by Lori Wilde
“Rough childhood?” He turned onto the main road in town.
She thought for a moment. “No. If I’m honest, she provided a well-rounded education for me. We traveled the world in the summers and I attended one of the best private schools in Manhattan during the school year thanks to my grandmother. Mom just wasn’t the most stable person. I spent a lot of time with my grandmother and my nanny. In fact, when I considered college, I stuck close to home in case my mom needed me. Luckily, my grandmother the party planner used to let me work with her part time and that sort of stuck. I guess it was a different way than most kids grow up, but it wasn’t bad.
“It must have been great growing up in a small town like this where you know everyone and they know you.” She changed the focus to him.
Jason chuckled. “I’d say it had its good points, but sometimes, especially when you’re a kid, you’d like to get away with something without someone calling your mother to tell her what you did.”
This time she laughed.
“I left as soon as I could and went to school in Buffalo. My dad had always been a volunteer fireman, and I decided that’s what I wanted to do. I worked all over the Northeast, and then dad got sick and they needed help with the farm. So I took a job here.”
“Oh, no. Is he okay?”
“The old coot had a miraculous recovery once I came home. Truth be told, he had been really sick. But when my brother and I moved back home his heart seemed to grow a lot stronger. Nothing like parental guilt to keep you close by.
“Ah, here we are.”
He picked Matilda’s in the center of town. While the name might indicate home cooking, Chef Max, who named the restaurant after his mother, served a different gourmet menu every night. It was the kind of place most people went to celebrate anniversaries and other special occasions.
Secretly pleased that he’d picked one of the nicest places in town, Kristen was grateful to him for setting her back down on the ground when they arrived. The hostess who showed them to their table only noticed Jason, and Kristen decided that was as it should be. The town hero looked good enough to eat.
The more she looked at him, the more she thought they should skip the meal and go straight for dessert.
He’d been so sweet when he talked about his family. She knew they probably gave each other a hard time, but they all loved one another. She and her mother were polite to each other, but they didn’t have much of a relationship.
She and Jason were escorted to a quiet corner table, one of the best in the place. The hostess lingered a bit too long but Jason kindly sent her on her way to find their waiter.
“I’m sorry about that,” Jason said. “She’s the sister of a friend, and she’s been following us around since we were kids. We spent many a summer day trying to figure out ways we wouldn’t have to take her with us.”
“She’s, um, very animated.” Kristen did not believe in gossiping or saying bad things about people. From an early age she had believed in Karma, thanks to one of her mother’s many religious explorations. The idea of Karma was one that stuck, and it was something she worried about constantly.
“I guess that’s one way to put it. I hope you don’t mind the restaurant. I was in the mood for steak, and they have some of the best.” He paused as if he realized something. “I—uh—also wanted to take you somewhere nice. You know, that first date stuff you do to impress a woman.”
Like he needed help doing that.
She grinned. “First date stuff?”
“You take the girl out to a nice place and pretend like you know what you’re doing. When the truth is, you have no idea what to say or do. And you just fake it and hope she doesn’t notice.”
“Jason, are you nervous?”
He shrugged.
Her smile grew. She couldn’t believe it. Could he really be this down-to-earth? Maybe it was all a part of his game.
She didn’t care. She was ready to play.
“Well, it’s nice to know I’m not the only one. Between the fiasco with my dress, and, well, let’s talk about the elephant in the room. My hair is a scary mess.”
“First of all, there’s not a thing wrong with that dress. You look incredible. And I thought your hair was one of those holiday things girls do.”
Was it possible for a man to be so kind? Most of the guys she dated in the past would have made a joke about how she looked.
A blush crept along her cheeks again. He had a habit of doing that to her. “Thank you for that. So what kind of steak do you like?” She opened the menu desperate to get the focus off herself.
What is wrong with me? Usually, she chose her words carefully and she was never this honest about herself. Her mother’s flightiness and need to say whatever was on her mind had the opposite effect on Kristen. Like anyone else, she had bad days, but she didn’t see that as a reason to make everyone else around her miserable by sharing her troubles.
People accused her of being eternally cheerful, but she didn’t see that as a bad thing.
“I’m fond of beef in general, but particularly fond of the Porterhouse here,” he answered.
Kristen had a great affinity for all types of food. Steak with a baked potato was one of her favorite meals. There was just one problem.
“If you don’t like beef,” Jason eyed her hesitantly, as if this was some kind of test. “They have fish or—”
“No, I love steak.” So what if she busted out of her dress in the middle of the nicest restaurant in town? That would certainly give the women on the committee something to talk about. She had never seen women who gossiped so much. She was under constant scrutiny.
For years the local women had planned the gala on their own. It had been the mayor’s wife’s idea to bring in a professional planner to take the party to the next level with the fundraising component. They were trying to rebuild the Price Mansion, which had a great deal of historical significance for the town.
But Kristen, being new blood, had found making changes a constant struggle. She saw so many ways to make their event more successful, but she had to be clever about how she proposed those ideas.
