by Seana Kelly
Crackling in my ear. Shit. “Sorry, Harv. What did you say?” She was already screwing with my head. “Okay. Stop by Chuck’s food truck. It’s parked next to Agamont Park. Katie, the house owner, works there. She can give you the key...Yeah. Listen, send me the bill, okay?...Great. Thanks.”
When I disconnected, Katie was watching me. “Okay.” I clapped my hands together once. “Let me show you how everything works, and then I’ll take Chaucer with me.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Kate
THAT CUPCAKE LADY seemed like kind of a dick. She came out, yelled at me to move the truck and stormed back into her shop. I won’t hold her rude behavior against her innocent cupcakes, but jeez. Luckily, the road was more of a hill, sloping down to the water. Aiden said the truck had to be running for the grill to work, so I only needed to take off the emergency brake, let the truck roll for a bit and then put the brake back on. Easy peasy.
Don’t believe anyone who tells you I almost took out a tree. I barely skinned it. And as a bonus, the customer window was now nicely shaded. Yes, the sun would have helped keep me warm, but whatevs. And aside from a few—okay, a lot—shivery memories of cupcake kisses, I’d mopped the floors, for what appeared to be the first time ever, cleaned the grill and microwaves, inventoried the food, disposing of all the spoiled stuff and was grilling a dog for my first customer by eleven twenty. I totally had this in the bag!
“What would you like on it?” I rolled the dog on the grill and placed the bun on the toasting plate.
“Mustard, sauerkraut and relish.” A guy with a huge camera hanging around his neck waited on the curb for his dog.
Shit. I’d thrown out the sauerkraut can because the expiration date was three years ago. What to do, what to do? “Is this your first visit to Bar Harbor?”
The man was taking a picture of the park, the harbor in the background. He didn’t change his stance as he answered. “No. Come every year.”
Is there anything back here that’s sauerkraut-like? I foraged through the storage cabinet again. Pickled onions? Really? Who the hell asks for pickled onions? “I’m sorry, sir. I’m out of sauerkraut. Is there something else I could put on your dog for you? Pickled onions, perhaps?” I smiled big, really selling it.
He lowered the camera, confusion clear on his face. “How can you be out?” He checked his watch. “It’s 11:22 a.m. How could you have already sold out of sauerkraut?”
“Not sold-out, just out. But I have chili, cheese, onions, jalapeños, pickles and the ever-popular pickled onions.” Big smile.
He reddened, anger lining his face. “How the hell are you running a hot dog truck without sauerkraut?”
I retreated a step, picking up a fork. “Well, what happened was—”
“Are you a moron? That’s like trying to sell a hot dog without the dog.” His bellowing made nearby birds take flight.
Stepping farther into the shadows of the truck, I glanced over to the truck cab. I’d never locked the doors. “I’m sorry, sir. It’s my first day. I’m just trying to—”
“This is the problem in this country. Everyone has an excuse for incompetence. Let me guess. You’re charging full price, aren’t you?” He paced in front of the open window, hands flailing, spittle flying from his mouth. “You should give me that dog for free!”
The hand not holding the pointy fork fell to my side to tap my thigh. Damn. Why had Aiden taken Chaucer from me? “I’m sorry, sir. I don’t think I can help you today.” My head was pounding in time with my racing heart.
He strode off, muttering, “Stupid bitch.”
I shook out my trembling hands and carefully continued chopping onions. I glanced up and down the street, comforting myself with the fact that he was nowhere in sight. Okay. That happened. I got crazy sauerkraut guy off the agenda right at the start. That meant clear sailing for the rest of the day.
A young woman and her son walked up to the truck. “Sorry about that.”
I smiled to myself, realizing I was cocking my head like Chaucer. “Sorry?”
Holding her son’s hand, she looked over her shoulder and scanned the park. “I heard that guy yelling at you. I called the cops.” She shrugged, embarrassed. “You hear horrible stories—I was worried about you.”
