Page 35 of August Heat

“Think I don’t got this?” Krys might have flexed when she said that. “Kittens? Piece of cake now. They’ll totally be…”

“Damnit, it’s chasing my shoelace!” Chief Johnson cried.

Krys flinched. “It’s fine. Like you, yeah?”

“I can’t tell if you’re asking me how I’m doing, or asserting my appearance, as you usually do.”

“That one, but I also don’t mind you telling me how you’re doing.”

Siobhan didn’t get a chance to say. The moment she opened her mouth, the fire bell went off, and nobody – least of all Krys – could get a word in edgewise over the commands of the Chief.

“Looks like another barn fire off the highway! Come on! Let’s go! Look alive, Madison!”

“Apparently, I’ve gotta go.” That was said in between bursts of concerns about the cats and Quimby struggling to get into his clothes. “Good thing I had lunch, huh? I hate it when these calls come in right before or, God forbid,duringmy lunch break!”

“From what I’ve noticed around here,” Siobhan said as her girlfriend came closer for a hello/goodbye kiss, “anytime you’re not fighting fires, you’re on lunch.”

“All in a hard day’s work. Where you off to?”

“Just got back from shoving my hand in places you don’t wanna know about.”

“Madison!” Johnson shouted. “Stop flirting with your lady and let’s get going!”

Krys stole that kiss as she turned around and shot for her locker. Siobhan was still on the sidewalk by the time the fire engine, sirens wailing, pulled onto Main Street and made its way toward the fire.

Now there’s a sight…Krys leaned out the window and blew a kiss to the woman waving back at her. Two seconds later, little Megan Rapinoe bobbed out of the opened window and made her great, grand escape into the depths of Paradise Valley.

Siobhan took off after her.Eh, they’ll be fine…Krys had a feeling this was only the beginning of the fun they’d have – with or without animals getting between them.

Or bringing them together, really.

THE END