Her Firefighter Hero. Leigh Bale

flashed her a smile, determined not to be upset by her rebuttal. She must have her reasons for declining, and he couldn’t fault her for it. “Okay, I understand. If you change your mind in the next few days, just say the word. I won’t be going into Reno to approach other possible vendors there for another week or so. You’ve got time to change your mind.”

      “I won’t change my mind.”

      “Well, just in case.” He reached inside his shirt pocket and pulled out one of the new business cards his office manager had made up for him two weeks ago when he’d first arrived in town. Handing the card over to Megan, he noticed how her hand trembled as she took it. She barely glanced at it before sliding it into the pocket of her apron.

      “Thanks.” She turned and went inside, leaving him to follow at his own pace.

      She returned with a bucket of water a few minutes later. While she resumed her work in the restaurant, he dumped the water into the rusty garbage can. He checked on the fire one last time, satisfied that it was really out. Then, he went inside for his meal. It was delicious and he finished it way too soon. And when he tried to pay his bill, Megan refused to accept any money. Instead, he left a twenty-dollar bill tucked beneath his plate when she wasn’t looking. A very tidy tip he thought she’d earned.

      Walking out into the sunshine, he climbed into his blue pickup truck and drove home. But he couldn’t help wishing that Megan Rocklin had accepted the catering job.

       Chapter Two

      “You should accept his offer,” Connie said.

      “Whose offer?” Megan sat at the counter in the restaurant, refilling the salt and pepper shakers. Frank was in the kitchen, getting ready for the dinner hour. The kids were finally taking a nap in the back office. For a few brief minutes, Megan had not a single customer to wait on. But she knew that would soon change.

      “Jared’s offer. You should cater meals to the fire crews this summer.”

      Yes, Megan knew who Connie was talking about. But she’d rather avoid the discussion. She’d been stunned when she’d discovered who Jared was and what he wanted. After Blaine’s death, she figured she’d never cater meals to the firefighters again. And frankly, she wasn’t mentally prepared to think about it now.

      “No way. You know I’ve vowed to keep my distance from the firefighters. It’s bad enough that many of my friends are hotshots I have to worry about. I don’t want to go up on the mountain with them.”

      “But you haven’t sold your mobile kitchen yet. You still have all the equipment you need.”

      Megan barely glanced up as she rolled a fork, knife and spoon in a paper napkin, taped it closed, then placed it into the basket they used to serve their customers. “That’ll change as soon as I find a buyer.”

      Connie caught a drip of pancake syrup as she refilled the smaller decanters from a gallon jug. “Look, Megan. You’ve had that mobile kitchen up for sale for months now, and no one has expressed any interest in buying it. So why not use it for something good? Being around them doesn’t mean you’ll fall in love with another firefighter—though there’d be nothing wrong with that. You’ve just got to feed them.”

      True, but that wouldn’t sway Megan. Being in the fire camp would be too much of a reminder of all that she’d already lost. “Give me boring and safe any day of the week.”

      Connie frowned. “I don’t know how you can limit love that way. When you fall for someone, you fall. Your heart doesn’t care what he does for a living. I don’t think you can stop it from happening just because their work might be dangerous.”

      “That might be true, but I’m no longer willing to take the chance,” Megan insisted.

      “I hope that’s not true. It sounds kind of sad,” Connie said.

      Megan snorted. “Not half as sad as trying to explain to my two children that their daddy won’t be coming home because he was killed in the line of duty.”

      Connie pushed aside the syrup bottles and reached out to hug Megan. “I know, sweetie. You’ve been through a lot and I’m so sorry. But please don’t give up on love. You’re a wonderful person and have so much to offer some good guy. One day, you’re gonna meet someone special and have a long, wonderful life together.”

      Megan just nodded, not really believing she could ever be so blessed to experience that kind of exquisite love a second time.

      “Catering meals for the firefighters would still be great for your business,” Connie said.

      That was true.

      “But what would I do with Caleb and June? They’ll soon be out of school for the summer and needing even more attention.”

      “You could take them to child care.”

      “Yes, but not overnight. I spend so little quality time with them as it is. When they’re not in school, I hate for them to be out of my sight if it’s not absolutely necessary.”

      “So, take them with you. It’ll be fun for them,” Connie said.

      Megan arched one brow. “You mean up on the mountain?”

      “Sure. They’re well behaved and will stay close by while you deliver the food. They’ll look at it as an adventure. You don’t need to stay overnight and serve the meals. You can hire reliable people to do that for you.”

      Megan couldn’t argue with that. Connie made a valid point. She liked for her kids to see her working because they usually pitched in and helped. Megan knew that was also a great way of teaching children to have a good work ethic. “But we don’t have enough people to run the restaurant and also go up on the mountain to feed all the fire crews. We’re talking about hundreds of hungry men and women.”

      Connie shrugged, looking undeterred. “So, hire more people to help you out. You’ve done it before. Summer is your busy time. Lots of hungry tourists coming through town. It also means that many high school students are out looking for jobs. In a dinky town this size, they’re kind of limited on employment options. I have no doubt they’d love to chop lettuce and serve food for minimum wage. And the school lunch cooks are out of work, too. They’d love a summer job. If we have a forest fire, you can be the shuttle to drive the food up to the base camp every day. And June and Caleb can ride along with you. You get to spend time with them, and they’d have a good time. Problem solved.”

      It sounded so simple when Connie put it that way.

      “We could definitely use the money,” she said.

      But catering meals meant she’d have to work around the firefighters. No doubt she’d end up seeing Jared Marshall now and then, too. And for some reason, being around the enigmatic FMO made her feel nervous and jittery inside. She didn’t understand why, but she realized she liked the guy already.

      “I’ll help you,” Connie said.

      “So will I,” Frank called from the kitchen.

      Megan’s face flushed with heat when she realized Frank had been listening in. She thought she was crazy to even consider taking on the job. But maybe Connie was right. The thought of earning enough money to bring her bills current was an enticement she couldn’t resist. And if she refused to do the work this year, Jared might not ask her again next year. She’d be passed over while he hired some big restaurant out of Reno. It wouldn’t be often. The surrounding mountains usually only had one or two fires each year. And she could always sell the mobile kitchen later on, after fire season was over with. But it wouldn’t be wise for her to pass up this golden opportunity.

      “Look, honey, I know you’re still upset about losing Blaine, but this catering job is safe. And all you’ve got to do is say yes,” Connie said.

      An abrasive laugh slipped from Megan’s