Hot for You (13 page)

“My mom used to make these.” He brushed
crumbs off his fingers and onto the plate. “Outside of Oreo
cookies, they’re my favorite.”

“Sorry to ruin them for you,” Carilyn
said.

He reached out and touched the side of her
face. “That was my mom’s recipe and what you made is great. Thank
you for making the brownies for me.”

She couldn’t help smiling in return. He was
so genuine and sincere. “You’re welcome,” she said.

He let his hand drop away from her face, but
his gaze remained on her. “You manage to surprise me,” he said.

She raised her brows. “I hope that’s not a
bad thing.”

“No, it’s not a bad thing at all.” The corner
of his mouth curved. “You’re a beautiful women who happens to be a
computer geek; you bounced back from a head injury sooner than I
expected; you’re brave; you’re genuine; and you even made me
brownies.”

She laughed. “Burnt brownies.”

“Best burnt brownies I ever ate,” he said
with a grin then leaned forward and brushed his lips over hers.

***

Carilyn sat on the porch swing, alone for a
second day. Cody had taken four days off from work, which
apparently wasn’t usual—he had traded with another firefighter so
that he could stay with Carilyn an extra day. Starting Monday it
had been time for him to work a forty-eight hour shift where he
would sleep at the fire department and then he’d have seventy-two
hours off.

The butterfly soft feeling of his lips
against hers had left her tingling. All he’d done was give her that
light kiss and it had made her body warm and desire him in a way
she’d never expected. She wondered what would have happened the
next day if he hadn’t had to leave for his shift at the fire
department. Would he have kissed her again? Would it have become
more than a kiss?

If anything, she had to count herself lucky.
If he’d been around these past days, she might have done something
she would have regretted.

She had argued with Cody about going back to
Leigh’s, but in the end she’d agreed to stay put at his house for
safety’s sake. However, she’d insisted that when he was back that
she was going to go to Leigh’s to clean up the mess that had been
made when it was ransacked.

The metal pole on the porch swing was cool
beneath her palm as she gripped it while she pushed the swing to
and fro with one foot. She was waiting for the mail carrier to show
up to deliver the package that contained what she needed to get to
work. Cody had said the mail carrier, Gisele, arrived between 10:15
and 10:30 like clockwork, unless it was rainy or stormy. Today was
another clear day, so she figured there shouldn’t be a problem in
the mail carrier arriving on time.

Tom, the retired rancher who worked for Cody,
was out in the barn cleaning the stalls. From what Cody said, the
rancher didn’t mind the dirty work that he did to supplement his
retirement. Cody had felt more comfortable about leaving Carilyn at
the house because Tom was there, and the older man kept a pistol in
a holster hanging from his belt. He had a weapons permit and always
“packed heat” as he referred to it. Tom was a nice man and she
liked him, and it did make her feel better to know he was
armed.

Dirt boiled up from the road in the distance
and Carilyn watched to see if it was the mail truck. When it came
closer, she saw that it was and she waited for the truck to cross
the cattle guard, travel down the long driveway, and pull up in
front of the house.

She rubbed her palms on her jeans, got up
from her seat, and met the postal carrier as she got out of the
truck.

“Are you Carilyn Thompson?” The woman with
graying hair asked as she came toward Carilyn.

“Yes.” Carilyn smiled and took the clipboard
from the carrier. “You must be Gisele.”

Gisele nodded. “That’s me.”

“Nice to meet you.” Carilyn signed, and then
gave the clipboard back to Gisele.

“Have a good day.” The carrier gave Carilyn
the small box, turned away, and went back to the postal truck
before driving off.

After Gisele left, Carilyn headed into the
house. It was cool inside but bright because the shades were open.
She went to Cody’s office where she’d been setting up her laptop
and she settled into the office chair. It took some time to load
all of the software.

When she was finished loading software, she
went to the kitchen and fixed herself a peanut butter and jelly
sandwich along with a tall glass of milk. She took it to the office
and ate while she finished organizing the computer’s desktop just
the way she liked it.

