Chapter 12 #2
“Are you ready to pack up?”
She shook her head. “This is your time. We can stay for as long as you want.”
“I’m good if you are.”
“You’re sure?”
He nodded. “I just wanted you to give shooting a try.”
“Thank you for showing me how.”
“You’re welcome.” He checked the chamber again before he put the pistol back in its case—the empty magazines next. “We’ll have to figure out what we want to do now.”
She grabbed her phone from her back pocket, looking at the time. It was just shy of lunchtime. “We could stop by the hardware store and get a key made before we have some lunch.”
He nodded, pushing the button to bring the barely used target back to their booth. “I like that idea.”
“We should probably get a picture while we’re here.”
“I like that idea, too,” he said as he threw the targets in the trash. “We’re mixing up our poses?”
She nodded. “I think we need to.”
“So, let’s try this.” He stood behind her, wrapping his arms around her shoulders, nestling his cheek against her head.
She rested back against his solid chest, not hating that he smelled just as good as he always did.
Holding up her phone, she framed them in the shot with their eye and ear protection still on, grinning as he did.
She took the picture, looking at her screen, seeing the cozy couple that the FBI wanted. “I think that’s good.”
He nodded as he let her go. “It’s great.”
She texted him the image, then slid her phone back into her pocket.
Ty grabbed his gun case. “You know, we could get your key made at Lowe’s or Home Depot. While we’re there, we could pick out a grill.”
She frowned. “Why would we do that?”
“Because it’s a beautiful summer day, and you told me the other night that you’re excited to have one.”
She continued to frown as she held his gaze. “But I’m not ready for a grill. I don’t have my patio yet.”
He shrugged. “Lots of people have grills that don’t have patios. You could store it in the garage for now.”
“But the plan is to wait until at least August.”
He shrugged again. “Plans can change.”
She wrinkled her nose. “I prefer it when they don’t.”
He grinned. “I’ve figured that out about you.”
She smiled before she sighed. “It’s a pretty big decision. Picking the right one.”
He raised his brow. “Is it?”
She nodded. “I want it to match the vibe of the space that I create. I don’t know what that is yet.”
“If we pick out a nice one—something you like—it’ll fit with any vibe. We could make a couple of burgers for our lunch today.”
She snagged her lip with her teeth because it wasn’t the worst idea. It had just never occurred to her to look until later in the summer—her original timeline.
“Delicious juicy burgers, Lyd. On your very own grill. We can eat them on the porch and enjoy the weather.”
She couldn’t deny that she was liking the idea more and more. “Maybe.”
He shrugged again. “Ultimately, it’s up to you, but we could put it in the back of the truck, take it home, and get it set up.”
She bobbed her head from side to side, figuring that Ty was onto something. “I guess it wouldn’t hurt to look.”
He smiled. “There she goes. Living on the edge and changing up her plans.”
She grinned as he winked at her and snagged her hand, walking out of the range with her.
Ty stood in the driveway next to Lydia, admiring her new honey of a grill while she glanced at the owner’s manual.
Stainless steel, four burners, side tables, a warming rack, and a Weber at that.
After an hour of intense scrutiny and reading what felt like hundreds of online reviews, she’d picked out a great one.
He rubbed his hands together, eager to move things along. “Let’s light this thing up.”
She started flipping back through the manual. “Let me read about it in the instructions again.”
He put a halting hand over hers. “We don’t need to read the instructions. I know how to turn on a grill.”
She nodded as she looked at him, snagging her bottom lip with her teeth. “Okay.”
“What’s up, Lyd?” Because something was bothering her. Plus, he was officially starving, and they still needed to let the chemicals burn off before they could put anything on the grates.
She shrugged. “I’ve never lit a grill before.”
“You won’t be able to say that after you do it.”
She swallowed. “Maybe you can do it this first time. So I can watch what you do.”
He adamantly shook his head. “No way. This is your grill. You need to do the inaugural light.”
She exhaled a quiet breath. “I just—Burke’s friend, Miles, burned his eyebrows off one summer when he tried to light the grill, and I’ve been a little nervous about the idea ever since.”
He frowned. “He burned them off?”
She nodded. “They were singed down to nothing. He looked pretty different until they grew back.”
“How the hell did he do that?”
“The gas ran for too long, and it made a bit of a fireball. I remember that I was twelve that summer. Miles, Burke, and I were on our back porch. Mom called Dad in to help her with something in the kitchen, and Miles told Burke that he knew how to light the grill—that he did it all the time at his house. Burke told him to go ahead, and shortly after, there was a poof of fire, and that was it for Miles’s eyebrows. ”
Ty huffed out a laugh as he shook his head, more than a little amused by her story. “He’s lucky he only lost his eyebrows.”
“Mm-hmm,” she said as she eyed the grill before she looked at him again. “I just—I really like my eyebrows, Ty.”
He burst out laughing, finding her as funny as he did absolutely damn adorable. “They’re great eyebrows.”
“I think so.”
“We’ll make sure you keep them.” He gave her shoulder a nudge closer to the grill. “You can do this. I’ll walk you through the steps.”
She nodded with more determination. “Okay.”
He pulled out his phone, opened his camera app, and hit the record button.
She frowned as she looked at him. “What are you doing?”
He zoomed in on her stunning face. “I’m recording your big moment. Plus, this might be our last image of you with your eyebrows.”
She glared as she settled her hands on her hips. “Very funny.”
He tipped his head back with his next big laugh, having a hell of a time messing with her.
She struggled with a grin, eventually giving in to her laugh as she shoved at his arm. “You’re a bully.”
He shook his head, still chuckling. “You’re a good sport.”
She rolled her eyes, smiling while she shrugged. “I’m ready to learn if you’re done teasing me.”
“I’m done teasing you.” He refocused the camera to include her and the grill, wanting to record the whole experience. “Okay. You want to make sure the lid is open, which it is, so go ahead and open the cabinet and twist the gas all the way on.”
She bent down, doing as he instructed. “Got it.”
“Good. Now, turn the left knob to high.”
She did, wincing as she quickly looked at him.
“Stand back a little and hit the ignite button right there to the left.”
She winced again as she pressed it, and the flame turned on along the burner. “It’s on,” she said, beaming at him.
He smiled as he held up his hand for a high five. “Yeah, it is. Great work.”
She continued to grin at him as she slapped his hand. “Thanks for the tutorial.”
“Anytime.” He stopped recording and turned on the other three burners, closing the lid to start heating the thing.
She smiled at him again. “This was a good idea, Ty.”
He shrugged. “It was your idea. I just suggested bumping up the timeline a little.”
“I’m glad we did.”
“Me, too.” He snagged her hand, and they started walking through the garage. “How about we get those burgers ready?”
She nodded, smiling again. “Okay.”