4. Lucinda

4

LUCINDA

T hat couldn't have gone worse. Lucinda ran her hand through her hair as she sat in rush-hour traffic. Or whatever Phoenix Ridge's version of rush hour was. It was mostly just following the same line of people from the suburbs to the city.

After her disastrous city council meeting, Lucinda had to go straight to the hospital, but that morning had put her in a sour mood. Even her beautiful office couldn't lift her spirits.

Chief Thompson had made her look inexperienced up there. She was a respected pillar of this community, and she had dragged Lucinda through the mud on her first day. She had been prepared, but she had never been challenged so aggressively before. She was used to being the smartest in the room; it had always been that way. Now she felt like she was in for a rude awakening.

Lucinda had met countless people and been in several meetings all afternoon. And because of this morning, she felt she had been lacking the entire day. Pain flared behind her eyes as she squinted against the setting sun. A migraine was exactly what she needed.

Lucinda groaned. All she wanted was a frozen pizza, a large glass of wine, and a bath.

BEEP! BEEP!

Lucinda looked to her right to see what all the noise was about. A woman in the next car over was pointing at Lucinda's car and mouthing something.

"Oh no," Lucinda whined.

She gave the woman a thumbs-up before pulling off in an abandoned gas station. If she had a flat tire, she was going to lose her mind.

Lucinda parked and prayed it was just going to be a missing gas cap or a seat belt hanging outside of the door. But unfortunately, she was indeed met with a deflated tire. She blew out a strangled breath, trying to keep her composure. Of course she had no idea how to change a tire. Not that her dad had never offered to teach her, but she was always worried about more important things. "Alright, this is fine." She opened her car door to look through her purse. "I just need to call a tow truck, and everything will be fine."

Except her phone had just died.

"Shit!" She stomped the ground. "I'm cursed. I have to be fucking cursed!"

She leaned her forehead against the side of her car in defeat. She guessed she could walk home. Lucinda glanced down at her nude pumps, which were now smudged with dirt. If this were London with public transportation and sidewalks, she could get home but no, America had an obsession with roads and parking lots. Her poor shoes couldn't handle that. She could hitchhike, but she was convinced that she would most likely be kidnapped and murdered. But after the day she had been having, maybe being murdered was the best option.

"Maybe I'll just die here."

"Planning your funeral already?" a smooth voice asked.

Lucinda had been so consumed by her situation she didn't even notice the black Jeep that rolled up next to her car .

Chief Thompson leaned out the window casually, looking Lucinda up and down.

Oh god, this was not what she needed. Her hair was wild, and her clothes were already covered in dirt from the abandoned lot. Blood rushed to her cheeks as she looked at the attractive fire chief. She tried to smooth her hair down to the best of her ability.

"I have a flat," she said dumbly.

"I see that." Thompson looked like she was trying to fight a smile. "Did you call a truck?"

"What? You don't think I know how to change a tire?"

Thompson raised an eyebrow at her. "Do you?"

Lucinda pressed her lips together. "No, I don't."

"I imagine you never get your feathers ruffled like this." She chuckled and got out of the car. "You got a spare?"

Lucinda hurried around to pop her trunk, but before she could return, the fire chief was already digging the tire out.

"What are you doing, Chief Thompson?" Lucinda squeaked.

"Becky's fine."

Becky opened the back of her Jeep, taking out a few tools. "I'm changing your tire, Doctor. What's it look like?"

Lucinda twisted her fingers in her hands. "You don't have to do that, Chief?—"

"Becky," she corrected, a soft smile spreading across her face. "We're outside the office. Besides, this is what I'm paid the big bucks for."

Lucinda was dumbstruck. Were they not in a feud? Was Rebecca Thompson not Lucinda's sworn rival? That's how it had seemed in the city hall meeting this morning. Becky had torn her presentation apart and left its remains on the floor. When Becky had said she enjoyed their conversation, Lucinda thought she was being sarcastic. But here Becky was helping her when she was at her wit’s end. This woman confused her endlessly.

"What happened? Did you hit something in the road?" Becky kneeled in the dirt and cranked up the jack below Lucinda's car.

"Must've." Lucinda sighed. "Someone pointed it out on my way home. I knew I was fucked once I realized my mobile had died."

Becky laughed. "Oh, I didn't know the posh doctor swore!"

Lucinda rolled her eyes. "Only when I'm very fucking upset." She kicked the dirt. "Lucinda. "

Becky stopped her work and glanced up at her. "Hm?"

"Lucinda. Since we're out of the office." She motioned to the empty wasteland around her.

