Page 17 of Book and Ladder
My brows draw together. Did he say what I think he said?
“A fireman calendar.” Captain straightens his spine and his expression.
Dustin’s chuckle breaks into a full-blown laugh. “Aw, nah! I thought that’s what you said.”
“It works for the Australians,” Captain adds.
I’m quiet, considering the ramifications of this idea. We could potentially raise a lot of money. Local businesses could put stacks out on their counters for sale. We could even put up a website. Daisy could arrange an endcap and a table at Moss and Maple. She’s good at that sort of thing. As long as I’m not the one asking her and my photo isn’t on the cover, she’d probably be glad to help.
“It’s not a completely bad idea,” I say.
All eyes turn toward me.
“We could raise a decent amount of money—for a good cause.”
“Is this shirtless?” Dustin raises the hem of his station shirt as if the photographers are about to arrive and he needs to be ready.
“We can discuss the details later,” Captain says. “I just wanted to bounce the idea off you men before I put it into motion.”
“Will all the crews be in on it, or just our rotation?” Cody asks.
“I think it’s a station-wide effort,” David says.
“I call August,” Dustin says. “’Cause that month’s hot—just like me.”
Cody throws a cleaning towel at Dustin and he catches it midair.
“In that case,” Greyson says, “I pick February. Not on a leap year—three fewer days of my face on display.”
“The month of love,” Dustin teases, holding his hands up in the shape of a heart. “Maybe you can dress like cupid.”
“Over my dead body,” Greyson snaps back. “And maybe we’ll get you in your Cheetos.”
“We’re keeping this PG,” Captain says. “This is Waterford. Not Vegas.”
Dustin holds the towel over his head and starts swinging it in a circle, rocking his hips side to side.
Captain shakes his head and chuckles. “What was I thinking?”
The calendar will make headlines in Waterford.
My secret would, too—if anyone ever found out.
Chapter 6
Daisy
Children are made readers
on the laps of their parents.
—Emilie Buchwald
“I still loveBeverly Cleary for early chapter readers,” I tell Laura, handing her a few of my favorite selections.
“Thank you, Daisy. I knew you’d know what to recommend.”
She tucks the books in the crook of her arm, and I stand from my squatting position near the lower shelves in the children’s nook.
