Safe From the Fire by Lily Rede

She’d been doing it for
years, but for Matt, it was clearly a new experience, and he was tense and
awkward as they ordered.
    “How’s
the house coming?” Grace asked brightly, trying to put him at ease.
    Matt
had been building a house in his spare time for the better part of a year now,
doing as much of it as possible with his own two hands.
    “It’s
getting there.  I need to finish up a few things before it really gets cold,
and then the rest can wait until the thaw.  Maybe next summer I’ll build a
deck.”
    He
smiled, and Grace was momentarily blindsided by the image of Matt in nothing
but low-slung jeans, working on his deck under the hot sun.  She took a long
swallow of wine.
    “That’s
great.  I can’t wait to see it.”
    “Come
on over sometime, I’ll give you the grand tour.”  He said the words lightly,
but she caught a glimpse of hot blue flame before he lowered his eyes to draw a
pattern on the tablecloth with his fork.
    Grace
cleared her throat.
    “Actually,
I was wondering if I could borrow a toolkit?  Adam wanted to fix a few things
and was horrified by my lack of proper tool thingies. I figure it’s good for
him to have something to do.”
    Matt
considered her carefully, but said only, “Sure, we can stop by my place on the
way home and I’ll get you set up.”
    Millie
arrived with their meals and Grace was grateful.  Matt took a look around,
frowning at all the curious eyes.
    “This
is crazy,” Matt muttered, “By tomorrow morning they’re going to be arguing over
what we had for dinner.  Doesn’t this bother you?”
    “I’ve
gotten used to it,” Grace replied.
    The
rest of the meal passed easily enough, and though Matt did his best to engage
her in conversation, asking her about music and the library, and sharing
stories about some of the Fire Department’s more bizarre calls, he seemed
acutely aware of all the eyes on their table.  Grace could sense his unease,
but she could also feel the spark between them whenever his knee brushed hers
under the table.
    Can’t
have one without the other, she thought.
    How
depressing.
     

CHAPTER FIVE
     
    THE
DRIVE TO MATT’S house was quiet, and Grace sat in the SUV wondering what he was
thinking, but too chicken to ask.  She was kicking herself for having agreed to
this whole night in the first place, and if Matt found out the real reason they
were incompatible, well, that was it.  He seemed stubbornly determined to make things
work out between them, and she had a terrible feeling she was going to have to
tell him the truth, and probably humiliate them both in the process.
    It
would help if his scent wasn’t filling the car, his strength and heat just a
foot away, teasing her and filling her with the desire to yank him across the
console and have her way with him on the side of the road.
    Dammit.
    “Let’s
get that toolkit for Adam and then how about we get some ice cream and head up
to the bluff?  No audience this time, I promise.”
    Grace
squirmed in her seat.
    “Maybe
we should just…call it a night, Matt,” she said, feeling like a heel.
    He
was silent for a long moment, and then, “Sure, if that’s what you want.”
    Matt
pulled up to the house and Grace didn’t wait for him to open her door.  Her
eyes widened as she took in the progress on the structure – a beautiful three
stories with a wraparound porch.  It was a house designed for a family, for
children and grandchildren and extended family to fill to the rafters.  She
felt emotion clogging her throat and wondered what, exactly, he saw in her –
she might occasionally wonder about a husband and children, but she wasn’t cut
out for something like this.
    “Like
it?” he asked, and she was surprised to find him watching her carefully, as
though waiting for her approval.
    “It’s
beautiful,” she said honestly.
    He
smiled, and she felt the warmth clear to her toes, even letting him take her
hand to lead her up to the front door.  The interior was