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“I promise.” Another kiss. “And…just to be fair…should you ever feel the need to…you know, do a striptease, I am more than willing to be your audience of one.”
She laughed even as she shook her head. “That’s incredibly generous of you, but I think it’s going to be a while before I can even think about anyone stripping without cracking up.”
“Hey,” he whined. “I put a lot of work into that choreography. You think it’s easy stripping out of all that heavy fire gear?”
“Reid…”
With a dramatic sigh, he fell back against the pillows. “No, no. It’s fine. I may never dance again, but…it’s fine.”
Ashlynn turned and put her plate down before crawling over and straddling him again.
“I’m not sure which of us likes this position more,” he said as his hands immediately began to wander.
“Me. Definitely me,” she said with a sassy wink. “Thank you.”
“For…?”
“For being willing to embarrass yourself the way you did today,” she told him. “And for standing up to Bob outside of the police station. And for dozens of other things that you do just because you’re amazing. But mostly, thank you for loving me even though I’ve been really bratty these last few weeks.” Then she frowned. “And when I was bratty back in high school.”
“You had every reason to be bratty all those times. I’m sorry for making you feel like you had to be bratty back then because I was incredibly immature. So really, I should be thanking you for giving me a second chance and still managing to fall in love with me.” He tugged her closer so he could kiss her thoroughly.
“Mmm…I know there are brownies to be had, but…that might be a late-night thing,” she murmured, kissing her way down his body.
Reid’s hand fisted in her hair again as he hissed with pleasure. “Just keep doing what you’re doing and you can have brownies any time you want…”
“I’m going to hold you to that.”
It took a solid week before Reid could walk down the street without anyone whistling or catcalling at him. He took it all in stride and knew it was all in good fun, but mainly he took it because it was exactly the thing to help Ashlynn be able to focus on her business instead of the drama. If anyone happened to bring up the fire, it was to tell her how much they couldn’t wait for her salon to open and how they never liked going to Lavish Locks.
There wasn’t a doubt in his mind that Ashlynn was going to have more business than she knew what to do with, and he was proud of her for it.
Next weekend, his parents were coming to visit and he couldn’t wait to introduce them to his girl and then take them around town and let them get reacquainted with everything and everyone. Now that he was settling in Sweetbriar for the long haul, he knew they’d be coming to town often. Plus, he was excited for them to meet all the Donovans. Billie had offered to host a dinner for everyone since she had the most space, and as much as he wished he could do it himself, for right now he was beyond thankful.
But as soon as his lease was up, he was hopeful that he and Ashlynn were going to start looking for a place of their own. There were some great houses in the area that needed a little TLC, but according to her cousin Patrick, they shouldn’t wait too long to put an offer in on one. Once all the new businesses started opening and the ski resort reopened, real estate in Sweetbriar Ridge and the surrounding areas was going to go up. So while they hadn’t really discussed it, he was definitely watching what was happening locally. And, if he found something that really interested him, then he’d bring it up to her. Right now, she was so focused on the salon that he didn’t want to distract her in any way.
They were settling into a routine that he feel like they got sidetracked from, and it was really kind of great. He felt like he was earning the respect of his co-workers and starting to form some solid friendships. The conversation he’d had with Inspector Rowe was still on his mind, but right now he wasn’t looking to rush into anything. He was content with the way his life was going.
Although…he was looking to take on a second job to possibly help with the prospect of buying a home.
And that’s how he ended up at Books & Beans to talk with Patrick Donovan.
“Thanks for meeting with me,” he said as he sat down.
“My pleasure, Reid. So what’s on your mind?”
“Well, I’m looking for a little side work,” he explained. “My schedule with the fire squad isn’t exactly steady and changes all the time, so I need to find something flexible. I know you’re looking to renovate a bunch of houses like we talked about, and I was curious if you needed someone to do some of the demo. I’m a hard worker and I’m obviously not afraid to get dirty.”
Patrick chuckled. “Are you sure you want to do something like this? I mean…it’s really the least glamorous part of the whole process and sometimes it’s downright gross because you don’t know what you’re going to find once you start knocking down walls.”
“It’s all in a day’s work the way I see it, and if it helps me achieve my goals, then I’m willing to do it.”
Patrick studied him for a moment. “Can I ask you a personal question?”
“Sure.”
“You’ve talked to me about buying a house and all that, but…are you thinking about it as something for you and Ashlynn?”
He nodded. “I am. I’m not going to buy something without getting her input, but I also know she’s got her hands—and her finances—full with the salon. I want to make sure we can make a down payment without her freaking out.” He paused. “I love Ashlynn, and I see us having a solid future together. I want to take care of her and…and I’m willing to do the hard work and the grunt work now so we can maybe relax a little in the future.”
