“Apparently not well enough.” The truth was that he hadn’t asked his uncle directly because Isaac didn’t want Jonesy to think he’d never gotten over her. But he’d tried to bring it up in casual conversation with Scooter Deets, who obviously wasn’t a reliable source. All he’d told Isaac was that the last he’d heard, Hannah was living somewhere overseas doing charity work. “So it looks like you’re stuck with me now.”
“Unlike some people, I don’t live in the past, Isaac. I’m all about forgiveness and moving on.”
He gave an awkward half snort. “Yeah, ten years ago you certainly moved on from me quickly enough—with Carter Mahoney, as I recall.”
In his line of work, Isaac knew that the hottest fires came from a combination of oxygen and gas to create pinpoint blue flames. Hannah’s eyes had just flared into that exact shade as she replied, “And now I’m suddenly remembering why that was such a smart decision.”
She pivoted, marching haughtily around the car and got in. Sammy waved at him from the backseat as Hannah gunned the engine and drove off, not having the decency to look back herself and see how deeply her words had cut him.
* * *
The end of October couldn’t come soon enough for Hannah. Nor could the end of the trick-or-treat jog-a-thon she’d been way too eager to organize only a few days after her return. Hannah was still learning how to balance a full-time job with being a full-time single parent. Several months ago, when she’d told her parents that she was going through the steps to adopt Sammy, they’d shrieked with joy. They’d even devised a schedule to spend more time in Sugar Falls to help with childcare and get to know their new grandson.
But that had all been before her mom’s breast cancer recurrence.
Hannah should’ve known better than to add more activities to her already growing responsibilities. However, keeping her mind occupied left less opportunity to think about all the things she was trying to push to the back of her brain.
Unfortunately, no matter how busy Hannah had kept this week, she remained unsuccessful in her attempts to avoid Isaac around town. It probably didn’t help that she wasn’t much of a cook and tended to buy prepared meals on the run, making it easier for her son—who had an uncanny knack for spotting the firefighter in any crowd—to pepper Isaac with dozens of questions.
She’d already run into him at Duncan’s Market—literally. Cringing, she remembered everyone staring as she crashed her cart into his near the ready-made rotisserie chicken display before mumbling an apology and hiding out in the cereal aisle, not coming near the checkstand until she heard his walkie-talkie crackle to life and saw him jog out of the store. Two nights later, when she and Sammy were sick of eating corn flakes for dinner because she’d forgotten to go back and get the chicken, Isaac held the door open for her at Domino’s Deli and then proceeded to stand there for ten minutes listening to her son tell him all about his favorite sandwich toppings.
No matter where she went, she constantly ran the risk of seeing him. Or seeing someone who wanted to talk about him. Like Elaine Marconi, the president of the PTA who had gone behind Hannah’s back and invited the Sugar Falls police and fire departments to participate in today’s fund-raiser. The woman had claimed having the local heroes would help motivate and inspire the students who were grumbling about having to run.
Now Hannah was the only one grumbling. She tried not to watch Isaac and one of his crews, along with Carmen and several off-duty officers, as they raced along the elementary-school track, giving kids high fives and leading them in singing military-themed cadences. It was like she couldn’t get away from the man.
A few days ago, when Luke had pointed out that Isaac might have been crying during the video ten years ago, or at least been intoxicated, Hannah had experienced a brief softening in her heart. Extremely brief. The following morning, Sammy had run over to him at the Cowgirl Up Café as though he was a long lost family friend and Hannah had reacted the only way she knew how—by trying to shield her son from the inevitable hurt the man was sure to bring.
Then, after he’d insisted on helping her carry the cinnamon rolls to her brother’s car, he’d made that snide remark about the only person who’d supported her that awful summer. Carter Mahoney had been the one to take her aboard his father’s boat and shuttle her back to the marina after Elaine had told her what Isaac really thought of her. Carter’d been the one to sit in the cab of his truck with her when she’d cried those heavy tears of shame and betrayal, too hurt and shocked to talk about it and too embarrassed to go home and face her parents. And Carter had been the one who’d driven over to her cabin, his laptop under one arm as he gently broke the news to her about the break-up video.
