Her Perfect Hero - Kara Lennox 5 стр.


A noise above her yanked her attention away from the pup. She looked up just in time to see the ceiling panel shed been working on detach itself completely and head straight for her.

Tony grabbed Julie and the dog and yanked them both out of the way. The heavy piece of tin, with its knife-sharp edges, crashed to the floor right where shed been standing, leaving a gouge in the wooden planking.

Now she reacted. Shed almost diedtwice in two minutes. Her knees went wobbly, and if Tony hadnt put his arms around her, shed have sunk to the floor.

Thats twice Ive saved your life, he said, his voice husky.

For an insane moment, Julie thought he might kiss her. Shed fantasized about it often enough over the past couple of days. But then the moment passed, sanity reasserted itself and Tony released her, leaving her tingling.

Could a brush with death cause these peculiar feelings? She sure hoped she had an excuse for wanting to lose herself in a mans touch when she was supposed to be concentrating on her tearoom.

With no small effort, Tony pulled himself out of the sensual fog that Julie had put him in. Hed felt so drawn to her, as if he wanted to kiss her. Thankfully hed realized how inappropriate that would be and had let the woman go, taking a step back to put her out of temptations reach. This seduction had to be executed with care.

Ethan had said to make friends with Julie, get to know her. That wasnt Tonys normal approach. He usually liked to sweep a woman off her feet, flirt mercilessly, prove to her how strongly he was attracted to her. Hed always figured the friendship could come later, when the sexual pull wasnt so overwhelming that it occupied all of his brain cells.

But so far that friendship part had eluded him. Yeah, he was friends with Priscilla and Ethans wife, Katand Natalie, the mother of his little girl. As far as his love life went, though, something always went wrong before he could become friends with a lover.

So maybe he would try being friends first. There was more than one way to seduce a woman, and he wouldnt quit until hed tried them all.

Th-thank you, Julie said, recovering some of the color in her face. I do appreciate the life-saving maneuvers.

Thats what firefighters are for. She looked amazing, standing there with her heaving breasts and her rosy cheeks, her golden hair mussed from shaking. She was trying to pretend that being so close to him hadnt had much effect, but Tony knew better.

Then she pulled herself together, all business again. As you pointed out, I have a ton of work to do. So if youll excuse me

Thats why Im here. I thought I could help.

She narrowed her eyes suspiciously. Why would you offer to help when you hate the idea of my tearoom?

He shrugged. Never could resist a damsel in distress. He looked around. And you are in distress.

He could tell she wanted to argue. But her need for an extra pair of hands and some elbow grease won out. If you really want to help, the wooden Indian would make a good start. Hes covered with so much nicotine I cant even tell what color hes supposed to be. Then she added, But you wont soften me up. I wont change my mind about the tea-room. So if thats your agenda

Agenda? Youve got to be kidding, Tony said, his conscience pinching him a bit as he picked up a cleaning rag. At least if he helped her clean, he had an excuse to stick around and get to know her better. And she could get to know him. Once she thought it through, shed realize what a great guy he wassaving her life, helping her scrub this place downand she might be more willing to listen to his reasons for wanting to revive Bradys Tavern.

Or he might just make love to her. Right now, that seemed a far more intriguing goal than changing her mind about keeping Bradys intact.

Im not sure how Sir Edward will feel about taking a bath, Tony said as he tackled decades of filth.

Sir Edward?

The cigar man. He used to belong to an Englishman who owned a cigar shop down on Jefferson. When that gentleman fell on hard times he closed the shopand he didnt have enough money to pay off his bar tab. So Bradythat would have been the second Brady, your grandfathertook the Indian as payment.

Tony watched Julie from the corner of his eye. She paused in her efforts to clean years of scum off one of the high round tables that dotted Bradys. Really? How interesting.

She didnt sound sarcastic, at least. So she enjoyed local history. That had to be a good thing for the campaign to save Bradys.

Are there more stories like that?

Dozens. Tony gave up on the Indian and walked back to the bar. Wheres the ashtray that was sitting here?

The big ugly one that possibly used to be brass?

Yeah.

I didnt figure anyone would want it, so I threw it away.

Tony clutched at his chest and pretended to gasp for air. Threw it away?

