A Home for the Firefighter

by Amie Denman

  Kate smiled and her expression lightened a bit. “That’s quite a list of good things.”

  “And you’re on that list, too,” Brady said. “At the top.” He realized he had nothing to lose by going one giant step farther and saying what was really in his heart. “You know, twenty-five seems like one of those turning points in a person’s life where you think someone might have it all figured out.”

  “It sounds like you do,” Kate said. “You’re the most put-together person I know. Your goals are clear, you know what will make you happy and the tourists all think you’re the best trolley driver. I’ve seen the comment cards.”

  Brady laughed.

  “So you see why I say you’ve got it all figured out, far better than most people,” Kate added.

  “I think I may have more questions than answers right now, and I don’t think it’s because I just got a year older.” He paused and rolled his shoulders, trying to think through his words before he said them. “I thought it was a sad thing that my brother didn’t want or need to live with me anymore, now that he’s married. I panicked for a minute when I realized I don’t need to watch out for him anymore. I wasted some regret on that the past few days. But now I realize it means I can do what I want. I’m not really adrift, I’m sort of...free.”

  “So now you can pick out a house that’s just right for you,” Kate said. “Exactly what you want.”

  “Or...not at all.” He let his words sink in for a moment. “What if the thing I’ve always thought I wanted wasn’t really what I needed, after all? I always thought a permanent home would bring me happiness, but I realize now that I’ve had happiness for a long time.”

  Kate smiled. “You’re happy with yourself, that’s the best kind.”

  “Are you?”

  Kate’s smile faded and she physically drew back several inches. “Of course I am. I do what I want, go where I want. I’m not burdened by material possessions or what other people think I should do. I’m happy.”

  Her expression didn’t reinforce her words, and Brady wished he hadn’t killed her smile by asking, Are you?

  Kate swallowed and glanced over at the fire station. “I should go. Your pizza is getting cold, and I never intended to stay long. I just wanted to say happy birthday and tell you I left a little gift for you at your house. Your brother can show you.”

  She started to turn away.

  “Wait,” he said. “Can I have a birthday kiss?”

  Kate turned back to him, reached up and touched her lips to his, and Brady closed his eyes and tried to imprint her touch and scent so he wouldn’t forget. He opened his eyes, and seeing her sweet face made him want to throw every bit of caution to the wind.

  “I love you, Kate.”

  Her mouth opened and she took a huge step backward. She stared at him a moment, and then turned and walked toward her car as if a forest fire was chasing her. Brady watched her drive away, knowing he’d crossed a line but also knowing it didn’t matter. The truth was the truth, and saying the words wasn’t going to change anything. He loved her, and that meant he had to let her go.

  When he got home that evening and saw Kate’s surfboard leaning against the wall of his garage, he knew it was a sign that she was still planning to leave Cape Pursuit and the memories of their summer far behind her.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  KATE WAITED PATIENTLY for about thirty seconds before blowing the trolley’s horn. An expensive car with out-of-state plates was parked in the trolley lane, blocking the next stop. Kate’s trolley was full of passengers who were temporarily enjoying the air-conditioned ride on the blistering August day, but they wouldn’t appreciate a delay.

  Despite three long blasts of the trolley horn, the sleek black sedan didn’t move. Was there anyone in it or was it actually and unbelievably parked right in the way?

  “Want me to get out and have them move it, or can we let people off here?” Josh asked as he came to the front of the trolley to see what the holdup was.

  “I can’t park on the street, it wouldn’t be safe,” Kate said. “Stay here. I’ll see if I can get the guy to move the car so we can get into the stop.”

  Kate barreled down the three steps and approached the driver’s window. A man’s profile was visible despite the tinted glass. The window slid down, and a flash of recognition hit Kate. She hadn’t seen him in over a year, not since the upscale wedding, but she was looking at her cousin’s husband behind the wheel of the illegally parked car.

  “Kate, oh my gosh, there you are!”

  Her cousin Lillie flew from a boutique right by the car and ran toward Kate, waving shopping bags and smiling. “I knew you ran the trolley, so I told Cameron if we just followed the trolley lane, we might run into you. And here you are!”

  Seeing her cousin was so unexpected that Kate stood, dumbfounded, in the street. Josh blew the horn on the trolley, and Kate swore she heard sirens approaching from a distance. If it was the police coming to clear the lane, she had better get Lillie and Cameron out of it.

  “Lillie,” Kate said, accepting a huge hug that included nearly being strangled with shopping bags. “What are you doing in Cape Pursuit?”

  “Vacation,” she said. “And then I saw this amazing shop.” She pointed behind her. “Have you ever been in there? It’s all designer—local, of course—and mostly one of a kind. I got three skirts and—”

  “You have to move your car,” Kate said. The sirens were getting closer and she didn’t want to contribute to a traffic incident. “I definitely want to hear about your vacation and see what you bought, but there’s a city lot right around the corner. Park there. I’ll pull the trolley into this space, and...we’ll figure it out.”

