12. Cole

Chapter 12

Cole

The week went by in a blur of kids’ activities, work, and the various minutia of life. I saw Madi most mornings at the Confectionery when I was there for breakfast with the guys from the station or when she stopped by Gigi’s to walk Basil with Natalie. But it was always brief, and I was unable to get any time alone with her—which was good since I was not supposed to want to be alone with her, damn it. The lack of discipline in my mind whenever she crossed it frustrated me.

We had a fundraiser meeting next week, but I didn’t want to wait that long. I craved another conversation with her. I wanted to hear her laugh, and I missed her smile.

“Dad! Can I put it here? Pumpkins are just too freaking heavy,” Evan grumbled as he hobbled from the back of my truck to set his armful down next to me.

“Yeah, bud.”

October had rolled into Cozy Creek, bringing in burnished shades of red, orange, and deep golden-yellow. The town square was decorated to the nines for the season, and I, along with the rest of the Fire Brigade crew, were doing our part to keep the station festive.

Leaves blew in the light breeze as Evan and I added pumpkins and scarecrows to the pots of marigolds and mums decorating the old red 1950s GMC pumper truck parked in front of the station. It no longer ran, but it was a piece of our history that tourists loved to sit in and pose for pictures with.

Long-standing Cozy Creek tradition dictated our décor. A few crew members were outside the station on ladders, hanging garlands and festive lanterns.

I waved as Mac McCreedy drove by on his tractor, pulling a trailer full of happy-faced locals and tourists through town on a hayride. He donated pumpkins to the station every year. His family’s ranch had been around forever.

“Can I go on the next ride?” Evan asked.

“Yup, find Nat, and she can go with you.”

“Yes! Thanks, Dad.” He ran into the station to find Natalie, who was busy helping Monica decorate the reception area. Each year at Halloween, we passed out candy and gave station tours.

“Cole!”

I spun to find Madi hurrying across the street toward me with a huge camera bag slung over her shoulder. She wore tight jeans, a gold-colored V-neck sweater, and high-heeled booties. Her long golden-brown waves flowed over the opposite shoulder to tangle in her necklace and fall into the delicate line of her cleavage.

The breeze carried her perfume to me, like when I picked her up that first day on the highway: vanilla and spice. I wanted to pull her in and smell it up close. I wanted that scent on my skin. I wanted too much.

Fuck me, she was stunning, and I couldn’t look away. She radiated sunshine. Even her walk was filled with cheerfulness.

“This is perfection.” She patted the truck’s hood, slamming into me with the heavy bag as she approached.

I let out a breath and rubbed my hipbone.

“Oh god! I’m so sorry.”

“I’m okay.” Her nearness was overwhelming. She could run me over with her car, and I probably wouldn’t mind too much.

“Did I hurt you? This bag is huge.” Her delicate fingers struggled with the strap, which had become tangled in her hair.

“Let me help you. Hold still.” Our foreheads touched as I leaned in to disentangle her. “Sorry,” I mumbled under my breath.

“No, it’s okay,” she whispered back. “Thank you, I’m a mess. We can do the photo shoot for the calendar right here by the truck. It’s like you knew I was coming. It’ll be so pretty with all the flowers and the decorated station in the background.” The slight chill in the air flushed her cheeks pink, and her parted lips were stained a deep burgundy rose. It was all I could do not to kiss her.

I cleared my throat. “Damn, I was secretly hoping we’d run out of time for that. It’s short notice, isn’t it?”

“Nope.” She beamed at me. My heart boomed in my chest, and I knew I was about to do anything she asked me. “I know a guy who owes my mother a favor. His specialties include everything last minute and cheap, and he just texted me back. He can get the calendar formatted and printed in time for the fundraiser—as many as we need—if we send him the pictures of you guys by the end of the week.” She gestured to the camera case I’d set on the truck’s hood. “I was hoping to stop by and grab a few shots.”

“Great. Should I take my shirt off right now?” I teased, tugging the hem of my T-shirt up a couple of inches.

“Uh—” She froze; her face turned bright red as she stared at the sliver of abs I had bared, and I grinned as her mouth dropped open. It was like she’d glitched. “I⁠—”

“Dude, you broke her,” Kenzie called out from across the street, where she’d just parked her car. She carried a ring light and her phone. “I’m helping out today. I told Madi a surprise mission was for the best. I know none of you guys want your picture taken. Am I right?”

“It’s for a good cause.” Madi, who had snapped out of her stupor, argued.

“The mental picture of all you guys sans shirts must have short-circuited her brain when she brought it up. Is that it?” Kenzie teased. “Madi, you were practically drooling.”

Madi slugged her arm lightly. “No. I’m fine. I’m good. I’m a professional.” She huffed. “I took a bunch of photography classes in college. I know what I’m doing, okay? And no, none of you have to be shirtless. I mean, unless you’re comfortable with it, that is.”