“Phew.” She leaned back in the chair when she
was finished. The PB&J sandwich and glass of milk were gone and
she toyed with the idea of another sandwich but decided to stay
where she was and work instead considering she was a few days
behind now. She’d have to wait to track down Firebug, too, because
she needed to do her job. When she was ready she’d set up a tracer
program.

Soon she was lost in her work. She enjoyed
contracting for the government, which was much better than actually
being in a permanent position with Uncle Sam. She had freedom in
the number of hours she worked, the days she worked, and the
ability to do whatever it took to get the job done. It would come
in handy some day when she stayed home to raise a family.

That thought made her think of Cody and what
it would be like to have a family with him.

She groaned, shook her head, and got back to
work.

When she finished, she felt tired and
realized she’d overdone it. She’d been working for hours with only
a long enough break to fix herself lunch. She’d been feeling a lot
better overall, but she hadn’t fully recovered from the concussion.
Now she was exhausted and her head ached.

She always kept her email closed when she
worked so that she wouldn’t be distracted by anything that came in.
She’d also been worried that she’d receive something else from
Firebug. When she opened it she saw a couple of emails from
friends, several work-related emails, and a message from Sam. Thank
God there wasn’t one from Firebug. She even checked her spam
folders, just to make sure.

Her gaze lingered on the new one from Sam.
She had meant to respond to him when she’d received the first one,
but had forgotten to. He was probably concerned about her because
she’d always been good about replying to him, even after they had
broken up.

She clicked on the email to open and read
it.

Carilyn,

Are you off on one of your jaunts in some
exotic locale with Leigh? Where? When do you return home? I need to
see you.

Love,

Sam

Carilyn worried her lower lip as she reread
his email. He had signed both emails with “love Sam” and she wasn’t
sure how to take that. Surely he didn’t want to get back together
with her?

She leaned back in the chair and stared at
the computer screen. She had no intention of getting back with Sam
again, if that was what he wanted to talk about. But then again,
she might just be jumping to conclusions. For all she knew, he had
met someone and was inviting Carilyn to the wedding.

Did that thought bother her? She tilted her
head to the side as she considered it. Yeah, she had to admit it
would be difficult seeing Sam in love with another woman. At the
same time, Carilyn also realized that she had moved on. It might be
hard to see him marry another woman, but she could accept it.

For now she’d take it as he probably meant
it—just a friendly note that he was thinking about her. She might
as well let him know that it would be a month before she got back
to Kansas City.

She didn’t plan on telling him about her car
or Firebug—not now. She wanted this whole thing to be done and over
with and didn’t want him to be worried about her while she was
gone.

Sam,

It was a nice surprise to hear from you and
I hope you are doing well.

I’m staying in Prescott, AZ to watch Leigh’s
house while she’s in Europe. I’ll call you when I get back in town
sometime during the middle of next month, and we can catch up
then.

Take care,

Carilyn

After she pressed send, she shut the lid on
her computer. She found herself wishing that Cody was here, but he
wouldn’t return until tomorrow morning when he got off of his
shift. He had called her last night, checking on her, but hadn’t
been able to talk for long.

As she wandered toward the kitchen, her cell
phone rang. She drew it out and saw that it was Cody. Her heart
skipped a beat and she smiled as she answered it. “Hi, Cody.”

“Hey there, sunshine.” A smile was in his
voice. “How was your day?”

“Tiring, but good.” She gripped the phone as
she walked toward the living room, a smile on her own face. “My
software came in today and I’m all set up.”

“That’s great.” He hesitated. “No unwanted
emails?”

“None.” She shook her head. “Just the usual
related to business and a couple of emails from friends.” She
wasn’t going to bring up Sam in particular. “How was your day?”

“A second grade class from the elementary
school came to the station for a field trip.” He said it with
enthusiasm. “Love how the kids’ eyes light up when they see the
fire truck and ask questions.”

After seeing him with the 4-H’ers, Carilyn
would bet anything that he’d made the field trip fun for the kids.
He’d make a great father, too. She could just tell from being
around him and the way he talked about kids.

