He didnt wait for her assent, merely draped the heavy waterproof jacket over her shoulders, allowing his hands to linger just a moment. The tingle that shot up his arms when he touched her did not go unnoticed. She stopped pacing and gave him a reluctant thank you.
What did you mean? he asked, leaning back against the brick facade of the building to watch her pace. When you said Id ruined your life once before?
She frowned. Nothing. It doesnt make a difference.
Dylan shook his head and smiled in an attempt to lighten her mood. I hardly recognize you, Meggie. Except for the name. We never really knew each other, did we?
An odd expression crossed her face and he wasnt sure if he read it right, through the soot and the windblown hair. Had he hurt her by his words? Was there a reason he was supposed to remember her?
To his disappointment, their conversation ended there. The radio on the truck sounded another alarm and the firefighters gathered at the scene stopped to listen. Dispatch gave an address in an industrial area, a factory fire, already a three-alarm blaze. I have to go, he said, reaching out and giving her hand a squeeze. It should be safe to go back inside now. And Im sorry about your machine.
She opened her mouth, as if she had something more to say, then snapped it shut. Thank you, she murmured.
He walked backward toward the truck, strangely unable to take his eyes away from her. For a moment, she looked like the girl hed remembered, standing all alone on the sidewalk, unsure of herself, hands clutched in front of her. Say hi to Tommy the next time you see him.
I will, she called, her gaze still fixed to his.
The truck rumbled to life behind him and Ken Carmichael honked the horn impatiently. Maybe Ill see you around, Dylan added.
Your jacket! she called, slipping out of it.
He waved. Weve got extras in the truck.
He hopped inside the cab and took a spot behind the driver, then pulled the door shut. As they drove away from the scene, sirens wailing and lights blazing, Dylan glanced up and found Artie and Jeff grinning at him. Gee, Quinn, what happened to your jacket? Artie asked. Did you lose it in the fire?
Dylan shrugged.
We could be fighting a fire on the moon and youd still manage to find a woman to charm, Jeff said. He leaned forward and shouted to the driver. Hey, Kenny, we have to go back. Quinn left his jacket behind again.
Carmichael chuckled, then yanked on the horn as he maneuvered through afternoon traffic. That boy has a nasty habit of losing jackets. Ill just have to tell the chief to take it out of his pay.
Dylan pulled the extra jacket off the hook beside his head and slipped into it. This time he wasnt sure he wanted it back. Meggie Flanagan wasnt like the other women for whom the ploy had worked so well. For one thing, she didnt gaze up at him with an adoring look. From what he could tell, she pretty much hated him. And she certainly wasnt the kind of girl he could just seduce, then leave. She was the kid sister of a very old friend.
He drew a long breath, then let it out slowly. No, it would be a long time before he retrieved his jacket from Meggie Flanagan.
A THIN COAT OF GRIMY soot covered every surface in the shop. The grand opening of Cuppa Joe was scheduled for the day after Thanksgiving and Meggie was overwhelmed by the task in front of her. She still had to train eight new employees and finish up with the last details of the decor. A call to the insurance company assured her of a check for both a cleaning crew and a new machine. But she didnt have time to wait for the crew to come. Tables and chairs were due to be delivered tomorrow. If they expected to open on time, she and her business partner, Lana Richards, would have to get the place in shape on their own.
The smoke hadnt been the worst of yesterdays fire. The destruction of her espresso maker had been a crushing blow. Three months, she muttered. Three months until they can deliver another machine. I even offered to pay them extra for a rush order, but they said they couldnt do it. Every coffee shop wants one of those machines.
Can you please stop with the machine? Lana struggled to her feet and tossed a dirty rag into the bucket of warm water, then brushed her blond hair out of her eyes. Well just buy two Espresso Master 4000s. Or four Espresso Master 2000s. Anything so we dont have to talk about the espresso maker anymore.
In truth, shed had to force herself to think about the machine. It kept her from lapsing into daydreams about the handsome firefighter who had ordered it destroyed. How many times over the past 24 hours had she caught herself adrift in a contemplation of Dylan Quinn? And how many times had the contemplation ended in a surge of well-remembered humiliation.
This is our business, Meggie said softly. We didnt spend the last five years saving every penny we made, working at jobs we hated, begging the Bank of Boston for a loan, just to have some overenthusiastic firefighter end it all with one swing of his ax.
