“I know.” Gini bit into her sandwich and let the flavor keep her from getting annoyed. “The new guy, Patrick, won’t let me take his picture.”
“Really? How come?” Haddy stopped chewing.
“Camera shy, or so he says.” Gini gulped her lemonade.
“Is he hideous or something?” When Gini spilled lemonade and fumbled around to wipe it up, Haddy pushed her lunch aside and raised her eyebrows. “Oh, I see. He’s super-hot, isn’t he?”
“Yes. No. I mean, I don’t know.” Gini mopped up her drink and kneeled on the floor to catch the puddle forming there. When she rose, she whacked her head on the edge of the table. “Ouch. Dammit.”
“Gini, Gini, Gini,” Haddy said. “I know a love struck gal when I see one, and you, my friend, are—”
“Not love struck,” Gini finished. “I don’t know the guy. How could I be love struck?”
“That’s what ‘love struck’ means, sister. Struck by love so instantly that it doesn’t make any logical sense. It happens to people all the time.” Haddy went back to eating her sandwich.
“Yeah, well, it doesn’t happen to me. It didn’t happen. Patrick is an attractive man, I’ll admit that, but he’s too…too…I don’t know. Too something that’s not for me.”
“Mmm-hmm.” Haddy wiped her mouth with her napkin, but didn’t wipe the smirk away.
“Cut it out, Haddy, or I’ll bust you up about Jonah.”
“Go right ahead. There’s nothing between Jonah and me.”
“And if he waltzed in here right now and said, ‘Haddy, want to go for a ride in my Mustang?’ I suppose you wouldn’t jump at the chance, right?” Gini threw away her lemonade-soaked napkins and folded her arms across her chest.
“I’m not your brother’s type.” Haddy combed her fingers through the end of her straight, chestnut brown hair. Her pale green eyes hid behind wire-rimmed glasses. The burgundy blouse she had on today made her olive complexion look a little on the exotic side. Her flowing skirt with tiny burgundy flowers on it fell to the knee and revealed a long, shapely line of leg. She’d be anyone’s type.
“Don’t be silly. Jonah doesn’t have a type.” Gini sat back in her seat and finished her sandwich.
“Yes, he does. He only dates red-heads.” Again, Haddy fingered her own hair. “Think I should go red?”
“Absolutely not. If you dye your hair because you think it’ll get my brother’s attention, I’ll fire you.” Gini wagged a finger at Haddy. “Besides, I wouldn’t be so sure you don’t already have my brother’s attention.”
“Why? What did he say?” Haddy gripped the end of the work table and leaned forward far enough that her shirt grazed the sandwich in front of her. Sauce dotted a section around her left nipple. “Oh, crap.” She dabbed at it with her napkin, but sauce on a shirt never turned out well.
“For someone who isn’t interested in Jonah, you seem really interested.”
“Shut up.” Haddy marched off to the studio’s bathroom, but laughed most of the way there.
Gini reviewed the fighters’ photo release forms while she waited for Haddy and stared at the last one in the pile. The blank form. Patrick’s form.
“How can I get your photo, Patrick? How?” There had to be a way to get him to agree. She’d convinced other camera-phobics to let her capture them on film. Generally, they were happy with the results too. Camera-shyness usually came from the belief that one didn’t photograph well. All it usually took was one good picture to convince someone that they were photogenic. She had a hard time believing that Patrick thought he didn’t photograph well. He had to have seen himself in the mirror and been pleased with what reflected back. It looked pretty damn good to Gini.
And she knew picturesque muscles rested beneath his shirt that would make any woman who bought her calendar foam at the mouth. How could he deny the women of Burnam such a show?
He couldn’t, Gini decided. He’d made her lose her cool once, but now she’d be nothing but charming. He’d be unable to deny her this one small photo request.
“Stop thinking so hard, Gini. You’ll pull a muscle.”
Jonah sauntered into the studio and leaned his elbows on the work table.
“What are you doing here?” What had her face looked like when Jonah snuck up on her? Would he know she was picturing Patrick shirtless?
“Lunch run for the station. Ma made us all sandwiches at the bakery.”