My stomach began to untwist. “Thank you so much for doing that.” Gesturing down the street, I took a deep breath. “He left, but he was scaring the—” I looked down at her son “—heck out of me.” I rubbed my hands together. “That means the dogs are on me!” I leaned over the counter. “Whaddaya say, little man. Do you want a hot dog?”
The mom laughed. “He’d love one, but I don’t want you to get in trouble by giving away food. I heard you say it’s your first day.”
Moving the hot dog I was cooking for crazy guy from the warmer back to the grill, I shook my head. “I’m not giving it away.” I looked back at the adorable boy in his baseball cap and red sneakers. “You helped your mom do a really nice thing for someone who was scared. My thank-you will come in the form of meat.”
Looking back at his mom, I said, “I’m buying your lunch.”
“Oh, my goodness. You don’t need to do that.” She tugged on her son’s hand. “Jeremy, say thank you to the nice lady.”
“Sanks!”
His gap-toothed grin did me in. “What do you like on your hot dogs?”
“’Chup!”
Rolling the hot dog back and forth on the grill, I looked to mom for a translation.
“Ketchup.”
I laughed. “Of course. I’m Katie, by the way. It’s nice to meet you, Jeremy.”
“I’m Sara,” the mom said.
I nodded, placing a second hot dog on the grill. I put Jeremy’s dog back in the warmer while I finished cooking his mom’s. “What do you like on yours, Sara?”
“Oh, you don’t need to buy me one, too.” She waved her hand. “Really. It was nothing.”
Shaking my head, I said, “Not nothing. You saw someone in trouble and you helped. That’s never nothing.” I met her eyes. “So, what’ll ya have?”
She sighed. “Okay, I’ll have a chili-cheese dog.”
“Excellent choice!” Leaning over, I looked down at the adorable gap-toothed smile under the boy’s Giants ball cap. “Jeremy, are you a fan of the Giants? They’re from my hometown.”
“Yeah?”
“You bet. So, who’s your favorite Giant?” I asked as I stirred the chili.
He hopped, trying to get his head over the counter. “Posey!”
“I love Buster!” I ladled chili over the dog, before sprinkling cheese on top. I handed Sara her hot dog first, and then handed Jeremy his. “You two are my first customers, and you’ve both been lovely. Thank you so much.”
Sara took a bite. “Mmm. Thank you.”
After they strolled away, I realized someone was leaning against the side of the truck. I flinched before recognizing it was Aiden.
“Kind of jumpy.” He looked over what he could see of me. “Are you okay?”
I shook my head. “It was nothing. I’m fine.” Glancing around the park, I made note of other people walking nearby, and of crazy guy not being among them. I slowly let out a breath, feeling my body start to relax.
“If you’re giving away hot dogs, I’ll take one, too.” His voice was light, but I watched him scan the street, his eyes hard.
Rolling a dog from the warmer onto the grill, I said, “Not giving away. Buying.”
He shrugged, still looking everywhere but at me. “Same diff to me. Either way I get a free lunch.”
“How do you figure?” I scooped onions onto the grill. He seemed like the kind of guy who’d like onions. “That nice woman and her son came to my rescue. What have you done for me?”
He turned his head, eyebrows raised. “Seriou
sly? How about every time I’ve—”
I waved my spatula in the air to shut him up. “Fine. I’ll buy.” Shit. I was losing money by working. “How’s my little buddy?”
He grinned and my stomach dropped. “I’m doing great. Thanks for asking.”
A gust of laughter broke free. More of the tension I’d been holding drained away. “Not you, you ass. Chaucer. How’s my dog?”
“Oh, him.” Aiden leaned his back against the side of the truck, arms crossed in front of him, biceps straining against his shirt. Not that I was looking.
“Well?” My eyes were back on the grill, where they belonged.
“Hell, I don’t know. I don’t have time to worry about your damn dog. I put him in the cell in back. You can pick him up when you’re done here.”
I looked around for what I had that was big and long enough to hit him in the head with.
“Strange. I don’t hear the spatula scraping across the grill anymore. Let me warn you, if you attempt to hit me with anything in that truck, I’ll put you in a cell, too.” When he turned his head to study me, I slowly lowered my raised arm. “Chop-chop. How long does it take to make a hot dog?”