Was it special? She actually sounded concerned.

It was the Daryl Jones memorial ashtray. Jones was a legendary fire chief, back in the days of prohibition. When he died, they took the old fire bell down and made an ashtray out of it. He and Bradythat would be your great-grandfatherwere good friends.

Julie winced. And they made his bell into an ashtray? Isnt that kind of disrespectful?

Since Jones was a chain-smoker, no. I cant believe you threw it away. Id have bought it from you. Any of the firefighters would have.

Without a word, Julie disappeared into the back room. He heard her digging around and a minute or so later she emerged triumphantly with the ashtray in hand. If youll help me clean, you can have the ashtray for free.

Deal.

As they worked, Tony told her more stories. The billiard table had come from Dallass first bowling alley just before it was torn down. The dartboard had been a gift from a baseball player in the 1950s.

Tony showed Julie a bullet hole in the wall that was reputed to have been put there by the famous bank robber Clyde Barrow, of Bonnie and Clyde fame, when Bradys had been a speakeasy.

Julie paused often to take notes.

That popcorn machine behind the bar came from the Texas Theater down the street.

No kidding? Hey, theyve renovated that theater, havent they?

Yeah, and it looks great. Now he was getting somewhere. Oak Cliff is renovating everything. People are really starting to appreciate the history of this area. Preserving rather than tearing down. Hint, hint, Julie.

Thats marvelous! I bet the theater owners would love to buy back this machine and display it there.

Tony sighed. What are you writing all these stories down for?

The auctioneer says that anything with historical significance will get a better price. So tell me more.

Tony realized his efforts to convince Julie not to tear up Bradys might actually be counterproductive. His stories made her even more inclined to parcel out all these wonderful old things.

Watching her as she scrubbed the filth off an old hurricane lampprobably something left over from the days before the bar had electricityhe had a hard time remembering what his mission was. He just wanted to kiss her.

Still, he made one more try. I understand your wanting to get money for all this stuff, he said carefully. But doesnt sentimental value count for anything? Separately, you have some semivaluable collectibles. Together, you have a legendyour familys legend at that. This is the place your great-grandfather opened a century ago. Doesnt that mean anything to you?

She looked stung by his harsh question, at first, and then she looked madand he knew hed gone too far. She threw down her rag and marched over to him, getting right in his face.

Im sorry that you guys have lost your hangout. Truly I am. But I have to do whats right for me and my family. My living family, not a bunch of dead guys. And even if you try to deny it, itll be good for the neighborhood, too.

He started to say something, but she cut him off.

I am not going to change my mind. What do I have to do to convince you?

Bluto chose that moment to jump against Tonys leg and yip.

Maybe you should take him for that walk, Julie suggested, her voice softening.

Yeah, Ill take him back to his mom. Hes looking for a good home, by the way.

Thats all I needa dog to make my life complete. Why dont you keep him?

Tony laughed. I already adopted one. He hooked Blutos leash to his collar and the dog proceeded to drag him toward the door. Goodbye, Julie. But Ill be back.

As he stepped out into the August heat, he acknowledged that this battle was going to be a lot harder than hed first thought. But Julie wasnt immune to him. Shed enjoyed the stories he told. Maybe, after she had time to think about it, she would change her mind. And if not

He could at least get the word out about the auction. Every off-duty cop and firefighter in Oak Cliff would want to attend and grab a piece of Bradys.

As Tony crossed the street, intending to return Bluto to his dog run behind Station 59, he realized hed forgotten to take the Daryl Jones memorial ashtray.

JULIE HAD BEEN HOPING for a good crowd at the auction, but the mass of people crowding up to the bar to register and receive their bidding numbers exceeded all her expectations.

Shed done everything she could think of to publicize the auction, including the well-placed ads. Shed asked her auctioneer if she should have the sale at an auction house, but hed discouraged her from that. The bar itself was plenty big enough. The location was easy to find and she would save the costs of renting a hall and transporting the goods. Plus, she would get some locals who would bid on items for sentimental reasons.

The crowd was made up mostly of men in jeans and T-shirts. They didnt look like collectors or antiques dealers. But, then again, how would she know what such people looked like?