“It never crossed my mind to question your abilities,” I said pointedly. I couldn’t stand to see anyone embarrassed, even if the joke was good-natured like Kenzie’s was. “We all trust you.”

“Thanks. See, Kenzie?” She stuck out her tongue while Kenzie laughed. “They trust me.”

“I’m sorry, Madi. My filter is faulty. I didn’t mean to embarrass you. I’ll go see who wants to be shot today,” Kenzie offered, passing me the ring light and leaving Madi and me alone by the truck.

“It’s been a while,” I said to change the subject. “I mean, since our lunch at Tres Chicas.”

“Yeah, I’ve been busy. Working at Gigi’s keeps me on my toes. Plus, her doctor said she needs to keep her ankle elevated. She’s been on the couch all week. Kenzie and I have been bringing her dinner and hanging out every night.”

“Understandable. So, about the meeting, I’ll have the kids tomorrow⁠—”

“Oh, do you need to reschedule?”

“No. That won’t be necessary. I thought you could have dinner with us at the house instead of meeting at my office. Natalie wants to discuss something with you—something about winging her eyeliner? Anyway, I’ll cook. You can talk makeup or whatever with Nat. Then we’ll all eat, and you and I can have our meeting after. If that’s okay with you?”

“That’s fine with me. What time? And should I bring anything? I could whip up another batch of brownies?”

“How about six o’clock?” I suggested, and she nodded, saying that it was okay. “Normally, I’d say I had it all covered, but if I turn down your brownies, the kids will kill me.”

“Uh, what’s your favorite dish to cook? I could help you make dinner?” she offered.

My eyes darted to the side, where Kenzie stood, not quite out of my view, as she talked to Tate and gave Madi an approving thumbs-up before going inside the open bays to speak to the rest of the crew. Weird.

I turned my focus back to Madi. “Do you like rib eye? My mom has an amazing herbed butter recipe that goes great on steaks—with thyme, garlic, and fresh cracked pepper.”

“That sounds awesome.”

“Excellent. I’ll pick up the steaks on my way home tonight. I like to use my grandma’s old cast iron skillet and baste with butter halfway through. You’ll love it. We can go out to my greenhouse with the kids and pick a salad if you’re interested. My garden has gone wild. We could make ranch dressing with fresh herbs to go on top.”

“Oh. Wow. I’ve never tried that.”

“It’s important for kids to know where their food is coming from.”

“I agree. I have always enjoyed baking with Gigi ever since I was little. Do they cook too?”

“Yup. They’ve been in the kitchen with me since they were tiny. They love it.”

Kenzie shouldered her way between me and Madi. “I am both jealous and impressed with your dinner plans. Listen, we have five of Cozy Creek’s finest willing to pose right now. Today. Boom! Add Cole, and we will have half the year covered. You’re welcome.”

“This is perfect.” Madi was back to all business. “How about you guys wear the suspender pants and T-shirts? Would that be okay?”

“Uh-uh, nope.” Kenzie shook her head. “Tate wants to be shirtless, and he insisted on hanging from a pole like a stripper.”

Madi burst out laughing. “I mean, he deserves January for that. Start the year off right.”

“Pace also agreed. No shirt.”

“Really?” I raised an eyebrow. Tate, I believed, was a total ham. But Pace?

“I’m totally persuasive,” Kenzie insisted. “Okay, fine. It’s probably the sprinkle cakes I bribed them all with. And the friendly reminder that it was for charity. I didn’t say anything untoward, not really.” She shrugged. “Strong-arm tactics, what? Threatening to cut off their breakfast sandwich and protein smoothie supply, who? Not this girl. Oh, and they’re doing us a solid, and some of the crew that are off will swing by. We might be able to get the whole year today.” She took a bow. “You’re welcome, Madi. Tell me I’m the best assistant ever.”

“What can I say?” Madi grinned at her. “I couldn’t do it without you. You’re the best ever.”

“I see.” I chuckled. “Threatening to cut them off at Gigi’s, blackmail, and bribery; I respect your tactics, Kenzie. It makes complete sense now. I’ll change and round up the guys. Be right back.”

“Girl, I heard almost everything he said to you,” Kenzie whisper-shouted once I’d turned my back. “He cooks. I should have known. That was a complete and total failure of a question. Find a way to ask him about books when you have dinner at his place. Or spill something and see if he knows how to clean it. I don’t know. He might be the perfect man. Like, look at him. Look at all of them. Damn. Today is going to be fun. Helping out friends is so worth it sometimes.”

“Right. You’re so freaking helpful,” Madi whisper-shouted beneath her breath. “Jeez, Kenzie.” Her voice oozed with sarcasm. “You were supposed to be my flirtation prevention buffer. But instead, you accused me of perving out at the thought of shirtless firefighters, then ran off. Thanks for making this so much easier.”

