Chapter 10
~
Rhea
The guys had been surprisingly productive, and by the end of Saturday, the entire fence had been properly mended. They insisted that they’d be coming back the next weekend, and I thanked them.
I took Sunday to relax and dream about that sweaty, intense kissing session with Calder.
Clearly, his defensiveness was just in my mind.
He definitely still wanted me, and well, I wanted him, too.
The problem was that I wanted all of them, and that greedy craving was only growing stronger by the day.
On Monday, I headed back to work, though it was hard to focus on what I was doing. Luckily, most of it was doable through muscle memory alone, and the store was relatively quiet. It was also uneventful, with very few customer complaints and nobody causing any problems.
By 4 PM, I was ready to go crazy with boredom. That was until Jenny peered into the manager’s office with wide eyes and a very curious demeanor.
“Someone’s here to see you,” she said conspiratorially, and I immediately knew that it had to be one of the guys. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a god of a man. Where did you even find him?”
“Hey, let’s stay professional,” I answered jokingly. “Why don’t you ask him to come in?”
“Sure, sure.” Jenny winked at me and hurried off. I sighed. This was probably all anyone was going to talk about all week. I didn’t mind too much, there were worse topics of gossip to be at the center of.
It was Calder who popped his head around the door, and I smiled at him as I waved him inside. He closed the door behind him, and I got up from behind the desk.
“So, this is where you work, hmm?” Calder said, and I nodded.
“Unfortunately, but it does pay the bills.”
“You’re the manager?”
“I am.”
“Then you have the authority to let yourself leave early, don’t you?” Calder’s eyes seemed mischievous, something that I wasn’t entirely expecting. “I have the day off, and I’d like to spend some of it with a beautiful woman.”
“That would be very irresponsible,” I pointed out, clicking my tongue in mock-disappointment. “I mean, if I do that, then who will do this incredibly important inventory? Who will email suppliers? The whole world will collapse!”
Calder held out a hand. “Don’t you sometimes just want to watch the world burn?”
I already knew that I wouldn’t be able to resist his offer. There wasn’t much left to do, and I could catch up on all of it in the morning quite easily. Jenny was perfectly capable of watching over the floor for me, too. Plus, she’d love to have something to talk about and speculate over.
“Alright, fine,” I said dramatically, walking to the door to open it. “But no hand-holding until the employees can’t see us anymore. I have an image to uphold, you know?”
“Yes, Ma’am,” Calder answered and added a little bow.
He waited outside of the store while I let Jenny know that I’d be heading out.
She agreed to close for me, insisting that she’d keep my little rendezvous secret.
I had to insist that I had no idea what she was talking about, but I knew I’d hear all about it the next morning.
I walked out of the mall with Calder, my heart brimming with excitement. He led me through the parking lot and to the big open park that sat across the road.
“I could eat,” he noted as we walked through the entrance. “How about a pretzel?”
“Sounds pretty great, actually,” I agreed, this time taking his hand when he offered it. It was rough, as expected from a guy who spent his days rescuing cats and putting out fires. His grip was gentle but firm, and it felt like he would always catch me if I fell.
“So, no burning buildings today?” I asked as we walked.
Calder glanced at me with a small chuckle. “It’s my day off, actually. I’m sure the boys on shift have it under control.”
“Great, then our date won’t be interrupted this time?”
“Not by a call,” Calder confirmed as we reached the pretzel stand. “Can’t promise that there won’t be some other catastrophe that’ll get in the way. You know, always the chance of a freak tornado, or a shoe emergency.”
“Or one of us could fall through a porch,” I added slyly. Calder held his hand over his heart as if I had just said something terribly offensive.
“Nobody will be falling through a porch that I’ve fixed, I assure you,” he said very seriously, before addressing the pretzel vendor. “Two of your biggest, saltiest pretzels, please.”
“Aren’t you adventurous?” I playfully shoved him in the shoulder, a move which reminded me of just how much muscle was hiding under his clothes.
It sent a real shiver down my spine. I could only imagine being able to run my fingers over him, feeling his body against mine, moving in that primal dance.
The image became so intense that I had to look away for a few seconds and clear my throat. Out here in public, I had to make sure that I stayed demure. Especially this close to work.
Calder paid for the pretzels and handed me one.
“It’s bigger than I expected,” I pointed out, going in for a small bite.
Calder snorted. “Won’t be the only thing you say that about, I hope.”
At that, I swallowed the pretzel bit I’d been eating whole, and started coughing. Calder quickly hammered on my back a few times without hesitation, and the bite dislodged. I managed to get it down, but had to pause to catch my breath.
“You alright?” Calder asked with a voice full of concern. “Didn’t mean to cause a medical emergency.”
“I’m fine,” I laughed, shaking my head. “I just didn’t expect that.”
“Rhea, it’s you!” The familiar voice drew my attention, and I spotted Jackie approaching us with her pack of small dogs. “How are you doing? How’s the house? I saw you got the fence fixed. Must’ve cost a pretty penny, eh?”
I noticed Calder’s slight frown. Probably annoyed that his time with me was being interrupted yet again. I was, too, but I couldn’t just chase Jackie away. I smiled, and leaned in when she wrapped me in a hug.
“Actually, I had some help with the house,” I answered when I stepped back again, glancing over at Calder sneakily. “I’d say I’m doing pretty great, actually.”