Becky licked her lips and nodded. "Seems like you've had a tough day. This was the perfect thing to top it off."

"Something for the history books, I suppose."

Becky nodded, letting the scrape of metal fill the silence between them.

"I liked your ideas this morning." Becky continued to work like she hadn't just uprooted Lucinda's whole perception of the city hall meeting.

"You did?"

"Yes." She didn't elaborate.

"But you combated my every suggestion." Lucinda rubbed her arms against the chill that had fallen with the sun.

Becky snorted, pulling off her jacket and handing it to Lucinda. "Put it on. It's just getting in my way." She rolled up her sleeves.

Lucinda took the jacket, mumbling a thank you. She wondered if a snake was hiding in the pocket and if this was all some ruse or prank. But as the sun dropped lower, so did the temperature, and Lucinda, who hated being cold, put it on. Immediately, the smell of warm oak and vanilla washed over her.

"I challenged you because we need to think about all the options. Every pitfall, every possible outcome." Becky finished untightening the bolts, leaving them in a small pile in the dirt. "Change is hard for anyone. I needed you to sell it to me."

"And did I?" Lucinda found that she was suddenly craving the chief's approval. She wanted to know what else Becky thought about her.

"That's why you and I will be working on it." She rubbed the back of her neck, marking her skin with grease. "I admire your dedication to this job and to my community.”

Lucinda had no idea what was happening. Becky confused her to no end. She was gruff and serious but also playful and funny. Which was the real chief? And why was she so desperate to know?

"I'm sorry about yesterday," Lucinda blurted out. "I thought I needed to show that I couldn't be pushed around, but instead I caused unnecessary tension."

"That's alright. I had gotten too comfortable. I needed someone to come scare me shitless. "

Lucinda was quiet, her heart thundering in her ears.

"Well, Lucinda," Becky said, changing the subject. Her name took its time coming from her mouth. Each syllable skated across Lucinda's spine. "Why'd you pick our little city? I saw your credentials. You could've gone anywhere."

"Anywhere wasn't hiring."

Becky laughed. "This was a huge leap. What made you want to do it?"

"Honestly? I was sick of the weather." Lucinda sat on the gravel, tucking her feet beside her. She was definitely going to need that bath now.

"Enough to leave your friends and family? I'm not buying it, Doc," Becky said playfully.

"My job wasn't fulfilling me."

"And?" Becky pulled the ruined tire off and tossed it to the side like it weighed nothing.

Lucinda cleared her throat. "Maybe I had a breakup."

"There it is."

Becky's charming smile warmed Lucinda's cheeks. She looked away, now aware of how close they were sitting on the ground, even though Lucinda had a whole lot she could be in.

"But I didn't move because of her," Lucinda clarified. "It was everything. She was just the catalyst. I needed a change. Something that felt like it could motivate me. Being here is an amazing opportunity. Also, I really do hate the rain." Lucinda laughed. Her bad mood was slowly lifting off her shoulders with Becky’s company. "What about you? How long have you been here?"

"A while now. After my wife and I got a divorce, Ember and I moved here. She was just a little girl. The city also gave me an offer I couldn't refuse. So I guess we've been in similar situations."

Did she say wife ? "Where's your wife now?"

Becky bit back a smile. "Ex-wife. She's in Colorado. Remarried and started a new life. I wanted to focus on Ember and my career."

"So Ember works with you?"

"Yeah, she’s taken a few years out to raise their lovely little girl and work on her passions but she comes in two or three shifts a week these days. She's a pain in my ass, but she does her job well. She's got a lot more of me in her than I expected." Becky got on her knees to push the spare tire into place.

"Come here." Becky motioned for her to come closer .

"What? Why?" Lucinda peeked over Becky's shoulder.

"I'm walking you through how to change a tire, Lucinda."

Becky pointed at the jack and the X-shaped wrench, explaining to Lucinda everything she had done up until that point. But Lucinda could hardly concentrate because the way Becky had said her name made her mind collapse.

She studied Becky. Her sandy hair was tied back in a short ponytail with bits springing free. It looked like Becky was also on her way home from work when she came upon her. Her tie was loose around her neck, and the top buttons of her navy shirt were already undone. Lucinda could see the creases by her eyes that told her she laughed a lot. Her features seemed so sharp, even in the evening light. The muscles of her arms and strong hands glinted in the soft light and Lucinda felt a shiver run through her as she imagined them on her body.

She was sure Becky would be able to lift her up in one hand.. if she wanted to.

"Does that make sense?" Becky asked.

"Hm? Yes, I think so. "

"Ok, then." She handed Lucinda the wrench. "Tighten the bolts."