“Hey, I came back as fast as I could. I made a few threats and got the job done. We’ll get six pics today. What more do you want?”

“Fine, you’re right. Thank you.”

I couldn’t help but eavesdrop as I walked away. Did she have feelings for me? It sounded like she did. Flirtation buffer?

I wanted to stop and listen to the rest of their conversation, but I was already being too obvious with how slow I was walking, so I forced myself to go into the station instead.

Tate was already shirtless and rubbing lotion on his chest when I found him by his locker. “I need to wash my hands before I head out. Don’t want to slip off the pole, bro.”

“You’re—”

“Oiled up and ready to rock?” He flexed in the mirror.

“Not the words I would choose, but all right.”

“I want to be Mr. January, or maybe February—Valentine’s Day. This could be good for me.”

“I’m glad you’re excited, but I’m not sure I’m up for this, to be honest. And a bachelor auction too⁠—”

“You don’t want the attention. Yeah, I get it.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You’ve been lying low since the divorce. This will put you back out there. Then there’s the whole Madi situation.”

“Yeah. That. I mean, her. The situation.”

His eyes flicked to mine in surprise. “You’re admitting there’s a situation now. Wow. That’s good. You’re making progress. I’m proud of you.”

“Well, I can’t stop fucking thinking about her. Does that mean there’s a situation?”

He shrugged lightly as he grinned at me. “Pretty much.”

“She’s young,” I grumbled. “Too young for me.”

“She’s thirty years old, Cole. She’s hardly a kid. You had a wife and two kids by the time you were her age.”

“Fine, point taken. But she’s eight years younger than me. Isn’t that creepy?”

“Ask her and see what she says about it. Eight years means nothing when you’re both in your thirties. Besides, I’ve seen how she looks at you.”

I didn’t want to ask, but I had to know. “Uh, how does she look at me?” He was going to give me so much shit for this. I knew it.

He leaned in conspiratorially, relishing being in the older brother role. Usually, I was the one giving all the advice. “Well, it’s not so much the how. It’s the fact that she doesn’t stop looking once she catches sight of you. The second you step into the Confectionery, you’re like a hunk of metal, and her eyeballs become magnets. It’s cute watching her try to look away, though. Pay attention next time you see her.”

My heart went into orbit at his words. This felt like—I didn’t even know what it felt like. I tried to recall how I’d felt when I had asked Sherry out for the first time and couldn’t.

“Maybe I’ll ask her to dinner. I mean, on an actual date. Not at my house with the kids present. Should I?”

“Hell, yes. Now take off your shirt and get your ass outside. Go for it.” He tossed me his bottle of lotion with a grin.

I caught it, then tossed it back. I’d be keeping my shirt on, thank you very much.

“I haven’t asked anyone out since Sherry, Tate.” The smile slid from my mouth along with the words. Why was admitting my insecurities out loud worse than when they were just torturing me in my head? “I have no idea what I’m doing.”

“Other than falling for her, am I right?”

I waited a beat, taking a deep breath through my nose before exhaling loudly to gather whatever courage I had left. “Yeah.” It felt good to admit it. Scary. Real.

“Being in a relationship is not like riding a bike,” he stated. “You don’t do it once, and the rest are the same. I don’t have to tell you this, but I’ll say it anyway. Women are elusive—all of them are different. There is no such thing as a game plan for love, and anyone who says there is is a fool. The good thing is, you’ve been getting to know her. Think about Madi and what would touch her heart and go from there.”

I stared at him for a second.

Where was the sarcasm?

Where was the joke?

“That’s actually good advice.”

“You sound so surprised.” He laughed. “Should I be offended?”

“No. I know you’re a good guy, Tate. You’ve just been⁠—”

“Broken? Bitter? Extremely disgruntled? The last couple of years have been bullshit, you know that. You were there for it. Divorce sucks.”

“It sure as fuck does.” I took a deep breath in and let it out in a whoosh. Like letting go of a weight I’d been carrying around. “But that doesn’t mean we can’t move on, right?”

“Damn straight. It’s time.” He slapped me on the shoulder.

“You don’t think it’s a mistake? She’s Gigi’s granddaughter. What if it doesn’t work out?”

“But what if it does? Look at it this way. You’ve already fucked it all up by having feelings for her. What are you going to do? Will you watch her date someone else? Watch her bring some dumbass to Gigi’s place for the holidays? No. You need to be that holiday dumbass, Cole.”

“Another good point. It’s rude, but still a good one. You’re two for two today. I’m impressed. Thanks.”

“You’re welcome. Listen, you are Colton James Sutter, the baddest-ass older brother in the world. You got this.”

“I got this,” I repeated. Hoping like hell he was right.