“YOU FINISH WITH the checklist, Jasper?” Frankie asked the station’s teenage volunteer.
Jasper had arrived, as he usually did, less than fifteen minutes after school let out. Granted, she only knew this because he’d signed in on the call sheet, as she’d been out answering calls. Nothing serious. Just...typical. One frantic panic attack due to a sparking microwave that had set off Carla Bouvenet’s smoke alarm. Jonathan Fitzgibbons now sported an Ace bandage for his sprained ankle thanks to a worn-through porch plank he’d promised to fix two months ago. She’d applied a butterfly bandage to Brian Tart’s hairline because his wife accidentally walloped him with a length of new rain gutter they were trying to install. And then there had been Petunia, Peter Preston’s pet parrot, who took any opportunity to fly out the front door and perch on the highest branch of the historic oak tree across the street in the park. That the parrot knew Frankie by name should have added a little levity to the situation, but given Frankie was now sporting some extensive scrapes and scratches from the untrimmed branches, she’d found herself wondering what the pet bird population might be in other towns. That could become a deciding factor for her future.
She rubbed at the sore spot on her hand where Petunia had pecked her before stepping onto Frankie’s stiffened fingers.
“Sure did.” Jasper glanced up long enough to point to the clipboard hanging near the file cabinet. “Tested all the oxygen tanks, checked the pressure in the hoses, cleaned the masks, you know.” His smile was quick and distracted. “All the usual. It’s a routine now. Doesn’t take me long.”
And, knowing Jasper, he’d been as meticulous as always. “What’re you doing now?” She stepped into the chief’s office just in time to see Jasper click to another window. His laptop sat on top of the desk. Well, more like a table that her father had made for her and Monty for their tenth birthday. How many hours had she spent doing her homework at that table, the sights and sounds of the firehouse so familiar to her? “Jasper.” She folded her arms over her chest and leaned against the chief’s desk. “What’s going on?”
Growing up, she and Monty had also earned reputations—in fact, Mrs. Hastings would have called the pair of them troublemakers. Although in hindsight, they hadn’t come close to what Simon Saxon and his sidekick Charlie Bradley had accomplished in the last couple of years.
Jasper O’Neill, on the other hand, had scared folks with his penchant for black-as-death clothing and a loner attitude that had made those closest to him worry about him. What he’d been hiding, however, was an intelligence trapped by circumstance and years of bullying and misunderstanding. With a mother who had been ill most of his life, an older sister overwhelmed by responsibility as the main money earner in the house and a younger sister he helped care for, Jasper had been drowning. It had been Paige Bradley and her now husband, Fletcher, who had looked deeper into his situation and lent a helping hand.
Now, at almost eighteen and graduating with honors next spring, Jasper had finally come into his own to become one of Frankie’s most reliable volunteers at the firehouse. Despite being too young to be an official volunteer, he had proven himself by helping stop a rash of increasingly violent vandalisms. Having the local sheriff and other deputies take him under their wings had made a tremendous difference, as had the college extension courses he’d been taking the last year and a half. Now that Jasper had embraced that which made him so unique, there would be no stopping him.
“Jasper, what are you up to?” she asked again when he didn’t respond.
“Nothing, really.” He flinched, and Frankie couldn’t tell if he was feeling guilty or just uncertain. “I was...” He trailed off. “Well, I guess it wouldn’t hurt to tell someone.” He clicked open the other window and sat back. “Here. Go ahead. Look.”
“I will only if you want me to.” Frankie was never one to push someone into talking about something they didn’t want to.
“No, I want you to. It’s kind of your fault, anyway.”
Curious, Frankie moved in and scanned the website on the screen. Even as she struggled to keep her voice calm, her heart surged into her throat. “You’re thinking of becoming a firefighter? Jasper, that’s great!” He wasn’t a hugger, so she settled for patting his shoulder.
“You sure?” Jasper didn’t look convinced. “I’ve been going back and forth between this and the military, looking at different options as far as what will help me get into crime scene investigation. I like fire.”
Frankie choked on a laugh.
“Okay, that sounded weird.” Jasper joined her and offered a quick smile. “I get how it all works, you know? The chemical reactions, the way fire acts. I love the process of puzzling it all together. And I think I’d be really good at it.”
“Jasper, you’ll be great at whatever you choose to do. But fair warning. The training to be a firefighter is seriously hard. You’re going to have to build up some muscle and a lot of stamina if you’re going to even pass the entrance test. The physical qualifications alone—”
“I know.” Jasper looked down at his pipe cleaner–like arms. The kid had always been on the skinny side, and puberty hadn’t helped much other than to add significant height. He was taller than she was. “I’m not worried about the EMT stuff. But the rest? That’s what has me worried.”
