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They went into the kitchen and she got the eggs out of the fridge. “I have cheese, too.”
“Cheese omelets and toast,” he said. “My favorite.”
“I’m going to change clothes,” she said. “You okay in here alone?”
“I’ll be fine,” he answered, winking at her. “I promise not to poison your food or set your kitchen on fire.”
In the bedroom, she looked at her reflection in the mirror—even with no makeup and in jeans and a sweatshirt, he was attracted to her. Maybe she should step it up, however. They would be in public together for the first time. Lining her eyes with a dark brown pencil, the thought came to her again that getting involved with a coworker wasn’t smart. Why was she risking her job to date a guy she didn’t know, all because he was cute and she was horny?
Back out in the kitchen, she reached above the stove for plates, and he glanced over at her.
“Wow, you look beautiful. Don’t get me wrong, I think you look great with soot and ashes on your face.”
“How nice. You look great, too. I was just thinking about all of this a few minutes ago. The job, etc.”
He took a plate from her and heaped eggs on it and buttered toast, far more than she could eat, but she let it go.
As he poured coffee, he read her mind. “You mean us dating?”
“Pretty much. You know that expression?”
“Don’t s-h-i-t where you eat?” he said, frowning.
“Ha! Yes.”
“My mother just said that to me when I went inside. I reminded her that my brother is married to an EMT he met at the station, so that ship has sailed, to use another euphemism that my mother is fond of.”
They ate in silence for a bit.
“Are you concerned?” he asked.
“Honestly, I’m concerned. Sorry.”
“No, that’s okay. I understand. If we get involved and it’s all good, then no problem. But if it blows up, it might be tough to work together. My brother dated a volunteer briefly, and that ended up a nightmare when she tried to burn down his house before he married Bridget.”
“Oh no!” She couldn’t help herself but burst into laughter. “It’s not funny, but you just proved my point.”
“I promise I’ll never try to burn down your house,” he said, inching his hand across the table.
His blue eyes were so earnest, she felt her lips trembling while he talked to her, telling her everything she’d longed to hear from a guy, but not now. Not at the beginning of her career.
“You can trust me, Geri. I’m not a player,” he said. “My brother Leon, he’s right before me of the six of us, he was a player. I watched him and knew right away that I didn’t want to get into all that mess.”
“Like what?”
“He had a baby with a woman he didn’t even know, that kind of stuff.”
“Ugh. That’s not good.”
“It all worked out. He has custody of the little girl. You’ll probably meet her on Thanksgiving.”
“Jake…”
“I know it sounds like I’m rushing things, but he’s a firefighter, too. You’ll meet everyonesomeday, I should have said.”
“Oh, okay,” she replied, chuckling. “Anyway, Charlie already warned me that I’ll probably work all the winter holidays.”
That was better. She would have to be the one to keep their relationship from moving too fast, and it wasn’t a position she relished.
