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  In accordance with the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, the scanning, uploading, and electronic sharing of any part of this book without the permission of the publisher constitute unlawful piracy and theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like to use material from the book (other than for review purposes), prior written permission must be obtained by contacting the publisher at [email protected]. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.

  To the people who volunteer, whether it’s fighting fires, organizing PTA luncheons, or working to improve the world through nonprofit organizations. Where would we be without you?

  Acknowledgments

  Writing may be a solitary experience, but no author works alone. I’d like to begin with a big thank-you to the folks at www.firehouse.com for the wealth of information they provided online about hose lays, turnout suits, assessing fires, and more. I never realized how much I didn’t know about firefighting until I started reading the various lessons for firefighters posted on that website.

  I’d also like to give a huge shout-out to the members of the Last Chance Book Club, for helping me name my villain and my firehouse dog, and especially for coming up with the hilarious idea of having an ATF agent caught reading Cosmo in public. You ladies rock.

  I’d also like to thank my critique partners Carol Hayes and Keely Thrall, who helped me negotiate the pitfalls of writing a book about one man and his relationship with two sisters.

  As always, I must thank my thoughtful agent, Elaine English, my amazing editor, Alex Logan, and the whole team at Forever Romance who have given me such terrific support, not to mention the amazing artwork on the cover of this book. And finally many thanks to my husband, Bryan, who is the king of home renovation and a veritable font of knowledge on anything related to building construction. I love you more than words could ever express.

  CHAPTER

  1

  Wednesdays were slow at the Last Chance Around Antique Mall. So Sabina Grey was alone. She sat behind the checkout counter surfing the Internet while the morning sun slanted through the front windows of what once had been a Woolworth five-and-ten-cent store.

  Sabina was using this rare moment of inaction to daydream about the grand European tour she planned to take one day. She was flipping through images of the Parthenon and thinking of handsome, dark-eyed Greek men.

  “Hey there.” The voice wobbled like an ancient phonograph recording.

  Sabina looked up with a start to find Miriam Randall blinking at her through her thick trifocals. Miz Miriam had to be eighty-five and, bless her heart, she was starting to lose her mind. Today she was wearing a house dress that might have been a nightgown or a robe. Her white hair looked a little lopsided, as if she’d had trouble putting it up in the crown braids she always wore.

  “Hey, Miz Miriam, what brings you to Last Chance Around this morning?” Sabina stood up behind the point-of-sale counter to get a better look at the old woman. Oh, good Lord, Miriam was wearing a pair of bedroom slippers. Had she walked all the way into town dressed like that?

  This wasn’t good. Sabina picked up her cell phone and started punching in the numbers for Miriam’s niece Savannah. But before she could finish, Miriam leaned both elbows on the counter. “Honey, I need to talk with you.”

  Sabina’s insides went all weightless like they did on the first dip of the big roller coaster at Six Flags Over Georgia. “You want to talk to me? What about?”

  “What do you think it’s about? I have some advice for you.”

  Advice? Oh, boy. This was unexpected. Before she started losing her mind, Miriam Randall had been Allenberg County’s premier matchmaker. Not that Miriam actually matched people up. She was really more of a soothsayer or something. She would hand out vague advice, like the kind in fortune cookies. And danged if her advice always turned out to be true.

  So if you were single and pining away for love, it was a red letter day when Miz Miriam darkened your door. “I, uh, well, I’m surprised.” Sabina’s breath chose that moment to go on vacation. Too bad the rest of her couldn’t tag along.

  “You didn’t think you were going to end up a spinster, did you?”

  “Well…” In fact she was kind of starting to worry about that.

  Which was truly sad, since her high school had voted her the girl most likely to require a shotgun wedding. An honor that was not really true then, but definitely out of the question now.

  Events had changed the silly, boy-crazy girl she’d once been. And while she’d been maturing, all the eligible bachelors in her age group had gotten married or moved away. So the soulmate pickings in Allenberg County were slim at best, that was for sure. Besides, her activities with the Altar Guild, the book club, the Chamber of Commerce, and the new Discover Last Chance Association didn’t give her much time for romance.

