the truck and down to the concrete below where his legs barely caught his weight.
“She’s back,” he heard Dante whisper from above, and instantly Jeff grabbed an air tank and put it into the truck. The heels clicked down the stairs, pinging across his heart like a hammer on spikes. Concrete. She was down, and his breathing stopped.
“Get what you were after?” Dante asked, and all of Jeff’s motions stopped.
“Yeah, I did. Thanks,” she said, and in his mind he saw the smile that had spent the last five days floating through his dreams.
“See you later?” Dante called.
“Yeah.” The door clicked open. “Later.” And the door closed along with Jeff’s eyes. Ugh. If only he had an ounce of courage, he would run after her. Then again if he had any courage at all, he would’ve long ago had her number.
“Taylor,” Hunter called from the top, and when Jeff looked up, all he saw was a roll of hose dropping on him fast. “Catch.”
She’s gone . Get back to work , his brain screamed as he fought not to fall over the folds of hose. She’s gone. The only problem was that his heart was screaming the same thing.
Truth be told Lisa had never been all that attached to fire stations or police departments. No, for way the most part, she had tried to avoid them at all costs; however, as she walked away, she couldn’t help but wonder if Jeff had gotten that position he had applied for. A small smile traced across even the doom surrounding her mission. She hoped he had. That soft spot in her heart filled her throat. Jeff somebody in a city of three million. It was a given that she would never see him again, and for all the logic of her head saying that was a good thing, she knew in some deep part of her that his name would trace across the expanse of her heart every time she was lucky enough to pass a fire station.
Long before his car actually got to it, Jeff noticed the Zebra sign as he inched his way up Eastex freeway the next morning after work. He smiled at how intricately she had worked the stripes. It was a work of art—even if it wasn’t hanging in some stuffy museum. Absently his hand shifted gears down, wondering where she was at this moment. At work? Going home? Somewhere on this very highway?
Wherever she was, he knew she would have his heart with her forever.
It was a full 48 hours before Lisa slowed down enough to think about him again. The preceding hours had been a mish-mash of wedding gowns, campaign concepts, and toasts. They were all intertwined so that her brain was having a hard time sorting them all out. However, as she stood at the top step of the church, watching her sister look so in love, her heart drifted back to the sight of his strong arms and those beautiful pools of blue.
In a way she was glad she hadn’t pursued anything. He was probably better as a dream anyway. That way he hadn’t done anything horrible to ruin her perfect picture of him. Who cared that she had no real chance with him? She didn’t anyway. Love in the real world was too messy. There were too many things that could get in the way—like what he was really like and what she was really like.
Knowing that, though, made the dream that much better. She would take the dream of him over the reality of all the guys she had ever actually known in a heartbeat. That understanding only solidified when Luke, Cory’s best bud in the whole world, the classy guy her sister’s new husband had picked for a best man, chose the moment she had potatoes and brown gravy two inches from her mouth to slide his hand under the table and onto her knee.
A barely muffled gasp jumped from her throat as the potatoes leaped from her fork and landed squarely on the center of her cream skirt with the swirl of vines and pink flowers.
“Lisa,” Haley said with concern looking down the head table, “are you okay?”
“Umm, yeah,” Lisa said, wishing she could knock Mr. Hand into another wedding party.
“Here,
“She’s back,” he heard Dante whisper from above, and instantly Jeff grabbed an air tank and put it into the truck. The heels clicked down the stairs, pinging across his heart like a hammer on spikes. Concrete. She was down, and his breathing stopped.
“Get what you were after?” Dante asked, and all of Jeff’s motions stopped.
“Yeah, I did. Thanks,” she said, and in his mind he saw the smile that had spent the last five days floating through his dreams.
“See you later?” Dante called.
“Yeah.” The door clicked open. “Later.” And the door closed along with Jeff’s eyes. Ugh. If only he had an ounce of courage, he would run after her. Then again if he had any courage at all, he would’ve long ago had her number.
“Taylor,” Hunter called from the top, and when Jeff looked up, all he saw was a roll of hose dropping on him fast. “Catch.”
She’s gone . Get back to work , his brain screamed as he fought not to fall over the folds of hose. She’s gone. The only problem was that his heart was screaming the same thing.
Truth be told Lisa had never been all that attached to fire stations or police departments. No, for way the most part, she had tried to avoid them at all costs; however, as she walked away, she couldn’t help but wonder if Jeff had gotten that position he had applied for. A small smile traced across even the doom surrounding her mission. She hoped he had. That soft spot in her heart filled her throat. Jeff somebody in a city of three million. It was a given that she would never see him again, and for all the logic of her head saying that was a good thing, she knew in some deep part of her that his name would trace across the expanse of her heart every time she was lucky enough to pass a fire station.
Long before his car actually got to it, Jeff noticed the Zebra sign as he inched his way up Eastex freeway the next morning after work. He smiled at how intricately she had worked the stripes. It was a work of art—even if it wasn’t hanging in some stuffy museum. Absently his hand shifted gears down, wondering where she was at this moment. At work? Going home? Somewhere on this very highway?
Wherever she was, he knew she would have his heart with her forever.
It was a full 48 hours before Lisa slowed down enough to think about him again. The preceding hours had been a mish-mash of wedding gowns, campaign concepts, and toasts. They were all intertwined so that her brain was having a hard time sorting them all out. However, as she stood at the top step of the church, watching her sister look so in love, her heart drifted back to the sight of his strong arms and those beautiful pools of blue.
In a way she was glad she hadn’t pursued anything. He was probably better as a dream anyway. That way he hadn’t done anything horrible to ruin her perfect picture of him. Who cared that she had no real chance with him? She didn’t anyway. Love in the real world was too messy. There were too many things that could get in the way—like what he was really like and what she was really like.
Knowing that, though, made the dream that much better. She would take the dream of him over the reality of all the guys she had ever actually known in a heartbeat. That understanding only solidified when Luke, Cory’s best bud in the whole world, the classy guy her sister’s new husband had picked for a best man, chose the moment she had potatoes and brown gravy two inches from her mouth to slide his hand under the table and onto her knee.
A barely muffled gasp jumped from her throat as the potatoes leaped from her fork and landed squarely on the center of her cream skirt with the swirl of vines and pink flowers.
“Lisa,” Haley said with concern looking down the head table, “are you okay?”
“Umm, yeah,” Lisa said, wishing she could knock Mr. Hand into another wedding party.
“Here,
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