I considered pulling the three-year-old sauerkraut out of the trash, but thought better of it. Instead, I dumped some jalapeños on the grill. I layered the jalapeños on the bun, before I added the hot dog and chili, thereby hiding them. I sprinkled cheese and onions on top, and then handed it to the ass.
“Mmm, looks good.” He stared at me for a moment. “Don’t I get a drink, too?”
I considered whether or not I could unscrew the water bottle cap and spit into it before handing it to him. He was watching me like a hawk, so probably not. Damn it. “Here,” I said as I passed him the cold bottle.
“Good choice.”
I wiped down the grill. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“You realize that every thought you have is written all over your face, right?”
Ignoring him, I turned my back and drank from my own water bottle. I was trying to keep my water consumption to a minimum. If I needed to pee, I’d have to sprint across the park. The restroom facilities were on the far side, past the huge open green, the fountain, the arbor. I crossed my legs, pressure building. I turned to watch Aiden eat his jalapeño-surprise hot dog in a few huge bites.
“Mmm, I love jalapeños. How’d you know?” He wiped his mouth, crumpled up his napkin and threw it in the trash.
Figures. “Can you do me a favor, Aiden?”
He spread his arms wide. “My being here is a favor. I’m the chief of police, and yet here I stand to make sure a sauerkraut psycho isn’t harassing you. I have your dog in my station. I’m paying to have your house rid of an ungodly number of forest animals. What the hell more do you want, woman?”
“Can you just watch the truck while I run over to the bathroom?”
He stared at me for a moment, before pointing at the cupcake shop. “Trudy has a restroom.”
“Strangely enough, she doesn’t like me.” I scrambled over the passenger seat in the truck cab and ran across the park toward the bathroom.
“Shocker,” Aiden shouted after me.
Buttmunch.
When I strolled back, taking the leisurely, scenic route, I noticed a line of people waiting at the truck. Crap.
“Hey, Chief. You moonlighting in food service these days?” someone teased.
“I hope you’ve gotten better at this than you were in high school. I got the runs after you made me an undercooked hot dog,” another man said.
“Cool story, bro.”
When I climbed back into the truck, I didn’t find Aiden nervous and scrambling. He had multiple dogs cooking, was grilling the onions and pickles, had buns toasting and waters lined up on the counter ready to be handed out.
He turned to me. “Could you have walked any slower?”
“I sure could have. Would you like me to show you?” I turned as if to leave.
“Can you just start taking money, while I finish cooking?” He’d rolled up his sleeves, displaying strong, corded forearms. His shoulders were high and stiff, but his chatter with the customers was relaxed.
“Chief, who’s your assistant?”
He ignored the question, barely giving me a glance.
Damn. He was really pissed off at me. I looked at the growing crowd of mostly middle-aged men and wondered where the hell they’d come from all of a sudden. Giving a half-hearted wave, I mumbled, “Kate.”
Aiden tilted his wrist at me, his watch flashing in the sunlight breaking through the trees. “It’s noon. This is what happens at noon.” He handed me three loaded dogs for me to place in their paper boats.
“Are these for one person or three different people?” I tried to assess the group of men. I had no idea who was first.
Aiden shouted, “Line up.” Which they did. He gestured at the dogs. “The two onion and pickles go to Charlie, first in line. The chili and cheese goes to Mike, second.”
“Got it.” I raised my voice. “Good afternoon, gentlemen. Thank you for making the hot dog truck your choice for lunch today. We know you could have chosen many other restaurants, so we thank you for your patronage.” I smiled broadly at one and all.
Aiden paused in his grilling, expression incredulous.
I shrugged. “It works for airlines.”
Shaking his head, he handed me three more dogs. I kept waiting for him to hand me the spatula and duck out, but he stayed to get through the rush. At one point his radio crackled and asked for him. He told the woman to contact a cop named Sharon, and went back to cooking. Within ten minutes, we had the crowd cleared.
