asked her out. She tried to make her lips form the word no. “N-not really.”
“Uh, oh. Too slow.” The man—whose name Aubrey didn’t even know—chuckled good-naturedly. “And the eyes were a dead giveaway, too. Is he with the Blue Ridge Hotshots?”
“I don’t have a boyfriend,” she said, strong and firm with no hesitation this time.
“A wannabe boyfriend? Are you one of those Hotshot groupies?”
“Absolutely not!” She huffed indignantly. “May I remind you I’m holding your injured arm in my hands, and I’m not above inflicting pain.”
His chuckle developed into a full-blown belly laugh. “As much as I’d be tempted to in this case, I don’t steal another man’s girl. But if you ever get tired of him, or he doesn’t treat you right, give me a call. Sacramento’s not so far away I can’t find my way back here.”
“Honestly, there’s no one—”
“MacPherson! You’re not giving this young lady a hard time, are you?” The taller man from earlier appeared, his jaw set in a no-nonsense frown.
“Who, me?” MacPherson pretended to be insulted.
“You’ll have to excuse him, ma’am. He has a tendency to run off at the mouth. You have my permission to boot him where it counts if necessary.”
“It’s all right,” Aubrey answered.
“Hey, Captain.” MacPherson held up the arm that Aubrey had finished dressing. “She’s a nurse.”
“Are you?” the captain asked.
“Yes, I am.”
“Are you a volunteer here?”
“Her boyfriend’s one of the local crew,” MacPherson interjected before Aubrey could answer.
“He’s not my boyfriend,” she protested, but no one paid her any heed.
The captain had made an attempt to wash up. His face and hands were scrubbed clean, if not the rest of him. “Have you ever considered volunteering? I’d be happy to introduce you to Marty Paxton, the Blue Ridge commander.”
“Thanks, but no.”
“Wilderness firefighting teams can always use skilled medical personnel.”
Aubrey glanced around the community center, seeking a diversion. Where had Eleanor gone off to? “I can’t. I’m the sole caregiver for my invalid grandmother.” That sounded better than the truth.
Jesse and Maureen’s deaths had done a real number on Aubrey, shaking her confidence to the core. No matter how hard she tried not to, she saw their faces in every trauma patient she treated. Aubrey believed she owed her patients the best possible care. How could she explain to the captain that she feared she might freeze the first time a seriously injured firefighter was brought in?
Thankfully, he took no for an answer. “Well, if you ever change your mind, I’m sure there’ll be an opening for you.”
“And you could always come to Sacramento if you get tired of this place.” MacPherson bounced to his feet and shot her a look loaded with innuendo. “Thanks for the bandage job. See ya around, I hope.”
“Nice meeting you, ma’am.” The captain nodded curtly. “Let’s go, MacPherson. We got a call while you were under the knife. Playtime is over.”
“But we just got here.”
The rest of MacPherson’s complaint went unheard as the two men were joined by the remaining members of their crew. Moving as one, they rushed out the door. If they’d been riding horses, Aubrey would have expected to see a cloud of dust billowing behind them.
“You done?”
She turned at the voice and, seeing Eleanor, smiled. “There you are. I missed you earlier.”
“Sorry about that. I got suckered into making a bunch of copies at the real estate office next door where I work. The owner is good about letting the Hotshots use his equipment.”
“That’s nice.” It seemed to Aubrey the locals were more than willing to assist the firefighters however they could. She’d forgotten how much she liked the we’re-in-this-together attitude prevalent in small towns.
“Someone just brewed a fresh pot of coffee. Can I interest you in a cup?” Eleanor asked. “Or an iced tea? I’m scheduled for my break. We could catch up on old times.”
If the promise of a caffeine pick-me-up wasn’t enough, the hope shining in Eleanor’s face would have persuaded Aubrey. “Sounds great.” She reached into her jeans pocket for her cell phone. “Let me check in at home quick. Make sure everything’s okay with my grandmother.”
Home. There was that word again. She should probably be careful how she used it before someone—herself included—got the wrong impression. Look at the conclusion MacPherson had drawn thanks to one little slip of the tongue.
Why would anyone think she had a boyfriend?
“Have you seen Gage yet?” Eleanor asked after she and Aubrey found a quiet spot in which to curl up with their iced teas.
“Yesterday,” Aubrey answered with forced nonchalance. “He and the other volunteer firefighters are doing the handicap renovations on my grandmother’s house.”
“Mmm. I think I heard that. Funny how neither one of you ever remarried.”
Aubrey didn’t rise to the bait Eleanor dangled. “Not really. I’ve been focused on my career for the past several years. Serious relationships have been low on my list of priorities.” Not exactly the truth, but not a lie, either.
“I can certainly understand.”
“What about your sister, Beth? Has she gotten married?”
Aubrey’s attempt to change the subject backfired.
“Last spring. To an insurance salesman in Show Low. You know, after you and Gage…after you left town, she made quite a play for him. He turned her down flat, which she took pretty hard. Of course, we all told her she was wasting her time. He was never interested in anyone but you. Oh, he’s dated some. I mean, no man is made of stone. There was one gal in Pineville he hooked up with for a while. A technician for the phone company, I think.” Eleanor smiled coyly. “But like you, serious relationships have been low on his list of priorities.”
As it had yesterday on the porch with Gage and her grandmother, reminiscing made Aubrey fidgety. “Tell me about your children,” she said. “Do you have any pictures?”
Trust a mother’s pride in her offspring. To Aubrey’s vast relief, Eleanor immediately switched gears and for the next several minutes they enjoyed an amiable conversation. One that didn’t twist Aubrey’s stomach into knots.
“I’ve really enjoyed visiting, but I need to get back to work,” Eleanor said with reluctance. “I’m on duty until seven.”
“It’s been great. I hope we can do it again while I’m here.”
“Oh.” Eleanor’s eyebrows lifted. “You aren’t staying for good?”
“No. Only until my grandmother recovers.”
If she did recover. The chances of an elderly person leading a fully independent life after breaking a hip weren’t good. But Aubrey refused to dwell on statistics. Rather, she and her grandmother would take it one step at a time.
After a goodbye hug, Aubrey and Eleanor parted company. The TV blared in the background as Aubrey headed down the center of the large room. Men still slept in the cots, some of them snoring soundly.
She was about ten feet from the front door when it swung open and another group of Hotshots entered. These firefighters were wearing navy blue T-shirts, as opposed to black, she noted, and