I’d give him a hand with the grill.”
Greg handed her a cold bottle of water, and Tyler made himself comfortable on a rustic log bench that sat near the fire pit. He watched as Callie talked with the guys, laughing at their stories and their jokes, and sharing some of her own, mostly to do with the wolves, or some of the funnier things she’d seen while working as a vet.
After they’d eaten, and the sun had dropped below the mountains behind them, some of the married crew said good-night, and left to bunk down in the nearby tents. The remaining guys talked quietly together, or checked their cell phones for messages.
“Can I help clean up?” Callie asked.
“Absolutely not,” Vin said. “You’re a guest tonight.”
“There’s no need,” Tyler assured her. “We’ve done this so many times that we have it down to a science.” He stood up, and took her hand, pulling her to her feet. “Besides, there’s nothing left to clean up. Everything is disposable. Why don’t we walk down to the water?”
“Okay.” She glanced at the men who still sat talking by the fire. “Are you sure we’re not being rude?”
Tyler drew her away from the group and leaned down to speak into her ear. “If we don’t leave now, I can’t guarantee that they won’t become rude, or at least do their best to embarrass us.”
Callie smiled, and Tyler kept her hand in his as he led her away from the incident command post and toward the lake, where the shadows were deeper.
“So this is it,” she said, when they reached the edge of the lake. “Your last night in St. Mary.”
“Yes. We’ll head back to Glacier Creek before noon tomorrow.”
“Seems so strange,” she mused. “I didn’t think I’d get used to the sound of the helicopters scooping water out of the lake, but it’s so quiet now that I almost miss the noise.”
“The meteorologists are calling for rain over the next couple of days, which will help suppress what’s left of the fire,” he said. “The ground crews here can manage any remaining spot fires that crop up, so there’s no sense in us staying.”
“Everyone is talking about what a crazy fire season this has been, so I’m sure you’ll be heading out to fight another fire before too long.”
“I’m counting on it,” he said. “Both California and Alaska are having record wildfire seasons, and it’s still early. If I had to guess, I’d say we won’t be spending too much time in Glacier Creek this summer. We’ll probably jump our next fire in the next day or two.”
The water on the lake was calm, and Tyler could see the lights from the campground reflected on its surface. Overhead, the stars were just beginning to appear, and he noted with satisfaction there wasn’t any smoke to diminish their brilliance. The temperatures had cooled a bit, and he could feel the increasing humidity in the air.
Spotting a large rock near the edge of the water, he sat down on it and pulled Callie down beside him. Water lapped at the base of the rock, and Tyler leaned down to unlace his boots and kick them off, before peeling his socks off and stuffing them inside the boots. He submerged his feet in the water, and let out a groan of delight.
Beside him, Callie giggled. “Feel good?”
“Oh, man, it feels so good.” He rolled up the bottom of his cargo pants, and swished his feet back and forth. “C’mon, girl, kick off those boots and get your toes wet.”
There wasn’t a lot of room on the rock and when she bent forward to remove her boots, she almost lost her balance. She gave a small cry of alarm, and Tyler instinctively put his arm around her, steadying her.
“I’ve got you.”
Laughing, she bent forward and pulled her boots off, and tossed them onto the grass behind them.
“Okay, here goes.” She dipped her feet into the water, tentatively swirling them in small circles. “You’re right, that does feel good.”
Tyler had to agree—she felt nice, tucked against his side. Their feet slid against each other in the water and she relaxed fractionally, leaning into him. A light, floral fragrance clung to her hair, and Tyler had to resist the urge to bend his head and inhale her scent.
“So, what do you do in the winter, when there are no fires to fight?” she asked, tucking her chin into her shoulder as she looked at him. The movement put her mouth temptingly close to his, and he had to look away in order to focus on what she was saying, and not kiss her.
“I’m on call during the winter months, but I mostly work at Big Mountain.”
“Oh! As what…a lift operator?”
Tyler felt a smile tug his mouth. “Uh, no. I’m national ski patrol. I monitor snow conditions, do mountain rescues, and generally keep the trails safe for the skiers, and when I’m not doing that, I’m a ski patrol instructor.”