“Okay, but that doesn’t answer what you’re doing here.” She smiled when Jonah stuck his tongue out at her. When they were kids they used to stick their tongues out at each other all the time. Mama would yell and say something like, “You two ought to be thankful you have each other. I had no one as a little girl and it was awful lonely.”
Mama had hated being an only child, and Gini was pretty sure she would have hated it too. Of course, that didn’t stop Jonah and her from sticking their tongues out at each other.
“You know anyone that likes nipples Italian-style?” Haddy came out of the bathroom still rubbing at the wet, red-orange stain on her blouse. When she looked up and saw Jonah standing there, her face reddened. Beads of sweat actually dotted Haddy’s brow.
“Every guy in Burnam likes nipples Italian-style,” Jonah said. “I like extra cheese on mine.”
“I didn’t know you were here.” Haddy reached for one of the old, flannel shirts they kept in the studio for the messy projects they sometimes did. She slipped it on and folded in across her front like a robe.
Jonah sent her a smile, and Haddy flushed deeper. Gini watched the two of them stare at each other and shook her head. Some people didn’t see what was right in front of them.
“Are you going to tell me why you’re here, Jonah, or are you here to gaze dreamily at Haddy?”
“Huh? What?” Jonah closed his eyes, while Haddy shot Gini a look of death.
Gini stifled a chuckle and stood. “What do you want?”
“Oh, right. I’m heading over to Wolf’s tonight. You want to come?” He glanced over to Haddy. “Both of you?”
“Oh, tonight?” Gini pulled at her lower lip. “Let’s see. Haddy, can you check our schedule for tonight? Are we free?” She sent her friend an encouraging grin.
“Y-yes,” Haddy said. “I’m free. I mean, we’re free.”
“Great. Okay, Jonah, see you tonight.” Gini nudged him toward the door.
“Right, tonight. Eight o’clock.” He opened the door. “Bye, Haddy,” he called over his shoulder.
Gini closed the door and skipped over to Haddy. “Well, well, well. What a turn of events. What a turn.”
“What am I going to wear?” Haddy asked. “I can’t go. I don’t have anything to wear.” She hung up the flannel shirt and swallowed loudly.
“As soon as we get this schedule of shoots done, we’re going shopping, girlie. There is no way you are not going tonight.”
Haddy nodded and threw away their lunch trash. She picked up her pad, and Gini grabbed the release forms. Studying the blank one again, she thought about Jonah. Maybe she could recruit him to help her convince Patrick that having his picture taken wasn’t the worst thing in the world. She’d ask him tonight at Wolf’s. After a beer. After a few beers.
****
Wolf’s Pub was a knotty pine-paneled cave at the end of Center Square Street. Stonework on the lower portion of the building made the outside look as if it’d been carved from a mountain. Two hulking pine trees stood like soldiers on either side of the front doors. The small parking lot was nearly full.
Patrick parked his truck and walked up the stairs to the pub’s entry. He studied the sign above the door, which had been carved from a stout piece of mahogany. The words “Wolf’s Pub” were embossed on the dark wood. The “o” in “Wolf’s” had been painted to look like a full moon and howling wolf heads adorned the two ends of the sign. Fine craftsmanship with a witty, decorative slant. Patrick already liked the feel of the bar. Maybe this evening wouldn’t be painful after all.
&nb
sp; When he opened the front door and stepped inside, the familiar crooning of a woman singer warmed something inside him. He turned the corner, and Raina sat before a piano on a small stage. Patrons huddled around circular tables that looked as if they’d been hacked from enormous tree stumps. Everyone’s attention was focused on Raina and her jazzy melody. She carried a note to a place Patrick had heard her reach before, and the pub erupted in applause.
“Thank you.” Raina stood and bowed slightly, blew the audience a kiss. “I’m going to take a short break, and then we’ll continue our date.” She winked and stepped off the stage.
Patrick watched several male customers get up from their seats and target his sister. Before he could think about what he was doing, he pushed through the crowd and stood next to Raina. With one look, each of the guys backed up.
“Raina.”
She swiveled around, sipping wine. Her eyebrows shot up as she put her glass down on the bar.
“Patrick!” She threw her arms around him. “What are you doing here?”
“Meeting a…friend.” He guessed he could call Jonah that.
