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“You don’t say?” Tate leaned back in his chair, waiting for the arson investigator to continue. The dude was all right. Most of the time he walked around like he had a stick up his ass and acted like he didn’t trust anyone, but Tate understood. Coming into a small town as a stranger and trying to fit in was difficult.
Tate knew from firsthand experience. He’d been in Wildwood for only about a year, and pretty much everyone treated him like a stranger. It was even worse for Josh. He was investigating multiple arson fires that had been set over the last few months and had to question people. Josh was desperate to blend in and operate undercover, but everyone wondered who the new guy around town was.
“Yep.” Josh nodded, his expression one of . . . excitement? That was the most emotion Tate had ever seen on the guy. He pretty much had one face at all times—serious. In other words, Josh gave Lane Gallagher a run for his money.
Of course, Lane was all smiles now that he was getting sex on a regular basis. Not that Tate could blame the guy. He’d be wearing a smile on his face too if he was getting some all the time.
Tate frowned. And why the hell wasn’t he getting some exactly? There were plenty of summer girls who fit the bill. Gorgeous women on vacation looking for a quick fling.
He’d indulged many times last year.
This summer was practically over, and he could hardly remember the last time he had sex. What the hell was wrong with him?
And why the hell hadn’t Josh said anything else?
“Well, who is it then?” Tate asked.
Stony-faced Josh was back. “I can’t tell you that.”
“Then why even bring it up?”
“I just wanted you to know that hopefully we’ll nail this guy and it’ll be over soon.” His lips went thin, his face downright expressionless. Tate felt like he was seeing all the faces of Josh in a matter of minutes. “We’re going into full covert mode.”
“Really?” Tate raised a brow. He’d heard enough undercover stories to know that Josh wasn’t going to give him even a hint of information. He’d find out all of the details after the fact.
“Yeah. And that’s all I can say about that.” Josh stood and nodded once, in pure official mode. “I’m sure you’ll hear if anything happens.”
“Good luck,” Tate called as Josh exited his office.
Weird. The guy runs in looking ready to burst with good news and then barely gives up any details? Why stop by in the first place?
Tate had a feeling Josh wasn’t the best when it came to making friends. Tate, on the other hand, could make friends with anyone. That was why he had been promoted so quickly through the ranks at Cal Fire. Why he was so popular back in high school.
Why he was so good with the ladies.
Well, that and his face.
He could be an arrogant ass sometimes, but he wasn’t stupid. He knew he was decent-looking. Combine that with his uniform, and forget it. The ladies swarmed every time he came around. Even old ladies went nuts over him. Whenever he went on a call at the local senior citizens’ hall during bingo night—which was far too often—he always got his butt pinched by a gray-haired old woman. They cackled like mad when he whipped around to see who’d done it.
But how could he get mad? If they got a thrill by pinching his ass, then he wasn’t going to complain. They were harmless.
Most of them, anyway.
Tate pushed away from the desk and stood, stretching his arms above his head. It had been quiet all day. He was off shift first thing tomorrow morning, and he couldn’t wait. Planned to go straight home and collapse into bed. Hopefully he wouldn’t dream of Wren either. He’d been having that problem lately, which wasn’t good when he woke up with a tent in his pants—while on duty at the station.
Ah, Wren. He tried his best not to think about her during the day, but it proved difficult. Not that he’d put her out of his mind because of what West said yesterday. Hell no. He wasn’t going to avoid her just because her asshole big brother told him to. West ordering him around only made him want to see her even more.
But he wouldn’t.
He couldn’t afford to think of her. She was too much of a distraction, and he needed to focus. He had a job to do—he was responsible for his crew, responsible for the entire station and even the whole damn town of Wildwood. They had an arsonist on their hands, and whoever their firebug was, the guy was on a serious tear. The most recent fire that started on Ridge Point Road had burned thousands of acres and threatened the town before they were finally able to first control and then contain it.
But that had been over a week ago. All had been quiet since, which made Tate feel uneasy. Their local firebug liked to disappear for a bit, lulling everyone into a sense of calm before he went back at it.
Or she. Their arsonist could be a woman too. Hell, he remembered hearing about a case a few years ago where a married couple tried to burn down their entire community. Once the trial was all said and done, they both got seventy years in prison.
Tate shook his head. People were strange.
He exited the tiny office and headed outside, stopping short when he found West standing mere feet away, his arms wrapped around Harper and their lips locked.
