Meg shook her head. Anne always acted without thinking. She’d made a habit of following her heart, and it often led to trouble.
“Don’t worry. Let’s find a business lawyer. We can have him read the loan agreement. Maybe it’s not ironclad.”
“Okay.” She sighed. “That sounds good. I’m sorry—I just panicked. You know I don’t have a head for business.”
“Don’t worry. I don’t either,” Meg assured her. Suddenly, an image of dark blue eyes and a wicked grin flashed through her mind. Yes! “You know, I think that Rory might be able to help you,” Meg said.
“Really? Why?”
“He was an investment banker. He might even know of a way for you to get out of your current agreement. Maybe you won’t even need a lawyer,” Meg said.
Anne smiled. “Thank you, Meggie.”
“You’re welcome. Who is the investor?”
“The cousin of one of Dad’s fishing buddies. He was visiting Dad and we got to talking. He told me he’d love to invest in our town and help me out,” Anne said. “I guess he was just saying what I wanted to hear.”
Meg shook her head. Anne was in a fix, that was for sure. Of course, her life wasn’t in any way perfect, either. She glanced at the fire alarm box and mentally smacked herself on the forehead. She couldn’t give that to Rory. Instead, she was going to listen to her own advice and stay away from him. He was a complication she didn’t need or want right now. She would be strong.
But two days later, she was in her car, on her way to Rory’s place with the refurbished fire alarm. Rory’s condo was nestled in a newer neighborhood on the outskirts of town. Each lawn was perfectly landscaped and, as Meg drove through the streets, she thought of the protests that had accompanied this place when it had been built. Everyone had hated seeing the Valencia orange groves torn down and replaced by a new development.
But seeing it now, Meg knew that the city planners had made the right decision. They were close enough to Orlando and I-4 for this neighborhood to cater to those who worked in the cities but still wanted to live rurally. And you didn’t get much more rural than Twin Palms.
It was something she’d always resented about her hometown. But now she was starting to appreciate it and her place in it.
THERE WAS A knock on his door. Rory was tempted not to answer. Who could be bothering him? It was his day off. And he was tired.
Yesterday’s call hadn’t been a fire. He’d been ready for it or at least, he thought he had been. He’d gone to bed totally wired, wondering.
Then he’d had one of his reoccurring nightmares—one in which he rushed into a burning house . . . but it was too late. Only, instead of seeing a stranger in his dream, the victim’s face had been Meg’s. That had unnerved him.
So he’d gotten up early, thrown on a pair of faded jeans that had a hole in one knee, and went out back to have a beer and try to relax.
On his way through the house to answer the door, he grabbed a T-shirt off the back of the couch and pulled it on. Then he opened the door and was surprised to find Meg standing there. She had a tentative smile on her face and a box in her arms.
“You’re definitely not what I was expecting,” he said.
“That’s because I’m not predictable,” she said, giving him a cheeky smile.
“Definitely not. What can I do for you?” he asked, knowing she was the perfect distraction for the day he was having.
“Let me in,” she said. “Don’t you know it’s rude to keep someone who brings you a gift standing on your porch.”
“You brought me a gift?”
“I did,” she said, lifting the box up.
He tried to see inside of it but she pulled it back. “No peeking. Let me in.”
“How did you find my house?” he asked.
“I have connections. After all, I have lived in Twin Palms for most of my life.” She looked around. “I figured a big-time former investment banker like you would own his own place,” she said.
He stepped back and walked into the house, knowing she’d follow him. His condo had a big screened-in porch that the previous residents had installed glass windows on. So he could keep the air conditioner running and still sit out there and look out over the lake.
“Want a beer?” he asked, offering her a Corona from the little fridge.
“Um . . . I’m not sure how long I’m staying,” she said. “I can’t drive if I have a drink.”
He glanced over at her. Most people didn’t think twice about having one beer and then driving. Then again, she was a cop’s kid.
“I’ve got some Lipton tea in a can,” he said.
“Tea in a can?” she asked.
She sounded like Natalie when she said that to him. He could tell from the twinkle in her eye that she was teasing him, but he still got his back up. “Yeah, you want it or not?”
“Sure,” she said. “Why are you so touchy?”
“My ex-wife used to give me a hard time. I got hooked on it when I started working in Daytona.”
“I was just kidding, but that wound still seems pretty fresh,” she said. “How long have you been divorced?”
“Long enough,” he said. Some days it felt like a lifetime. Then there were moments when it felt like yesterday. But the truth was simple. He and Natalie had hung on too long trying to make something work that never would. “So why are you here again?”
“I was hoping to convince you to let me buy your half of the Old Clapham place. I brought you a gift to show you why it’s so important to me.”
“Let’s hear your pitch.”
She put the box between them and he opened the lid. Inside was an antique fire alarm from the turn of the century. It had been fully restored and now shone in fire engine red. He took a swallow of beer, then put the bottle on the table, reached into the box and took the alarm out.
