Carrie Nichols - His Unexpected Twins

Els? What the...? Liam ground his back teeth as the two EMTs walked away. “He was definitely trying to pick you up.”

Ellie rolled her eyes. “Yeah, right. Colton called a couple months ago asking if I had the number of the new X-ray tech.”

So this Colton was a player? Well, he could go play in someone else’s sandbox. He and Ellie were...what? Hanging out to get Meg off their case did not a relationship make.

“Believe me, he was hitting on you,” Liam insisted.

She glanced over at the two men leaving the restaurant.

“Maybe it didn’t work out with the X-ray tech,” Liam muttered, and shook the menu open with a snap.

“Maybe.” She shrugged and set her menu down.

Did she have feelings for this Colton? He pretended to be interested in the menu’s offerings. “That Mike guy—”

“Stop right there. You’re not going to try to tell me he was hitting on me.” She heaved a deep sigh. “Mike’s happily married. He has a beautiful wife and two sweet daughters, all of whom he adores.”

Before he could say anything more about either EMT, a petite waitress with a short blond bob and an eyebrow piercing came over to the table.

“Hi, I’m Ashley, and I’ll be your server tonight,” she said, and rested her hand on the table near his.

“I’ll have a bacon cheeseburger and onion rings,” Ellie told the waitress.

Ashley nodded and scribbled on her pad without taking her eyes off him. He echoed Ellie’s order because he’d been too busy fending off her would-be suitor to read the menu.

“ Now who is getting hit on?” Ellie said in a dry tone as she watched the perky blonde sashay across the room.

“Who? The waitress? She looks barely old enough to be serving drinks.” He sipped his water. “And we were talking about you. Colton was definitely hitting on you.”

She made a derisive sound blowing her breath through her lips. “I find that hard to believe.”

He shook his head. Did she not know the effect she had on guys? That megawatt smile that made her eyes sparkle created a pull, one he couldn’t deny. So why wouldn’t any other guy feel the same? “What? Why would you say that?”

“Because guys don’t see me like that. All they see is a shortstop for their softball team or a bowler for charity.”

“I don’t know who put that idea in your head, but it’s simply not true. And I’m a guy, so I should know.” Damn. Why did he say that? If she liked this Colton dude, saying things like that might give her ideas.

She snorted. “I don’t see you putting the moves on me.”

“What if I were to put a move on you?”

“Yeah, right,” she sputtered, and shook her head.

He let it drop, but began calculating how many moves he could make in thirty days.

Chapter Three

Several times during the day on Friday, Liam considered excuses to get out of helping Ellie with her carnival. Last weekend had been the anniversary of his mother’s death from stage 3 breast cancer that had spread. The years had muted the pain, but he wasn’t looking forward to all the reminders because it also reminded him of his friend and mentor, Sean McMahan. During Liam’s year as a probationary firefighter, Sean had taken him under his wing and they’d become close. Cancer had claimed Sean eighteen months after Bridget McBride. And yet he couldn’t—wouldn’t—let Ellie down, so that evening, he accompanied her to the church where they were setting up for the carnival. He’d insisted on giving her a ride when she mentioned meeting him there. Generosity didn’t enter into his offer; ulterior motives did. He wanted to see if she’d planned on coming or going with that EMT Colton, but her eager acceptance of his offer reassured him.

Liam resisted reaching for Ellie’s hand as they descended the stairs to the brightly lit basement. The place buzzed with the sounds of hammering, chatter and laughter. The scent of raw wood and paint permeated the air.

“I promised to paint some of the signs and to help Mary corral some of the younger kids. We’re providing nursery services to our volunteers,” Ellie said with a touch on his arm. “I’ll talk to you later.”

Brody waved Liam over and wasted no time putting him to work constructing a booth for one of the carnival games. Brody gave him a rough sketch of what it was supposed to look like. After helping with Meg and Riley’s renovations, this would be a cinch.

As Liam got busy laying out the precut wood Brody had supplied, a towheaded boy of around ten came to stand next to him. The boy shuffled his feet but didn’t speak.

Liam picked up the first pieces. “Hey, there, I’m Liam. What’s your name?”

“Craig.” The boy glanced at his paint-stained sneakers. “Are you Miss Ellie’s fireman?”

The pencil in Liam’s hand jumped and messed up the line he’d been marking. Calm down. He’s a kid asking a question, not making an observational statement . “I’m a fireman.”

The boy’s gaze rested on Liam. “I always wanted to be one.”

Liam’s heart turned over at the look of wistfulness on the boy’s face. Did this kid have cancer? Or was he one of the survivors? The boy’s choice of words hadn’t gone unnoticed. “Have you changed your mind about it?”

Craig shook his head. “Nah. But my mom gets a worried look on her face when I talk about becoming a fireman...like she wants me to pick something else. She’s been like that ever since my cancer.”

“You still have lots of time to decide what you want to be when you grow up.” What the heck was he supposed to tell the kid? Liam glanced around but everyone was busy building or shooing young ones back into one of the side rooms being used as a nursery.

The boy shrugged. “Yeah, the doctors say I’m in remission, but my mom still worries.”

Liam knew how the kid’s mom felt. He worried about losing more people to cancer, including Ellie, but he couldn’t say that to the boy. “Do you think you could help me get this put together? I could use the extra hands.”

Craig’s face lit up as he vigorously nodded his head. “I sure would.”

“Okay.” Liam handed him a peanut butter jar full of nails. “You can hand me the nails when I ask.”

The kid looked disappointed so Liam rushed to explain. “That way, I don’t have to stop and grab one each time. This will go a lot faster with your help. And I’ll be happy to answer any questions you have about firefighting as we work.”

Craig seemed to consider it. “I just wish my mom wouldn’t get that scared look when I talk about being a fireman.”

“Well, you’re still a little young to join. Maybe by the time you’re old enough, your mom will feel better about you becoming a firefighter.”

“I hope so. Does your mom worry?”

Had Bridget McBride worried when he joined the fire department? If she had, she’d kept it hidden. Of course, following in his dad’s footsteps may have made a difference. He honestly didn’t know if she worried because she’d never said so. “She might have.”

“My mom says it’s dangerous.” The boy pulled his mouth in on one side.

Liam put his hand out for a nail. “I won’t lie and say it isn’t, but that’s why you attend the fire academy for rigorous training and learn all you can about the job before getting hired. Even after you get hired, you’re on probation.”

“Huh?”

Liam resisted the urge to ruffle Craig’s hair. Chances are the kid would be insulted. “It means you’re still learning from the older guys.”

Craig carefully laid a nail on Liam’s outstretched palm. “You gotta go to school to be a fireman?”

“You sure do. Lots to learn about fires and staying safe.” He hammered the boards together. At least with firefighting you had training and were in control of the equipment. It wasn’t as if you could train for cancer. And doctors and others were in charge of the equipment to fight it, leaving you helpless. “We do all that training so we know exactly what to do to make it less dangerous. I can talk to the crew here in Loon Lake and see about taking you on a tour of the fire station. Maybe see what it’s like to sit in one of the rigs.”