* * *
“Sammy sure does love to run,” Nurse Dunn said from under the canopy where they’d set up the first-aid station. Needing a distraction from all these unwelcome memories, Hannah could either stand here and make small talk with the middle-aged school nurse or she could hide in the huddle of other parents who were passing out drinks at the refreshment table.
Hannah had inadvertently taken the reins on this event and it was her responsibility to see it through. Besides, if the kids could stand the sun and the unseasonable heat while wearing their Halloween costumes, then so could she. At least on this side of the field, Nurse Dunn seemed more interested in talking about Hannah’s son than about her ex-boyfriend. Elaine Marconi and several other moms gathered near the bleachers on the opposite side of the field wouldn’t give her the same consideration.
“He does,” Hannah agreed, pride blossoming in her chest at her child’s steady pace and happy smile as he dashed past some fourth graders. “No matter where we go, he’d rather run than walk. I can hardly keep up with him sometimes.”
“I’ve always thought about doing foster care or adopting,” the nurse commented with a hint of speculation in her voice. Hannah held her breath, waiting for all the personal questions that would surely come next. But the woman simply said, “Now that my own kids are out of the house, I might look into it.”
Hannah released the air in her lungs, relieved that Nurse Dunn seemed to understand the need for due diligence and research when starting the adoption process, instead of leaping without looking. She’d be glad to talk to anyone who had a sincere interest and wasn’t just digging for details about Sammy’s background. In fact, she was about to offer more information on the subject, but a first grader with Princess Leia buns limped toward the first-aid station and the school nurse sprang into action. Hannah was so distracted by the little girl’s arrival that she didn’t notice Isaac’s approach.
“Everything okay over here?” His voice came from behind her and Hannah fumbled the clipboard in her hand. That was the second time he’d startled her to the point of making her drop something. She clenched her teeth together as she bent down to retrieve it.
“Just a little blister,” Nurse Dunn replied. “After twenty-eight years on the job, I could bandage these things in my sleep.”
Rising, Hannah’s gaze traveled up the defined lines of Isaac’s toned, bare legs, past his blue running shorts and stopped when it got to his snug fire department tee. Her face heated at the memory of him jogging most summer mornings without a shirt, and Hannah was both thankful and slightly disappointed that they were at a school-sponsored function today and he was properly clothed. While he’d been lean and muscular back then, she could tell through the damp cotton covering his torso that he’d bulked up since high school and his body was even more impressive now.
Her mouth went dry and she tried to remind herself that good looks were just one more thing that came easy to Isaac. He’d always excelled at everything. Except getting her.
He’d actually had to put some effort into that, spending the entire summer after eleventh grade showing up wherever Hannah was, offering her rides and friendship and a connection that she hadn’t been able to form with anyone else in Sugar Falls. They’d email
ed each other during their senior year of school, and the next June, when they both returned to Sugar Falls, they’d been inseparable. Right up to that night in the boatshed when she’d freely given him her virginity.
Then, the very next day, he’d gone back to being the rich guy with the ski boat, not even picking her up for the Labor Day bonfire because he was too busy teaching several girls how to wakeboard.
“I think I’m going to see if they need more water at the refreshment station,” Hannah mumbled as she commanded her feet to move, trying to get far away from Isaac. Far away from his sexy, deep voice that still sent blasts of heat all the way down to her toes.
Whoa. She really could use a cold drink right about now to cool her down. Unfortunately, as she approached the other pop-up tent near the bleachers, she overheard someone else talking about adoption, and this time it wasn’t as well-meaning as Nurse Dunn’s comment.
“I just don’t see why she had to get one from a whole other country. I mean, aren’t there enough kids here in America that need good homes...?” Elaine Marconi’s hushed voice trailed off when another mom—who must’ve spotted Hannah before anyone else—loudly cleared her throat.
