Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5

C ady was on her hands and knees trying to look behind the kiln when she heard the door open and footsteps coming inside. She was expecting Jace, but she wasn't expecting the man behind him.

"Colton, what are you doing here?" she asked and Harlan rolled his eyes at her. "I mean, it's nice that you came. But... why?"

Colton's eyes scanned her as if looking for something. "I heard you were hurt. I wanted to make sure you were okay and see if I could help in any way."

"It's just a burn. The kiln acted up and burnt our last round of grain and we're trying to figure out why."

Jace was rolling out his equipment and held out his gloved hand to her. Cady took off her glove and placed her hand in his. "Not too bad, but it'll be uncomfortable for a little bit. I need to clean it and bandage it. You'll need ointment to put on it."

"Not my first burn and won't be my last."

Colton looked over Jace's shoulder and nodded. "That's not too bad. Tell me about the kiln."

Joey took over then. He and Harlan showed Colton what had happened and gave him a pair of gloves when he'd asked for them. Cady watched as he made his way around the kiln, looking at its electrical components, which was why she saw his frown the moment it appeared.

"What is it?" Cady asked.

"The wires here are frayed. The one for setting the temperature and the one for heat shut off. This is what caused your overheating. You're lucky it didn't catch fire."

Cady was frowning now too. "That can't be right. They don't just fray." She looked over his arm and saw them. They were frayed. The casing around the wires was open and the wires themselves were only partly intact.

"Could a rodent of some kind do that? Mouse? Chipmunk? Squirrel?" Cady asked.

Colton leaned closer, as did Harlan and Joey.

"I don't think so," Colton said, sounding deadly serious. "I think it was made to look that way though. You can see the casing was crumbled, but back here is a straight cut."

"I see it," Harlan said as Joey leaned back and ran a hand over his face.

"Someone purposely sabotaged us?" Joey asked.

"I can't say one-hundred percent that it was sabotage, but I'd say eighty-five percent." Colton turned to Cady and looked down at her burnt hand. "Has anything else been tampered with?"

Cady shook her head. "Not that I know of, but we'll be checking everything now."

Joey and Harlan agreed. They'd go over every piece of equipment together while Cady started the conference.

"I'd lock the doors too. Just in case," Colton instructed the men.

"First, we need to get this fixed," Cady told them, glancing at her watch. "I have to start the conference in fifteen minutes."

"No problem, Cady," Joey said. "I have wire in the truck. I'll get this fixed in no time."

Jace packed up his bag and stepped outside after leaving Cady supplies to treat her burn. Joey and Harlan were fixing the kiln when Cady looked at Colton. "Thanks for coming," she told him. "That was nice of you to check on me."

It was confusing, that's what it was. However, the way Colton looked at her with concern made Cady forget all about the pain from the burn. He looked at her as if he were seeing all of her for the first time. Not just some friend he chatted with on occasion. But her.

"Want me to stop by later to check things out?" Colton asked. "And to see how you're doing? I can bring you a late-night snack."

"Thank you, but you don't have to do that." An alarm went off on her phone. "I'm sorry, but I have to go greet my guests."

Cady almost jumped when Colton reached out and took her hand in hers. She stared. She was sure her mouth was open in surprise as he lifted her injured hand to his lips. He placed a soft, warm kiss next to the bandage. "Get well soon. Call me if you need anything."

Cady could only nod and stare at her hand where seconds ago Colton's lips had been.

"What the hell is going on?" she whispered to Jace who appeared just as surprised as they watched Colton head for the car.

"I don't know, but it's very interesting."

"You kissed Cady's hand?"

Colton should have known Jace wouldn't keep his big mouth closed. Jace had obviously told his wife, Stella, who called Kate, who then told her husband, Landon, Colton's little brother. He was sure the rumor of him dating Cady would be all over Keeneston by the morning.

"She hurt it. Mom always kissed our boo-boos," Colton defended to his brother.

Landon laughed. "Not that way. Jace said Cady about melted on the spot."

Colton sat up from his bed. "She did?"

"Bro, what is going on with you? You've never shown interest in Cady. She's not a one-night kind of woman. You do know that, right?"

"It's not like that," Colton protested. "She's doing something really cool for her distillery and I wanted to help her."

Landon stopped laughing. "Wait, do you like her?"

"Of course, I like her. We've been friends for years."

"Ah, you're in the denial phase. Got it," Landon said, and Colton could practically see him grin over the phone. "Look, I have to go do meal prep. Cady and I are on a panel tomorrow about how we work together to help each other's businesses grow. I promote her bourbon and she promotes my food. It's a win-win."

"She's so smart. It's really impressive all she's done."

"Oh my God, Colt. You have it bad. Mom is going to be thrilled."

"Have what bad? I don't have anything bad," Colton protested. "Sophie's smart too and it's impressive what she's done. It doesn't mean anything. I only mean Cady is doing a good job. Just like our sister has done."

"There's that denial again. Keep telling yourself you think of Cady like our mother and sister. I'm sure that will go over well when you talk to her next." Landon, the ass, laughed and hung up.

Colton looked at the clock. It was late. Was eleven at night too late to call Cady to see how she was doing? A friend would check on her. And that's what he was. A friend who couldn't stop thinking about her. A friend who got really upset thinking anyone tampered with the kiln to try to purposefully hurt her.

Colton: Hey. I know it's late and I hope this doesn't wake you up, but I wanted to see how your hand was doing.

Almost instantly three bubbles appeared. She was awake. Colton tried to stay calm. He was only talking to a friend. This was nothing.

Cady: Hurts, but the numbing salve helps. It was a crazy day, welcoming everyone.

Colton: Do you know any of them?

Cady: Most of them. I've been in this industry since I was born. However, not all of them can see me as anything but the toddler her father used to carry around. It's been a challenge to get them to see me as the professional adult I am now.

Colton didn't like that but understood it. He got a lot of crap for being a fire chief as young as he was. His ability was constantly questioned when he was in training at the state level.

Colton: I believe in you. Want me to beat them up?

Cady: LOL. Thanks, but I can hold my own. Also, thanks for coming today. That was very nice of you to check on me. You're a good..." the message came through and the bubbles were up on the screen. What was he? Colton sat up in bed, waiting for the rest of the message. Friend .

Ouch. Colton fell back into bed. Friend . That's what he was, right? That's what he told Jace. He and Cady were friends. Then why did it gut him to read that?

Colton: Good night, Cady. Sweet dreams.

Colton tossed his phone onto the charger and turned off the lights. Friends. He'd used that line on so many women before. He couldn't date them because they made such good friends. Now he realized how much that had to have hurt. It was a knife to the heart.

He, Mr. December on the firefighter calendar, was friend-zoned.