The Heat Is On (Boston Five Book 1) (10 page)

Firstly, she didn’t want any
wild make-out sessions
with some stranger, and secondly, Kayleigh obviously had no talent for making someone jealous, because her plan was far too obvious.

“You can forget that right now,” Hayden said calmly. “To Heath, we are history, and no handsome stranger is going to change that. Plus, I’m not the type to try a thing like that.”

“You never know until you try.”

Resolutely, she shook her head and lowered her eyes. “No way. If I go for coffee with a guy, it’s not because I want to make your brother jealous.”

“Oh!” Kayleigh gasp. She burst into giggles. “Who’s the lucky man you’re having coffee with?”

Hayden blushed violently. “What? What makes you think—”

“You’re a lousy liar, baby, and you can’t keep anything from me. You never could. So who’s your date?”

“It’s not a date,” Hayden hastened to insist. “We’re only having a cup of coffee together. There’s nothing more to it.”

Kayleigh gave her a knowing look. “You’ve never been single, Hayden. Coffee means you should shave your legs and straighten up your bedroom.”

Hayden’s eyes widened. “Stop! Coffee just means coffee. Who the hell would have sex after just meeting for coffee?”

“Me, for one.”

Hayden clicked her tongue. “And here you are talking of your Catholic upbringing!”

Her friend grinned mischievously. “I even use condoms, which probably means I’m going straight to hell.”

“I bet you’ll be in good company down there,” Hayden joked, but then she grew serious again. “It’s not a date, Kayleigh, okay? After Heath … I still can’t imagine being with anyone else.”

“Then why did you agree to have coffee with this guy?”

Hayden raised her hands in a gesture of helplessness. “Shane’s new partner asked me. He just moved here …”

“Shane’s new partner? Shit, Hayden, you’re really going for his balls!”

Beginning to feel annoyed, she gave Kayleigh a scathing look. “I beg your pardon?”

Kayleigh rolled her green eyes. “If you go out with Shane’s partner, Shane will get wind of it, and he’ll tell Heath. And that’s when the trouble starts. I can see at least half the family getting suspended, and I’m the one who’ll have to stitch them all up in the ER.”

“Stop exaggerating,” Hayden replied with a frown. “It’s none of Shane’s business what I do. And don’t get me started on Heath.”

“I thought you didn’t want to make him jealous?”

“I don’t. Alec and I will have coffee together, and that’s it.”

Kayleigh shook her head. “So if it’s not about making Heath jealous, what’s the purpose of this non-date?”

Hayden pursed her lips for a moment. “I’m just trying to get on with my life,” she said softly.

Chapter 6

Although he’d spent an hour sweating on the treadmill, attempting to exhaust himself completely, he still wasn’t tired, so he’d followed that with a round of weightlifting. He was now sitting on the butterfly machine, working on his shoulders and upper arms, panting as he listened to the loud music on his iPod.

When you had to operate heavy machinery at work, relying on your physical strength, continuous training was essential. Heath went to the gym several times a week and went jogging for general fitness. He preferred to do that outside, but because of the oppressive heat today, he’d chosen the air-conditioned fitness center he’d belonged to for a few years now. One of the perks of working for the Boston Fire Department was the municipal employee discount you got at several businesses. In general, the life of a firefighter was not very glamorous, even though movies and books suggested otherwise. What was true, however, was that you were immediately seen as a hero whenever you mentioned your profession.

His job was tough, dirty, and sometimes dangerous, and you weren’t paid as well as some people thought. Still, when he graduated from high school, Heath didn’t have to think for more than a second about what he wanted to do with his life. Maybe it was because both his father and his grandfather had been firemen before him, and he’d just followed that tradition, or maybe it had been his pronounced sense of duty that led him down this path. He simply knew that he couldn’t imagine doing anything else.