  Miz Miriam spoke again in a voice as ancient as faded parchment. “I declare, you young people are so impatient. Well, you listen up now. I came over here to tell you that your soulmate will arrive just as soon as you set your mind to helping your sister tie the knot.”

  Well, that was sort of a letdown. For one glorious moment, Sabina had thought this visit was about her. But of course it made total sense that Miz Miriam would consult her about Lucy.

  And yet, unwanted envy pricked Sabina like a lance. “Miz Miriam, I do appreciate this advice. You’ve made my day.” The stiff, brittle words felt sour in Sabina’s mouth.

  “I have?” The old lady’s white brows arched. “I would have thought you’d be annoyed with me, since I’m asking you to think about someone else.”

  Sabina’s composure crumbled. How could anyone accuse her of not caring about Lucy? “I love my sister, Miz Miriam. I would do anything for her.”

  “If you love her, girl, then get out of her way. Let her discover the truth.”

  “The truth?”

  The old woman gave her a stare so penetrating, it probably could have pierced the vault at Fort Knox. It was hard to believe that Miriam’s mind (or eyesight) was going when her look was so keen. “Yes, the truth. You don’t ask a fish about the water, do you?”

  “Huh?”

  “You know, a fish doesn’t see the water. It’s right there in front of his eyeballs. It’s the God’s honest truth that people never notice what’s right in front of their faces. Your sister is like that. And I think you’re part of the problem.”

  “I am? How?”

  Just then Momma came striding through the front door, dressed in her usual shabby chic ensemble composed of a hand-sewn flowered skirt, a sleeveless jean jacket, and a vintage lace blouse. Momma also wore a pair of blinged-out cowboy boots she’d picked up in San Antonio last year on one of Daddy’s business trips. Momma was trying hard not to grow old.

  “Oh, hey, Miz Miriam. What brings you to Last Chance Around?” Momma’s high-pitched voice sounded as young as she wished she still was.

  “I came to give your daughter advice.”

  Momma lit up like the Vegas Strip at midnight. “You did? How wonderful.”

  “Well, maybe not.” Miriam turned and gave Sabina another pointed look. “You need to give your sister space, you hear?”

  “Space?” Momma blinked in befuddlement.

  “That’s what I said, isn’t it? I always say what I mean.”

  That was a debatable point, but Sabina was not about to get into an argument with Miriam Randall. Not when she was delivering marital advice.

  But Momma had been waiting a long, long time for Miriam to darken one of her daughters’ doors. So as usual, Momma blundered ahead like a bli
nd horse. “What did you tell her, Miriam?”

  “I told her that she needed to make sure of her sister’s happiness before she can ever find her own.”

  “Well, that’s good news, isn’t it?”

  Before Miriam could say another word, Dash Randall came striding into the store. “Aunt Mim, what are you doing here in your house dress?” he asked.

  Miz Miriam pulled herself up straight. “I had urgent business here.”

  Dash cast his gaze from Sabina to Momma and back again. “’Morning, ladies. I think I should caution you that Aunt Mim hasn’t been herself the last few days.”

  He gave them both a charming, lopsided grin and then gently took his aunt’s arm. “Come on, now. You need to get dressed for the senior center, and then there’s the Purly Girls meeting later.”

  “I was helping them, Dash.”

  “I know, Aunt Mim.” He nodded then looked up at Momma and Sabina. He gave them a little wink and a shrug.

  And with that, Dash guided Miz Miriam out of the antiques mall.

  “Well, isn’t that something?” Momma said, looking after them with a glance that had gone all wistful. “Honey, we need to put our heads together and figure out a way to get Ross off his lazy backside. What in the name of all creation is he waiting for? Maybe I should tell him he’s standing in the way of your happiness.”