He turned it over in his hands. It was made of heavy cast iron and, when he peered in the back, he noticed the bell had been cleaned and the mechanism looked like it would work. He flipped it back over, pulled the mechanism down and heard the tiny hammer hit the bell inside.
“Nice. Did you do this?” he asked.
She flushed a little and then nodded. “Fixing up old, broken things is what I do. I’m really pretty good at it. And that’s why I hope you’ll understand why I want the old Clapham place.”
He leaned back in his chair and considered her words . She was a complication he didn’t need. No matter what his body was telling him, he was trying to be smarter about his relationships this time. Not just dive in. Except he couldn’t really stop thinking about Meg.
He realized that he needed to do whatever he could to get her out of his life. He thought about the money he stood to make if he got that place out by the interstate but it suddenly didn’t seem worth it when faced with the fact that he’d have to keep seeing her.
“Okay,” he said. “You’ve convinced me. As long as you still let Pat do the carpentry work. He is already on his way up here.”
“Really?”
“Yeah.”
“Okay. Are you sure? That was too easy,” she said. “Why’d you change your mind?”
“Because I don’t want to be fixed and I have a feeling if we keep seeing each other, you’ll make me into your next project.”
“I’m not looking for a project,” she said. “I already have a big one.”
“What about a man?”
“I’m not looking for one of them either. I’m really not good at relationships. Something you’ve already figured out.”
“We could give this a try,” he said. “I’m going to be honest here. I can’t pretend that I don’t want you.”
“I don’t like that you are a firefighter. It’s everything that scares me about a career. You could die.”
“I’m damned good at what I do,” he said. “You told me that the other night.”
“I did. But that doesn’t take away the fact that accidents happen even to one of the mighty O’Roarkes,” she said. “Better to never take the risk.”
He didn’t have a response for that. She nodded and then turned away. He could only watch her leave.
Chapter Ten
RORY WAS ENJOYING the fried chicken blue plate special at the Main Street diner when the door opened and wave of hot air blew in behind his brother Pat. He had a slight limp as he moved through the diner.
The man was two inches taller than Rory and had thick blondish brown hair. His shoulders were wide enough to fill the doorframe and Rory knew from experience that he was damned hard to beat in a fight.
But Pat hadn’t felt like much liking fighting lately, which was a big concern for them all.
His second oldest brother was taller than everyone else in their family and looked like a behemoth. But some of the spark was gone, and Rory was hoping that the work he had arranged with Meg would help his brother get it back.
“Hello, little bro. They told me at the fire station I could find you here,” Pat said, sitting down across from him.
Pat put his sunglasses on the table and took off his leather jacket before signaling to the waitress and ordering himself a sweet iced tea. He leaned back in the booth and stretched his arms out.
“It’s about time you got here. Didn’t you get my text?” Rory asked.
“I did get it, but Dad sent some of his homemade sausage with me to drop off at Andi’s. That’s why I’m late.”
Pat pushed his hand through this hair and ruffled it before turning to smile at the waitress who’d put his drink down in front of him. He took a big swallow, which Rory couldn’t blame him for. It was hot today.
“Thank you, ma’am. I’ll have what he’s having,” Pat said, pointing to Rory.
She returned Pat’s smile. “What’s your name?”
“Pat O’Roarke, ma’am. And yours?”
“Marla,” she said. “I’m single.”
“Good to know,” he said.
She nodded and walked away.
“So what’s the job you have for me? You know I can’t work at the firehouse.”
“Yeah, I know. This is a general carpentry job for a home makeover.”
“How did you find me work like that?”
“The woman needs someone who can be dedicated to doing the work she needs done, but she doesn’t want anyone to know what she’s doing.”
“Sounds odd,” Pat said.
“Fair enough. She’s just starting over.”
“Well, we all need to fly under the radar some times. Where is it?”
“Here in town. You interested?”
“I have to do PT twice a month and I got my primary care physician to refer me to a doctor up here since you made it sound like this might be semi-permanent.”
“Good. Do you need any help unpacking?” Rory asked.
“Nope. I travel light. I don’t have all my tools, but I can buy what I need once I see what the job is. How would you feel about taking on another roommate?”
“Who?”
“Josh.”
His nephew had graduated high school last year and as far as Rory knew, he was attending college in Gainesville. “Isn’t he at the University of Florida? I heard he made the freshman basketball squad.”
“He was there, but something must have happened. Ian’s not talking, but Dad told me that Josh lost his scholarship. He and Ian have been fighting like mad. Josh says he’s not going back. He wants to try his hand at something else.”
“So why are you getting involved?” Rory asked. Pat usually only concerned himself with fighting, firefighting and getting laid. Not necessarily in that order.
Pat took a long sip of his drink. Then leaned back again, this time crossing his arms over his chest. “Remember when you first came to the firehouse and Dad was still the chief?”
“Yes. So?” Rory asked.
“Josh reminds me of you. And he’s my godson. So I want to make sure he’s okay,” Pat said. Their waitress brought his plate of food and he thanked her for it.