He let go of the handles on the machine and leaned back, picking up his towel from the gym floor and wiping his face with it. His eyes roamed the large room and scanned the other patrons, realizing he knew some of the men sweating on machines or straining under weights. There were a few colleagues of his, but also a few policemen he’d gotten to know while doing his job.

One of them was patrolman Jerry Macintosh, who had spotted him and was now coming over, holding on to both ends of the towel he had wrapped around his neck.

Heath pulled the earbuds from his ears and nodded at Jerry, who leaned against the butterfly machine and studied him curiously.

“Hey, Fitzpatrick. How are you?”

“Fine.” Heath grabbed his water bottle and took a large sip, leaning forward. “How about you?”

“Can’t complain. Teresa’s pregnant again.”

“Congrats,” Heath said warmly.

“Thanks. I’m hoping it’ll be a boy this time. We have an ultrasound next week, and I’m praying to God I’ll see a tiny penis on that screen.”

Heath had to grin, because he knew Jerry’s wife and their three daughters. He’d met the cop with the receding hairline a few years ago, when he was called to help with the rescue work after a train wreck. Jerry had just had his first daughter then, and ever since, he’d kept telling Heath about their pregnancies and his wish of having a son. Heath had seen the three little girls in action, wreaking havoc on the annual Easter egg hunt at the police department, so he could understand Jerry’s wish for a boy.

“Good luck with that. Please say hi to Teresa for me.”

“Will do.” Jerry’s pleasant mood faltered, the corners of his mouth suddenly curving downward. “I heard about you and Hayden. I’m sorry that it didn’t work out.”

Although Heath wondered what exactly Jerry had heard, and from whom, he didn’t inquire. “Thank you,” he muttered darkly.

“You were such a great couple, but sometimes it just isn’t meant to be.”

“Exactly.” He nodded, feeling like a fool and hoping Jerry would just shut up.

No such luck. The slightly gawky cop was known for being slow on the uptake. He was utterly unable to sense the moods of other people, which often caused him to say the exact wrong thing. He’d managed to screw up all the promotions he’d ever been recommended for, simply because he didn’t know when to speak and when to be silent. There was a rumor that he’d asked his captain, in front of half the department, when his wife was due. Everybody but Jerry was aware that the captain’s wife was
not
pregnant, simply very fat. And, what’s worse, everybody but Jerry also knew about the captain’s sterility, thanks to a few overeager gabbers in administration.

“I always thought you were a perfect match,” Jerry went on, “but it seems I was mistaken.”

Heath forced a monosyllabic, “Yep.”

“Hayden’s a great girl, and she can really cook. Do you remember the shepherd’s pie she made when you invited us over for dinner?” He didn’t wait for an answer, but let out an ecstatic moan. “God, I envied you so much for having a woman who could cook a thing like that.”

Heath ground his teeth and cleared his throat, but that didn’t stop Jerry.

“I wish Teresa could cook. We had a major fight after we left your house that night. I accused her of not making half the effort Hayden did. When we have guests, Teresa opens a few cans of pre-cooked spaghetti and serves them with potato chips. Can you imagine how embarrassing it is when my mom comes to visit?”

“Cooking is not everything,” Heath replied, fighting for composure.

“That’s easy for you to say, my friend. Sometimes, Teresa’s food is so bad I suspect she’s trying to poison me.”

If Jerry talked as much crap at home as he did elsewhere, Heath could sympathize with his wife trying to shut him up permanently.

“Before I met Teresa, I had a girlfriend who was a great cook,” Jerry rambled. “When she put a plate down in front of me, my mouth would water immediately. Sadly, she was the type who cried about every little thing. And then she had this rheumy eye and kept staring at me with it, so I’d lose my appetite before I even had a bite of her delicious food. How’s that for a vicious circle? That’s why I’ll take canned spaghetti.” He paused for only a moment. “Oh, I get it! Did Hayden maybe cry all the time, too?”

“No.”

“And she didn’t have a rheumy eye, either, did she?”