He wiped down the grill and utensils, then washed the rag in the sink. “I can’t believe you don’t have any sauerkraut.”
I lined up waiting paper boats for the next group of people to arrive. “The can was three years old! I threw it out.”
“It’s sauerkraut. What the hell’s going to happen to it? It’s already pickled.” Untying the apron, he stepped back from the grill.
“Wait, should I pull the can out of the garbage?” I probably should have opened the can to make sure it was a problem. I went still as he reached around me, wrapping the apron around my waist. He tied the strings in front. His chest pressed against my back as he looked over my shoulder. Hot breath on my neck.
When he finished, his fingers lightly trailed over my stomach, before coming to rest on my hips. “Feel like doing your own job now?”
The heat from his big, possessive hands, and the rumble of his deep voice scattered my thoughts. “What?”
His arms coiled around me, crushing me against his chest. I felt his lips on my neck. I may have sighed. If he tells you I moaned, he’s a dirty, dirty liar. It was just a sigh. With some groany bits thrown in.
He let go of me. “Let’s see if you can handle a half day’s work.” A moment later he was gone.
Wait, what? “Hey,” I yelled at him as he sauntered past. “You can’t just ruthlessly kiss me and then be a dick! Keep your lips to yourself, asswipe.”
No men!
How hard was that to remember? And why did he always make me want to forget?
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Aiden
HER MOAN ECHOED in my head. I raked my fingers through my hair. I needed to forget about her and her moan, or I would have to start walking around with my shirt untucked.
It was high time my dick and I had a heart-to-heart. Yes, she was adorable and wicked hot. No, she was not for me. I’d already fallen for one runner—I didn’t need to add another to my life. I was doing a good deed with the extermination thing, that’s all. Plus, it saved me from seeing her every day when I cleaned out traps. Katie was not going to worm her way in. No. I forced myself to remember
Alice. The look on her face as she told me she loved me. The touches and giggles. The sighs in bed. All lies.
My phone chirped as I dropped back into my cruiser.
“Hey, Pops. What’s up?”
“Do you know what that girl did?” he shouted.
I pulled the phone from my ear. What girl? “No, I don’t.” Pops spent most of his time with his buddies, at home or at... Oh, shit.
“She threw away all of Nellie’s furniture! I was just over there watering the garden, though I don’t know why. She can do it herself, ungrateful brat!”
Shit, shit, shit. “If you were just watering, how did you know about the furniture?”
“I went to the side door and knocked, thought the dog might want to keep me company. But Katie didn’t answer so I looked in the window by the door—”
“Peeping.”
“—and saw the furniture was gone. What kind of person throws out her grandmother’s beloved possessions like it’s nothing? I was wrong about giving her a chance. She doesn’t deserve one!”
“Let it go, Pops. It’s not Nellie’s house anymore. Katie can legally do whatever she wants.” I watched another line form in front of the food truck, heard Katie greeting them like a flight attendant. Rolling my eyes, I focused on Pops. “And listen, you don’t need to tend the garden anymore, either. Let Katie deal with her own responsibilities.”
“She can forget about any more help from me.” He paused. “Why would she do that, though?” The hurt in his voice killed me. “The furniture was in perfect condition. Nellie always took good care of her home, cleaning every day. She knew the value of things. Not like today’s generation. Everything is disposable. Including people!”
I put him on speaker and drove away. “She’s trying, Pops. Let her succeed or fail on her own. Okay?” I paused. “Chances are she’ll be leaving soon, anyway.” I swung around and drove back toward the station. Chaucer better still be sleeping under my desk. If he was chewing files, we’d have words.
“Leaving? She just got here.”
“Yeah, but her husband’s sending an appraiser. He’s planning to sell the house.” I pulled into the parking lot, grabbed my phone and walked into the station. My office door was now open—I’d shut it before I left—but Chaucer stood at the doorway, not trying to escape. I glanced over at a guilty-looking Heather who was stuffing something in her desk and putting her headset back on. Great. If Heather kept feeding him, he’d never want to leave.