Lucinda looked at the tool blankly.

"I knew you weren't listening. You're lucky I like the sound of my own voice." Becky took back the wrench, her callouses scratching against Lucinda's soft skin. She positioned the tool on top of the tire. "Now you're gonna turn it."

Lucinda pressed against the tool and tightened the rest of the bolts. "How's that?"

"Could be worse."

Lucinda's face immediately fell.

Becky let out a loud warm laugh. "I'm joking, Doc. You did perfectly. Let me get this jack out, and you'll be good to go."

Lucinda stood as Becky finished. This was a different person than the one she had caught off guard yesterday. She thought Becky was going to be some gruff pain in the ass who wouldn't see anything from anybody else's point of view. But she wasn't. Lucinda wanted to fill up on her contagious joy and security.

"So what do I owe you for the emergency roadside assistance?" Lucinda leaned against her car.

"Seeing you all flustered was payment enough." Becky grinned, rubbing the grime off on her pants .

"God, that's embarrassing. I'm normally not such a..." She couldn't find the right word.

"Disaster?"

"Ouch."

"Don't worry. I liked it. Makes me seem more cool in comparison." Becky smirked.

Were they…flirting? Lucinda's heart fluttered. She could feel the flush warming her body at Becky's words.

Lucinda laughed. She couldn't remember the last time she had actually laughed, not just a polite chuckle to get her through small talk. "Yes because you seemed so cool spilling your coffee all over your desk yesterday."

Becky stood and leaned next to her. Her woodsy, vanilla scent was mixed with sweat and grass. "You didn't give me any time to prep for your arrival. I was busy with work."

"Busy googling me," Lucinda quipped.

"Yeah, like I said, work." Becky's eyes traced over Lucinda's eyes. Her cheeks. Her mouth.

Lucinda suddenly became very aware of their closeness. She laughed awkwardly and put some space between them. "Thank you. I really appreciate your kindness."

A look of disappointment crossed Becky's face, but it disappeared as quickly as it came. "It was no problem. Always happy to help."

She quickly cleaned up her tools, throwing them in the back of the Jeep. "If you need anything: taxi, tour guide or anything else—” Becky grinned, making Lucinda's stomach flip—"just let me know."

"We should probably get started on our proposal, yes?" she said frantically before Becky could make a move to get in her car.

"Tonight?" Becky raised an eyebrow.

"No, I mean, we'll still be seeing each other. For our...proposal." Lucinda couldn't be worse with words.

"How's lunch on Friday sound?"

"I would need to check my schedule." Lucinda went to pull out her phone but was met with a blank screen. "Shit."

"Language, Lucinda." Becky climbed into her car, leaning out the window. "Tentative yes to Friday?"

"Tentative yes." Lucinda smiled.

Becky waited a moment before saying, "Get in your car so I know you're safe. I can't leave a lady at an abandoned gas station at night. I have a reputation to uphold. "

That devilish smirk again.

"Oh right! Thanks again! Um, bye!" Lucinda got into her car, starting it up.

Once Lucinda eased out of the lot, Becky's Jeep turned in the opposite direction and disappeared into the trees.

Lucinda's face felt hot the whole drive home.

"What do I owe you?" she mocked herself. "Sounds like I'm in a porno."

When she finally got inside her apartment, she plugged in her phone and immediately stripped out of her disgusting clothes. Lucinda realized that she still had Becky's big fire jacket that smelled faintly of smoke. She guessed she would have to stop by the firehouse sometime this week. She smiled to herself as she carefully folded the jacket and padded into the bedroom.

After her bath, she felt a little better and decided to have that wine she had been dreaming about all day when her phone interrupted her train of thought. She picked up to see she had a text from an unknown number.

Unknown: U make it home ok?

Unknown: This is Chief Thompson.

Unknown: Becky

Becky must have kept her business card from that morning. Lucinda curled up on the couch, her stomach fluttering against her better wishes.

Lucinda: Yes I'm alive.

Becky: Good. Have a gr8 nite!

Lucinda laughed at the stupid text lingo Becky used. She was so dominating and serious in person, but over text, she shortened the word 'great.'

Lucinda: I still have your jacket. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to take it hostage.

Becky: No worries. Bring it by the station 2morrow

Lucinda: Deal

Lucinda: Good night

She smiled like an idiot at her phone and felt giddy for the first time in years. She wondered if this was a stupid idea to have a crush on her colleague, but she didn't really care at the moment. All she wanted to do was wrap herself in the smell of vanilla and oak and smoke and wait anxiously for her alarm to sound.