Hannah bristled and she opened her mouth to tell Elaine exactly what she should do with her opinions. But Marcia Duncan, the owner of Duncan’s Market, added more fuel to the proverbial fire by letting out a whistle. “Woo-hoo. Check out Chief Jones on the track. Have you ever seen such a fine specimen of man before?”
Several other women hummed in agreement and one bold lady even offered a “Yowza.”
If Hannah’s skin was bristling before, it was now in full porcupine mode. But Elaine and Marcia were blatantly focused on her, both with their eyes rounded and locked in on their latest target. They were clearly hoping for a reaction and Hannah would be damned if she provided these busybodies with any more ammunition.
“I heard that Isaac comes with two separate trust funds. One from his mom and one from his daddy,” Marcia continued. “The man’s got to be as rich as sin, but he lives in Jonesy’s rundown log house out by Sugar Creek and spends his days at that fire station doing a blue collar job when he probably never has to work a day in his life.”
Hannah reached for one of the Gatorades that had been set out for the runners and downed it before squeezing the empty paper cup in her fist. She felt Elaine’s eyes studying her, looking for the slightest sign of weakness. The woman thrived on drama, and Hannah braced herself for the next snarky comment. They hadn’t gotten along when they were teenagers and they certainly hadn’t been on the best of terms since Hannah had placed Elaine’s son Jake in a lower level reading group two years ago.
“Makes you wonder why a man like that would be so determined to stay in a place like this. Unless he’s only thinking with his...you-know-what.” Elaine’s zinger was delivered with as much subtlety as a thresher shark stunning its prey and Hannah didn’t have to look down to where the woman was pointing to get Elaine’s crude reference. “Although, from what I remember about Isaac Jones, he never had to work too hard when it came to women.”
That’s it. Hannah grabbed another Gatorade and turned to head back to the nurse’s tent. Unfortunately, she pivoted too abruptly and the red liquid in her cup splashed straight onto Isaac’s sweaty T-shirt.
* * *
One minute he was making another lap around the field, the next Isaac felt sticky rivulets of red sports drink run down his chest. But that was secondary to the tightness he felt inside his ribcage at the obvious distress written all over Hannah’s face.
Surely she wasn’t embarrassed by an accidental spill? She held her lips in a rigid line and barely opened them as she stiffly grounded out the words, “Sorry about that.”
It was then that he noticed about half a dozen women clustered behind Hannah, their gazes clearly riveted on the scene unfolding before them. He recognized several of them from their teenage days and it suddenly dawned on him that Hannah’s obvious tension might have nothing to do with him at all.
“Don’t worry about it,” he said quickly, wanting to relieve her discomfort despite not knowing what the cause was. He reached behind his neck and grabbed the back of his collar before yanking the wet cotton fabric over his head. “I’ve got several more T-shirts just like this one in my truck.”
Several gasps and possibly a whistle came from the onlooking women and Hannah’s hand immediately shot out and pried the tee from his hand. The damp and now cold stickiness was pressed back onto his chest as she shoved the tee at him and hissed under her breath, “Put it back on. You’re only making things worse.”
“Making what worse?” Isaac asked. Hannah’s head gave a very subtle jerk toward the murmuring moms behind her who weren’t even pretending not to witness whatever was going on between Hannah and Isaac at that exact second. However, he didn’t care about their reaction when all he could focus on was the way Hannah’s pupils dilated as her gaze dropped to his bare shoulders. A tingling of awareness pumped through him as her eyes flickered lower and he tightened his ab muscles in response.
Just then, Sammy jogged up to them, the hem of his Batman T-shirt already lifted up to expose his own little-kid belly above a yellow plastic utility belt. “Hey, Chief, if you’re not going to wear your fireman shirt, can I wear it? Mama took me to three different stores to find a fireman costume, but they only had superhero ones left.”
“No, sweetie.” Hannah squatted down. With the whispers and giggles growing in the background, he could barely hear her quiet words to her son. “Chief Isaac just spilled something on himself. But he’s going to put his shirt back on right now because there’s a dress code at school and everybody has to wear their clothes.”
