Rekindled (19 page)

Semi-lucid consciousness finds me in the morning when I hear my door creak open and the bed dip beneath someone’s weight. Blinking open one eye, I see Caleb lean over me and place a glass of water and two pills on my nightstand.

“Morning, little Miss Sunshine.”

Groaning, I pull my pillow over my head and lazily swat at him. “Go away, and tell whoever is outside with that jackhammer to stop it already. They’ve been at it since like five this morning.”

Caleb chuckles and pats my legs. “Lee, there is no jackhammer, and you need to get up. It’s almost noon and Jonah’s been dying to get out to the lake, but said he doesn’t want to go without you.”

Sighing, I roll onto my back and flop my arm across my eyes. Why is it so damn bright outside? And why did I drink so much last night when I knew I promised Jonah I’d take him swimming today?

“C’mon, you can do it.” Caleb helps me so that I’m sitting upright. “Take these, they’ll help you feel better.” He hands me the pills and glass of water as Jonah comes bounding into the room.

“Geez, you’re
finally
up! I’ve been waiting for forever,” he whines, as he pounces on my bed.

Wrapping my arms around him and peppering his face with kisses, I grin as he squirms in my hold and uses his little hands to furiously wipe away the spots where my lips have landed. My heart swells when I look at my beautiful boy and the smile that’s on his face. He’s wearing his favorite Spider-Man swim trunks and has a pair of goggles sitting on top of his hair which is neatly combed and parted to the side.

“Okay, bud, I’m going to get ready, and we’ll head down to the lake. Why don’t you go grab the sunscreen and have Uncle Caleb help you put it on?”

Twenty minutes later, I’ve managed to stuff myself into a bathing suit, pull my hair into a ponytail, brush my teeth, and wash my face. Caleb packed us a cooler filled with sandwiches, bottled waters, and a juice box for Jonah, along with a couple pieces of fruit and some veggies that I had bought the other day. Grabbing my purse and putting the sunscreen, a pair of sunglasses, and a bottle of aspirin in it, we lock up and mosey down to the lake.

The sun is out in full strength, intensifying my hangover, and the sunglasses I put on have done little to nothing to help me. We lay out our beach towels, and I bask in the warmth of the sand radiating through the thick cotton fibers. It feels like a salve to my aching limbs.

Jonah puts on his floaties without much protest, and he and Caleb sprint down the sand, leaping into the water. I watch as Caleb puts Jonah on his shoulders and they both dunk beneath the water before their heads pop back up, Jonah squealing with laughter. I give them a quick wave and then grab my phone from my purse, deciding to use my alone time to call Patty. We’ve sent a few emails back and forth, but since I’ve arrived in Idaho, we haven’t had much time to talk.

She picks up on the first ring. “Please tell me you’re calling to say that you’ve fixed all your problems and are coming back home today.”

I grin into my phone. “Miss me, do you?”

“You have no idea. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I love Scott and I love my mom, but neither of them gets me like you do. I had them watch the first few episodes of
Sons of Anarchy
. My mom didn’t like the violence, and Scott made it about halfway through before he called it a piece of crap and stormed off.”

“You didn’t gush over how hot Jax is, did you?”

“I might have … ugh, I’m an idiot, aren’t I?” she groans, and I can just picture her pacing her kitchen floor like she always does when she’s thinking something through.

“I’m sure he’ll get over it. It’s not as if he hasn’t ogled women on TV before. Remember that day he called off work so he could watch the Miss America pageant?”

“You’re right. I spent the next two weeks on that stupid juice cleanse trying to lose weight because I thought that’s what he wanted me to look like.”

I tried that juice cleanse with her and lasted an entire day before caving and eating an entire bucket of fried chicken. It was the best damn chicken I’ve ever had.

“See? So just remind him how much of a sexy stud you think he is and I’m sure he’ll forget all about your little obsession with a fictional character. Besides, I think it’s cute that you two still get jealous.”

“Maybe. Anyway, how are things with you? Eaten enough potatoes yet?”

“Very funny.” I drily answer her.

Pulling my phone away from my ear for a second, I take the time to snap a quick shot of the lake which is glistening from the rays of sunlight streaming down, with small boats gliding in the background. I know she’s received it when I hear her squeal come through the speaker.

“What the hell?
That’s
your view right now?” Disbelief echoes in her voice.

“Yep. This is Idaho. I know you must be disappointed that it’s not just one large state of potato fields. There’s actual people with homes and lives here,” I tease.

“Okay, you win. I had no idea Idaho had scenery like that. Speaking of surprises, have you had any from that husband of yours?”

“No, thank god. Caleb already paid off the creditors so that I wouldn’t have to worry about the payments, but I know Zach and I doubt he’s gone for good.”

“I still can’t believe he did that to you and Jonah just out of revenge for wanting a divorce. I mean, seriously, who does that?”

“I don’t know, he hasn’t been the same the past couple of years, ever since his gambling addiction worsened. It’s like his compulsion caused him to lose the ability to have any kind of rational thought. I think losing the house and taking all our money was his way of trying to show me how hard things would be without him.”

She laughs. “Well, that certainly backfired on him.”

“Pretty much. You wouldn’t hear me complain if I won the lotto, but I’m actually doing okay on my own.”

“I always knew you would. You’re a lot stronger than you give yourself credit for. It’s about time you recognized that, too.”