Any woman might be fascinated by Dylan Quinn. After all, it wasnt every day you met a real life hero, tall and imposing in his firefighting gear. He seemed made for his job, dauntless and determinedstrong and Meggie sighed softly. There was probably a Dylan Quinn in every womans life, a man who was the subject of an endless string of what ifs.
What if she hadnt been such a geek in high school and he hadnt been such a god? What if shed gotten her braces off a year earlier? What if shed been able to talk to him without giggling uncontrollably? A moan slipped from her lips. Though shed come a long way since those days, the memories were still acutely embarrassing.
Over the past years, shed thought about Dylan Quinn every now and then, wondering what had happened to her first love. On lonely nights or after disastrous dates, shed even conjure up a fantasy of what it might be like to meet him again. After all, she was different now. The braces and thick glasses had been replaced by perfect teeth and contact lenses. Her once lackluster hair color was now enhanced by one of Bostons best hairdressers. And most importantly of all, shed grown curves in all the proper places.
Still, there were a few things that hadnt changed. She still wasnt very good with the opposite sex. Though shed accomplished a lot in her professional life, her personal life left a lot to be desired. It probably had more to do with the men she chose to date, but Meggie just wrote her bad luck off as a lingering effect from too many years as a geek.
Dylan, on the other hand, had been one of the most popular boys in high school. With his dark and dangerous good looks and his devastating charm, hed been every girls dream date. But hed still been a boy and her memories of him had always held an image of a tall, lanky, high-school Casanova with a killer smile. That image had shattered the moment she met those strange and beautiful eyes again.
All the Quinns had those eyes, gold mixed with green, a shade too unique to be called hazel. Those eyes that held the power to turn a girls knees weak and make her pulse race. And to send Meggie right back to the pain and humiliation of that one night, the night of the Sophomore Frolic.
The fire wasnt all bad, Lana said. You got to see Dylan Quinn again.
I needed that like a sharp stick in the eye, she said.
She and Lana had been friends since their college days at the University of Massachusetts, so there was very little that Lana didnt know about the menor lack of themin Meggies life, both past and present. But the picture of Dylan Quinn shed painted for her friend hadnt been very flatteringor entirely truthful. Had Lana been asked she probably would have described him as a cross between Hannibal Lector and Bigfoot.
I needed that like a sharp stick in the eye, she said.
She and Lana had been friends since their college days at the University of Massachusetts, so there was very little that Lana didnt know about the menor lack of themin Meggies life, both past and present. But the picture of Dylan Quinn shed painted for her friend hadnt been very flatteringor entirely truthful. Had Lana been asked she probably would have described him as a cross between Hannibal Lector and Bigfoot.
The bell on the front door jingled and Meggie popped up from behind the counter, hoping that her new Espresso Master 4000 Ultra had arrived from the restaurant supply house. But it wasnt Eddie, the usual driver, who walked in the door. This man was tall and good-looking andMeggie swallowed hard. This man was Dylan Quinn!
With a tiny groan, Meggie dropped back down behind the counter, then tugged on the leg of Lanas jeans. He was the last person she wanted to see! Its him, she said.
Lana shook her leg until Meggie let go. Who?
Dylan Quinn. Tell him to leave. Tell him were not open. Tell him theres another coffee shop over on Newbury.
Oh, my God, Lana murmured, staring toward the front of the shop, stunned by the revelation. Thats Dylan Quinn? But he doesnt look
Her words were stopped when Meggie slammed her fist down on Lanas big toe. Lana yelped in pain. Get rid of him. Now!
Her partner muttered a quiet threat, then stepped out from behind the counter. Hello. I bet youre here looking for a good cup of coffee. Well, as you can see, were not open yet. Our grand opening is in three weeks.
Actually, he said. I didnt come for coffee.
The warm rich sound of his voice seemed to seep into her bloodstream as Meggie cowered on the floor. She wondered what it might be like to listen to that voice for an hour or two. Would it become so addictive that she couldnt do without it?
But Im sure I could make something for one of Bostons finest, Lana continued. Well be one of the few places that serves Jamaican Blue Mountain. Would you like to try a cup? Its like nectar of the gods. An appropriate drink for you, Id say.
Meggie groaned, then grabbed Lanas leg as she moved to the coffeemaker. Dont serve him the Jamaican, she whispered. Its the most expensive thing in the shop. Just get rid of him!
Lana scooped some beans from a plastic container in the refrigerator, then dumped them in the grinder. Youre Dylan Quinn, arent you?