  A fire truck blasted past them, and Kate caught a glimpse of Brady riding in the passenger seat. Brady, who had announced he loved her as they stood in front of the fire station on his birthday. And what had she done? Run away as if he’d taken a fire hose to her. Her wild idea from the night of Noah and Corrinne’s wedding had flashed back to her a dozen times since Brady’s impulsive words, and she’d tried to imagine the scene that had seemed so clear the night the search parties found the missing man. She thought she’d found something, too—a way to have her freedom but come home to Brady. But when she’d seen his face as he told her he loved her, she had panicked at the immense power of his words. He wouldn’t accept a part-time relationship. That wasn’t what he was looking for.

  Kate watched the fire truck as it gained distance and tried not to imagine Brady going into a dangerous situation, even though she knew he did it every day.

  “That was a close one,” her cousin’s husband said. “I was worried about the side of my car for a minute.”

  “Better hurry,” Kate said, thinking a scrape down the side of his car might be a useful lesson for the future. Did he have any idea how hard it was to navigate these streets? Firefighters had a tough enough job. “And then come right back here,” she told Cameron. “You can get on my trolley and I’ll show you the sights while you tell me what’s up with you and we get caught up.”

  Kate pointed out the city parking lot to Lillie’s husband, and then Kate got back in her trolley. She grinned at the people seated in rows who were looking at her expectantly.

  “Tourists,” she said. “Can you believe those people?”

  Everyone laughed, and Kate pulled the trolley into the stop and parked it safely before allowing anyone to get on or off. Before the last person disembarked, Lillie and Cameron were back and Kate ushered them into the front seat on the trolley.

  “Do you mind driving?” she asked Josh. “I don’t want to be distracted by my visiting relatives.”

  “No problem.” Josh got behind the wheel, reached around to pull the bell and merged into traffic.

  Kate took the microphone and gave an abbreviated explanation of the sites they were passing and route i
nformation, and then she sat across from Lillie and Cameron. “I can’t believe you’re here in Cape Pursuit.”

  “And I can’t believe someone in our family finally tracked you down. You’re the elusive runner in the bunch, worrying us all to death.”

  Kate laughed. “You make my life sound glamorous.”

  “I used to think it was,” Lillie said. “When you left home right after high school to become a vagabond instead of a country-club wife, I was envious. I even told my parents I was going to do the same thing as soon as I graduated.”

  “And?”

  “And they expressly forbade it. Threatened to cut me off and told me no daughter of theirs was going to be a free spirit and tramp all over the country.”

  “Did they really say tramp?” Kate asked.

  “Something like that. So I gave it up, did the smart thing and married this guy,” she said, rubbing her nose on his cheek as he sat next to her on the bench. “And now we’re here on a little beach vacation before Cameron has to fly to Europe for two weeks of meetings.”

  Lillie began describing their hotel—the most luxurious one in Cape Pursuit—and her shopping conquests so far on her trip, but Kate’s mind wandered back to the month after her high school graduation when she turned down college, designer messenger bags, handmade leather boots for the coming fall, an expensive laptop and a chance to meet Mr. Right on campus. Her parents had been shocked and disappointed, there was no question of that, but they hadn’t threatened her with disinheritance or come anywhere close to forbidding her from going her own way.

  How hard that must have been for them, Kate realized now with six years of experience between her eighteen-year-old self and now. Each visit home since then, roughly every year and each time for some momentous family occasion such as a wedding, had come with a strong invitation to come home. They wanted her to give up what they called her reckless life on the road, but they hadn’t tried to force her. She felt a shiver of guilt when she remembered what they said as she left each time. They had told her they loved her and wished she would stay.

  “And the concierge desk is only open until six o’clock, so I want to get back to our resort by then so we can be assured of decent dinner reservations,” her cousin Lillie was saying. Cameron was nodding politely but looking out the window at the passing scenery.

  “Sure,” Kate said. “This trolley is on the short tourist loop today, so we’ll circle back around to your car in less than half an hour. That should give you plenty of time.”

  “And I’m making reservations for three so you can join us,” Lillie said. “Unless it should be four?”

  Kate shook her head. “Just me.” Brady might be available for the evening, but no way was she going to introduce him to her family. There were no firefighters in the Price family. Just investors, bankers, lawyers and the occasional tycoon. She wasn’t embarrassed by Brady’s profession, but she would be embarrassed for him to see firsthand what her family valued. If she was honest with herself, though, she knew the financial differences between her family and his was a lame excuse. How could she sit at a dinner table and make polite conversation with a man who’d confessed his love for her and to whom she’d given no answer in return? It wasn’t something they could chat about while they waited for dessert.

  “Your mother sent a gift for you,” Lillie said. “When she heard we were coming to Cape Pursuit, she made me promise to see you, as if I hadn’t already planned on it. I don’t want to ruin the surprise, but I think it’s a designer weekend bag. Maybe she hopes it will inspire you to come home. Everyone misses you, Kate.”

  “My parents could come themselves,” she said.

  Lillie shook her head. “Your dad has that big project going on all summer and can’t get away, and you know your mother would never set foot outside without him.”

  “I know,” Kate said. It sounded as if nothing had changed, and it reminded her how lucky she was to have her freedom and go where and when she wanted. She didn’t have to ask anyone’s permission or opinion, didn’t have to wait for anyone. If she wanted to pack her bag and leave Cape Pursuit tonight, there would be nothing stopping her.