She pointed the last comment in his direction and Isaac groaned as he pulled the sticky—and now tangled—shirt over his head so he wouldn’t set a bad example.
“Come on, Sammy,” Hannah said, casting an annoyed glance over her shoulder at two of Sugar Falls’ biggest gossips. “I’ll run the last lap with you.”
Hannah’s slip-ons flapped against her heels as she began jogging next to the excited boy and she kicked the shoes off onto the grassy field. Watching her run barefoot on the dirt track, Isaac’s chest filled with pride. He’d always respected the way Hannah stood up for her beliefs and he wouldn’t have been surprised if she’d called the snickering women to task. He respected her even more for showing the grace and forethought to teach her child how to finish strong, even in the face of bad manners.
Running to catch up with Sammy, Isaac called out, “Wait for me.”
Yet, as he increased his speed, Hannah increased hers, keeping a few paces ahead of him. He could see the slight pivot of her head as she kept looking behind her, her ponytail whipping back and forth.
“You’re not going to outrun me, Hannah,” he told her when he easily lengthened his strides. “Or is it something else you’re trying to escape?”
“You know I’m not a runner,” she replied, her breath coming in shorter pants. “In all senses of the word.”
“She really isn’t,” Sammy said, oblivious to his mother’s double meaning. The boy slowed his pace and took Hannah’s hand, tugging her along. “I always beat her when we race.”
“And what do you get when you beat her?” Isaac asked the boy.
“I get a hug and sometimes an extra scoop of ice cream at dinner.” Sammy smiled proudly, revealing his two missing teeth.
“Then I’ll wait for my hug at the finish line,” Isaac said before launching into a full sprint.
Sammy got there next and launched himself into Isaac’s arms. Hannah’s hug, however, was less enthusiastic when she finally arrived, her cheeks flushed and her chest heaving between gulps of air. She tried to do one of those one-armed side hugs, but Isaac rotated at the last minute and pulled her right up against his wet, sticky T-shirt.
She gasped, but her arms wrapped
around his neck, probably because he’d swept her off her bare feet. Sammy giggled and clapped his hands in approval, which only encouraged Isaac to hold on to her longer. Hannah felt so good pressed against him, his voice was low and hoarse when he set her back down and whispered in her ear. “I’ll be looking forward to that ice cream, too.”
Chapter Five
“How about a rummage sale?” one of the townspeople in the audience called from his seat. “The middle school raised over four hundred dollars when we held one last spring.”
Hannah had to stifle a yawn. It wasn’t the worst idea put forth at the council meeting, but it definitely wasn’t going to rake in the bucks, either. Didn’t these people know how to generate excitement? Geez.
Mayor Johnston’s microphone buzzed the way it always did when he put his bushy, gray mustache up against it to speak. “The city is gonna need to bring in a lot more money than that for this year’s Ski Potato Festival and Parade.”
The members of the city council nodded in agreement with their leader, but so far, none of the fifty or so people in attendance at the November meeting had provided any reasonable suggestions. Hannah tapped the toe of her ankle boot, waiting for everybody else’s fund-raising ideas to get shot down before she presented hers.
Every year since incorporating in 1906, the town of Sugar Falls hosted the Ski Potato Festival during the winter holiday season. What had started out as a small, local tradition had blossomed into a bustling tourist attraction for all the out-of-towners who liked partaking of the mountain’s lush pine forests and early snowfall. Before Hannah left for Ghana, the festival had already been one of the biggest local events, and while it brought in a hefty amount of tourist dollars, it also required some financial help to put on.
Three years ago, Hannah had headed up the fund-raising committee. However, in her absence, the volunteer efforts had unfortunately run into a few hiccups. It wasn’t that Hannah didn’t like Cessy Walker, the wealthy socialite who sat in the seat next to Mayor Johnston at the head table, or appreciate the older woman’s efforts to want the best for their town.
The Firefighter's Christmas Reunion Page 5