Jason stared at her as if he were waiting for her to answer. “Steak. Yes. I’m more of a rib-eye or a filet mignon kind of girl.”
The wary expression on Jason’s face changed. He nodded at their waiter who had just arrived. “Bill, good to see you. How is Beth doing?”
The other man laughed. “She is as big as a house, and happy as can be.”
Kristen’s eyebrows furrowed. She didn’t know who Beth was, but she had a feeling she wouldn’t appreciate being called as big as a house.
“Bill’s wife is about to deliver twins, any day now. We’ve done two practice runs with the EMTs,” Jason said as an explanation. “If they’re on another call, we go as backup.”
The waiter patted Jason’s shoulder. “Your patience with the two of us hasn’t gone unappreciated.”
“Hey, with twins you never know,” Jason said seriously. “It’s better to know how long it takes for us to respond in case you aren’t there to get her to the hospital in time. Or if she goes into labor too fast, which can happen with twins.”
“Well, it’s great that you guys are so nice about it,” Bill said.
Jason waved a hand. “Hey man, if it eases Beth’s mind it is worth it.”
Bill cleared his throat.
“Well, let me recommend a good wine and tell you about some of the specials, so you two can get on with your date.” Bill explained what they had available, but she only caught half of what he said.
From the conversation, she gathered that the wife had called the fire station. They must receive calls like that all the time and Jason had been so patient. It scared her how perfect he was. He didn’t seem to have an ego. Everyone in town called him a hero, and he was. But he didn’t act like it.
She kept waiting for Mr. Hyde to pop out of him. The man had to have some flaws.
“Do you want wine with your steak? And did
you want the rib-eye or filet?” Jason asked.
“The filet would be great, and maybe a burgundy,” she said to Bill. But she moved her hand and nearly knocked over one of the water glasses. She caught it before it spilled. Distracted, she didn’t notice what happened with her other hand.
Before she knew it, Jason was holding a wet napkin around her wrist.
Ripping the bracelet off her wrist, he dumped it in his water.
“You caught your ribbons on fire.” A small poof of steam came from the glass.
Really? Could this night get any better?
She glanced up to find Bill doing his best to stifle a laugh. He cleared his throat. “I’ll get those steaks going and bring out your wine.”
“The skin is reddened. I have a kit in my truck.”
“No,” she said quickly.
How many times did she have to be mortified before she took the hint? She had no business being on a date with this man. This was the universe telling her she was out of her depth.
“It’s fine.” She stood and there was a distinct ripping sound down the back of her dress. Now, the only thing between her rear and the patrons of the restaurant was the nude-colored Spanx she’d pulled on at the last minute. “Yes. Um. Excuse me.”
She took the wet napkin and placed it behind her, hoping it covered at least part of her backside.
This is not happening to me. I’m going to wake up and this is going to be the terrible nightmare you have the night before a big event.
Only she wasn’t asleep.
I can’t do this.
She pulled out her cell phone. “Time to call in the cavalry.”
* * *
THE FIRST TEN minutes, Jason assumed she was trying to fix her dress. He worked on restoring the bracelet, but there wasn’t much he could do. Two of the presents were toast. He was worried she might not be taking proper care of the small burns on her wrist. He’d moved as quickly as possible with the water to minimize the damage to her, but red marks on her arm had been proof he hadn’t been fast enough.
Some fireman you are.
After fifteen minutes he sent one of the waitresses to the ladies room to make sure she was doing okay.
“Sir, she isn’t in there,” the waitress said when she returned.
Jason sat back in his chair and frowned. She’d run out on him. He was sure that had never happened to him before. Though he should be angry, he couldn’t imagine what she must be going through. She’d burned her bracelet and ripped her dress. She had been upset over getting in the truck.
It had probably been the worst date she’d ever been on. He couldn’t blame her for dumping him.
But he wasn’t about to give up.
“Can you tell Bill to get the check for me, and box the meals?” he asked the waitress.
He waited an hour before he returned to her house. All of the lights were on so he knew she was home.
As he reached her porch, a howl came from within.
Jason ran for the door, but it was locked. He pounded on it. “Kristen!”
He jostled the handle again.
Lifting his foot he was about to kick in the door when it swung open wide.
The vision before him was not at all what he’d expected.
Kristen stood before him wrapped in nothing but a pink silk robe, a short one that showed off her amazingly long legs.
“What are you doing here?” She didn’t look happy to see him.
“I—thought you might want dinner?” He lifted the bags in his hand.
“You brought me food even though I ran out on you?”
There was another howl.
He moved past her into the house without asking permission. “Do you have some kind of torture chamber in here or something?”
She stared at him as if he had three heads. “Oh, oh. No, it’s Bibi. There’s something wrong with her. I think she’s sick. But the vet isn’t open. I was about to change clothes and take her to an all-night animal clinic.”
He sat the food on her dining room table. He tried not to notice the huge china cabinet with what seemed the largest collection of Santa Claus figurines he’d ever seen.