  Except...

  And there wouldn’t be anything she missed or regretted.

  Except...Brady.

  Josh picked up the microphone and informed the passengers of the next stop, and Kate jolted in her seat. She had been so lost in thought she forgot to do her job of talking to trolley guests.

  “Your stop will be next,” Kate said. “And then just text me the dinner time and location and I’ll meet you.”

  “Are you sure you don’t want to bring someone? Have you really been spending your nights in this gorgeous town alone?”

  Kate shrugged. “Not all of them, but tonight I want to talk to you and hear all about what’s new at the country club.”

  Lillie laughed. “They have a new chef they stole from New York City.”

  “Of course they do.”

  Kate waved to her cousin and her husband when they got off at the next stop. She was happy to have dinner with them, but she almost wished she had included Brady.

  * * *

  “WE SHOULD HAVE gone out on your actual birthday, but since we waited, we have two things to celebrate,” Noah said.

  “Two things?” Brady asked. They were seated at one of the nicer restaurants beachside, a place Brady had dined with Kate earlier in the summer. The clientele was a mix of families ordering sandwiches from the menu, couples on dates enjoying drinks and entrees, and singles at the bar.

  “We think we found the right house,” Corrinne said.

  Bella clapped her hands and bounced in her seat. “It has a big tree I can climb.”

  Brady smiled at his niece. “But only if your dad climbs with you, okay?”

  “That’s the same thing he said,” Bella said.

  Brady nodded at his brother approvingly.

  “You should have asked Kate along,” Corrinne said. “She’s probably leaving town soon, and I hate to monopolize your evenings when you’d probably rather be with her.”

  Brady sipped his drink. He doubted Kate would have said yes to a dinner invitation. Not after he’d blurted out that he loved her and she’d turned around and practically run away. Brady had checked the next week’s trolley schedule, and he was relieved to see he and Kate weren’t scheduled together. If he thought he could change her mind, he might try. But he couldn’t ask her to change for him. Couldn’t ask her to value four walls in the same way and for the same reasons he did. It was hopeless.

  “Kate already has one foot on the road,” Brady said. “And good for her. She has her future planned out, but it’s not here.”

  Corrinne looked as if she wanted to say something, but Brady saw his brother give his wife a tiny nudge with his elbow.

  “Can I have pop?” Bella asked. “I never get to.”

  “Only because it’s a special occasion,” Noah said. “And you have to brush your teeth extra before you go to bed tonight.”

  “I remember Mom saying the same thing,” Brady said. “She was very serious about toothbrushing when we were kids.”

  “That’s probably because she didn’t have health insurance or any money for a dentist visit. It’s amazing we survived,” Noah said. His tone was light, but there was so much underlying truth that Brady felt the evening’s cheerfulness get sucked away like water going down a drain.

  “She loved you, though,” Corrinne said.

  Brady wondered how much Noah had told Corrinne about their childhood, and he had to assume it was everything. He couldn’t have a five-year relationship with her, a child with her and a marriage without sharing his past. Brady had also shared some of his childhood stories with Kate, but not all of it. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust her. It was just that everything in his life that had driven him to want a home and security was the oppos
ite of her life that compelled her toward freedom and a lack of ties. It was the story of their relationship—two ends of a string being pulled in different directions with no hope of meeting again.

  “She did love us,” Brady said. “However and whenever she could.” He smiled and tapped his glass against his brother’s. “And we turned out okay. At least one of us.”

  “Which one?” Bella asked, clearly not understanding the joke.

  Brady, Noah and Corrinne laughed, and at that moment, Brady saw Kate across the restaurant moving toward a table with two people he’d never seen before. The loud laughter at his table drew her attention, and Brady and Kate locked eyes across the dining room. Kate stood next to her chair for a moment as if she was considering coming over to say hello, but then she sat down with the two other people. Her chair was sideways so Brady could see her profile. She looked beautiful, dressed up, her hair falling over her shoulders instead of being in a ponytail.

  “You could go say hello,” Corrinne said.

  Brady’s jaw tightened. Kate could easily have done the same thing. She was sending him a message by taking a seat instead.

  “Have you told her how you feel about her?” Noah asked.

  Brady let the question hang for a beat, but there was no use dodging it. “Yes.”

  The waiter came and listed off the specials for the evening, and Brady chose the first thing on the list so he wouldn’t have to think about it. Instead, he was thinking about telling Kate what was on his mind. It would do no good, he knew that, but at least he’d know he’d tried. He wouldn’t have to regret never saying the words in his heart.

  “Be right back,” he said, standing up.

  Brady walked quickly before he could change his mind. He paused by Kate’s table next to the empty fourth chair. Kate stood quickly, her cheeks flushed.

  “Hello, Brady.” She turned to her companions. “This is Brady Adams. He’s a firefighter here in Cape Pursuit and he also works part-time on the trolley.” He noticed all the things she didn’t say, such as Brady is my summer romance who recently told me he loved me. Kate gestured to the two other people. “This is my cousin Lillie and her husband, Cameron. They’re on vacation.”