“No!” Heath started to get up, shaking his head violently. He didn’t want to talk about Hayden and her good eyes. It was hard enough to go through each day trying to keep himself from constantly thinking about her. It was unacceptable that he couldn’t even get a break at the gym. God was having a joke at his expense, sending Jerry into his path, and a mean joke it was.

“Well then …” Jerry said, and then he stepped in front of Heath so he had no choice but to sit back down again. “But seriously, I always thought you’d won the jackpot, being with Hayden. Even your mom was constantly singing her praises. My mom can’t stand Teresa.”

He had no idea how to answer that, so he merely stretched his neck and shrugged. “That’s just how it is sometimes.”

“Yeah, that’s what I always say. Maybe it’s better you went separate ways before you got married. My brother just got divorced. They were together five years, married one, and now they’re divorced. On top of the heartache, he lost a lot of money in the process, because she’s keeping the apartment, plus he has to pay alimony. You can bet he regrets the day he stepped up to the altar.”

“Uh-huh.” Heath cast a desperate glance around, hoping Jerry would get the hint before he had to yell at him to shut his stupid mouth. His patience had already worn thin, and he had a mind to take the much smaller man into a stranglehold, to choke him into silence.

He’d finally decided he needed to just stand up and leave, when Jerry took him by surprise. “If there’s no longer anything going on between you and Hayden,” he said innocently, I’d like to introduce her to my brother. The poor sod needs to meet a decent woman soon. Would that be okay with you?”

Hell, no!
That would not be okay with him at all. One look at Jerry, his receding hairline, and his tendency to sweat like a pig without exerting himself was enough to convince him that this man’s brother would not be good enough for Hayden. The thought galled him, but he remained outwardly calm as he stood abruptly and shrugged.

“Sure. It’s her business, not mine.”

“Okay … I just wanted to make sure you were really okay with that, because … after all, you were together for ages, and—”

“Jerry! I said it was okay.”

As if Jerry was not heavenly punishment enough, Heath saw his own brother enter the gym.
Great
. But Shane merely gave him a long look before stalking off in the opposite direction and stepping onto a treadmill. Heath ground his teeth and closed his eyes for a moment, trying to block out Jerry’s unceasing patter. It didn’t work, and he decided he’d had enough for one day.

He sighed and looked at the short policeman. It was hard not to make a face at him. “I’m out of here. Say hi to Teresa for me.”

“Of course. Won’t you come over some evening?”

Even though he’d had nothing but microwaved food for what felt like forever, and even though he spent his evenings in silence and loneliness, the idea of canned spaghetti and Jerry’s unbearable babble suddenly made his current lifestyle seem nice enough. Alone in his den, where he didn’t have to hear anybody talking about how Hayden might meet a new guy, at least he wouldn’t be in danger of shooting himself in the head.

“That would be nice, but I’m afraid my current shifts don’t leave me enough time for a night out,” he told Jerry evasively.

“Too bad. Teresa has a very nice friend. She’s single, and she’s a better cook than my wife, too. Maybe you should meet her.”

It was hard to stifle the dry laugh that wanted out, but Heath merely shook his head. “No, thanks. I’m too busy …”

“Well, just let me know if you change your mind. The girl is a little on the chubby side, but that’s just proof her food’s tasty.”

Could Jerry think of
anything
other than food? Heath thought the guy would be better off concentrating on his workout instead of obsessing over the culinary skills of every woman he knew. Heath said a hasty goodbye and was glad to escape the nightmare that was Jerry by slipping into the locker room.

In the hope that it would help him snap out of everything pressing on his mind, he took an icy shower. His patience had really reached its limits today, but he soon realized that it would be tested further. He stepped out of the shower and stepped over to his locked, and as he stood naked and dripping on the changing room floor, his brother appeared next to him. Without a word, he slapped something down next to Heath’s watch, which was sitting on the little shelf inside his locker. Heath had to push his wet hair back from his face to see what it was. He blinked away droplets of water and saw it clearly.