Bibi turned out to be a large black Chow, who was on the kitchen floor on a dog bed, panting. Her belly was distended, as if she’d eaten a watermelon. Her sad brown eyes had him kneeling down to present the back of his hand. He’d seen this sort of thing more than once growing up on his family’s farm.
“If you have an old shower curtain, some old towels and a sheet, get them,” he said.
“What’s wrong with her?” Kristen asked worriedly. She hopped from foot to foot and he noticed she wore dark red nail polish on her toes. The color was quite different than the soft pink she wore on her fingernails. What other secrets did she have that he could uncover?
Mind out of the gutter, man.
“She’s in labor.”
“I— Uh. What?” Kristen’s hand flew to her mouth. “I had her on a diet because I thought she was fat. I found her in the woods when I was trying to find a proper Christmas tree for the fundraiser. I called the pound, but they were overwhelmed, so I thought I would take care of her until I could find her a home. How could I have not known she was pregnant? I don’t know how to deliver puppies.”
“Well, I’m no expert, but most of the time Mother Nature takes its course in these situations. The best thing we can do is make sure she’s comfortable. This could take several hours.”
The dog eyed him with a wary glance, but he held his hand out for her to sniff again. She licked it. More than likely it had something to do with the fact that he’d been carrying steaks, but he’d take what he could get.
“I’ll let you two get acquainted while I get the sheet and towels. Do we need anything else?” Kristen asked.
“Music. Something soothing. Animals respond well to music.” He’d said soothing because he had a feeling, glancing around her house, that Christmas songs would be an automatic choice. He could take a lot, but not a never-ending litany of holiday tunes.
The music might go a long way in helping Bibi’s owner to relax as well. He liked the fact that she hadn’t flinched when he mentioned the dog was about to give birth on the new wooden floors of Kristen’s kitchen. That was one of the reasons he asked for the shower curtain and sheet.
When she returned, her pink robe was gone and in its place was a pair of flannel pajama bottoms with Santas on them, and a tank top with a hoodie. He wouldn’t have thought anything could be sexier than the robe, but he was wrong. She’d washed off her makeup and she looked so young and fresh.
He cleared his throat, trying to get his mind back on the task at hand. “Right. We don’t want to move her. That’s a good way to get bitten, but we do need to get the shower curtain and then one of the towels underneath her hindquarters. She might like it better if you handled that. I’ll do my best to distract her.”
He petted the dog’s head and Kristen gently centered the towels.
The dog made a strange “oomph” noise and her eyes closed.
“Ah, looks like we may be closer than I thought,” Jason said.
“What do we do?”
“Nothing,” Jason answered. “We wait and watch. If there’s excessive bleeding or if she begins convulsing—”
“Convulsing!” Kristen cried. “We have to get her to the vet.”
Jason grabbed her hand and pulled her down beside him. The smell of cinnamon and vanilla wafted around him.
The woman smelled good enough to— What had he been saying?
Oh, yeah, he was supposed to be comforting her about the dog.
“She’ll be fine. She’s lucky you found her or she’d be doing this out in the cold and those pups would have had little chance of survival.”
Kristen shuddered, and he hugged her shoulders. “We will keep an eye on her. I promise, I won’t let anything happen to her.”
She relaxed against him. “I don’t know what I would do if you weren’t here. In fact, w
hy are you here? I walked out on you.”
He chuckled. “This night didn’t exactly go as expected for either of us. I decided to give you the benefit of the doubt.”
“I can honestly say this was one of the worst dates ever.” She laughed. “Wait, not because of you. But that dress and my hair. Well, I felt like the universe was conspiring against me.”
“You might very well think that, considering what happened,” he said. “But then, we wouldn’t have been here to take care of Bibi during her time of need. Though I have a feeling she could have handled it all on her own.”
“Do you have to be smart, too?” She sighed. “You’re just too perfect.”
Jason stifled a big laugh because he didn’t want to bother Bibi. “You’ve got to be kidding. Look, I’m far from perfect. Believe me.”
“That’s not true.” She glanced up and he saw that she was serious. “Those old women on the committee are putty in your hands. You showed up with a meal after I left you at the restaurant. And you’re helping me with my pregnant dog. The only thing remotely strange about you is that you hate the holidays.”
“There is that. And I spend most of those meetings wondering if I can get away with mass murder,” he said honestly. “And I wasn’t happy when you left, but I understood. I probably would have done the same under the circumstances. My guess is that your dress couldn’t be repaired with a few safety pins, and you decided to sneak out the back.”
She nodded against his shoulder.
“Mass murder?” she asked.
“Don’t put me on a pedestal, Kristen. I told you, I’m far from perfect. Those women love to talk and I’m not one for sitting around much. I like doing things. If it hadn’t been for you these last few weeks, I don’t know what I would have done. You are the only bright spot in those dull meetings.”
The way her face lit up when she smiled gave her an angelic quality. Jason was about to lean down and kiss her when there was a low “grrrrr.”