“Deciding not to be a loner in Vermont? How wonderful.” She tugged on his black T-shirt and grinned. “What do you want to drink?”
Patrick ordered a beer and, because Jonah wasn’t there yet, sat with Raina at a table. He took the seat facing the door so he could watch it.
“If I’d known you were going to be so social, I’d have invited you to come hear me sing, brother.” Raina waved to some men at a table across the pub.
“I wasn’t planning to be social. And don’t toy with them, Raina.” Patrick pointed his bottle toward the men.
“They like when I toy with them.” She fluffed her hair then took another sip of wine.
“I’m sure. But don’t—”
“Patrick,” Raina interrupted. “I’m a big girl. You don’t have to protect me. I can take care of myself.” She placed her hand over his and squeezed.
“I can’t help it.” Patrick shrugged.
“I know.”
Patrick took another swig of his beer and glanced around the pub. The interior walls were pine-paneled similar to the outside. The floor was wide-plank, reclaimed barn wood, if he wasn’t mistaken. Above him exposed beams gave the place a timber-frame feel. A giant wall of stone housed a fireplace that must throw serious heat in the winter. Patrick hoped it was properly ventilated so as not to be a fire hazard.
As he scanned the rest of the bar, the front door opened and Jonah walked in. Mason was right behind him. Jonah’s gaze swept the room and when he saw Patrick, he waved. He and Mason headed over after stopping to chat with a few folks along the way.
“Hey, Patrick.” Jonah plopped down in the seat across from Patrick.
“Jonah, Mason.” Patrick gestured to Raina. “This is my sister, Raina.”
“Nice to meet you.” Jonah extended a hand.
Raina swirled the wine in her glass and accepted Jonah’s hand. “Likewise.” She glanced up at a still-standing Mason. “You going to sit, honey, or take our dinner orders?”
Mason’s cheeks flushed, and Raina smiled. Patrick shook his head, knowing how much his sister loved the shy ones.
She pushed out the chair across from her with her foot. “Sit, cutie.”
And Mason did. The brown of his eyes was almost completely lost to the dilated black of his pupils. A clear sign of attraction. Patrick was sure Raina noticed too. She picked up on subtle, social cues like that. For some reason, though, Mason ogling Raina didn’t bother him as much as when other guys did it. Mason appeared to be a clean-cut man of the law. The kind of guy Patrick would pick for Raina. But would she pick him?
“So what do you fellows do?” Raina finished the last of her wine and glanced at the clock over the bar.
“I’m a firefighter like your brother here,” Jonah said. “And Mason is a detective with the Burnam PD.”
Raina’s gray eyes widened. “A detective? Like putting the pieces of a puzzle together, do you, Mason?”
“I like catching the bad guys,” Mason said.
“Keeping the town safe for gals like me, huh?”
“Definitely.”
Patrick looked between the two of them then to Jonah, who gave a slight nod.
“The next song is for you then, Mason.” Raina held out her hand, which Mason took. “Pleasure meeting you both.” Her gaze only fell on Mason.
After letting her hand slip from Mason’s, Raina dropped a kiss on Patrick’s cheek and headed back to the piano. Jonah signaled to the waitress and ordered beers for Mason and himself.
“You want another, Patrick?”
Patrick shook his head. “Still working on this one.” He glanced at Mason, still transfixed on Raina. She’d started her song, something about looking for a hero.
“Any word on the lab results for the evidence I took from the fire scene, Mason?”
Mason didn’t take his gaze off Raina. He took a long gulp of his beer, but his attention on her didn’t waver.
“Mason?” Patrick repeated. He looked at Jonah, a little concerned now. “His head always this easily turned?”
“No way. For the first few months we knew Mason, Gini and I thought he was gay. Then we figured out he’s extremely shy around women, especially attractive women. It took him almost a year to talk to Gini.”
Patrick was dying to know if Gini and Mason had dated, but didn’t dare ask. He didn’t care or at least he could pretend not to care.
“Mason.” Jonah shoved his friend and the detective jumped.
“What?”
“Snap out of it, man. You’re getting drool all over the table.” Jonah laughed at the frown lines around Mason’s mouth.