Rory shook his head. He’d been a hothead those first few years, so determined to prove he hadn’t gotten the job just because he was Derrick O’Roarke’s son. Ian was the captain at the same firehouse where Pat worked, so it made since that Josh wouldn’t be considering firefighting as an option.
“Got it. I’d love to have Josh up here with me. There’s a county college where he can take EMT training and see if that’s what he wants to do.”
“Good. You’ll have to talk to him and let him know.”
“How about I just go to Daytona next weekend for the race and talk to him then?” Rory asked.
“What have you got against South Dade?”
Rory wasn’t about to tell his brother the truth. That ever since he’d brought Natalie there, it just didn’t feel like home any more. He’d ruined it for himself, trying to have something—a wife, a family—that was now obviously not going to happen. “Nothing.”
“That’s a lie, little bro, but I’m going to let you keep it,” Pat said.
The door opened again and Meg walked in, talking and laughing with another woman. Pat craned his head around to look at them and Rory noticed the moment Meg saw him. She sort of waved and then dropped her hand and walked to the counter without looking at him again.
“That was interesting,” Pat said.
“You don’t know the half of it,” Rory said.
“I’ve got all night,” Pat said.
“That won’t be long enough,” Rory warned him. How was he supposed to talk about a woman who was really nothing to him but felt like so much more? “She’s also your new employer.”
Pat let out a loud laugh. “Well, start with her name.”
“Meg Starling,” Rory said.
THE NEXT WEEK was the hottest on record and the boredom in the firehouse was hitting an all-time high. Rory was frustrated by the lack of calls and his hot, sensual dreams of Meg. He’d left her alone like she asked but that didn’t mean he hadn’t seen her.
Twin Palms was small, smaller than he’d previously thought. He ran into her at the coffee shop when he stopped for his morning iced frappe, and when he was filling up the gas on his Harley out at BJ’s Gas and Gulp by I-4. She was everywhere he turned and when she wasn’t, the memory of her was.
He couldn’t help but be seduced by the way she’d tried to tease him out of his funk at the basketball court. It had worked. The only thing that might have done a better job was sex. But then, sex would have made everything more complicated.
And his life was crazy enough with Pat living with him and working for Meg. Pat had nightmares. Major ones, which woke them both in the middle of the night.
But each morning, though Pat looked haggard, he refused to talk about it. It was something Rory respected. He didn’t like talking about his demons either.
And a big one was Meg. But she’d been smart enough to say enough already and walk away. So why couldn’t he? Where were his smarts? Because his cock hardened every time he thought about her and that was way too often.
At work, he’d been able to keep himself busy doing small stuff, but he was still on edge, waiting for the bell to sound. They’d gone out three times already this shift, but it had all been pretty basic. Mostly, it had been crazy stuff like a guy who’d gotten stuck in the doggie door because he’d locked himself out of his house. And there’d been a false alarm at the old folks’ home. Three eighty-year-old women had pulled the alarm because they’d wanted to see some good looking men . . . their words.
“I can’t stand it,” Tim said, plopping down next to
him on the couch where ESPN was showing interviews for the coming weekend’s NASCAR race—The Quaker State 400. They’d be in Daytona the following week. Given the way things were going, Rory needed a break. So he’d asked for some time off to go to the race, as he’d promised Pat. He was enjoying having his brother stay with him, but a little alone time was never a bad thing. His brother Ian was camping near the race with his sons and Rory could hang out with family when he wanted to and be alone when he didn’t. Maybe a change would help make him feel like his life wasn’t totally out of control.
“What can’t you stand?” he asked.
“Waiting. When is there going to be a fire? I know I’m ready for it,” Tim said. “At least when I was an EMT, I knew I’d be going out all the time. I knew what my shift would entail, but here, there’s just so much waiting. And some of the calls . . . I mean, last week, we had to rescue a cat.”
Rory laughed but then muted the television and turned to face the rookie. “Of course you’re ready. You wouldn’t be here if you weren’t. It’s been my experience that as soon as you stop worrying about it, the call will come in.”
“I wish it was that easy. My wife has had it with me. I can’t sleep,” he admitted.
Rory patted the younger man on the shoulder. “I’ve been there.”
Liar. He was still there. But he wasn’t going to say that to this kid. He was going to talk to Tim the same way his dad would, so the rookie would be ready for the call when it came.
“You have?” Tim asked. “Dee said if I didn’t chill out, I’d have a stroke.”
“Who’s Dee?”
“My wife. She’s the best. But she doesn’t know what it’s like to be a firefighter. Not like you. You seem so calm.”
“I might be now, but we’ve all been where you are. Even Paul, though he’d probably try to bullshit you and say he hasn’t,” Rory said. “What are you afraid of?”
“That I’ll choke. That I’ll hop off the truck and do something stupid once I’m inside the building.”
In The Heat 0f The Night (The O'Roarkes Duet Book 2) Page 9