“Is that why you’re waffling? You’re afraid you won’t pass?”
Jasper shrugged. “I don’t want to let anyone down.”
“You’d only let us down if you didn’t try for what you want. Tell you what.” She leaned over again, skimmed the small print. “I’ll set you up with a training program. Plus, we always need more volunteers, and you turn eighteen next month. That’ll get you good practical experience.”
“You mean it?” Jasper blinked up at her, and for a moment, he looked like he did when he was ten years old. All big, dark eyes and too-long black hair, daring to believe in something impossible.
As usual, once an idea took root in Frankie’s head, it started blooming immediately. “You already know our routine, but there’s tons more you can learn. And I can train you, help you bulk up and improve your strength. I’ll be honest, I’ll kick your butt and you’ll probably hate me. But if you want this, I will do everything I can to make it happen.”
“You’d really do that for me?”
Did he have to sound so surprised? “The chief did it for me.” Because her own father had been gone by then. “Now’s my chance to pass it on.” In case she moved on. Yeah. The more she thought about it, the more fitting her offer felt. She clicked to bookmark the application site. “You go home and you talk to your mom and sisters. You fill them in on everything you’ve told me. If, after that, you decide this is what you want, I’ll go to bat for you when it comes to applying to a firefighter program.”
She saw him swallow hard. “That would be amazing.”
“Just remember you said that when I’ve got you running five miles a day and lifting weights heavier than Mrs. Hastings’s grocery bags.” She had to resist the urge to ruffle his hair. Pride she hadn’t known she possessed welled up. She remembered when he’d been born, had watched him grow up and, at times, had wished she had the opportunity to help him. Now, finally she’d found her chance. “In fact, why don’t you head on home. Think about what you want to say to them. And tell them you have my complete support.”
“I don’t know how to thank you.” His eyes flickered to the side, and for a moment, she saw panic in the dark depths. She turned and found Roman standing in the doorway, unabashedly eavesdropping.
Wow... Frankie had to stop herself from gaping. Did the man have to be so...overwhelming? The last thing she needed was a reminder that her boss had more appeal than a movie-star superhero.
If he’d meant to throw her off-kilter by his surprise appearance, he’d be disappointed. She was the master at hiding her emotions. And attraction. Not that she’d ever felt this level of attraction for a man before. “You can thank me by promising to do your best, Jasper,” Frankie told the kid. “But before you go, it’s time you met our new chief. Chief Salazar, this is Jasper O’Neill. He’s been one of our in-station volunteers for the past few months, helping with paperwork and equipment checks. Jasper, Chief Salazar.”
Roman strode forward and offered his hand as Jasper stood up. “Nice to meet you, Jasper. Did I hear correctly? You’re thinking about becoming a firefighter?”
“Yes, sir. Frankie—”
“I’m mentoring him,” Frankie cut in to challenge any argument Roman might have. “As I’ve been in charge of the volunteer staff for the past three years, it’s in my purview.”
Roman nodded. “We can always use great candidates. I second Frankie’s endorsement. I’m happy to lend a hand where needed. Did I also hear you’re interested in arson investigation?”
Frankie bit the inside of her cheek. Just how long had he been listening?
Jasper nodded. “That’s what I really want to do. But I know I need experience first. And education. A lot of it.”
“Then we have a lot in common.” Roman stepped back. “It was nice to meet you, Jasper. I look forward to seeing you around.”
“You, too, sir. Frankie, I’ll see you tomorrow with an answer.”
“Take your time,” Frankie reminded him. “It’s a big decision. I want you to think about it. Lay everything out. And give your mom time to get used to the idea. You know how much she worries about you.” And diving headfirst into the world of fire prevention and safety wasn’t exactly, well, safe. “Monday’s fine.”
“All right. Should I talk to Luke or will you—”
“We’ll talk to the sheriff about your hours.” And the mayor. The thought turned her stomach. Getting Gil to transfer the funds for Jasper’s part-time employment from the sheriff’s department to the fire department might be the biggest challenge in the whole situation. “Don’t worry.”
“Awesome.” He slapped his laptop shut and packed up his bag. “I’ll see you later. Nice to meet you, Chief.”
“You, too, Jasper.” Roman stepped back as Jasper raced out.
Frankie waited until she heard the front door slam before she looked at Roman. “I didn’t hear you come in.”
“I’m light-footed.” Roman’s eyes glinted, but she couldn’t tell what he was thinking. She could almost always get a read on people, just not him. “I have to admit, I was surprised to hear you offering him a job.”
