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“I wanted to. I promise not to go sprinting out the door without a glance this time.” I huff out a self-deprecating laugh.
Cheryl hands Carter his beer, and he takes a sip. “Is everything okay? It seemed like an emergency.”
“Yeah, my mom…” I sigh, shaking my head. “She just needed my help with something.” No way am I going into the mess of a relationship I have with my mom. Carter would run for the hills if I told him those dirty details.
“Ah. Moms are pretty good at getting us to do whatever they need. Did you grow up around here?”
“No, I grew up in Greensboro. After working at a station in the city for a few years, I was ready to find something a little slower-paced. I applied to a bunch of houses in the surrounding area, and Sonoma’s the one I got.”
His eyes widen in surprise. “That must’ve been a big change.”
I laugh. “It wasn’t too bad. The guys at the house welcomed me with open arms, and I love living in a place where people know their neighbors and genuinely care about them.”
“And have no sense of boundaries either,” Carter teases.
“Tell me about it. I can’t even count the number of blind dates I’ve been set up on. At first, I thought those old ladies were being genuine when they said they wanted me to meet friends, until I finally caught on to their schemes. It got to the point where I finally had to come out to them. I figured small-town prejudice would likely put an end to it, but nope, they just started trying to find guys instead.”
There had been a couple of ladies who’d made comments saying they didn’t know anyone “like that”. I wasn’t surprised by what they said. I’d honestly prepared for worse. What did surprise me was Alice, Cooper Jackson’s mom. She’d frowned at the two ladies and asked them what they meant by that. They sputtered an explanation and then hightailed it away from us with silly excuses. Alice rolled her eyes and promptly said, “Good riddance.” Then immediately went into matchmaker mode.
Carter throws his head back with a laugh. “You’re kidding.”
I shake my head. “They’re relentless. Alice Jackson is the worst one of them. Now that both her sons have found their women, she’s turned her sights on me.” When I moved into Quinn’s rental house, Alice came by with a care package. In the basket was a phone number for a guy her sister knows in Greensboro. She’s asked me no less than six times if I’ve reached out to the guy. I finally just lied and told her I was talking to someone I met in the city.
“That’s priceless. I’m glad I live in Westlake now. After growing up here, I’m sure they’d be on me just as much as you.”
“They’d probably try to set us up together.” I throw the suggestion out there as if it’s an offhand comment and not a calculated risk.
Carter looks at me with interest in his eyes and a smirk tilting the corner of his mouth. “They absolutely would. It’s a bit of a surprise they haven’t yet.”
“Well… you can be a little intimidating.” I grin at him to tell him I’m mostly teasing. The few times I’ve seen him around, his expression has always been very stoic. If he’s around his brothers, he’ll crack a smile or joke around, but without them there, he’s very serious. I can imagine the ladies in town don’t know for sure if he is gay.
“Me?” He scoffs. “I’m the furthest thing from intimidating.”
“I’ve always found you to be a little imposing. You get this look on your face that says fuck off, and I never wanted to bother you.”
He frowns down at his beer. “I don’t mean to be like that. I get overwhelmed in public sometimes.”
“Hey.” I reach over to put my hand on his arm. “You never need to apologize for being yourself. I was only teasing you. The honest reason I didn’t come talk to you is because I was too chicken to do it.”
He looks at me as if he doesn’t believe me.
“It’s true. I’d see you at the fundraisers or the random times you’d come to the house, and my stomach would knot up. You’d be laughing with your siblings, and all I’d want to do is find out what you were laughing about. I never could gather up the nerve to talk to you. Running into you at O’Malley’s was like fate finally giving me the push to talk to you.”
“I’m glad it did, even though it felt like I walked straight into a brick wall.” He laughs. His cheeks flush, and my smile is blinding.
“I’d apologize, but I’ve worked my ass off for these muscles.” I fake a flex of my biceps and am rewarded when Carter checks them out.
“Do you have to maintain a workout regimen to be a firefighter?”
“There are certain physical requirements we have to meet, but nothing like the workouts I do. It’s a stress reliever for me, so I enjoy pushing the limits.”
“I’ve never been much for lifting weights. I do bodyweight stuff to stay healthy, and I run to keep up with my siblings when we play soccer, but that’s about it.”
“Well, whatever you do, it’s working for you.”
Carter’s cheeks flush deliciously pink at my compliment. Who knew the stoic man I’ve drooled over for years was actually just shy? It only makes me more determined to finally make a move.
CHAPTER 5