The one man shed been most anxious to see wasnt in the crowd, however. Tony had left abruptly two days earlier, without his darned old ashtray. She felt bad about the way theyd parted, with her all mad. She shouldnt have let him get to her. If she were one hundred percent confident in her plans, his arguments should have just harmlessly rolled off her back. But the truth was, she was scared to death of what she was attempting.

Maybe shed managed a tearoom, but shed never started her own business from the ground up. She was a mass of insecurities.

The quality of her sleep had deteriorated still more, because she couldnt get the feel of Tonys embrace out of her mindnor the way hed looked into her eyes just before releasing her.

But she had to. Getting involved with a sexy firefighteror any man, for that matterwasnt in her plans.

An older man in a suit approached her and she pointed to the clipboard sitting on the bar. Fill out your name, address and phone there and Ill assign you a number.

Im not here to buy, Ms. Polk.

She looked up sharply, alarmed by his stern tone. Then what can I help you with?

He held up a badge for her to see. Im the fire marshal. Theres a strict limit of one hundred people for these premises, in terms of fire safety, and youve already exceeded that limit.

A hundred? Surely that was wrong. The number seemed very low to her. Her building wasnt huge, but it wasnt a broom closet, either. Are you sure?

Its posted by the door. This old building is a historic landmark, which means we take extra care. Have you had the sprinkler system inspected?

Ill be doing a complete renovation, and fire safety will be my number one priority, she assured him. But for the auction, I cant just go kicking people out whove already registered.

Im afraid youll have to, maam. Unless you want me to do it. But then Id have to charge you a hefty fine.

Julie was steaming. The firefighters were behind this, she was sure of it. Theyd probably been searching for some way to foil her auctionand theyd found it. Maybe the maximum occupancy was a hundred, but she doubted it had ever been enforced until now.

She supposed she had no choice but to comply with the fire marshals order. The auction was starting in fifteen minutes.

So she went to the auctioneers microphone, turned it on and announced that all those who hadnt registered, plus those with numbers higher than ninety-seven, would have to leave because of the fire code. Including herself, Belinda and the auctioneer, that made one hundred. Her announcement produced lots of grumbling, but everyone complied. Once the extras had left, there was plenty of room in the bar. She smelled a rat, especially when the fire marshal shot her a victorious smile.

He parked himself at the door, keeping careful count of all those who came in and those who left.

As the auction progressed, Julie was increasingly disappointed in the results. Shed been to a few similar events before, and usually there was heated bidding, at least over some of the items. But with her auction, once someone bid, the rest of the crowd stayed maddeningly silent. Shed put modest reserve prices on the more valuable things, and most of these did not achieve the minimum bid and so remained unsold.

The auctioneer was sweating, talking up individual items, sharing the stories Julie had written down for him. Finally, though, he shrugged his shoulders and shot her a bewildered glance, validating her own feelings that this was an aberration.

Was it fixed? She took a closer look at the predominantly male, casually dressed crowd, and an awful realization occurred.

They were firefighters. Cops and firefighters. Every single blasted one of them. And they were cooperating, to ensure she did not succeed.

Her face grew hot. How could they be so hateful? Such bad sports? Couldnt they accept that Bradys was gone now and leave her alone? How could anyone get so riled up over a stupid old bar, even if it was a historic landmark?

She caught the eye of one man whod bid on the wooden Indian and gotten it for a hundred dollars when she knew it was worth a lot more. But shed purposely set her minimum bids low because she wanted this stuff gone. He gave her a potent, malevolent look, confirming her suspicions.

There wasnt a thing she could do. It was probably illegal for a group of people to get together and refuse to bid against each other, but who was she going to call? The cops? Theyd arrived early and gotten in line, ensuring they would fill in all the low-numbered slots, and the fire marshal had done the rest of the work to keep out legitimate collectors and antiques dealers.

The auction was over in less than two hours, and she watched dejectedly as items from Bradys went out the doorthe neon lights, the rickety tables and chairs, the dartboards and pool tables, the TVs, even the liquor. A bottle of aged scotch was the one thing that had elicited spirited bidding.

Clem, the auctioneer, approached Julie with a sheepish look. Im really sorry, Ms. Polk. I dont know what happened. I gave it my best shot, but these folks just werent in a bidding mood.

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