“I am not.” Still, he reached for a napkin at the center of the table and wiped his mouth. “God, she’s beautiful though.”
“Raina got lucky in the looks department,” Patrick said. He and Julianne hadn’t been so fortunate. His scars were at least hidden. But Julianne. Patrick’s fingers tightened around his beer.
“Speaking of good-looking women.” Jonah pointed to the front door where Gini and another woman talked to an older gentleman with a dark gray beard and long hair. His sharp, golden eyes flickered as he laughed at whatever Gini was saying. “That’s Wolf, the owner of this pub. If werewolves exist, he’s one for sure.”
Patrick tried to laugh, but all his senses zeroed in on Gini. She wore light blue jeans that hugged her fit body. A silver tank top that flared out at the bottom gave her a curvy outline that made all the blood in Patrick’s body rush to one spot. Her hair was pulled over her shoulder in a low ponytail, a cascade of curls resting at her neck. Silver hoop earrings sparkled at her ears.
Shaking his head, Patrick told himself to get a grip as Gini led her friend through the bar to their table. She faltered a little when her eyes met Patrick’s, he noted, but she recovered quickly and tossed him a bright smile.
“Hiya.” She pulled a chair from a nearby table and sat between Patrick and Mason. She could have sat anywhere, Patrick thought, but she chose that spot. Interesting.
“Hey, Shutterbug,” Mason said. “Isn’t that singing fantastic?”
Gini glanced to the stage and nodded. “Yeah, Raina is wonderful.”
“You’ve heard her sing before?” Patrick was getting drunk on the wildflower scent wafting off Gini.
“Sure, lots of times. She plays here often. Don’t you like her?”
“I love her.” Patrick enjoyed watching the muscles in Gini’s face tense.
“Raina is his sister,” Jonah said.
Now Gini smiled as she looked at Patrick. “I see. How nice. She’s very talented.” Her face was completely relaxed now. Completely beautiful. What would that face look like waking up next to him?
Patrick cleared his throat and took another sip of his beer.
“Patrick, this is Haddy,” Gini said. Jonah had plopped a chair down next to him, and Haddy was sitting in it, a permanent grin on
her lips. “She’s my assistant at the studio and my BFF.”
Jonah rested his arm on the back of Haddy’s chair. Haddy leaned ever so slightly toward him.
“Nice shirt, Haddy.” Jonah fingered the beads adorning the straps of her raspberry-colored tank top. “Though I liked the one with the stain too.”
Haddy elbowed Jonah, and the two of them shared a chuckle. Patrick wondered what was going on there too, but again, kept his questions to himself. If he didn’t want to answer questions, he shouldn’t ask any.
“So you two were right,” Mason started as he pointed to Patrick and Gini. “The lab results confirmed the blue blob to be the remains of a candle.”
“How’d it get under the rocking chair?” Gini asked. “Don’t people generally burn candles on tables or countertops?”
“Not unless they’re trying to start a fire.” Patrick watched as Gini shifted in her seat, toyed with the silver cuff bracelet on her wrist.
“Arson.” Jonah shook his head.
“Looks like it,” Mason said. “We’ve got a couple leads we’re working on now.”
“You’ll catch them, buddy,” Jonah said.
“We always do.” Mason clinked his bottle to Jonah’s.
After ordering some appetizers and drinks for the ladies, the group enjoyed some pleasant small talk. Patrick hadn’t thought such a thing existed, but it was easy with these folks. Conversation pinballed from town news, sports, movies, to some funny family stories. Patrick commented on most of the topics, but stayed clear of family stuff. His family stuff wasn’t comedic. Not in the least. He wasn’t about to bring the light-hearted mood of the evening to a screeching halt.
When the waitress cleared away their dishes and Raina came back to join them, Jonah asked, “Okay, so where’s the house plan?”
“Left it in my truck,” Patrick said. “Be right back.”
****
Gini watched Patrick weave through the bar. She hadn’t done anything tonight to implement her picture-taking plan, but man, was she enjoying herself. When she’d first seen Jonah sitting with Patrick, the desire to flee swept over her. What if he made her angry again? She didn’t want to endanger a bar full of innocent people. Only Haddy pushing at her back kept her walking into the bar.
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