“Oh good, good, and you? Who are you, if I may ask?” Jackie’s tone was conspiratorial when she looked over at Calder. I was sure she actually knew who he was, but maybe she just wanted more information than she already had.
“Calder. I work at the fire station.” he said politely with a quick nod of his head. “You’re Jackie, right?”
“Oh, you know me then,” she giggled, waving him off with one hand. “I suppose I am around a lot. Speaking of the fire station, you’ve heard about that apartment fire, haven’t you? I heard that they called it arson, can you believe it?”
“Really?” I asked curiously, looking to Calder for confirmation, and he nodded. The only thing I’d heard about it was during my eavesdropping session, and I didn’t want to make that too obvious. Plus, I didn’t spend a lot of time with the guys talking about the fires they were putting out.
“Thought you’d know.” Jackie’s eyes were wide. “You think they have a suspect yet? Was it one of the people in the house? Insurance, you think? Usually it’s insurance, isn’t it? Or, did they have enemies? A lot of people have deep secrets that you’d never see from just looking at them, right?”
“We don’t really know much about it just yet,” Calder answered evenly. “I can’t talk about anything that hasn’t been made public, anyway.”
Jackie waved her hand at that. “Of course, of course, I suppose I’m just overly curious. But you can’t blame me, really, it’s not the kind of thing that happens here often, is it? Everyone’s been talking about it, it’s crazy. All kinds of theories out there, I’ve heard.”
“Shouldn’t believe all the gossip,” Calder warned seriously, and Jackie chuckled.
“I wouldn’t,” she insisted, though I wasn’t so sure she meant it. “I just like listening, you know? Hearing what people think. It’s the most interesting thing in my life right now, unfortunately. Not exactly a wild ride. Although, I have started a herb garden.”
“You have?” I prompted, glad for the change in topic.
“Had no idea I had such green thumbs, to be honest with you,” Jackie answered brightly, clearly happy that someone was showing interest in her hobbies.
“They’re doing great. Pretty soon, I’ll be handing out spices with packages.
Maybe I’ll start a small business. Maybe not, my husband wouldn’t be too happy with all of that.
He likes his food bland, you know? Like everything else.
Nothing fiery for him. He says it gives him acid reflux, but I think he’s just got a boring palette. ”
One of her dogs began to whine and pull at its leash. The others soon impatiently joined in, which made Jackie let out a long sigh.
“I suppose I have to go now,” she said, rolling her eyes. “They don’t like having their walks interrupted.”
Calder shot me a look and I had to hold back a smile while I answered. “Just like kids, aren’t they? I’ll see you later, right?”
“Sure, sure!” Jackie grinned before she started walking away. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Calder!”
“You, too,” Calder said over his shoulder, watching her leave with a look of relief on his face. Then, he turned back to me. “Well, she’s lovely.”
“Likes to chat,” I added with a quick wink. “Too bad it’s at the most inopportune times.”
“You’re telling me,” Calder agreed. “Honestly, is it even a date if we don’t get interrupted at this point?”
It was as he said this that his phone began to ring and he cursed under his breath. I waited tensely for him to answer, and as soon as he did, his face fell somewhat.
“Chief,” he said with a disappointed tone in his voice. “How can I help you, Sir? Mm, okay, yeah… I mean, I understand, Sir. I’ll be right there.”
When he ended the call, he looked at me terribly forlorn. I was certain whatever news he was going to share wasn’t going to be good.
“He wants to talk about how we’re going to handle the press with the apartment fire,” Calder explained as he ran a frustrated hand through his hair. “I’m training to be a lieutenant, so since it’s going to be part of my job, I don’t really have a choice but to go in.”
“Right now?” I asked sadly, and he pursed his lips.
“Yeah, but I won’t be leaving you with nothing.”
I was about to ask him what he meant when he put one hand around my neck and pulled me in for a kiss. I moved the pretzel out of the way just fast enough for it not to get squished between our chests.
I could taste the salt on Calder’s lips and feel the heat of his body through our clothes. With my free hand, I grasped at his shirt, feeling the hunger building in me. I knew that we were still in public, still in the park, but some part of me simply didn’t care who saw.
The passion behind Calder’s movements was a promise of what was possible, of what he could offer me behind the walls he had built. It told of a wild side, an animal part of him hidden behind all of his stoicism, and I wanted to find that.
But before I knew it, it was over, and he pulled away from me. I could feel the heat rushing to my face as I stood breathless in front of him.
“I need to go,” he said, touching my chin with his thumb and forefinger and making me shiver. “But there’s more where that came from, if you have the patience to wait for me.”
I was speechless, and he smiled before he left.
I watched him walking away and wished that our moments together never had to end.
At the same time, I was aware that I needed to get back to work, and that this pretzel wasn’t going to eat itself.
I munched on it as I headed back to the mall, my heart feeling as if it had been lifted to the clouds.
When I returned home later, I was still dreaming of that kiss in the park. That was probably why I was surprised when I walked up onto the porch and noticed Beck standing there with a box of tools.
“Beck?” I paused in front of the door as I unlocked it. “Did I forget you were coming over? I’m sorry. It’s probably the light fixture upstairs, right?”
“Ah, you didn’t forget anything,” Beck said, taking a step closer toward me. “And as for the light fixture, we’ll see if I still have time for that after.”
“After what?” I asked, but Beck didn’t answer my question verbally. Instead, he pulled me into a kiss, pushing me through the front door and into the house. I heard it shut behind him, and I felt a flutter in my stomach as I wondered what was coming next.