She sat on the couch and curled her legs
under her as she held the phone to her ear. “Having a group of kids
come to the fire department sounds like fun.”

“It was.” He paused. “Now be truthful. How
are you feeling? Headaches, nausea, coordination?”

“I’m feeling a lot better and much steadier
on my feet.” She shifted on the couch. “Give me another day and I’m
sure I’ll be good as new and ready to go back to Leigh’s.”

“I’ll be the judge of that.” He sounded both
amused and serious at the same time. “I don’t want you overdoing
it.”

“I won’t.” She crossed her fingers like a
little kid. “You worry too much, cowboy.”

“Never,” he said. “You’ll be all right there
tonight?”

“Yes, yes, yes,” she said with pretend
exasperation. “I’m perfectly fine, Mr. McBride.”

“Call me if you need anything,” he said. “I
mean
anything
.”

In a serious voice she said, “I’d like some
bonbons and a satin pillow. Oh, and bring me a feathered boa and a
diamond tiara while you’re at it.”

“Anything for you, princess.” He laughed.
“But for now I have to get back to work.”

“See you in the morning,” she said.

“See you.”

When she disconnected the call, she let out a
little sigh. She liked talking with Cody. It was comfortable and
natural, as if they’d been friends for years. How had she so easily
fallen into this comfortable rapport with him?

Yes, it was very comfortable…perhaps too much
so?

* * * * *

Cody had found himself driving home faster
than he should have, all because he couldn’t get his mind off of
Carilyn. He was on the last stretch of highway before home as a
pair of flashing blue and red lights appeared in his rearview
mirror. He groaned. Even with cousins on the police force, that
didn’t make him immune from getting a ticket.

He sighed and pulled the truck over onto the
side of the road. He buzzed down the window as he waited with his
hands on the wheel for the officer to come to the window.

“So, where’s the fire?” came a familiar deep
voice.

Cody looked up to see his cousin, John
McBride’s, not so amused expression. Reflective sunglasses hid
John’s eyes, and Cody couldn’t tell if his older cousin was serious
or not.

“Hi, cuz.” Cody let out his breath, hopeful
that John wasn’t going to give him a ticket.

John was a big man, a hard man, and he had
his clipboard in hand. “Cody, you do know you were going twenty-one
miles over the speed limit? You should know that’s a criminal
offense.”

Cody winced. “Sorry.”

“You’re lucky this is a lonely stretch of
road and no one else is around.” John lowered the clipboard and
Cody blew out a breath of relief as his cousin continued, “Watch
your speed or next time I’ll have to give you a ticket.”

“You’ve got it.” Cody gave John an expression
of appreciation. “How are Uncle Hal and Aunt Angel?”

“They’re both doing well.” John seemed to
relax as he spoke of his parents. “You missed the reunion on
Easter. It was a hell of a good time. You should drop by and see
the folks.”

“You’re right, I should go see them,” Cody
said. “Really sucked that I got called in on the morning of the
reunion—that was one of the days the damned arsonist struck.”

“That’s right.” John gave a nod. “Reese has
been keeping me updated on the progress in the case. I heard that
one of the victims received a threatening letter, and another one
is missing.”

“Yeah.” Cody frowned. “I don’t like this,
don’t like it at all.”

“Same here.” John’s radio squawked on his
shoulder and he responded to it. Cody recognized it was the code
for a domestic dispute.

“Watch that speed,” John said as he took a
step back.

“You bet,” Cody said before John turned
away.

Cody pulled his truck back onto the road,
kept his speed just a couple of miles over the speed limit, and
headed the last mile to the turnoff to his home.

The thought of seeing Carilyn again made him
smile. He had been looking forward to seeing her again since the
day he’d left for his shift. It was the first time he could
remember that time had seemed to crawl unbelievably slow.

Carilyn was on the porch swing as he drove up
to the house, typing on her laptop as she moved the swing back and
forth. She looked up and smiled and gave a little wave to him as he
parked.