Hero Dad. Marta Perry

you see a sloppy or dirty apparatus, you don’t think much of the firefighters who man her.”

      She filed that tidbit of information away for the article, assuming it got written. “I don’t want to get in the way.”

      “A pretty visitor is never in the way.” A wheeled platform rolled out from under the nearest truck, and the firefighter she’d seen the day before smiled up at her. “I’m Dave Hanratty.”

      “Married. With kids,” Seth added.

      “Hey, I’m married, not blind.” Dave got up. “I can give Julie the tour if you’re too busy.”

      She’d prefer that both of them stopped paying so much attention to her. “Really, I don’t want to take either of you away from your work. If you’ll just give me permission to start snapping, I’ll disappear into the woodwork.”

      “You can take any pictures you want,” Seth said. “But I’ll show you around so you know what’s where. Dave can go back to inspecting the undercarriage.”

      “Single guys get all the breaks,” Dave complained. He pulled the platform over with his foot. “When you’re ready for my close-up, just let me know.”

      “Who would want a close-up of that mug?” Seth asked innocently.

      She was beginning to catch on to the ribbing that flowed ceaselessly between the men. “I promise,” Julie said. “If I want a close-up, you’ll be the first to know.”

      Laughing, Dave rolled himself smoothly back under the truck.

      Seth gestured. “The engine room, but I guess you figured that out for yourself. We spend a lot of time here, cleaning, training, doing maintenance. Come on upstairs and see the rest of it.”

      She pulled out one of the cameras she’d brought with her. Chances were good that anything she shot today would look too stiff, but she had to start or they’d never reach the point of comfort.

      Seth gave a sidelong look at the camera as he led the way to the stairwell. She didn’t have much trouble interpreting that look.

      “The camera bothers you, doesn’t it?”

      He shrugged. “I guess. Who knows—you might catch me doing something I shouldn’t, and then the chief would be on my back. Or something dangerous, and then my mother would be after me. Trust me, that’s worse.”

      “What would you do that you shouldn’t?

      “Horseplay.” He grinned. “Firefighters are great ones for practical jokes. Officially, the chief disapproves.”

      He stood back to let her go up the narrow flight of wooden stairs first. She could feel him behind her as she climbed. “I’d think your mother would be used to having firefighters in the family by this time.”

      “I guess mothers never stop worrying.”

      She paused at the top of the steps so she could see his expression. “What about you? It must worry you, being in a dangerous job when you’re a single parent.”

      She might as well not have bothered, because his expression didn’t give one thing away.

      “I don’t take chances,” he said shortly. “This is the kitchen.” He gestured. “We spend a lot of time here, and yes, we cook. People always ask that.”

      It was only as Lisa’s sister that she really had the right to have asked that question about his job. He was a single father. He did have a potentially dangerous job. This would be so much easier if she could just tell him the truth.

      Lisa hadn’t wanted him to know about her family, either. That was the bottom line. She searched for a safe remark.

      “Are you a good cook?”

      His expression eased at the innocuous question. “My mother probably wouldn’t think so, but I’m about as good as anyone else here. All of us here have to cook for the group occasionally. I make a mean chili, anyway.”

      She took a few shots of the kitchen that she’d undoubtedly delete from the digital camera, then continued snapping as he showed her a living area furnished with what looked like cast-offs from someone’s house and a small exercise room furnished with weights and a punching bag.

      He gestured toward a closed door. “Bunks and bathrooms are that way, but a couple of guys are sleeping right now.”

      “And if the alarm goes off?”

      “If a call comes in, don’t get between that door and the pole.”

      The shiny brass pole led through a hole in the floor to the engine room below. “So the pole really exists, does it?” She began snapping again. “I thought that might be a myth.”

      “There’s a good reason for it. You have half a dozen firefighters trying to get down a flight of stairs at the same time, you got a mess. The pole’s faster and safer.”

      She focused her lens on the opening. “You wouldn’t care to give me a demonstration, would you?”

      “I will if you try it, too.”

      She studied him through her viewfinder. He looked serious. “I’m not the athletic type.”

      “If you’re going to go out on calls with us, you’ll have to stop hiding behind the camera and take a risk or two. And that’s the whole idea of this, isn’t it?”

      The idea is to observe your relationship with my nephew.

      “Sure, but that doesn’t mean I want to become a firefighter.”

      “Come on.” He grasped the pole with one hand and drew her forward, his eyes teasing. “Even the ten-year-olds in our Future Firefighters club slide the pole. I’ll show you how. Just hang on here.” He patted the shiny brass.

      “I can’t.” She pulled back, feeling his arm strong around her. “You’d have to have three or four people down there to break my fall before I’d try.”

      He grinned. “The idea is to slide, not to fall.”

      “Even so—”

      She looked up at his face, and her nerves gave that funny little jump again. He was too close—way too close. She could see the gold flecks in his brown eyes and the tiny lines that bracketed his firm mouth.

      An inappropriate wave of warmth flooded her. Seth’s eyes seemed to darken, as if he felt it, too.

      Oh, no. She could not be attracted to Seth Flanagan. She couldn’t be.

      For just an instant Seth felt the way he had when a beam came down on him in a smoky fire. His helmet had protected him from serious injury, but he’d seen stars for a week afterward.

      Looking into Julie’s eyes seemed to create a similar effect. He let go of her carefully, putting some distance between them. He wasn’t looking to see stars anymore, either physically or emotionally.

      “Tell you what. I’ll slide down to show you how it’s done, but you can take the stairs. This time.”

      “Every time.” Julie lifted the camera in front of her face. She did that a lot, maybe more than she had to. He couldn’t help but wonder why she felt the need to hide.

      “Okay.” He went into his usual pole-sliding demonstration. “The alarm goes, you charge out, adrenaline pumping, and grab the pole with your arm, wrap your legs around and slide.”

      Julie’s face disappeared as he slid down a little faster than usual. He landed hard enough to jolt him. Well, it served him right for showing off just because a pretty woman was watching.

      He looked up at the opening, but she’d disappeared. He heard her footsteps on the stairs, and in a moment she emerged from the stairwell.

      “Very impressive.”

      “Thank you. We try to keep up