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She’d been trying to avoid this for so long—the familiarity that reminded her of everything that she’d lost. But now that she was here, she didn’t have the sadness she expected. If anything, she had the sense of connecting with a part of herself that had been dormant for a long time.
Too long?
Damn it. See, this was why she hadn’t wanted to come here. Jordan and small towns had unfinished business, and she wasn’t at all liking that she was already feeling the pull.
“You okay?” Simon asked, doing a double take when he saw her expression.
She forced a smile. “Totally. Just trotting down memory lane.”
“You know,” he mused, “considering we’re on actual Main Street right now, I wouldn’t be surprised if this town did have a Memory Lane. I feel like I’m on a movie set.”
Jordan pulled the rental in front of their destination, and Simon gave an extra-dramatic gasp at the firehouse. “You see what I mean? Movie set. That firehouse belongs on Leave It to Beaver.”
“That’s a TV show.”
“Whatever, Carpenter. It looks exactly like it should, am I right?”
He wasn’t wrong. Jordan took in the square brick building, noting the shiny red truck, the American flag waving gently in the breeze. The only thing missing to make it officially like a 1950s postcard was a Dalmatian.
“Buff eye candy, here I come,” Simon said, climbing out of the car.
And Luke Elliott, here I come.
Neither of them got their wish.
While there was no shortage of good-looking men at the firehouse, none seemed inclined to take his shirt off.
And none of them was Luke Elliott.
“You sure I can’t help you with something, Miss…?”
“Carpenter,” Jordan said.
“I’m Simon Nash,” Simon butted in, even though he’d already introduced himself. Twice.
Jordan nearly rolled her eyes, but she couldn’t blame Simon for his crush. The firefighter in front of them held plenty of appeal. Square jaw, friendly smile, and the way his broad shoulders stretched the navy LHFD T-shirt across a sculpted chest didn’t hurt either.
Not that it mattered for Jordan or Simon. Ryan Henderson wore a simple gold wedding band.
“You know when Luke will be back?” she asked.
The man’s eyes narrowed just slightly, hands finding his hips as he studied her. “What’d you say you wanted him for?”
I didn’t.
Still, the man’s caution improved her impression of him. It signaled that he was a friend first, gossip second.
“I’d prefer to discuss my business with Mr. Elliott directly,” she said. “I can wait until he returns.”
Ryan gave her another once-over, his eyes lingering on the high heels that she already knew were out of place in a small town where cowboy boots and tennis shoes were more the norm.
He finally relented. “Might be a while,” he said. “He’s got a thing down at the school. Fire safety day.”
“Elementary school? High school?”
Ryan scratched his cheek and looked thoughtfully at both of them. “Luke’s a friend. Been a friend since we were kids. Can’t say I’ve ever been in the habit of selling him out to two fancy city slickers who won’t say what they want.”
“City slickers? Really?” Simon muttered under his breath.