Do I know you? Dylan asked.
Just by the tone of his voice, Meggie could tell that hed turned on the charm full force. And Lana, an accomplished flirt, was lapping it up like a sex kitten with a bowl of cream. Hed give her that boyish smile and those little crinkles at the corners of his eyes would make him look so appealing. And Lana would toss her perfect blond hair over her shoulder and laugh in that deep, throaty way she had. And before Meggie could stop them, theyd be rushing to the drugstore for a box of condoms.
No, Lana said. But Im sure we can remedy that fact. Im Lana Richards, Meggies business partner. Meggie told me how you saved her life yesterdayand our shop. Were very grateful. Very. I hope theres a way II mean, wecan repay you.
Meggie cursed softly. Lana was doing this on purpose, teasing and taunting her, tweaking her jealousy until shed be forced to stand up and show herself. Grudgingly, she stood up, then brushed her hair from her eyes. Dylan, who was now leaning over the counter, stepped back in surprise. Meggie!
She forced a smile. Im sorry, I was justthere was a thing I wasI had my head in the cooler and didnt hear you come in. She cleared her throat. Im afraid were not open for business yet, she said, smoothing her hands over her jeans.
The poor man has been fighting fires all day long. We could at least offer him something, Lana said.
Meggie crossed her arms beneath her breasts and watched Dylan warily. Hed changed out of his firefighting gear and now wore faded jeans, a T-shirt and a leather jacket, but he looked as rakish as ever. His hair, thick and dark, was still damp at the nape of his neck and she couldnt help but wonder how long ago hed stepped out of the showerwetand naked.
She swallowed hard, then grabbed a rag and began to polish the copper-clad counter. Gee, I would have thought youd still be out pillaging, Meggie murmured.
Lana walked behind her and Meggie felt a sharp pain on the back of her arm as her partner pinched her. She cursed softly and rubbed her skin, then spun around and sent Lana a withering glare.
Be nice, Lana whispered. Im going to do some bookwork in the office.
I dont have to be nice, Meggie muttered. I detest the man.
Then you go do the bookwork and let me be nice. Hes gorgeous. And you know what they say about firefighters.
Whats that, Meggie murmured.
Lana leaned closer and whispered in her ear. Its not the size of the hose, but where they point it that counts.
An unbidden giggle burst from Meggies throat and she gave Lana a gentle shove toward the office. When they were finally alone, Meggie sent Dylan a sideways glance, then pulled a paper cup from beneath the counter and set it in front of him. Hed be getting this cup of coffee to go.
He observed her intently as she waited for the coffee to dribble down into the tall carafe. A smile quirked the corners of his mouth, so easy and confident in his power over her. God, he was even more gorgeous than she remembered. All her friends in school had crushes on the New Kids On The Block, but Meggie had held out for the real thingDylan Quinn. Though he was two years older and a high school senior, shed somehow deluded herself into believing that the feeling was mutual, that Dylan was in love with her. After all, every time he saw her, hed smiled. And once or twice, hed even called her by name.
And then it happened. Her brother, Tommy, had mentioned that Dylan was interested in taking her to her Sophomore Folic. It was the first big dance of her high school career and shed just assumed shed be staying home like most of the other wallflowers in her class. But then, Dylan, the most handsome boy in all of South Boston High School, had agreed to escort her to the dance.
She could barely contain herself and she had told all her friends and they told all their friends until the entire sophomore class at Southie knew that Meggie Flanagan had a date with the Dylan Quinn. Shed bought a new dress and had shoes dyed to match. And when a corsage arrived earlier in the afternoon, shed been so excited shed nearly burst into tears. Then Dylan arrived, dressed in jeans and dragging his little brother, Brian, behind him. Brian, who was dressed in the tux and wearing a goofy grin.
At first, she hadnt understood, but then it became clearBrian was her date, not Dylan. Though Brian was a Quinn, he hadnt really reached his full Adonis-like potential yet. He was still at least six inches shorter than she was and his idea of charm was staring at her dreamily while he tugged at his bowtie. She would have been better off going with her cousin or even her brother Tommy.
I suppose youve come to apologize, she said, her back still to him.
He chuckled. Actually, I came for my jacket. Remember?
Oh, right, she murmured. Of course, he wouldnt have come to see her. He was simply retrieving his gear. She slowly turned, then walked to the end of the counter. Ill go get it. Its in the office.