  “Oh good Lord, Momma, I don’t think that’s a good plan. You heard Dash. Miriam hasn’t been herself lately. I think we should keep what just happened here to ourselves. I don’t think it means one thing.”

  “You don’t? Well I have more faith in Miriam Randall than you do, I guess. I want my girls to be happy. And right now I’m sick to death of the way Ross has been dragging his heels. He needs to propose to Lucy. Sooner rather than later. And Miriam has just given us the leverage we need.”

  Momma turned and headed toward the door. “Don’t you worry now, honey. I’m going to talk to Elsie, and we’ll figure out a way to light a fire under Ross.”

  Oh, no. This was bad. Very bad. Sabina didn’t want Ross to think that he stood between her and happiness. It was embarrassing. Once a million years ago—before the fire that had scarred Lucy—Sabina had been the Davis High Homecoming Queen. She could have had her pick.

  But she didn’t want Ross thinking she was desperate. And she didn’t want to be used as leverage against him, either.

  “Momma, don’t you dare tell the Altar Guild about this,” Sabina said. “You tell Elsie Campbell what happened here this morning and the whole town will know about it before nightfall. You can’t do that to Ross and Lucy.” Not to mention herself. She was going to look pathetic, which was actually kind of true.

  “I can’t? You just watch me.”

  Chief Ross Gardiner sat in his small office at the Last Chance firehouse preparing the annual budget for the volunteer fire department. He was the only paid member of the force and the only member who had professional firefighting experience. Which explained why he got to do all the paperwork and deal with the county bureaucracy.

  Budget time always made him grumpy. And this year, the county had imposed deep cutbacks. Ross supposed these might be popular with taxpayers, but the funding reductions were making it darn hard to provide fire and emergency medical services.

  He was just thinking about ditching the paperwork and heading over to the doughnut shop for a cup of coffee when Matt Jasper, the lone officer of the Allenberg County Sheriff’s Department K-9 unit, came through the open door. Matt’s partner, Rex, a big German shepherd, trotted at his side.

  “I come bearing the elixir of life,” Matt said, holding up two paper coffee cups. “And this is good coffee, I bought it at the Garden of Eatin’.”

  “How did you know my caffeine tank was running on empty?” Ross said as he took one of the cups.

  Matt sank into the ugly, 1960s-style plastic chair beside Ross’s desk. He glanced down at the paperwork. “Because you and everyone else with any kind of authority has been stuck behind their desks doing budgets that are probably going to cost a lot of hardworking people their jobs.”

  Matt roughed up Rex’s ears as he continued speaking. “In fact, Rex and I might be the first ones downsized.” Matt continued to pet his dog and avoid eye contact.

  “Jeez.” Ross shook his head and leaned back. “I didn’t think the Sheriff’s Department would be hit with budget cuts.”

  “Sheriff Rhodes told me this morning that he’s not sure he can save the K-9 department, such as it is.” Matt chewed on his lower lip for an instant. He was working hard to keep it together.

  “I’m really sorry.”

  Matt continued to rub Rex’s ears. “Working with dogs is the one thing I know. The army trained me well. If I can’t be a K-9 cop here, then I’ll have to go somewhere else. There are departments in other places that would love to have a dog like Rex and an experienced handler. I just don’t know how Annie is going to take the idea of leaving this town.” He hunched his shoulders and pressed his lips into a hard line, as if saying any more would take him to a place too emotional to share.

  Ross didn’t know what to say, so he said nothing. Silence seemed right. Since Ross had returned to Last Chance two years ago, Matt, a newcomer, had become his best buddy. Buddies didn’t need words to share the emotion of the moment.

  “Well, it is what it is,” Matt said on a gust of air after about half a minute. Rex settled at his feet with his big head on Matt’s foot. “I didn’t come over here to cry in my coffee. The truth is, I heard some gossip over at the hardware store that I figured you needed to hear.” He finally looked up and made eye contact.

  “Since when do you listen to gossip?” Ross asked.

  “When it involves you.”