He could see she was impressed. “Wow. From one extreme to the other! Fire in the summer and ice in the winter.”
“Yes, ma’am. I get to indulge two of my favorite activities—skydiving and skiing, and get paid for it. You can’t ask for more than that. Do you ski?”
“Occasionally,” she said. “I used to go when I was a kid. And I went out to Vail a couple of times last winter with a group of friends, but it’s not something I do on a regular basis.” She pulled a face. “We don’t get much snow in Monterey.”
“Well, you’ll have to come out to Whitefish during the winter, and I’ll take you up on the slopes. The view from the top is incredible. Skiing some of those trails is almost as exhilarating as jumping out of a plane,” he said.
“Do you ever worry about the danger you face, when you jump into a wildfire?” Callie asked.
Tyler thought for a minute. “I’d be lying if I said I don’t worry. But I worry more about the rest of the crew than I do about myself.”
“Have you ever been hurt?”
“A couple of times, but nothing serious. I got hung up in a tree once and busted my arm. Another time, when I was still a rookie, I landed badly and dislocated my shoulder.”
She shivered, and Tyler reflexively tightened his arm around her. “I would worry so much if you were—”
She broke off abruptly, and Tyler wondered what she had been going to say. If you were mine?
“We take recertification courses all the time,” he reassured her. “We practice, and we have safety protocols in place, and, most importantly, we look out for each other.”
“But have you ever lost a crew member?”
Tyler thought of that awful day when Russ Edwards, their former captain, had crashed into a tree during a jump, and died. They’d lost more than a crew member that day. They’d lost both a friend and a mentor.
“Yes,” he finally responded. “But we all know the risks, and we do everything we can to mitigate them. When accidents happen, we use them as a learning tool and try to prevent it happening again.”
“How much longer do you think you’ll do this?” She looked at him, her expression somber.
He blew out a hard breath, considering. “Well, I’m thirty-five. I’ve been fighting wildfires since before I graduated from high school. It’s all I know. I hope to do it for at least another ten years.”
“But isn’t there an age limit, or something?”
Tyler gave a surprised laugh. “Are you saying I’m old?”
“No! Of course not.” She sounded mortified. “Look at you! You’re thirty-five and you could probably run circles around guys who are half your age!”
“Thanks,” he said drily. “We undergo per
iodic physical fitness and medical tests, and as long as we can pass those, we can jump.”
He didn’t add the physical fitness test was extremely arduous, and performed under rigorous conditions. He’d never had a problem exceeding the requirements, and even during the off-season, made sure he stayed in top shape. He knew guys, like his stepfather, who had jumped well into their forties.
“And you don’t mind being gone so much?” she asked. “What does that kind of lifestyle do to personal relationships?”
“About what you’d expect,” he said wryly. “Some of the guys are married, but a lot of us are divorced.”
She looked sharply at him. “You’re divorced?”
The night was growing dark, and he could no longer read her expression, but he heard the surprise in her voice.
“It was a long time ago,” he said quietly. “We were both very young. It was a mistake. Thankfully, we didn’t add to that mistake by having kids.”
“I’m sorry.”
“No, don’t be.” He didn’t want to talk about himself, or his past relationships. “What about you? There’s no animal doctor waiting for you back in California?”
Callie shook her head. “Nope, it’s just me.”
“What, are the men in California blind, or just stupid?”
Callie laughed. “I spend a lot of time at work, and I’m not really into the bar scene, so if I haven’t met anyone I only have myself to blame.”
“You like living in California?”
“It’s okay.” She tipped her face up to study the stars. “There was a time I couldn’t wait to get out of Montana. I thought it was too cold, too isolated, too backwoods. I wanted sunshine and warmth, and a Starbucks within walking distance. But I’ve never seen stars like this in Monterey.”
They were silent for several, long moments as they looked at the sky. Tyler could feel the rise and fall of each breath she took, the whisper of her hair against his cheek as a soft breeze stirred it. He suddenly wished he wasn’t returning to Glacier Creek the next day. But he’d told the truth when he’d said they would likely deploy again within the next forty-eight hours. That was the nature of the job during the fire season.