It’s been a few days since the bonfire, and aside from running into him at The Daily Grind coffee shop downtown, I haven’t seen or heard from Tate. I try to tell myself it’s for the best, considering Julia will be back in town soon, and I can’t expect to spend so much time with him when he has other things to worry about. Besides, Trista’s got me working the dinner shift all this week, so between working and spending time with Jonah, I don’t have much spare time anyway. So why does it bother me that I haven’t talked to him in a couple of days?

“Callie, you got a five-top at table seven. Asked for you specifically,” Trista says, smiling while jerking her head in the direction of my customers.

Wiping my hands on my apron, I take out my notepad and pull my pencil from behind my ear ready to recite the specials of the night when I see a group of men sitting at my table. Warmth spreads through me when I realize it’s Tate and his smokejumper buddies. Tonight’s been so busy, I didn’t even see them walk in, let alone sit at one of my tables. They’ve got soot all over their faces, and their jump suits are filthy and reek of smoke, but I’ve never seen a sexier group of men in my life.

“Hey, what are you guys doing in here?” I grin while giving a small wave to Tate and Matt.

“Just got back from a fire, and none of us wanted leftover stew that was back on base, so we decided to come down here instead,” Tate explains.

I nod while trying to squelch the noticeable butterflies zipping around my stomach at the sight of Tate in his jump suit. His hair is a disheveled mess and dark stubble peppers his jawline like he hasn’t shaved for a few days. He runs a hand through his hair and shoots me a smile. It should be illegal to look that good.

“Can I get you guys started with some drinks? Or an appetizer?”

“Sweetheart, we just spent the entire day in the woods with nothing but warm bottles of water, an energy bar and astronaut ice cream. I think we’re ready to order.” Ramon laughs.

“Alright, well what can I get for you guys?”

I take their orders and bring them a round of cold beers on the house, per Trista’s demand. I do my best to keep busy by refilling beverages, checking on my other tables, and helping Javier, one of our bus-boys, to wipe down tables. Anything to keep myself from staring at Tate, because it seems that regardless of what my head says, my heart keeps pulling my eyes in his direction.

An hour later, most of my other tables have left, so I walk over to check on Tate’s group who are all looking relaxed, laughing about something.

“Can I get you boys anything else?” I ask placing my hand on the backside of Tate’s chair.

“I think we’re good for now,” Tate says taking a drink of his beer. “Care to join us for a bit?”

“Oh, I uh—“

“Yeah, Callie, take a seat.” Justin stands up and gestures to his chair, as he grabs another from the next table.

“I’m not sure I’m allowed… I mean, I’m working, but thank you.”

Tate shakes his head as his hand reaches out and he yanks me so that I’m now sandwiched between him and Justin. “Tris won’t mind. Watch. Hey Tris! Callie’s taking a break!” He calls out and my eyes widen in horror.

“Tate,” I hiss. “What are you doing? You’re going to get me fired!”

“Relax, Tris won’t fire you because then she’d have to deal with me,” Tate says with a wink. “You know how much of a pain-in-the-ass I can be.”

Actually I don’t, at least not anymore. The Tate I knew back then was a pain-in-the-ass in the way that he used to try to make me laugh so that milk would squirt out my nose, or the way he would sneak a whoopee cushion underneath the padding of my chair when I’d get up to get a glass of water. Dorky. Quirky. Adorable. The Tate that I’m getting to know now seems completely different. This Tate is confident and dripping with so much sexual energy that all I want to do is wrap myself around him and drown in it.

Trista rolls her eyes but holds up her hand, giving me the okay.

“See?” Tate grins, and leaning over, he whispers, “Don’t worry, I’d never let anything happen to you.”

His breath feathers across my skin making goosebumps rise along my arms, and I have to fight to suppress the shiver that’s coiling down my spine. We’re in a room full of people, and yet right now all I can see are warm brown eyes looking at me, like everyone and everything else disappeared. I jump when I feel a finger tap my shoulder, bringing me back to the reality that we’re sitting at a table with four other guys.

“So, Callie,” Justin intervenes, “I didn’t really get a chance to get to know you at the bonfire. Did you have fun?”

Turning to face Justin, I smile and nod. “Yeah, I did, thanks. You guys had quite the turnout.”

“All Matt’s doing.” He smiles at Matt who’s leaning back, looking pleased.

“Yeah, Justin here is from Phoenix. He didn’t know shit about putting together a good bonfire before he became a smokejumper with us.” Matt laughs and Justin smiles good-naturedly.

“What made you decide to become a smokejumper?” I ask.

He shrugs and places an arm around the back of my chair. I feel Tate tense up, but I ignore it and listen as Justin talks about his family back in Arizona and how his dad had been a jumper in Montana before retiring and moving the family to Phoenix. Justin seems like a genuinely nice guy, and he’s definitely not hard on the eyes. His hair is a wavy mixture of brown and blonde that is cut short, and his eyes are a pale green beneath blonde lashes. He’s attractive in a clean-cut way, but if I’m being honest, he doesn’t hold a candle next to Tate.

The saying
time flies when you’re having fun
must be true because before I know it, Trista appears at the table with her arms crossed over her chest. “Alright, kiddos, I hate to be the one to break this party up, but Callie needs to get back to work. I’m not paying her to socialize.”

Scooting my chair back, I stand up and pull their check from my apron, placing it on the table. “No rush with this, just let me know when you’re ready to pay and I’ll pick it up.”

I start to step away when I see Justin stand up and walk towards me. “Callie?” He says wiping his hands on his jumpsuit. “I’m not sure what your situation is, but there’s this fundraising gala next weekend to help raise money for wildfire awareness, and I was wondering if maybe you’d want to go with me?”