on the landing.
Lest she turn around and see him, he ducked back and flattened himself against the back of the truck. Options rushed over options—all of them viable had he been anybody else. Maybe he could just conveniently be hanging around when she came back down, but how long would she be up there? And what did she want with Hayes? Advertising didn’t exactly lend itself to visiting fire stations on a regular basis.
“Hey, Jeff,” Hunter said from the top of the truck, “want to help me with this?”
“Oh, sure.” Jeff reached for the rung and pulled himself up just as she disappeared into the office. Yes, he could just conveniently be hanging around. That would work, but then what?
He didn’t miss the looks back up to the door that Dante made as he returned down the steps and strode to the truck. Two vaults and he joined them up top.
“Now there’s a set of chrome I wouldn’t mind shining,” Dante said, fanning himself as if the fire station had itself just been set ablaze.
“Nice hooks and ladders,” Hunter agreed, and the outsides of Jeff’s ears went hot.
He crossed his arms. “What did you need?”
“Oh, here.” Hunter bent to pick up a piece of supply hose. “Help me with this.”
It was nice to have something to do, something to make them stop talking, and something so his heart wouldn’t actually pound right out of his chest. As they worked, his own gaze continually traveled up those steps. They were right of course, she was gorgeous, but his memory and his heart said she was far, far more than that.
“Right now I’m putting together a proposal to get the schools interested,” Lisa said when Captain Hayes looked at her as if he might throw her out before she got him talked into anything. “We’ve done the traditional businesses talk to the top kids for hundreds of years, we just wanted to try something new with this thing.”
“I thought you were in advertising.” The scowl on the Captain’s face deepened the wrinkles lining his face.
“I am, but my uncle works for Mr. Cordell, and well… he thought it would be good advertising for their firm, except their corporate agency thought it was just too far out of what they wanted to do, so my uncle suggested me, and here I am.”
“And here you are.” Hayes crossed his arms. “And you want me to come and speak at this little gathering of yours?”
“Well, yes—unless you want to send someone in your place. Like I said earlier, nothing is really set yet. We’re just putting out feelers to see what’s possible on this thing.”
“I don’t know. I don’t exactly make a habit of booking speaking engagements.”
Lisa’s heart fell with her face. Her ace was slipping away.
“However…” Hayes pulled one of his drawers open and slipped a small card out of it. “Here’s the number for Vincent Fletcher with the downtown PD. You give him a call. If you can talk Fletch into this thing, I’ll consider it.”
“Oh, thank you, Sir.” She took the card, wondering when she had become so attached to the inner workings of the city of Houston. “I’ll give him a call this afternoon.”
Hayes smiled with a secret behind his gray eyes, and Lisa’s gaze caught on it. Something in his eyes said he’d just won clemency. Before he told her outright that he would jump from the Transco Tower before he’d get up in front of a group of high schoolers, she stood and offered her hand. “Thanks so much for your time.”
“Let me know what Fletch says,” Hayes said with that smile she didn’t like very much.
“I’ll let you know.”
In the deepest part of his gut, Jeff heard the click of the upstairs door. He had been listening for nothing else during the past half hour. The waiting was enough to make his nerves fray. The instant he heard it, however, his gaze snapped to the figure in navy as it turned and quietly closed the door a story above. Panic gripped him in a tight fist and swung him off the top of
Lest she turn around and see him, he ducked back and flattened himself against the back of the truck. Options rushed over options—all of them viable had he been anybody else. Maybe he could just conveniently be hanging around when she came back down, but how long would she be up there? And what did she want with Hayes? Advertising didn’t exactly lend itself to visiting fire stations on a regular basis.
“Hey, Jeff,” Hunter said from the top of the truck, “want to help me with this?”
“Oh, sure.” Jeff reached for the rung and pulled himself up just as she disappeared into the office. Yes, he could just conveniently be hanging around. That would work, but then what?
He didn’t miss the looks back up to the door that Dante made as he returned down the steps and strode to the truck. Two vaults and he joined them up top.
“Now there’s a set of chrome I wouldn’t mind shining,” Dante said, fanning himself as if the fire station had itself just been set ablaze.
“Nice hooks and ladders,” Hunter agreed, and the outsides of Jeff’s ears went hot.
He crossed his arms. “What did you need?”
“Oh, here.” Hunter bent to pick up a piece of supply hose. “Help me with this.”
It was nice to have something to do, something to make them stop talking, and something so his heart wouldn’t actually pound right out of his chest. As they worked, his own gaze continually traveled up those steps. They were right of course, she was gorgeous, but his memory and his heart said she was far, far more than that.
“Right now I’m putting together a proposal to get the schools interested,” Lisa said when Captain Hayes looked at her as if he might throw her out before she got him talked into anything. “We’ve done the traditional businesses talk to the top kids for hundreds of years, we just wanted to try something new with this thing.”
“I thought you were in advertising.” The scowl on the Captain’s face deepened the wrinkles lining his face.
“I am, but my uncle works for Mr. Cordell, and well… he thought it would be good advertising for their firm, except their corporate agency thought it was just too far out of what they wanted to do, so my uncle suggested me, and here I am.”
“And here you are.” Hayes crossed his arms. “And you want me to come and speak at this little gathering of yours?”
“Well, yes—unless you want to send someone in your place. Like I said earlier, nothing is really set yet. We’re just putting out feelers to see what’s possible on this thing.”
“I don’t know. I don’t exactly make a habit of booking speaking engagements.”
Lisa’s heart fell with her face. Her ace was slipping away.
“However…” Hayes pulled one of his drawers open and slipped a small card out of it. “Here’s the number for Vincent Fletcher with the downtown PD. You give him a call. If you can talk Fletch into this thing, I’ll consider it.”
“Oh, thank you, Sir.” She took the card, wondering when she had become so attached to the inner workings of the city of Houston. “I’ll give him a call this afternoon.”
Hayes smiled with a secret behind his gray eyes, and Lisa’s gaze caught on it. Something in his eyes said he’d just won clemency. Before he told her outright that he would jump from the Transco Tower before he’d get up in front of a group of high schoolers, she stood and offered her hand. “Thanks so much for your time.”
“Let me know what Fletch says,” Hayes said with that smile she didn’t like very much.
“I’ll let you know.”
In the deepest part of his gut, Jeff heard the click of the upstairs door. He had been listening for nothing else during the past half hour. The waiting was enough to make his nerves fray. The instant he heard it, however, his gaze snapped to the figure in navy as it turned and quietly closed the door a story above. Panic gripped him in a tight fist and swung him off the top of
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