Page 9 of Her Mountain Christmas
“The roads are closed because of the storm. I called a buddy in town, and we’ll get your car towed as soon as the snow clears. But it might be a couple of days.”
I’m not surprised, given what I saw out my bedroom window, and I nod as I sit down. “I guess you’re stuck with me, huh?”
He smiles, his brown eyes lighting up. “I guess so.”
I lick my lips, a sudden bout of nerves charging through me. “Thank you again,” I say. “You didn’t have to…to…” For some reason, I struggle to get the words out. But Jack just shoots me another one of those panty-melting smiles.
“It’s really no big deal. Coffee?”
“Please.”
“Fixed like the tea? Nice and beige?”
I can’t stop the smile from spreading across my face. “You’re a fast learner, Jack…I don’t even know your last name.”
He grins at me over his shoulder as he pours two cups of coffee. “Carter.”
“And, um, how…how old are you?” I can’t think of a less awkward way to ask my question.
“Forty-five. You?”
I can’t explain the thrill that charges through me at how much older he is. But it only makes me even more attracted to him, I know that much. “Twenty-two.”
I swear I hear him curse under his breath before he sets down the coffees and sits down across from me at the small table.
“And it might not feel like a big deal to you, but…it is to me. It’s been a long time since anyone gave a shit about me.” I don’t mean to say that last part, it just sort of falls out of my mouth.
He frowns. “That have something to do with what you were running from yesterday?”
I roll my lips inward. “Yeah.” That’s the last thing I want to talk about this morning, though, so I quickly change the subject. “So, what’s it like being a fire chief?” I ask, twirling a piece of hair around my finger. “Is it super stressful?” I take a sip of my coffee and watch as Jack thoughtfully chews his bacon.
Jack looks up, a small smile playing on his lips. “It’s a lot of responsibility, but I love it. I’ve been in fire and rescue for twenty years, chief for the past five. I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”
“Wow, that’s amazing,” I say, genuinely impressed. “Do you ever do anything like those firefighter calendars? You know, the ones where they pose with puppies and kittens?”
He nearly chokes on his coffee, his eyebrows shooting up. “What?”
I can’t help but giggle. “You know, the ones where they’re all shirtless and oiled up. For charity, of course.”
Jack sets down his mug, a slow grin spreading across his face. “Are you asking if I’ve ever posed shirtless for a calendar, Ella?”
I shrug, feigning innocence. “Maybe. I mean, it’s for a good cause, right?”
He leans back in his chair, his eyes sparkling with amusement. “I’ve never done a calendar, no.”
“Well, if you ever need to raise money for the department, you should consider it. I’m a bit of a firefighter calendar aficionado, and I think you could make a killing.”
His lips twitch. “A firefighter calendar aficionado, huh?”
“Oh, yeah. I’m a total expert. If they put you on the cover, it’d be a runaway success.” I take a bite of my breakfast. “You’d make a lot of, um, kitties, very happy.”
Jack chuckles, the sound making heat pool low in my stomach. “Oh, yeah? Seeing me all oiled up and shirtless would make kitties happy?”
I blink innocently at him, a smile curling my lips. “I mean, I know mine would be ecstatic.”
He blushes and laughs, the sound rich and warm. “We still talking about animals, sweetheart?”
I shake my head, my own cheeks heating as we flirt back and forth. My heart is going crazy in my chest because even though I’m pretty sure he thinks he’s too old for me, he’s flirting right back. “I thought we were talking about charity work.”
