Page 27

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Around one o’clock Logan drove up in front of the fire station. The bay was open, and the engine was there, so he hoped that meant AJ was too.

He gripped the bouquet of flowers he’d bought. Slowly, he walked to the open bay, praying the whole way. He hoped AJ would receive his flowers well. As he had lain in bed this morning, he’d felt a nudge from the Holy Spirit that although AJ was eager to rebuild their relationship, he needed to be intentional to woo her.

Walking into the bay, he found the new guy and Brennan working on equipment.

“Hey, guys. Is AJ around?”

“Well, look who it is. Good to see you, man.” Brennan came to him and shook his hand. “She’s here.” He pointed up.

Logan looked to the top of the firetruck. AJ stood. “You’re gonna get hurt again.”

The new guy, whose name he couldn’t remember, said, “She isn’t afraid of anything, is she?”

She came over the side of the truck. “Oh, I’m afraid of plenty, but heights isn’t one of them.” She bounded to the ground.

He extended the flowers. “These are for you. I wanted to bring them in person so you knew they were from me.” He winked at her, hoping she’d find humor in it.

She chuckled and reached for the bouquet.

“And we’re out.” Brennan and the other guy left.

She took the flowers. “Thank you. They’re beautiful.”

“Just like you.” Warmth filled his cheeks.

“Are you blushing, Mr. Jackson?”

“You bring it out of me, Mrs. Jackson.”

They each stepped a little closer. With her free hand, AJ reached out and touched his abdomen.

A strand of golden hair had fallen from her ponytail, and he brushed it away from her eyes. “I was wondering …” this should not be a hard question to ask his wife , but he was struggling to get the words to form. “Would you do me the honor of going on a date with me, maybe Saturday?”

Joy sparked in her eyes. “I would love that.”

“Excellent. I’ll plan something fun, something that fits us.”

“So I can wear pants?”

“Unless you want something fancy.”

Her eyebrows quirked. “You know me well enough to know that answer.”

“I do. I know you well enough to know that while it’s not your preference, you like it every once in a while.”

“Touché. But I like the idea of having fun with you, relaxed and not hoity-toity. Save that for a different occasion.”

“Sounds like a plan. I suppose I should head to work.”

“Probably. Maybe I’ll see you, but calls that require both of us tend to be more serious than I want either of us to have to deal with tonight.”

“Very true.” He cupped the side of her face and kissed her forehead. “If I don’t see you tonight, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Yeah? When?”

“Call me when you get off.”

“I could do that. I really don’t know where to go. I don’t want to put Granny in danger.”

“I know. We’ll figure it out.”

She closed the distance between them and wrapped her arms around him.

He embraced her, hugging her close. How he’d missed holding her!

In her ear he whispered, “I love you.”

She melted against him and released a slight noise of contentedness. “I love you too.”

“I know. Thanks for taking me back.”

She lifted her head and looked him in the eye. “Same.”

Again touching her face, desire flooded his mind.

She nodded slightly.

He leaned over and covered her lips with his own in a sweet, gentle kiss. He’d be in trouble if he didn’t keep it there. Releasing her, he stepped back. “More of that soon enough.”

She fluttered her eyebrows.

He laughed. How he loved her!

Somberness clouded her face.

“What’s wrong?”

“I almost forgot to tell you with all this kissy talk. I saw Eric today. He was supposedly fixing some cable lines over there”—she pointed to the side of the station—“but it seemed like he was watching Brennan and me while we were tossing the football around.”

“That’s weird. I also caught him outside your house on Friday morning. I mean, he said he was working on cable lines.”

“It is his job, but it felt really strange.”

He stepped back to her. “Be careful.”

“I will. Is it crazy to be suspicious of Eric?”

“I don’t think it’s crazy to be suspicious of anyone right now.”

He kissed her cheek and said goodbye with another admonition to be careful.

As he drove to the police station, he tossed around the idea that Eric could be AJ’s stalker.