“Yeah, well.” Frankie cringed. “It just kind of happened. I didn’t want to discourage him, and he needs help.”
“Got it in just under the wire, didn’t you? Not much I can do about it without looking like the bad guy. Seeing as I won’t officially be chief until Monday.”
Frankie swallowed hard. “Didn’t exactly cross my mind. At first. Sir.”
Roman smirked. “And here I thought the diner this morning would be my trial by fire. I suppose I should thank you for not calling ahead and outing me the second I walked in the door.”
“Did you not have a good breakfast?” She tilted her head, blinked innocently.
“I had a wonderful breakfast, actually. These are for you.” He placed a white paper bag on the desk. “Pumpkin scones. Consider it a peace offering.”
Frankie scowled. Darn it! How was she supposed to loathe the man when he kept being so darned...nice.
“Mrs. Hastings says hello,” he said. “As does...what did she call them? The Cocoon Club? Along with half the town it seems.”
“Mrs. Hastings, huh? Now she’s a tough one.”
“Turns out she eats there every Thursday morning without fail. And she had quite a bit to say about you.”
She would not blush. “I’m innocent until proven guilty.”
“Not from what I hear. Look.” Roman sat on the edge of the desk and crossed his arms over his chest. “I get that you don’t want to make this easy on me, and truth be told, in your place, I’d probably be thinking about doing worse to someone who took the job I’d been working so long to get.”
Grudging appreciation slipped through her veins along with a good chunk of frustration. Didn’t anything irk him?
“Nothing is going to change the fact that I’m here,” he went on. “Or that I’m going to be here for a while. We need to find a way to work together, Frankie. And that means, first and foremost, we need to get this initial resentment behind us.”
Seeing him perched on the chief’s desk wasn’t going to speed up that process.
“And you hiring people behind my back isn’t going to go far in a truce.”
“I didn’t do it as a shot across the bow,” Frankie told him. Still, she loved her job, and for now, she wasn’t going anywhere. Which meant she needed to get on board with the chain of command. No matter how disappointed and disillusioned she was, her obligation to the town overrode any personal or professional setbacks she was meant to endure. “I did it because it needed to be done. You don’t know Jasper. You don’t know what he’s been through or what he’s overcome.”
“That’s true. I don’t. I don’t know anything about this town except what I’ve seen so far. That said, the respectful thing would have been for you to come to me first before making the offer to Jasper. I probably wouldn’t have said no, but you took the choice away from me. And that I don’t appreciate.”
“So you’re, what?” She really hated that he was right. “Going to say no now and place the blame on me?”
His relaxed face tensed, and for the first time, ice flashed in his eyes. “Snotty doesn’t work with me, Frankie.”
Her mouth twisted. Yeah. It didn’t work with her, either.
“You and I need to come to an understanding. You need me to sign off on Jasper’s employment as a probie.”
She gnashed her teeth. “Yes.”
“And I need you here, focused on the job. Not trying to find the best place to stab me in the back. I learned one important thing at the diner—I can’t do this job without you. So, here’s what we’re going to do.”
Panic seized her throat. Was he going to fire her?
“I’ll sign off on everything you want for Jasper. I’ll even go to the mayor and have a discussion about the budget and our need for more firefighters. I’ll lend my expertise in helping Jasper study and take over if you can’t do something. We’ll tag team and get him solidly into the program.”
“That’s...generous of you.” Not to mention unexpected. “And what exactly do you want in exchange?”
“Nothing.” A sly smile slipped across his full, amazing lips.
She tilted her head and arched a brow.
His smile widened. “Nothing yet. I’ll do it on credit.”
She smirked. “Thought so.” But he’d caught her interest. He wasn’t steamrolling over her. He could have, but for whatever reason, he’d chosen not to. And that she had to respect. And appreciate. “Okay. You work out a deal with Gil about Jasper and I’ll ease up. A little.” She didn’t want him to think she was a pushover.
He narrowed his eyes. “No catch?”
Now she smiled. “Not yet. Come on, Salazar. A big, handsome firefighter like you can handle a little snark and sass, can’t you? Consider it an added challenge of the job.”
His grin widened. “Handsome, huh?”
Frankie’s face went hot. “Figures that’s what you’d pick up on. You know what I mean.”
“Yes, thankfully, I do. Okay.” He held out his hand and, after a moment’s hesitation, she accepted and they shook on their deal. “Now that we’ve got that settled, tell me something.”
“What?”
“What on earth is a Cocoon Club?”