  “Me? I haven’t done one thing gossip-worthy. Ever.”

  “Apparently that’s the problem.”

  “What? Tell me.” Ross braced himself.

  “I gather Miriam Randall visited the antiques store this morning and told Sabina that if she ever wanted to find her soulmate, she needed to help Lucy get married. So naturally, the females of this town now believe that you are the person standing in the way of Sabina Grey’s eternal happiness. And I gather that the entire female population of this town is concerned that Sabina is on the verge of becoming a spinster. Boy, you better get on with it and propose to Lucy before you have church ladies picketing the firehouse.”

  A bolt of emotional energy zapped Ross right in the chest and riveted him to his seat. He couldn’t speak, move, react. He sat there like an electrocuted lump staring at his best friend.

  If Sabina was on the verge of spinsterhood, it wasn’t because of him. It was a situation entirely of her own making. She was drop-dead beautiful. All she had to do was crook her finger and guys would be falling all over her.

  Just like in high school.

  But she’d made it clear she was not in the market for a boyfriend.

  The first week he’d returned to Last Chance, Ross had been astonished to discover that Sabina was still single. So he had screwed up his courage and asked her out for dinner, but she’d been too busy with the Chamber of Commerce. And then he’d asked her out to a movie, but she had something going with the Methodist Day Care Center. When she said no the third time—to drinks at Dot’s Spot—the message had been crystal clear. And she’d underscored it a week later when she went out of her way to introduce him to her younger sister.

  In the eighteen months that Ross had been dating Lucy, he’d gotten to know Sabina a whole lot better. She was a sweet person, but utterly uninterested in the opposite sex. She seemed to live a perfectly happy life hopping from one civic activity to another, the way she used to go through boyfriends in high school.

  He’d watched her for a while. And every guy who ventured into her territory got shot down in flames. The idea of him being the roadblock to Sabina’s happiness was ridiculous. If she wanted a husband, all she had to do was say yes.

  “Don’t give me that look,” Mat
t said with a wiseass smirk on his face. “I know what you’re thinking. In a minute you’re going to serve up some firehouse mumbo jumbo about once burned twice shy. But I’m telling you, man, the women of this town have decided that your single days are over.”

  “Fear is useful. You wouldn’t rush into a domestic situation without being cautious, would you? I certainly don’t go rushing into a burning building without feeling some kind of fear. There are things in life that can hurt you. Marriage is one of them.”

  Ross had married for love at the age of twenty-seven. Five years later he found his wife cheating on him with one of his buddies. He wouldn’t allow his gonads to blind him again.

  “C’mon, Ross, marriage can be great with the right woman. Lucy’s terrific. Besides, you’ve been dating her for a while.”

  “And?”

  “You love her, right?”

  “Yes.” The answer was automatic. In fact, he and Lucy had grown comfortable together. He supposed that being comfortable was a sign. Maybe it was time for him to get off his butt and marry her.

  “If you love her, the next step is marriage, right? So why not go get her a ring right now?”

  “I’m not sure she wants a ring.”

  “Come on, Ross, every woman wants a ring.”

  Except Lucy didn’t seem to be all that hot to get married. She wasn’t like Betsy, his ex-wife. Betsy had taken Ross to look at engagement rings for months before he finally got up the nerve to ask for her hand. Lucy hadn’t done anything like that. She hadn’t hinted or demanded or any of the usual kinds of things.

  Which made her perfect, actually. She was as cautious as he was. And kind of kick-ass in some ways. Lucy spent a lot of time down at the Dead Center Shooting Club. She could curse like a sailor. And she actually liked the taste of beer.

  A guy could really adore Lucy. Which he did.

  He especially liked the fact that she had a plan for her life. She’d insisted that they agree on a list of things that needed to be achieved before they could get married. Or even intimate. Most of the things on the list were Lucy’s idea, but they all made sense. And they’d worked through every single one of them. He’d even taken some shooting lessons. And she’d agreed to get her CPR certification. So they shared interests.